From Heaven to Hell in a fraction of a second

[Isaac]

A buddy and I left Donner Lake two weeks ago in the morning for a ride down 49 to Donnieville, continuing on to Marysville Rd and then up La Porte Rd to Quincy and back to Donner Lake.
The ride on the newish 1200 Multi over the Mts was Heaven. No traffic, perfect rhythm and pavement and floating through endless twisties.
That ended in a fraction of a second near Donnieville when a rock the size of a soccer ball appeared 3 feet from the front wheel of my Multistrada. At the speed I was traveling, 3 feet was "right now". This was a displaced rock where there should not have been one - no hillsides nearby. The pavement was dappled with shade, and the road had just opened to a stretch of straight. Maybe I took the opportunity to glance at the river. Whatever. 3 feet!
I went down hard! Real hard. The rock blew apart into 5 pieces I am told, The tire blew, the rim bent in until it was jammed against the rotor and caliper and instantly froze the front wheel.
I landed on my left shoulder and knee, barrel rolled 3 times like a rag doll and slid about 30 feet. The bike slid about 50 - 100 feet.
From then on, I was in motorcyclist Hell!

But I'm really writing this about the gear.
Nolan flip up helmet, First Gear mesh pants & jacket, Sidi race boots, Joe R gloves.
The helmet worked. I took a very hard scraping hit, gouged the left side but it protected my head. Flip stayed down. No head issues other than I broke off a front tooth at the gum line somehow.
The jacket & pants failed miserably! Part my fault, part design and fabric. I did not have the pants zippered to the jacket so it rode up and I have road rash on my stomach and back. The pants were too loose so the knee armor did not stay in place, the pants totally shredded, so my left knee was ground down so the knee cap is visible at the bottom of the crater. The pants were not tucked into the boots nor secured so they rode up as well and road rashed my right shin. The mesh fabric was crap - completely shredded where ever there was road contact. No better than jeans except it holds the armor. The jacket armor, I think did help a lot, but the fabric shredded at the neck/shoulder, tore and the stitching and rivets failed.
Boots were great! Scraped and gouged but no foot issues.
Gloves seem unharmed.
My buddy was great! After watching this spectacle unfold in front him, he did all the right stuff and really helped me.
All in all, I lucked out. This was a life threatening crash yet I have no structural damage, just rash and some extreme soreness all over.
Bike was seriously trashed but probably not totaled. Whatever! That's what insurance is for.
So what did I learn?
It can happen in an instant and can be beyond control or avoidance.
Short cuts with the type & quality of gear and how we wear it is rolling the dice.
Getting hurt really hurts and can totally ruin your day.

[Gilles]

Good on you for telling us your story, and very happy that you are able to.

One thing I've learned here in Romania is to expect the unexpected. On a trip (back home in Canada) this year, I had a similier story to yours riding a Harley.

Twister road and a pool-ball sized pebble on the road. Fixated on it and sure enough hit it (like an idiot). About 1 hour later, around a corner 10m ahead a basketball sized rock right on my track. The earlier idiot-chastisement was enough to make me remember to look where I need to go...

[VinoDuc]

Isaac,

I'm glad to hear that you'll be OK. That milli second before the impact must have been stomach churning. All the best!

[DT996]

Here's to a quick recovery and getting back on your feet! Thanks for sharing what can be considered a good story by most accounts (excluding the knee and other rash). Hope to see you leathered up and back at it when you are ready...

[bruce19]

Thanks for sharing this story. It mirrors my "adventure" on the Blue Ridge Pkwy a couple years ago. Suomy Extreme helmet totally thrashed but saved my life I'm sure. Alpinestars 2-pc suit and Sidi boots all did their job and being worn still. Racer High End gloves failed immediately. I believe Motowheels still sells these gloves but I will never buy another pair. As you pointed out, there is no substitute for wearing good gear. Glad you're still with us.

[J9Fred]

Thanks to the OP for your description of your crash. I will pray you will have a speedy recovery. Road rash is no joke and is very painful.

I have been "rolling the dice" when in town riding is all I'm planning on doing. First Gear mesh pants and Marsee mesh jacket. They have always made me feel a little uneasy, now I know why. Back to vented leather all the time.

[bruce19]

Originally Posted by J9Fred

I have been "rolling the dice" when in town riding is all I'm planning on doing.

I feel the same. While I usually wear my perfed leather jacket, I'm also usually in jeans. I've tried those kevlar lined jeans and think they are really not the answer. I wish someone would come up with some (at the very least) lightly padded jeans that look "normal" and will still give some impact protection.

[jcasella]

Wow and thanks for the play'by'play on each piece of equipment. Hope you heal up quickly. Guess there is really nothing but a full race suit that will protect you. I had just gotten used to a dainese mesh jacket w/ shoulder back and elbow/forearm armor. Now you have me wondering if it's good for anything.

[bruce19]

Originally Posted by jcasella

Wow and thanks for the play'by'play on each piece of equipment. Hope you heal up quickly. Guess there is really nothing but a full race suit that will protect you. I had just gotten used to a dainese mesh jacket w/ shoulder back and elbow/forearm armor. Now you have me wondering if it's good for anything.

I use an AGV mesh jacket and it's good for "something" but not as good as leather. I use mine on hot days for around town but not on highway or weekend rides. I keep thinking that there must be a way to use one of those new thin, high impact pad materials with a kevlar/GoreTex liner and supple leather to create an all purpose suit. Probably expensive but is it more expensive than all the gear I have bought?

[jcasella]

Originally Posted by bruce19

I use an AGV mesh jacket and it's good for "something" but not as good as leather. I use mine on hot days for around town but not on highway or weekend rides. I keep thinking that there must be a way to use one of those new thin, high impact pad materials with a kevlar/GoreTex liner and supple leather to create an all purpose suit. Probably expensive but is it more expensive than all the gear I have bought?

Agreed, just cannot take the heat in summer with leather jacket. It amazed me also that the injuries from things not being secured to each other (jacket to pants, pants to boots) never thought of it that much.