My crash story

[ALB80-850]

Update...

Well, its been a few months since I posted. Have been rather busy. The healing process is coming along slowly.I went back to my factory job for 4 hours/day back in January and am still on that schedual. Also went back to my part time job at the park as well for a few days a week. I have realized I will probably have a limp forever, and nerve damage takes forever to heal. My right foot starts out each day 1/2 numb and after 4 hrs on concrete its all numb as well as the side of my knee, which will cause me to stand on my good leg which causes my back to ache. When I get home and off my feet for a while the aches & pains subside. That is pretty much the circle I travel everyday. Walking on grass, snow, dirt or anything that gives a little, is a whole lot easier on me than concrete. Before I went back to work I had a nerve function test. The results were that I had " incomplete nerve damage ", which means the nerves are healing at the rate of about 1mm per day. I have that test repeated sometime in May. I hope I shows progress, 2 months since the 1st test and I really don't see any change. I go to the Dr. next week to see if they are going to increase my hours/day to 6 or 8 or leave them a 4 a while longer. I never did get a chance to try to ride last fall. I still want to give it a shot in the spring. That way if I decide to get another bike, I can pay top spring dollar for one\\/. If anybody is looking for 80-850G parts, I'm going to list my bike soon. PM me with any questions. Pat, I intend to go to the WNY Rally either on 2 or 4,I'll keep ya posted. If Shirley runs out of room we may use our rod & gun club for overflow. Thats all for now.

Have fun & Be safe,

Andy

[MissFabulous]

Hey, Andy! Glad you're doing well. I'm working out your way three days a week at Almighty Tattoo (320 Cherry St. near the Cherry Lounge) now in addition to my shop. Stop in sometime and say hey - I'm there 3-10 or so Wed-Friday. Hope to see you soon!

[RJz1100E]

Hi Andy, I'm new to the site and I just read this entire thread for the first time.
Thank you for telling the story, and I'm glad that you are getting better. I'm going to come back and read this every now and then to help myself to stay aware and alert.
I have just gotten back on a bike for the first time since 1991. I had a crash back then but it was my fault and I was not injured nearly as bad as you were. I was playing around and speeding (100 mph in a 35) on an unfamiliar country road when I came up on an almost 90 degree turn with a telephone pole just past the midway point of the turn on the outside. I knew that I could'nt get slowed down enough to make it around the turn without going wide and possibly getting in the loose stuff and possibly sliding into the pole or hitting the pole, so I made the decision to scrub off as much speed as I could before I ran out of asphalt and laid the bike down as I was heading off the road.
Got some road rash and a broken collarbone out of it. Bike was totaled.

I can save myself from myself but, your story will help me to save myself from others. Thank you and I hope that you continue to get better.
See you at the Fabulous WNY Rally! :-D

Rj

[mf70]

Andy:

I think the narrative of the recovery is as important as the narrative of the crash. I trust that those nerves will continue to heal 1mm at a time...

Please keep posting.

MarkF

[Ausgs1000G_rider]

Nice piece of sculpture you have there. In all seriousness I've had a few prangs of my own (including being deliberately rear ended by a 20 tonne truck,which then did a runner, and sliding down gravel at 80kph on my face, both of which I walked away from, the bikes didn't). I had a similer thing happen on a FZR 250 with someone pulling a surprise u-turn on me. luckily I swerved in time and only the can hit the side of the car which pushed the back end back in line with the front. I then pulled over, the car didn't. There wasn't any damage to the bike so instead of being out of pocket and pi**ed right off. I was only one of the two. i hope you manage to get back riding again as being confined to a tin can would be a fate worse than death (well maybe not, but almost).

[marz]

hello!

gald to see youre still alive perhaps ill slow down a little.reminds me of whence i hit a volvo.just soft tissiue with me.but it still took several mths.i know it is easyto say but try and be patincte its a long road in fromnt of you.but you can always leave messages on the board and hopfully one of us will give you somthing to read.stay cool dude all the best.
m

[Kudagra]

Im glad to see you are alive and better. Bikes can be replaced (well..kind of..you can get another one) but life isnt.

I had a friend that was t-boned in an intersection in a mazda p/u. He broke a bunch including his pelvis. One of the funniest and sad things Ive ever heard was:

"Ya ever try taking a crap with a broken pelvis???" He said he almost passed out a few time trying that. He said it laughing and had a good outlook...what else CAN you have at that point.

Glad you are healing. I still have nerve damage on my left side from a spill in the dunes in 1990...and that was soft stuff.

[ALB80-850]

Greetings all,

Not really an update, even though I need to post one. There was another accident at the same intersection where I had my wreck. The exact same thing happened, but the victims were in a car. The passenger broke her neck,pelvis and leg. Anybody traveling around Rt 353 and North state street in Salamanca, NY Look out! It's only a matter of time before someone gets killed.

