jcabiles
Member
It will be nearly a year since my motorcycle accident and like another member I would like to share some of the details of the event in the hope that some lessons can be shared and others can avoid a similar fate.
I live in Northern Virginia in a suburb of the WA DC Metropolitan Area. For those of you familiar with the area, traffic is horrible and many of the drivers are just as bad. At about 1:05 PM, 19 June, I was headed westbound on Rt 7 in Tyson’s Corner. I was in the right travel lane going about 30 - 35 mph and just went under the Rt 123 overpass, when out of the corner of my left eye I saw a car coming at me. It happened so fast, before I could say “What the”, the car hit me. I didn’t have time to hit the brakes or try to maneuver away from the car.
The car hit the bike around the passenger door area. I immediately went down and must have rolled a few times. The wind got knocked out of me, as I could not breath for what I thought was about 40 seconds. I felt extreme pain in my left chest area and when I finally got my breathing back it was very painful, shallow and labored. Luckily I could feel my extremities and felt my legs, arms and head. While on the ground I became immediately concerned about following traffic. Fortunately there was the absence of screeching tires.
Almost immediately several people came to my aid and one was identified as a Dr. She took my hand and did her triage thing, asking me my name, age, where I hurt, etc. and reassured me and that help was on its way. She stayed with me holding my hand till the EMTs arrived.
Not sure if this was before or after the EMTs arrived, but someone asked about who to notify, so I told them to get my cell from the motorcycle, gave them the access code and asked them to call my daughter, as she was the easiest to notify.
Luckily I was less than half a mile from a Fire Station, and the EMTs were attending to me within five minutes of going down. I wish I could adequately describe the exceptional treatment I received from the FCPS Fire and Rescue, INOVA Fairfax ER Staff and the Trauma Ward Staff. Everyone in the line of care did a wonderful job and I am forever grateful.
The result of my fall was five broken ribs (left chest) and a two inch circular road rash on my outside right knee.
The unfortunate part of this incident is that the offending driver was not charged. His statement to the responding Officer basically was that he was in his lane when the accident occurred. There were two “witnesses” noted in the Police Report but it was not clear if the Officer conducted a detailed interview. Based on the description I provided and the Offender’s statement, the Police officer could not the determine who was at fault and did not charge anyone. There is no doubt in my mind that the other driver changed lanes and struck me.
ATGATT definitely helped my survival, but some things will never mitigate the actions of careless drivers. There was considerable damage to my helmet (face shield scratched and shell scraped in the forehead area) and riding pants (impact to the right knee area at the zipper caused the zipper to open and a zipper tooth to break resulting in road rash), and my jacket and boots sustained minor scruffing. A later detailed inspection of the jacket showed the left elbow pad took a major hit resulting in a gouge in the CE Pad. I do remember the EMT who was attending me, gave me kudos for wearing the right gear. Based on his experience, I think he was surprised how well I came out of the accident.
During my brief stay in the hospital I began the process of notifying insurance companies and the claims process. More importantly I wanted to contact the two witnesses noted in the Accident Report to find out what they saw. One witness was not available and never returned my calls. The second witness was available and both the driver and passenger were able to validate that the offending driver came from the far left lane and struck me in an attempt to make an exit. With this new information I contacted both insurance carriers and notified them of the witness account. Without this key witness account, I don’t think I would have received full reparation.
So what are some Lessons Learned/Take Aways from this. One of course is that ATGATT can save lives as well as minimize injuries. I was very fortunate that I only had a minor road rash and some broken ribs. Without my full gear I’m sure I would have had more significant injuries. Since the accident, I have upgraded my gear to include a Helite Turtle Vest. A Helite vest would certainly have protected my ribs from breaking.
Insurance and Attorneys. I was fortunate that there was a witness to the accident that validated that the driver was at fault. Without this witness and “No Determination” in the Police Report, the insurance claim process would have been difficult and most likely taken a longer time to settle. As it turns out my insurance company paid out the limits of my policy and the Offenders insurance fully covered the remainder of my medical bills and then some. Without corroborating evidence I would have sought assistance from a Motorcycle Injury specific Law Firm to assist in the insurance claim process.
Motorcycle Repair. I had recently purchased a very low mileage R1200 GS and had BMW panniers and engine guards installed. When the bike went down, it landed on the left side and surprisingly sustained minimal damage. The engine guards took the brunt of the impact, getting bent in and damaging the left cylinder cover; the left turn signal got scratched, and the left pannier was also scratched on the bottom trim. My insurance covered all repairs. The downside was while the bike was waiting for parts and installation, the battery drained completely and was not recoverable. Apparently there was a parasitic draw due to a phone mount that I installed and it was still attached to a pig tail directly connected to the battery.
