over the bars and straight to the hospital...

[biknut]

Wow that's not fun. Very sorry that happened to you bro. Hope you heal up fast.

It's a good thing for you to post about it and let others know what happened to you though. If this can happen to you of all people, it can happen to anyone.

I get the feeling that many new riders think that since it's a slow motor bicycle you can't get hurt, but we riders with the most experience know that's not the case at all.

I know you'll be wanting to get back home as soon as possible, but until then maybe some friends will come visit you.

 

[Harold_B]

Tasted pavement multiple times myself and have the dental work and scars to show for it. Not fun but sounds like you avoided the worst. Glad you have insurance and received medical attention. Concussion can be bad news if not attended to. Once you start your recovery perhaps you might do a postmortem on that bracket to see what went wrong? It will be good for setting your mind at ease next time on a bike knowing that weakness has been addressed. Hope you heal well and fast.

Good sign is the humor in the post. Couldn't get a smoke....

 

[bairdco]

yeah, i really wanted that smoke...

i'm gonna be discharged sometime this morning, is what they tell me. they're going over my xrays one last time.

they told me i have at least two broken ribs. that sucks. had some of those before and it's no fun at all.

i got up and have been moving around since last night. it's painful, but i can handle it.

as far as the bike and what happened to it, i'm definitely gonna go over everything and make sure it doesn't happen again, which might mean welding a tab to the fork.

what keeps plaguing me in the back of my mind, is, i had a flat last week on the front. i keep thinking i might have forgotten something as simple as tightening the bolt that holds the arm to the frame, and it took a few days before it fell out.

if that's the case, one small lapse in concentration caused all this damage.

anyways, i hope i'm outta here soon. i got a bike i gotta finish...

 

[msrfan]

Okay Baird, checked out the bike and I gotta say your crash wasn't due to workmanship issues. It's put together very solid. I found your bracket for the brake backing plate arm dangling in the twisted mess at the axle. It is thick metal like you said and did not break. Looks like the bolt came out allowing it to spin when the brakes were applied wrapping the cable around the axle and locking it all up. Notice how tight the cable is in the photos. You could play a tune on it. The right side of the handlebars are bent down some from the tension. Also broken are the bracket holding the cable conduit, the long threaded adjusting screw the cable goes through and the adjusting screw at the hand lever. When it spun, it hit the fender braces and pulled both ends of the fender down onto the front tire. The rear fender took a hit while tumbling and the headlight looks a little crooked. I loosened the front axle to take the cable loose so I could roll the bike into my garage and I'm sure you will find other areas that need attention when you get around to repairing the damage. It all looks like a quick fix if you can use both hands. Call me when you get ready and I'll bring it to you. Oh, and as far as owing me for getting you to the emergency room, forget it, that's what most all of us would do. We got to stick together and watch out for each other. Although, I may help myself to the Gummy Bears I found in your tool box.

 

[biknut]

That's a lota bike to be flippin. That was a wild ride cowboy.

 

[bairdco]

yeah, look at that rear fender. i wonder how much air the bike caught to land on it like that...

i'm home, and pretty much gonna stay here for 6 weeks or so.

i wonder how much obama's gonna kick down for disability...

 

[tooljunkie]

sorry to hear about your crash,man.i been down for a fall that slammed me on hard packed gravel from about 6 feet.the right shoulder took most of the hit.
i wasnt going 40mph though.parts still hurt.almost two years ago.

bike doesent look too bad,at least its not destroyed and you will heal up in time.
it will be part of your physiotherapy to fix it up.

i didnt want to do any snow riding for just this reason,crashing.i cant afford to be down for six weeks.besides it was minus 29 here last night.i'm sick of winter....

i hope you have a speedy recovery.

Frank

 

[2door]

Hey Baird, just imagine how the bike would look if it'd been a Wally World special


Just kidding all you Cranbrook guys, just kidding!

Tom

 

[GearNut]

Oh daaam bairdco! I am sorry to hear this!
Hey man, the next time you play superman, remember to wear your cape. You'll fly better and have much more controllable landings, sorta like a cat's tail effect.

Seriously though, I hope that you heal up quickly and nothing interferes with your recovery.

 

[16v4nrbrgr]

I'm really sorry to hear about the misfortune and hope you recover as quickly as possible.

 

[maniac57]

The Cranbrook guys are all outside tightening fender hardware and brakes....

 

[Harold_B]

Not just the Huffy guys that's for sure! I was already reworking the fender mounts and I just added the brake brakets to the list. I thought I had them better this last rebuild but now I think I'll take another look. Just sayin'....

 

[Toadmund]

Check list:
1) get job
2) get real motorcycle helmet

Was thinking Bairdco that if you welded a tab or bolted a bolt onto the arm to use as a bumper to stop when it comes into contact with the fork, you could stop that from happening again even if the bolt did fall out.
Even just for of mind.

 

[culvercityclassic]

Baird...sorry to hear about your mis-hap...get well soon. Let me know if you need anything...CCC

 

[bairdco]

thanks everyone. i appreciate the well-wishes.

i doubt this injury's gonna keep me down. as soon as i'm able to move, i'm gonna fix that bike and get back to work on my new one, which will be faster, and safer.

i've got a lot of time to think about it, and design a better lighting system, better mounts, etc...

but right now it hurts to type...

 

[silverbear]

Baird,
I just saw this thread and wanted to wish you well. Good to see your humor and strong spirit shine through all the pain. Patience with the healing, my friend.
SB

 

[fasteddy]

Baird,
Just saw this myself. Hope that the healing is quick and complete. Amazing what one nut and bolt coming loose can do to a person.

Steve.

 

[msrfan]

I heard there was some cool stuff at Donut Derelicts Saturday. We shoulda stopped by on the way to the emergency room.

 

[Tinsmith]

Good luck on your recovery and hope your back at it real soon.

Dan

 

[2door]

While you're recovering read paragraph 4. http://www.sheldonbrown.com/brandt/over-the-bars.html

Tom