Hi Everyone,
As some of you may have heard, l went down on my new bike at the recent West Coast Rally II. I wasn't going that fast (maybe 30-35 mph), and l am not really sure exactly how it happened. l do remember sailing wide on the corner and thinking l should have downshifted into 3rd. lt was suggested to me from one of the other riders that l may have locked up the rear tire. In any case, l highsided the bike and busted myself all up. I dislocated my right shoulder, and have a few other injuries that have cropped up. It is amazing how your foot can feel fine one day and then you wake up tomorrow and can't put an ounce of weight on it.
In any case, that isn't what l want to talk about. I want to talk about amazing people and how God was looking over me. I was riding with a great group of people. They were calm and cool and knew exactly what needed to be done, which was crucial considering we were way up some mountain road. Donna was awesome. I was so lucky to have her. If you have not met Derek and Donna, they are fantastic. Derek immediately started figuring out how to get my bike down the hill while Donna took care of my injuries. Donna is an EMT with 24 years of experience and knew exactly what to do, what l needed, and what to tell me at the proper time.
Not 5 minutes after she found me and started helping me, a sheriff happened along and he was an EMT as well. Between the two of them l was in great hands. The sheriff was able to call in an ambulance, which was half an hour away.
My shoulder was dislocated and the EMT's that showed up rigged my arm with a sling of sorts that took the weight off of me. I tell you, l think l have a pretty good tolerance for pain, but that injury was by far the most painful thing that has ever happened to me. Finally they got me and my big arse into the ambulance and on the road.
Brian and Robin were my EMT's, and they took great care of me. Robin was a volunteer and she helped Brian out until they got to her house, at the bottom of the hill, where we dropped her off and went on our way.
Brian gave me some Fentanyl to start with, and it immediately started working...unfortunately, that stuff makes you sick to your stomach, so l also got an anti-nausea medication as well. Then more Fentanyl, then more anti-nausea stuff. My guts lost the battle, and l threw up all over myself twice in the ambulance. Brian was fantastic, took great care to allow me to keep my dignity and helped me clean up and stay positive.
After a 90 minute ride we arrived at PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center, and they took great care of me, got me right into a room and l had a fantastic nurse named Kevin. The doctor came in, he was pretty cool too, and set me up for xrays. Meanwhile, they switched to Dilaudid. I knew it was bad when they gave me Dilaudid, as this is what Trina gets for her condition, which is extremely painful. And more anti-nausea stuff, and more vomiting. Then waiting for xrays. The hospital just happened to be transitioning to paperless charting, so it was an absolute zoo full of IT people and administrators.
Got my xrays, nothing is broken. Then they came in and gave me a local and two doctors worked together to put it back in place. One kept saying, "Push your chest out, take deep breaths" while the other was saying "Just relax and let me have it". Finally it went back in and the pain was drastically reduced.
Meanwhile, Trina and my sister, Kim, were speeding down I-5 to pick me up. They got there in the 6 o'clock hour and we headed home. l got sick another time or two, but all in all, made it home to my own bed as well as can be expected.
Everyone has been awesome. Garth said he could store my bike indefinitely. Derek and Donna are kind enough to bring my stuff to me on their way home tomorrow. Everyone that was there has been so thoughtful and supportive. Here l am, the new guy to the group, and everyone has treated me like an old friend. l can't say enough about the people in this group. l feel like the luckiest man in the whole wide world :)
Sorry to hear about the drop, but they happen. Learn from it and move on. And yeah, You meet the nicest people on an FJ. Best wishes for a speedy recovery...
Scott,
It was good to meet you and you already felt like an old friend given your posts on here, e-mails and chatting on the phone.
Wish I could have done more at the scene to have been of help to you, but as soon as Donna showed up I knew you were in great hands.
Most important thing right now is to focus on healing up. Good to hear nothing was broken.
If you need anything, just let me know.
-Garth
Wow! What a post... Get your self healed first, then we can work on your FJ. Sounds like you were in great hands and will make a full recovery. Keep posting so we know how you are doing.
Quote from: hawkaholic37 on August 03, 2015, 03:06:45 PM
everyone has treated me like an old friend. l can't say enough about the people in this group. l feel like the luckiest man in the whole wide world :)
this, too, is kookaloo :good2: right on
That sucks to hear of a fellow FJ owner hitting the tarmac. :cray:
I have had the pleasure to know everyone that was there with you. You could not ask for a better bunch to be with. :good:
Relax and get healed up. As the Monkey said, we can get the FJ back into top form once You get back to feeling well.
Fred
Sorry to hear about your get-off.
You were definitely in good hands there.
