A gentle reminder to ride safely

[cogswell]

Hi folks;

You might remember me, from a few posts I've made around here putting my 85 NQ50 back together and working and such. This place has been a great resource getting a scooter noob like myself up to speed, so to speak. My spree was as close to stock as one can be after my engine blew up and I rebuilt it with all the standard Honda parts. No mods or enhancements.

Now here I come with a gentle reminder to ride safe. I was using my Spree for transport back and forth to work (~ 23 km each way on a boring road) while my car is out of commission. You can see where this is going.

About a month ago I hit a rock on the road with no other traffic, and consequently ended up going off the side of the road onto a gravel shoulder at a lazy 40 km/h, getting tossed off the scooter and down into the ditch. I had all my gear on - including my helmet. I only got away with a little bit of road rash on one hand - and I smashed my right tibia (the lower leg) into about 50 pieces. Doctors figure it was a consequence of how I tumbled and I compressed the leg.

The stupid part is that's all that happened. Didn't crack any ribs, arms, neck, back, other leg, not even the ankle of the leg I smashed. My helmet didn't even have any scratches on it. Despite the nature of the fracture I didn't even break the skin, although apparently my leg was in an odd position when I got found. Some nice folks drove by a few minutes later and called me an ambulance. I had my cell phone with me and was in the process of fumbling to get it out of my coat when folks showed up.

So lots of surgery, plates, pins, screws and an extended stay in the hospital later I'm now stuck in a brace hobbling around in pain on a walker or a wheelchair for about six months. No NQ50 riding in the near future for me. With it being the right leg I can't drive a car either. I'm going to get better, it'll just be time.

So when people say you should wear a helmet, and ride safe, you can think of my situation. If I didn't have the helmet and things had been different who the heck knows how I could have ended up - could have snapped my spine, been paralyzed, been killed even for such a low speed tumble. I'm going to be fine, and I want you to be fine too. I'm not saying "don't ride" as my opinion of that hasn't changed, just a reminder to be safe.

Now, here's the silly chaser: I got tossed from the scooter and it eventually ended up landing behind me in the ditch - in perfect shape. The folks I got to pick it up and transport it home for me say it looks like and doesn't even look like it had an accident except for the fact that my blue rear milk crate basket got torn off.

So there you have it, NQ50: tougher than humans.

[Wheelman-111]

Greetings:

Glad you're OK Cogs. Welcome back and I for one appreciate the sentiment to be careful out there.

Best regards, and let us know how rehab is going?

Guy

[Lunytune]

We shall be praying for your speedy recovery.

Now then, the reason your milk crate didn't survive is that it must have been a chinese copy, not the official Honda sanctioned one. The new plastic ones are the pits. I have a couple of the old fiberglass crates, tough as a boot.

I had knee surgery some 35 years ago, on the right knee. I drove a stick shift with clutch, using a cane for the gas pedal. If you do it and get caught, you didn't learn it from me.

[GoodDerf]

I have to agree with this completely. Just yesterday I was out for a ride and slipped on some gravel. I slid for a while and thankfully the only damage to me is some road rash on my hands and knee. If I had been wearing gloves and leather pants rather than jeans I probably wouldn't have even had that. People who don't wear anything astonish me. Even though a moped isn't as big as a Harley, the fact still remains the human body wasn't meant to hit and slide on pavement at any speed.

[Spreetard]

the human body wasn't meant to hit and slide on pavement at any speed.

bullocks, i say. i love pavement, i kiss it about once a week.
seriously though, i hope for the best for you. as far as making me more cautious, i'm too much of an idiot to learn from my own mistakes,let alone yours. i crash alot, to the point that i'm good at it.
i never claimed to be the brightest crayon in the box

[jesse8931]

my brother dumped my old spree at 30mph and only broke the headlight no plastic he did have some bad road rash. one time on my ts185 i was doing like 60mph and when to down shift to 4th and some how it was in 1st boy did i have some missing skin both knee caps we skinless and my side was scraped up bad

[jguy]

I dropped my Moby once on a gravel road, bent a pedal and tore my knee open; not fun. All this while going slow and being careful.

We wish you all the best, Cogs.

[BajaErin]

I wish you a speedy and painless (okay, less painfull) recovery. Thank you for sharing the reminder.