Oh yeah, Yannih. The scars arent'a as tough as real skin yet but I can still do everything I need to do. The scars look like bruises now. Transparent skin you see the blood under.

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Transparent skin you see the blood under.

Jeez Rook, sounds like a vampire!

Glad you're doing okay and can get all you need done.

And stop challenging deer on your motorbikes at speed.
Even if the deer doesn't make it, there is still only one winner...

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The scars arent'a as tough as real skin

Did you visit the real tattoo artist I visited that closes his eyes to do the work? Doe's Edition? I took the Throttle Lock Wheelie rendition. Yeah I know, no questions asked and just do it. And free too!

I can still do everything I need to do.

Eventually it will settle in, but that returned first dermis is corral reef, 'scare for life, bro.'

Transparent skin you see the blood under.

Shit, that's like fastest part of the track turn 10 and on my shoulder till I felt a burning sensation. That's a deep one, Rook. Mine was the same vein see-thru, but eventually don't see it like it's as fresh as yours now. Yeah so thin is the return. Enjoy it.

Like a badge of honor the fast where you going for that, motherfucker? That's fastest part of the track tattooing.

Signed,
Special Club Tattooing, hello, how fast would you like to go? Please sit here.

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Even if the deer doesn't make it, there is still only one winner...

No, yannih, everyone looses. The deer ends up dead and the rider ends up with a busted up bike and maybe worse. All things considered I didn't loose too bad. The cop that came to the crash was at school today for a presentation. His name is Daren like mine but mine is Daron.

Like a badge of honor the fast where you going for that, motherfucker? That's fastest part of the track tattooing.

No less than 70 mph, Hub. I might have scrubbed 5 mph off before the deer ran out but I don't know how fast I was going before that. I can only guess about 70 because it was a straight part of the road where I slow down a little but I was in a high spirited mood that day.

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Here we go, since it's Halloween...

This was the crash slide if I haven't shown that one yet. You see the tire skid and the fairing/pulser cover scrapes are concurrent. That bike went over so fast I never let go of the brake until I was down. You see the oil trail just before the shoulder.

Deer 7/ (the pics don't show the ones on the calfs much but those were the largest in area although not as deep as the knees).

Rook 1 (but it was a dandy). This was a day later. Something came along and ripped the chunk of meat off the rump. There's no way to say for sure but the slices on the ribs might have been from the meter bracket as the deer slid up the forks rolling belly up at the same time. I believe that was what tore the whole top cowl off and the meter bracket. I think the deer hit me across the chest causing some bruising to either side of my sternum. I had no external signs but my ribs were sore there for a few days.

This was 19 days later. Mostly all covered up except for the large calve wound. The scars were very delicate. You see the blisters on the left, that was just from kneeling down to light my little propane grill.

I'm most of the time over suited both summer and winter with the rotating 3 sets of overalls, sweats, long t-shirts. Light jacket over leather jacket, or light jacket changed to a 2XX Levi unlined over the leathers. Wings steel toe ankle high.

Or say I run full one piece leathers. Then it's more a stealth run for me. No profiler, just skin care or what's left. On goes the real thin skin diver type slippery shirt/pants; full leathers; full boots; 2XX over the top half. If I want to hide the lowers, the oversized overall over the leathers, and the light jacket for the hotter days. Lots of combos.

https://www.northerntool.com/images/product/2000x2000/98w/98w_2000x2000.jpg

With the oversized, I used a big sewing needle, heavy spider wire kind of fishing line to shore up the oversized overalls where needed. And you should see how I slowed down and keep to the right after the last crash. Happens so fast, no thanks. Not that I saw a clear window yesterday and the helmet rattled and the 2 lane road turned into a 4 lane kind of why I ride this thing.

And you know how fast that ground down, or lucky you were not awake to go thru it consciously. Or you did? Then you know. Suit up, boy. New cloths for the dermis delinquents we put ourselves into.

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No such thing as a riding season. If chrly is still riding in his 90's, then me in my 80's catching up. Takes 20 minutes to suit all that up so you know if Cody needs to look down at 555, add 10 min finding him.

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And you know how fast that ground down, or lucky you were not awake to go thru it consciously. Or you did? Then you know. Suit up, boy. New cloths for the dermis delinquents we put ourselves into.

