Crashed on the ST1100, middle of the night.  July 2005.

This report was originated on KLR650.net, and is imported here with minor editing for structure (due to the import process).  Typos, etc., have mostly been left as they are, fixed only for clarity in some cases.  Martin is the report originator.

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Crashed again. By far the worst wreck I've ever been in (including rolling that jeep in the Army, but that's another story). The motorcycle (ST1100) went down and I came off; don't remember a thing.

I was going home after getting off work at 3am, and had ridden about 30 miles and gassed up in Castle Rock. The interstate was blocked off for repairs, and I took side streets to get to Wolfensberger Road. Not much traffic out.

Geez, it's mostly embarrassing. Some soreness in some joints, a badly dinged shoulder, and some stitches in my face, that's most of it. Since I have no actual memory of the crash, it's even more irritating. I have a clear memory of going cautiously down the road (I had passed one deer already) and then a short while later I remember a strong "Oh ****, something in the road" reaction and I grabbed the brakes. I do not recall anything after that. It was probably another deer, but the crash was right at someone's driveway entrance. It's a mystery.

I didn't leave a lot of skid marks, and I don't think I hit whatever it was I reacting to. Looks like I laid the bike down and it quickly slid to a stop. I must have gotten thrown off or slid off the road, ending up in the weeds. Something hit my face, knocking off the helmet's face shield.

After leaving the hospital later, my wife and I went to see the accident scene (Wolfensberger Road, west from Castle Rock), and it looks like I skidded a little bit before reaching where the driveway is. The bike laid down, slid a short ways and stopped in the street. The ambulance paramedic told me that I was found some distance from the bike, off the roadway.

I came to just before they loaded me on the ambulance, and they all seemed much relieved. They stopped loading me and talked to me a while, examined me some more. No evidence of a concussion aside from the memory loss. I had a deputy go to secure my fanny pack and gun, badge, etc.

From the time frames, I might have been down for 30 minutes or so before someone found me. Not much traffic on that road at 4am. I am very grateful to not be seriously injured. The face injury looks gruesome right now, but it was only 4 or 5 stitches to close a gouge next to my nose. The helmet and armored jacket did their job. If it scars badly, I can always audition for pirate roles in the movies! Aaarrrgh! It's a good thing that I am not vain. It's also a good thing that I hold myself accountable for the crash and can have a sense of humor about it.

I am angry at myself for damaging the bike twice in a couple of weeks, ruining a great deal on its original purchase price. By the time I've fixed it again... never mind. I am determined to get it fixed up.

I'll repair the bike again (grrrrrrr...) and take it easier. Maybe not ride at night for a while. It is a fun, easy bike, but the dual front brakes on the ST1100 are really powerful--much more so than on my other road bike (the Valkyrie). The KLR would have also been more accommodating. Don't know if the big brakes on the ST1100 contributed or not. I might have hit something or might have high-sided myself off the bike.

I am still planning on riding Pikes Peak on Monday the 25th with those who are coming to join in the fun. Some Ibuprofen and I'm good. Not pretty (not that I ever was), but it'll heal. The slightly cracked left shoulder blade (!) can't be helped much. It hurts, but it works.

I'm going to start telling the story like this: There I was, tooling along minding my own business, when suddenly several naked supermodels stepped into the roadway to wave me down for Olympic-quality sex.

Yeah, that's what happened.

Ooof.

Ken, Larry, see you on Monday for Pikes Peak. You can laugh and point; it's okay.

(EDIT and updated list of injuries:)

Several bruises, cracked left shoulder blade (painful but not too limiting, not involving the shoulder joint), semi-smashed toes on right foot, scraped up right hand, deep bruise on right lower back at the belt line (MRI showed no breaks, but sure feels like it).

Looks like the face shield on the 3/4 helmet got smashed into my riding glasses breaking them, and that's what cut a gouge on the side of my nose.

Still no memory of the crash itself, but I was avoiding a deer.  (edit:  My memory partially returned over the next few days, and I now recall seeing the deer coming off the shoulder of the road and into my headlights.  Still no memory after that.  Weird.)

I told my wife I was determined to repair the ST1100 regardless of cost, and she just said okay. Lots of body work, a few mechanical parts. Probably a couple thousand dollars. Paid $1500 for it last month. I am considering it a stupidity fee.

I'm still good for Pikes Peak on Monday, guys.  Don't worry.  I work hurt a lot.  I'll go ride some tomorrow on the KLR to see how the back and shoulder feel.  I'm sure I'll be okay to ride.