Recovery. I only spent the one day and evening in the hospital and was released the following morning. The surgeon said that recovery of my ribs would take six to eight weeks. It could have been longer if the ribs were broken through and required plates, but they were ONLY cracked. After six weeks most of the pain was gone and at eight weeks I was pain free.
My major concern about recovery was the use of prescription pain medication. I can handle pain fairly well and I believe that being able to feel pain gives me a better understanding of how well my body is healing. I can understand how people can become reliant and addicted to pain meds. When the EMT gave me a shot of morphine at the accident site, the feeling was quite euphoric. At the hospital I was given oxycodone to manage my pain but it also caused constipation (a known side effect). I chose to stop taking the oxycodone after the second day and use a lower grade pain medication so that I would not need another medication to counteract the constipation. Modern pharmaceuticals are great but they can have a dark side if abused/misused.
Situational Awareness. I consider my self to be safe driver/rider. In my earlier years commuting in the WA DC area I was what many would call an aggressive driver; trying to shave minutes from my commute. But I learned that any benefits derived from driving aggressively were minuscule compared to the risks. I am more relaxed and conservative now. In my latest career I became a School Bus Driver and the training and experience has made me more situationally aware and safer. I am on constant lookout and avoid the people who are texting/talking on their phones, Lane Switchers, checking the traffic at least a quarter mile ahead and try to anticipate what people around my periphery might do. Even with Hi-Viz riding gear I’ve had people try to change into my lane (without signaling) and pull out from side streets in front of me. You can never let your guard down. Now, people changing lanes from the far left to make an exit will be added to my Data Bank.
Emergency Contact and Medical Info. Since I was conscious, I was able to provide the EMTs and Medical Staff my personal information, emergency contacts and key medical information. If I had been unconscious, the EMTS and Medical would not have key information to treat me properly. In the Military we had Dog Tags that provided some of that key information. As a result of the accident I have added a card with Personal Info, Key Contacts, and Medical Information (Medications and Allergies). This card is laminated with a conspicuous red ribbon (Emergency written on the ribbon) attached that protrudes from the front pocket of my jacket.
I hope that my sharing this experience is of help to the riding community. I thoroughly enjoy the experience of motorcycling and especially the community of riders. I wish you all good luck and good roads and above all, BE SAFE!
I live in Northern Virginia in a suburb of the WA DC Metropolitan Area. For those of you familiar with the area, traffic is horrible and many of the drivers are just as bad. At about 1:05 PM, 19 June, I was headed westbound on Rt 7 in Tyson’s Corner. I was in the right travel lane going about 30 - 35 mph and just went under the Rt 123 overpass, when out of the corner of my left eye I saw a car coming at me. It happened so fast, before I could say “What the”, the car hit me. I didn’t have time to hit the brakes or try to maneuver away from the car.
The car hit the bike around the passenger door area. I immediately went down and must have rolled a few times. The wind got knocked out of me, as I could not breath for what I thought was about 40 seconds. I felt extreme pain in my left chest area and when I finally got my breathing back it was very painful, shallow and labored. Luckily I could feel my extremities and felt my legs, arms and head. While on the ground I became immediately concerned about following traffic. Fortunately there was the absence of screeching tires.
Almost immediately several people came to my aid and one was identified as a Dr. She took my hand and did her triage thing, asking me my name, age, where I hurt, etc. and reassured me and that help was on its way. She stayed with me holding my hand till the EMTs arrived.
Not sure if this was before or after the EMTs arrived, but someone asked about who to notify, so I told them to get my cell from the motorcycle, gave them the access code and asked them to call my daughter, as she was the easiest to notify.
Luckily I was less than half a mile from a Fire Station, and the EMTs were attending to me within five minutes of going down. I wish I could adequately describe the exceptional treatment I received from the FCPS Fire and Rescue, INOVA Fairfax ER Staff and the Trauma Ward Staff. Everyone in the line of care did a wonderful job and I am forever grateful.
The result of my fall was five broken ribs (left chest) and a two inch circular road rash on my outside right knee.
The unfortunate part of this incident is that the offending driver was not charged. His statement to the responding Officer basically was that he was in his lane when the accident occurred. There were two “witnesses” noted in the Police Report but it was not clear if the Officer conducted a detailed interview. Based on the description I provided and the Offender’s statement, the Police officer could not the determine who was at fault and did not charge anyone. There is no doubt in my mind that the other driver changed lanes and struck me.
