Who would have thought...2:30 in the afternoon, in a
populated area of the county, and a 100 lb doe comes
screaming out of a sideroad. I'm on RT 17 just north of the
Chuckatuck Creek Bridge...Doin 50, I catch a blur, and there she is...hits the front fork and headlight area,
steering goes left, bike leans right, and I bail
out.....per the driver behind me, I hit on my ***,
flip 10 feet in the air, land on my right side, helmet
smacks the pavement(yes, I WAS wearing a STEENKIN HELMET), and I'm sliding on my belly, feet
first, 100 feet off the road onto the shoulder...(I
only remember getting away from the scoot', hitting
the deck, and sliding)....bike continues another 50
feet, off the road and hits a tree.....citizens
stopping all over, I'm hearing them on their
cellphones..officer down..DON'T SAY THAT!!!!(I'm in
uniform.... yea smartasses, it still fits!!!) I have a
guy holding C-spine, and I check myself out...hands
work, feet work, pains in both arms and right
belly....Carrollton Fire arrives first, great job on their part, it was a comfort hearing that Q2 siren screaming.... they call
Nightingale. Take over C-spine and first aid, out come the crash scissors, and off comes the uniform (glad I changed my
undies and not wearing the bikinis)..cut off my duty belt, logroll me onto the board..Isle Of Wight Rescue arrives, another
great group of professionals...into the box, and trauma alerted. I talk the medic into cancelling the bird, so it's off to
Riverside....IV attempts enroute...misses the first one standing still, gets the second one bouncing across the James River
Bridge (this guy works like me, better on the run)..rest of the ride a blur, into the trauma center...push, pull, prod, poke, peek
...X-rays and cat scan....all Negative...the verdict: roadrash to both elbows, right knee, left pinky...melted polyester from our
high quality uniforms embedded in the abrasions....Ok, time to scrub..got me an off-duty Newport News medic moonlighting.
He's cackling to himself, "heh heh heh, a cop AND a medic!" Fortunately, the nurse likes cops,is a former Navy pilot and
respects Chief Petty Officers, so it's 10 of morphine, 45 of demerol, with another 15 if ya want it! The scrubbing goes quite
well...Trooper arrives, wants to why I'm killing his deer...Hey everyone, c'mon up, it's vendetta time against them varmints. I
ask where the deer is..rescue tells me if they know the guy who cleaned it up, it's probably already dressed out!
I'm all bandaged up and I stagger out of the ER 7 hours later, wearing some old pair of khaki chinos, a hospital gown, my
doo-rag, and a stupid grin. Why?
I'm buzzed great (nurse couldn't see wasting the narcs, so here's a chaser!) Not bad for a 50 mph deer strike. In-laws drive
me home, off to bed...BOY, talk about tough getting up the next morning..

Survival tips: I was wearing a regulation helmet for a
change...all bashed up. Guess I'll retire the "
DOT" beanie!
Next, wish I had a leather jacket on...the polyester
melted like a fire and stuck to the skin. I was
wearing body armor, and it shows a hit to the right
flank area where I hit..thanks Second Chance, the
letter is enroute. You cops out there, wear your vest! It protects you from other stuff besides bullets. According to the trauma
doc, it saved me some serious internal injuries. The jacket would have prevented some really nasty road rash on my
elbows..as it was it eroded through the uniform shirt and turtleneck shirt.
Get away from the bike...I felt it dipping down and
the rear coming up, so I bailed....it ain't no fun
having 800 lbs of steel chase you down the road and
pin you against a car or tree.
My leather gear and weapon were ground down pretty
good from sliding on my belly...credit that with
preventing more road rash...more leather between me
and the road. My boots also took a beating and
probably prevented ankle injuries. My glocves are all worn down but only chewed up my left pinky a bit.
I credit surviving this wreck to experience, prayer,
and 'almost' proper riding gear. With the payraise
coming I think I'll invest in an Aerostich suit...red,
white, green, aka Italia.

The Road King is trashed. I have all the receipts for
the custom work, so I shouldn't take too big a hit.
Besides, the 2002's will be coming out in a couple
months...I should be healed and ready by
then...meanwhile I'll play with the Sportster, if my
wife gets off it long enough.
If you ride, you WILL take a fall..this is my 4th, none my fault, all with minor injuries, no broken bones (hear the wood
knocking?) Be prepared for the worst, and the worst will bypass you.
Stay safe out there, and keep it between the
lines.....Rube

P.S. On Tuesday, my birthday!! $%*&$@# F%+*&%# antlered rats!



------------------
"There is no hunting like the hunting of a man and
those that have hunted armed men long enough and
liked it, never care for anything else thereafter."
E. Hemingway

 

Rube,

I wish you a speedy recovery. Those " antlered rats" wrecked my first brand new truck, only 3 days old. Glad you're alright.

Mike

------------------
"Stay Out Of My Taildust"

2000 Black Harley Davidson F-150
5.4 Liter V-8
K&N Air filter
SuperChip FlipChip
6 Disk CD Changer
Sliding Rear Window
Heated Seats
Hidden Hitch
Lund Front Blackouts
GTE Rear Blackouts
Block heater
McGard Wheel Locks
CodeAlarm System
Air Force One FIPK
BedRug

 

Geez guy -- what a story! Sure glad you're OK and heal up quickly! I worry about deer all the time and they are literally all over the place here, too. Don't normally ride at night or sunset any more because they move around so much at that time of the day. (Not that bad things couldn't happen at any time.)

------------------
2000 F150 Harley-Davidson: Superchip, K&N FIPK
Hard Tonneau, Hidden Hitch, 2-Meter Rig (KG0UK)
Motorcycles: '99 FLHRCI, '95 XLH, '65 305 Dream

 

Sorry to hear about your Highside...glad your ok

Brian R

~2000 F150HD~
~2001 Phantom Silver ZX12R~

 

Like the rest of us, glad you WILL be OK. Have had near misses with deer but never a direct hit. Did go over a cliff in Yukon Territory and had to be helicoptered out. Totaled bike but only had a concussion and broken ribs. Wish you a speedy recovery and glad to hear you will be back riding again. Took me nearly a year.

------------------
KEITH
2000 HD-FORD
HOLLEY THUNDER SUPERCHARGER
JBA HEADERS
BELLTECH LOWERING KIT
1999 ULTRA CLASSIC HD

 

Hi there!
Certainly glad yer ok. We have them here too and had a close call once a couple of years ago. Saw one last week but it had already been hit. Came back a bit later and it was gone. Guess someone got dinner! Stay in your truck. Somehow I feel a little safer

 

Sorry to here about the accident, got deer all over where i live and they seem to always run out of no where. Hope your out riding soon.

 

Sitrep#2....had the bike moved to the dealer yesterday, and had a chance to see it up close. Both saddlebags torn up, front fender crushed, tank dented, bag guards and front engine guard bent, triple tree looks a little skewed, headlight, passing lights, turn signals, everything forward of the kingpost torn up, one of the Bartel pipes slammed shut where it hit the tree...still not sure what the dealer will say, insurance will cover it either way.
Thanks for the concern and well wishes. Roadrash is hell, if you let it dry out...OWWW!


------------------
"There is no hunting like the hunting of a man and
those that have hunted armed men long enough and
liked it, never care for anything else thereafter."
E. Hemingway