Be Safe,

Andy

[bonanzadave]

Greetings all, Be Safe,

Andy

Hey Andy, coming up on a year and a half. How you doing ? Last spring I had a young girl pull the same thing on me. Im glad I was in my truck. I had that split second to react (no brakes) to avoid hitting her passenger door at 50mph. Yes, she did have a passenger. I hit her just fwd of the passenger door. What a mess.

Hope youre doing well....

[simon kuether]

Gooday Andy, just read this thread as I don't like reading about this kind of thing. Guess it brings back to many memories of my and mates prangs/ fatalities.Glad to see you're recovering.Ditto to all the other replies you're getting.One thing I've done is to keep one of my wrecks in my shed with my other rides ('88 k100rs beemer & '79 GS1000S).Every time I get ready to go for a ride it reminds me of how it can go real bad ,real quick.Psycho crap or what, I don't know but I do know I'm always scanning ,to the point that now I don't realise I'm doing it anymore.Goodluck for the future whether you decide to get back on or not. Cheers.

[ALB80-850]

Update...Sorta

Greetings All,

I have had a few tests done recently. The good news is I am getting better:-D The bad news is, it's taking forever. The nerves in my right leg are only about 75-80% recovered, and are not going to get any better. But the muscles are strong and it won't keep me from riding. My lower leg and foot are pretty numb, walking and standing are the hardest and get worse as the day progresses. I have two more surgeries to go that I know of. 1 for a hernia as a result of the surgery to fix my pelvis. The other is to herniated disc in my back, which wasn't diagnosed until this past September. Most likely from the impact of hitting the ground, the same thing that broke the right side of my pelvis. This is going to be done Feb.13th, little over 2 weeks away. Wish me luck. Hope to be back to work sometime in April. I'll post again after with the results.

Thanks for your support,

Andy

[HammerHead]

Greetings All,

I have had a few tests done recently. The good news is I am getting better:-D The bad news is, it's taking forever. The nerves in my right leg are only about 75-80% recovered, and are not going to get any better. But the muscles are strong and it won't keep me from riding. My lower leg and foot are pretty numb, walking and standing are the hardest and get worse as the day progresses. I have two more surgeries to go that I know of. 1 for a hernia as a result of the surgery to fix my pelvis. The other is to herniated disc in my back, which wasn't diagnosed until this past September. Most likely from the impact of hitting the ground, the same thing that broke the right side of my pelvis. This is going to be done Feb.13th, little over 2 weeks away. Wish me luck. Hope to be back to work sometime in April. I'll post again after with the results.

Thanks for your support,

Andy

Andy,
I can only emagine the pain and suffering you and your family have gone through........................damn.
Can't wait to hear about your first ride..............Keep at it, it will happen.

[ALB80-850]

Greetings All,

Well, I didn't make it back to work in April. I did have my back surgery in Feb. and it went pretty well. I needed an extra surgery a week later to fix a spinal fluid leak, but alls well now. Also had my guts fixed just over 2 weeks ago. Did not enjoy that on tiny little bit. Of course more cutting was needed to be done instead of less. I am recovering well. The last 4 days have been great. Limited to 20 pounds for lifting for another 4 weeks, but already have a work release for 1 June:-D, I'll find out next week if my back Dr. feels the same way about work. I'm ready.
In the mean time, I have been working on my bike. Finally finished the carbs, pulled the calipers for rebuild and decided to bead blast them and powdercoat them. Going to re-install with new SS lines. Right now, I have 4 broken exhaust studs to contend with. A mechanic friend is going to help with the drilling and tapping, if needed. I also am trying to decide on the exhaust. The orignal is shot and the replacement is off year(muffler mounts don't line up) so, I'm either going to modify the brackets or go aftermarket(V&H 4-1) I want to stay stock, but am leaning toward aftermarket. Either way, I will be at the WNY Road Closed rally, 2 or 4 wheels. My goal for the entire season is to ride to the Moosehead Lake rally in August(b-day present to self).

This whole chapter in my life is rapidly approaching 2 years(May 30,2006)After 5 major surgeries, there is light at the and of the tunnel. I cannot thank you guys and gals enough for your support, kind words, thoughts, prayers and advice. I think I really found the right group of people at the right time in my life. Thank you.

Andy

[bonanzadave]

Weird....

With riding season coming around up here I actually got to thinking about you. I dont know you from adam and would have never heard or thought about your story if not for the GSRs.

Glad to hear your coming around and soon to be back in the saddle.

Thanks for sharing.

[PAULYBOY]

Andy, great to hear the progress and the prognosis. I have an exhaust from the 83 GS850 frame we took from the junkyard if you need it.