Derek, Donna, and Garth are truly wonderful people.
Glad you are able to tell us the story first-hand.
Heal up, and then worry about the bike. :drinks:
Heal well Scotty. Physically and mentally. It's important to forgive yourself.
When ready (no rush) let us know what you need for your bike.
TRoy said it best.... :good:
:hi:
Hat's off to you, Buddy! You're still here to tell about it!
You were definitely in good hands.
Heal up and get back on. ...unless you really clumsy.
Steve
Glad to hear your ok!!!!..I've highsided flipped and been launched from a rear ender...all sucked...but learned alot...Get well soon!
Bummer.
Well, join the club. I'm down an Fj right now, too.
Sorry to hear about the crash and as you found out it is a great group. Derek and Donna are a very special couple they have a special spot in my memories also. Heal, don't beat your self up, bikes are fixable. A significant number of us have been down the same road at one time or another so don't feel bad, get well and stay on the positive side.
George
Get well soon!
best wishes from a distance, well knowing how this feels...
Cheers Jo
Hawkaholic,
Best wishes on the recovery, for both you and the bike. Take the time to get things right (don't rush the process).
Cheers,
Red
Bummer about the get-off mate, rest up, heal well.
Scott,
It was great to meet you. Sorry that you had the unscheduled departed. Good news your injuries were not worse. Bike will be ok, they heal faster than we do. Sucks that your first rally experience ended this way. Wishing you a full and quick recovery. Please keep us updated.
Kurt @ Kiki
Scott, I'm very sorry that this happened and that you missed out on the rest of what ended up being a remarkable weekend. Your accident was definitely the low point of the 'get together', and we certainly kept you in our thoughts. The FJ didn't look too bad, and hopefully isn't that expensive to get back on the road.
In regards to your gear, I hope that I didn't miss anything when rounding it up in the room. I double and triple checked (especially, after missing your glasses on the initial sweep), and didn't see anything remaining. Kudo's to Donna and Derek for stepping up to bring it to you.
I hope that this incident doesn't dissuade you from getting back into the saddle, and that you can make another rally when your feeling up for it. It would definitely be great to see you back on two again.
Heal up, and take care.
Thanks for all the warm thoughts guys. The one thing that will always be a good memory from this is the people that were with me. I could not have asked for a better group of people to have been with, whether it had gone sour for me or not.
I went to see a shoulder specialist today. They took more Xrays, since the ones from the hospital in Vancouver never made it to them. Good thing, too, because they found that l actually did break the bone, and there is a piece of bone floating around loose in there. Additionally, he said that from a dislocation there is almost always a labrum tear, and though many people live regular lives without surgery, the labrum would never repair itself, and due to my work, which includes a lot of overhead work above ceiling, we decided to go ahead and do surgery. I will get MRI's on both my shoulders tomorrow, have a pre-surgery meeting with the surgeon immediately following, and the surgery is scheduled for next Wednesday. This will be followed by 6 weeks of lifting nothing heavier than a cup of coffee, and no lifting my arm above my shoulder. After the 6 weeks of rest, there will be 6 weeks of light stretching and gradually working to a full range of motion. So, basically, l am down for football season. Go Seahawks!!!
Thanks for the update.
It certainly could have been a lot worse.
Glad you are on the road to recovery. You get to take it easy for awhile, while you plan the repairs on the FJ. :drinks:
Hey Scott!
You'd be hard pressed to find someone on this forum who hasn't crashed...some on a rally, some in their own regular riding roads (me)...but you do know you didn't HAVE to crash to become a member here, right? :biggrin:
You now have lots of downtime to find new plastic bits, a new left handlebar and a few other things the bike might need. Your riding gear seems to have performed well against the fresh pavement and the bushes, but was no match for a knife in Donna's hands! While you rest up and heal up, treat yourself to something nice in the way of new armor!
That all being said, it was great having you and your great sense of humor along for the rally. You were certainly missed at the cabin in the nights that followed and we all look forward to riding with you again! :hi:
Be well and keep us posted as to your progress!
Hi Scott.
It was great meeting you! You were a welcome member of the group in the house and on the road. You were missed for the rest of the time we spent there.
It is always a horrible thing when one of our own has a crash, but it does bring us closer together as a group. Every member of our group pitched in and did their part to help a fellow rider in need. There was traffic control, medical assistance, the motorcycle to get home and general assistance of the emergency team as they needed it.
While I am sad this happened, I am glad that when we came upon the scene you were conscious and in reasonably good condition. Heal well Scott. Give your body the time it needs to recover. I hope that when you get through this you can find yourself back on two wheels again. We all would like to travel down the road with you again!
Derek