ATGATT definitely helped my survival, but some things will never mitigate the actions of careless drivers. There was considerable damage to my helmet (face shield scratched and shell scraped in the forehead area) and riding pants (impact to the right knee area at the zipper caused the zipper to open and a zipper tooth to break resulting in road rash), and my jacket and boots sustained minor scruffing. A later detailed inspection of the jacket showed the left elbow pad took a major hit resulting in a gouge in the CE Pad. I do remember the EMT who was attending me, gave me kudos for wearing the right gear. Based on his experience, I think he was surprised how well I came out of the accident.
During my brief stay in the hospital I began the process of notifying insurance companies and the claims process. More importantly I wanted to contact the two witnesses noted in the Accident Report to find out what they saw. One witness was not available and never returned my calls. The second witness was available and both the driver and passenger were able to validate that the offending driver came from the far left lane and struck me in an attempt to make an exit. With this new information I contacted both insurance carriers and notified them of the witness account. Without this key witness account, I don’t think I would have received full reparation.
So what are some Lessons Learned/Take Aways from this. One of course is that ATGATT can save lives as well as minimize injuries. I was very fortunate that I only had a minor road rash and some broken ribs. Without my full gear I’m sure I would have had more significant injuries. Since the accident, I have upgraded my gear to include a Helite Turtle Vest. A Helite vest would certainly have protected my ribs from breaking.
Insurance and Attorneys. I was fortunate that there was a witness to the accident that validated that the driver was at fault. Without this witness and “No Determination” in the Police Report, the insurance claim process would have been difficult and most likely taken a longer time to settle. As it turns out my insurance company paid out the limits of my policy and the Offenders insurance fully covered the remainder of my medical bills and then some. Without corroborating evidence I would have sought assistance from a Motorcycle Injury specific Law Firm to assist in the insurance claim process.
Motorcycle Repair. I had recently purchased a very low mileage R1200 GS and had BMW panniers and engine guards installed. When the bike went down, it landed on the left side and surprisingly sustained minimal damage. The engine guards took the brunt of the impact, getting bent in and damaging the left cylinder cover; the left turn signal got scratched, and the left pannier was also scratched on the bottom trim. My insurance covered all repairs. The downside was while the bike was waiting for parts and installation, the battery drained completely and was not recoverable. Apparently there was a parasitic draw due to a phone mount that I installed and it was still attached to a pig tail directly connected to the battery.
Recovery. I only spent the one day and evening in the hospital and was released the following morning. The surgeon said that recovery of my ribs would take six to eight weeks. It could have been longer if the ribs were broken through and required plates, but they were ONLY cracked. After six weeks most of the pain was gone and at eight weeks I was pain free.
My major concern about recovery was the use of prescription pain medication. I can handle pain fairly well and I believe that being able to feel pain gives me a better understanding of how well my body is healing. I can understand how people can become reliant and addicted to pain meds. When the EMT gave me a shot of morphine at the accident site, the feeling was quite euphoric. At the hospital I was given oxycodone to manage my pain but it also caused constipation (a known side effect). I chose to stop taking the oxycodone after the second day and use a lower grade pain medication so that I would not need another medication to counteract the constipation. Modern pharmaceuticals are great but they can have a dark side if abused/misused.
Situational Awareness. I consider my self to be safe driver/rider. In my earlier years commuting in the WA DC area I was what many would call an aggressive driver; trying to shave minutes from my commute. But I learned that any benefits derived from driving aggressively were minuscule compared to the risks. I am more relaxed and conservative now. In my latest career I became a School Bus Driver and the training and experience has made me more situationally aware and safer. I am on constant lookout and avoid the people who are texting/talking on their phones, Lane Switchers, checking the traffic at least a quarter mile ahead and try to anticipate what people around my periphery might do. Even with Hi-Viz riding gear I’ve had people try to change into my lane (without signaling) and pull out from side streets in front of me. You can never let your guard down. Now, people changing lanes from the far left to make an exit will be added to my Data Bank.
Emergency Contact and Medical Info. Since I was conscious, I was able to provide the EMTs and Medical Staff my personal information, emergency contacts and key medical information. If I had been unconscious, the EMTS and Medical would not have key information to treat me properly. In the Military we had Dog Tags that provided some of that key information. As a result of the accident I have added a card with Personal Info, Key Contacts, and Medical Information (Medications and Allergies). This card is laminated with a conspicuous red ribbon (Emergency written on the ribbon) attached that protrudes from the front pocket of my jacket.
I hope that my sharing this experience is of help to the riding community. I thoroughly enjoy the experience of motorcycling and especially the community of riders. I wish you all good luck and good roads and above all, BE SAFE!