Yeah Hub, the last thing I remeber was seeing the deers shoulders on the left of the top cowl and hearing a loud CRACK! That was lights out time. I have no memory of falling or sliding. I think the deer knocked me out or perhaps the bike slamming over and my helmet hitting the road. That would have been so quick, I might not have even known it happened to have any memory of it.

I had a dim memory of gaining consciousness and fearing the bike would go up in flames. I was right next to it. I think I crawled away and went back to sleep. The guy that found me said I was moving when they drove up but I was laying belly up on the road and asleep before the kid woke me up.

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Rook just caught up on this thread. Cheese wiz those are some serious ouchies, and then there's your injuries Of course glad for you that it wasn't any worse, but certainly could've been a whole lot better for you and your bike. I can get why a couple people were like go to a doctor, but I can see why you didn't. No broken bones, probably would've just sent you home with some raps and a big bill.

As far as your bike, it was one of the most sensational 14s out there. Still looks pretty amazing all busted up. Not sure I can, or should give any advice on what to do. I think you made the right call for your injuries and I'm sure you're making the right calls, whatever they end up being for sure, for your bike.

There's the side of me that would like to see your bike restored to what it was, but then also side that would like to see what you'd do with a different base model & paint. The latter would definitely be a challenge to see if you could match or improve the ingenuity and creativeness of your customizations.

I can get why a couple people were like go to a doctor, but I can see why you didn't. No broken bones, probably would've just sent you home with some raps and a big bill.

Thanks, Vic. I actually did end up going to urgent care about 9 days after the crash and they debrided the knee injuries and advised me about treating them until they healed. The debriding was pretty excruciating but I'm glad I did it just for peace of mind. I was wondering if the injuries were healing properly becaus ethey were still exuding fluid. It was normal, no infection and it was healing. It cost me about $270 but I was sure everything was ok.

I'm still planning to restore the bike someday. It's rough to muster the motivation not having it right in my garage. It's sitting in the storage unit and it's getting cold and I have a bunch of crap with my job. I don't feel like really focussing in anything else.

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Good gawd no more pics! I can't take it!

Will you wear thicker items after this? Gloves, pants, etc? Or do you think your result was just gonna be the way it was, no matter?

I wear Drayko riding jeans, which have an extra layer of thicker padding in the knees, ass and possibly hips (can't remember & I'm at work).

And I wear AlpineStars gloves. Wonder how they'd have held up in your crash.

They say "Dress for the crash" and this is makin' me wanna do that even more now

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extrapolator, I definitely believe all leather could have allowed me to wakeup, dust myself off and go about my life with no injuries at all. I will definitely wear full gear when I ride again. The light gear I had on protected me quite well but just barely. The ordinary jeans I had on didn't do a whole lot. I have wondered about how leather might have grabbed the ground and possibly caused me to roll which might have resulted in some broken bones. I guess when you're preparing for the unexpected you have to go with the odds and the odds are on full gear. YES on the leather gloves. The super light leather palms I had in my gloves was torn through but that would have been my skin if I had no gloves at all. It's a miracle that my right shoe stayed on. Looks like it dragged under the bike for a short while. The laces were all worn off. Most definitely full gear and probably leather everything. The helmet goes without saying, that saved my life.

* Last updated by: Rook on 11/10/2021 @ 9:50 PM *

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I definitely believe all leather could have allowed me to wakeup, dust myself off and go about my life with no injuries at all. I will definitely wear full gear when I ride again. The light gear I had on protected me quite well but just barely.

No doubt full gear would've made a significant difference. This is a tough situation, because it's tough to say wear AR500 all the time every day. Full leathers with armor and padding? No doubt that most likely you would've had no burn through and also probably less likely to break bones or other soft tissue.

But who wants to wear full leather gear all the time? I don't know. I know everyone says all gear all the time, and certainly I agree with them 100% that's the best scenario for surviving a crash and reducing injuries. There's no mitigating that. Even a quick hop down to the store, hit a deer, patch of gravel, oil spill, whatever... there's no arguing that if you go down it doesn't really matter your intent or purpose. Gravity isn't politically correct.

No compromise?
So it's one of those balance things. I have full armor leather gear and I have lighter gear like mesh and riding jeans, and I have plain clothing. But that's kind of like why would I ever wear less than full armor? Right? And this is the conundrum we all face. I don't know...is it not just as stupid to wear less than the best protecting gear someone has or can afford, always, all the time, never EVER no exceptions EVER EVER EVER? I mean, undoubtedly if I have leathers and I just go out for a cruise in my "lighter" gear and I get into an accident and suffer from greater injuries than if I had armored leather on? I don't know...is there no compromise?