I'm used to sending good thoughts out to others, not used to being on the receiving end. Makes me feel too self conscious. The facial scar will be character-building.

Might avoid commuting on bikes for a while, gotta come home at 3-4am and the deer are everywhere. It was almost 80 degrees coming home Thursday morning, almost too warm for the jacket. I always ride with a helmet, but I had almost strapped the jacket to the seat when I gassed up a few miles before the crash. Good thing I hadn't done that. The semi-rigid padding in the elbows, shoulders and back certainly helped.

The scrapes on the helmet are on the right side and back (two separate scrape patterns), so I had to have hit the street a couple of times tumbling before I went into the weeds. That tumbling is what resulted in all the other injuries, too. Not much in the way of direct-impact injury.

The riding glasses are actually clear shooting glasses, just for protection, not corrective. Even with the helmet full face shield, I wear glasses because bugs and sand still get in there somehow.  I often wear a HJC SyMax full lift-front helmet, but with all this heat, I've gone with the 3/4 HJC lately.

The ST has very bright bulbs in it, no problem with illumination. Wasn't going very fast, verified by the skids and where the bike came to rest on the road. "In the weeds" is all I know about where I ended up.

A local deputy (Douglas County SO) apparently took the report, and my wife spoke to the deputy a couple of times on the phone while I was zoning out at the hospital and later in the car. The deputy never came to the hospital that I know of (which is odd... we always go to the hospital to do follow up on injury accidents--certainly when it is a fellow law officer). He did call my department and tell them, causing the dispatcher to send one of our officers down to get my loaded fanny pack from the deputy who was going to put it into an evidence locker (meaning that it would have been a pain to go in later and get it released back to me). I know there are a couple of Douglas SO guys here on this forum, so don't think I'm trying to gripe or anything. The accident was my fault and I accept that. I'm just a tad surprised, that's all.

Face feels worse today as it has crusted up and started to heal. Everything else is better, actually. A little stiff.

I'll go get the bike tomorrow, probably. Couple weeks to get the new parts in, a day to put it back together, a couple days to enjoy it... and I think I'll loan it to my buddy for the rest of the riding season. He has a KLR also, but he really fell in love with the ST when I had loaned it to him earlier. Just gotta warn him of those big, dual monster brakes up front there.

My camera is at work, so no photos for a while. Gotta go get it before Pikes Peak on Monday, though.

Hooo, I feel the need for an ice pack, or an ice cold beer. Maybe both.

Yup.

(recent history:)

I had taken the ST1100 out for a 250 mile ride this last Monday, and after sunset, I was headed back toward Denver on US285 somewhere near Conifer. Came out of a sweeping right curve and straightened out just in time to see the dead deer in the center of my lane. Someone had obviously just hit it because the blood trail was still bright red. There was a car in the other lane to my right, and I wasn't sure I could miss the deer and stay on the road, so my instincts took over, I squared the bike up as I hit the carcass. It was laying with its back to me, and I hit it between the hips and ribs (the smallest area).

BA-BAM! Felt like a big, squishy speed bump. The bike never faltered, and I just kept on going. Did a little damage to the plastic parts under the radiator, and left a blood smear under the bike and all over my right foot. I felt very fortunate. Now, this latest deer encounter is starting to give me a complex.

I'm afraid that I love the Candy Glory Red color of the ST too much to go for the drab, brown fur look, but it was cool to think about for a few minutes. I may have to put a bit of deer skin on the bike somewhere as a token. We'll see.

I'm not a hunter, but if someone has a bit of deer hide you'd like to donate to my warding-off experiment, I'll give it a try. Um, just package it well, okay?

(update:)

Urk! Gonna have a nice patch of scar tissue on the side of my nose; the riding glasses gouged in deeper than I had thought. The stitches are holding it all together, but it's evident that there's a lot of dead skin in there.

Most of the other lesser wounds are healing as expected. The cracked shoulder blade is annoying, but as long as I don't raise my arm and exert pressure, it's just a constant dull ache.

The black eyes are mostly gone. I can go out in public again.

Gonna get the ST1100 from the wrecking yard in a couple of days and start fixing it back up. Anyone have body parts for a '92 ST1100?

Still, it irks me that I'm spending more to fix it than I bought it for. That good deal is long gone.

Turns out that I must not have laid along the road for very long before someone found me. The paramedics must have taken a long time treating me before loading me into the ambulance. That makes me feel better about getting found pretty quickly.

I might replace that helmet, but it only has some scrapes in it, no cracks or evidence of direct impact.

We'll see.