crash!!

[Jge64]

Get better Mel.....and your wife too......

[Indyglow]

So Mel, dreaming of your next bike yet???

[Oyabun]

I haven't been there in that situation, and I also think in metric so my sense of distance can be way off therefore I definitely don't want to judge - but if there was 40 yards for rolling - I guess by staying upwards and braking for that distance the impact could potentially a lot less.

+1 to Sendler I'd like to also benefit from understanding if there's anything one could learn to avoid such injury. I know how it is - though I usually had injured myself at the racetrack - but I was a bit younger to recover also.

I wonder if the correct approach (if you have 2 seconds to make the decision) is to rise up (almost standing) before impact.

Nope, the correct approach is to buy a scooter with ABS so you can ram the brakes on as hard as possible, staying upright and in full control.

[Mel46]

My helmet was an AFX. Hers was a Bell. They both performed beautifully. My choice to lay the bike down was based on multiple previous accidents in the same type of situation. I locked the brakes but this bike does not have duel disc brakes, which would have helped a lot. The car closest to us that we were trying not to hit was a BMW 7 series. Had I not lain it down I would have most likely gone through te rear window, or my other choice was to go right into the middle of the multi car crash, with one vehicle having a flatbed trailer with the tailgate sticking up. I would give it a 50/50 chance of being impaled. No good choices. She went for the ditch. I went the opposite direction to avoid her.

[homie]

I was wondering how that worked out when riding semi-abreast in the same lane. Sure one would ditch and the other would have to stay the course. A natural reaction especially if you cared about the other rider. Note to self... ride with loved one to the outside of the lane when cruising.

[Mel46]

http://m.wsbtv.com/news/news/local/poli ... ear/nnfx9/
.
It made the local news.

[homie]

It made the local news.

Two lane county highway's at 55 mph with passing allowed are almost non-existent in Chicagoland. Very dangerous head on collisions being the horror of such situations have reduced two lane highways to much lesser speeds or have been replaced with 2 lanes and a grace space or divider between and no pass with emergency lanes. That's a tough road to ride on a scooter as you would need to match traffic speed or be passed by crazies you two are lucky indeed.

[ScooteringAbout]

How bad are the bikes?

[yak]

Mel, thanks for the link. Highway 20 is now open. The reporter mentioned that the male PCX driver is a local celebrity. That would be you.

[gn2]

I locked the brakes but this bike does not have duel disc brakes, which would have helped a lot

If one disc and a drum locked, i.e. overcame the available friction between tyre and road, how could an extra disc possibly help?

"Laying the bike down" (known to most people as "crashing") just robs you of stopping ability, there's no way the bodywork on the road can decelerate you better than the tyres.

ABS should not be underestimated, it easily outperforma a human.

[Seph]

Sorry to hear this. I hope you both make a quick recovery! Who's idea was it to make road surfaces so damn uncomfortable to fall on?!

Can you believe five have gone down since you Seph

It's such a shame for anyone. Just hope no one lets the fear get to them.
safe riding all!

[Mel46]

The big problem on that road was the face that repairs were done by dripping that black tar like a snake, giving us a lot of slick surfaces to watch out for as well as traffic. That road in particular has a lot of accidents. It has become the shortcut between the northwest corner of Atlanta and the northeast corner, and all upper points in between. Much of the expansion in Atlanta has gone north, so lots of subdivisions up there, and businesses.

[Mel46]

After physically rolling down the highway for 40 yards I was surprised that I was able to get up, pick up my bike and move it to where my wife was trapped under hers in the ditch, pick up her bike off of her, roll it to the base of the hill, start it, ride it back up the hill, talk to witnesses, pick up the broken pieces to our bikes, take pictures, call our insurance, talk to the police and emts, and still have the ability to help medical personnel get my wife to her feet with a broken and dislocated shoulder...and call our neighbors to arrange for a ride home from where the police officer agreed to dropped us off. They would have had to call another ambulance for my wife but I told them I would take her to the emergency room in our own county. The accident was in a pound County so who knows where we would have ended up, and still have to find a way home. All I can do is praise that motorcycle gear. It worked. That is what counts.

[Mel46]

The spelling likes to correct itself but the county is suppose to be a Poo-dunk county, like in out in the boondocks.

[tbln930]

Wow - quite a story. Glad you both are alright. I am so glad I don't have to deal with much traffic and mainly none most of the time. My HD camera is always rolling too. I have turned in two clips and one driver got a nasty ticket so far. There are some real crazies out there.

The clip is strange they break away to an eye witness for some details and she says almost nothing except how she feels.

[WhiteNoise]

Oh God, when I saw the word Crash my eyes ran to the right of it to see who it was. Mel!

What a horrific accident and the thought that it could have been much worse is beyond words.
Yes, praise your scooter armored attire, and praise God that you're both still here and in great shape considering the fall(s). I just keep sighing, and taking deep breaths. Soo friggin' scary!
I truly believe you two had angels as pillions....no Pearly Gates that day for You, no Sir, no Ma'am!

"You" Mr. Mel are the Man! You did more than anyone expected with all your trauma/drama and pain. What a Guy! I pray you and your wife (poor thing with a broken shoulder...ouch), heal fast. Take your time. I know you've been here before, accidents are nothing new, but we age and We don't Roll the way we use to.

Stay close to each other, Love heals.

I'm So Very Happy that the Two of You are Okay, I really am

[homie]

pick up my bike and move it to where my wife was trapped under hers in the ditch, pick up her bike off of her, roll it to the base of the hill, start it, ride it back up the hill, talk to witnesses, pick up the broken pieces to our bikes, take pictures, call our insurance, talk to the police and emts.

whilst wifey is still in the ditch? sorry I'm sure this was after tending to wife Oh there she is!

[JohnL]

Mel, So sorry to hear about your crash, hopefully your wife and yourself recover completely and take to the road again. Also hope that your back is not affected.

A secondary thought and nowhere near important, are the bikes written off or recoverable?

[Mel46]

The bikes have around $1300 worth of damage each. I can repair them. My wife, not so much so. She just came from a specialist who said that she has at least 4 pieces of bone floating around in there and that the head at the top of the arm that goes into the socket actually ripped away and broke pieces of the cup area. Surgery is required. We are trying to work on financial help right now. She doesn't have any other insurance aside from the low medical that we inadvertently had on our motorcycle insurance ($2.000). I understand that there are programs out there that can help, so we will check on Monday. Here is hoping.

[WaunaPCX]

sorry to hear about that Mel, last thing you want to deal with after that emotional trauma is some wallet trauma. I hope you and the mrs. are able to get that sorted.

thanks for sharing your story, it's an lesson to us all.

I'm definitely going to get full armor now. I saw you mention the helmets. What jacket & pants do you ride with? Cheers