Ridng jeans may be a reasonable compromise?
I have riding jeans, and they are significantly heavier fabric than regular jeans or pants with reinforcements in certain areas. I'm not sure in your situation (70 mph) that you may not have had any burn through, but it would've definitely been less than regular jeans. There's a significant range of price and protection. Some are even claiming to be superior to leather these days, some jean materials with UHMW or other high tech materials woven in may be able to perform equal or better than leather.

No Compromise Part 2: Confession
This year I took a few rides in shorts and a t-shirt, not even a helmet. I know. Very stupid. Looking at your injuries...even far beyond very stupid. But the experience? For just cruising around, honestly, as much as full armor leather gear provides immeasurably greater protection, riding in shorts, t-shirt, and some blade shades provides an immeasurably greater riding experience.

The sensations are significantly higher, and I find I can just putt around basically at speed limits and enjoy "just riding". I can't do this in full gear. Full gear, putting around is FUCKING BORING AND POINTLESS. There is no joy, no thrill, no sensation, with full gear on. I might as well be in a Yugo. I HAVE TO PUSH the bike just to have some fun out of it, otherwise I might as well not even ride.

The sensations are significantly higher, and I find I can just putt around basically at speed limits and enjoy "just riding". I can't do this in full gear. Full gear, putting around is FUCKING BORING AND POINTLESS. There is no joy, no thrill, no sensation, with full gear on. I might as well be in a Yugo. I HAVE TO PUSH the bike just to have some fun out of it, otherwise I might as well not even ride.

I agree. There's no avoiding the inherent risk of riding a motorcycle. I have heard of people getting hurt pretty badly even going slow but that's very rare compared to people getting hurt while hauling ass. I'd probably still take a short ride without a helmet after washing the bike. That's when I listen for things that I might not hear with the helmet on. I'd risk taking a quick leisurely spin on the bike in shorts and a T-shirt too. It's the longer rides and the faster rides I won't risk taking without good protection. The real issue here is the deer. It doesn't matter how good my gear is, I believe It's likely I'll hit another deer within a few years if I'm still living here. That's not acceptable so the only way to avoid it is quit street riding as long as I live here. I don't want to go slow and that's the only way I would feel pretty safe riding on the street in deer country.

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My two cents...
I have rolled 97 yds down the middle of an asphalt two lane with ankle boots, levis, tee shirt, gloves and a helmet.
As a result , I spent an hour at ER, more or less, having alcohol pored over my arms and back mainly . Then I was scrubbed with a Kiyi brush or similar till the nurse got all the embedded gravel out .. I was young-ish 30yrs old.

Jump ahead 40 yrs and I slid 45 yds down teh racetrack and then tumbled into the dirt. I got up , picked the bike up and waited for the crash truck to arrive . I was in full one piece leathers and not a single road rash . ( I did fracture my pelvis during the tumble )

I tell you this to authenticate my position. I will ALWAYS wear gloves because I want to be able to work my own zippers..
I will always wear a helmet because I want my brain to last as long as my body.
I will always wear a protective jacket because I want to be able to use my arms instead of waiting for the skin to grow back ...
I m 50-50 about boots , long days, long boots, short days could be either boots or no.
I am very lax about the type of pants I wear because if my legs are damaged I can still get around by myself in a wheelchair.
Experience is a great teacher ...however...we still make choices.

Rook, I am glad you got away as well as you did , sometimes the animals win ...

* Last updated by: chrly on 12/4/2021 @ 3:29 PM *

My question about compromise was an actual question. My brain knows the answer, but "my little man's an idiot.", as a famous character once said.

Back in '82 I could throw a pigskin a quarter mile!
It's something we all struggle with. In the prior 3 years of riding (prior to this year), I was pretty much all the gear all the time. But I did make an exception when bike wash dry off ride (which is noted, is one of the DUMBEST times since the bike has wet tires and is wet). This year... I probably road 5 rides with no gear that weren't dry off rides, couple hours around town just bopping around. And it was AWESOME! It really took me back to my early days of riding.

I am very lax about the type of pants I wear because if my legs are damaged I can still get around by myself in a wheelchair.

And this is the dilemma/conundrum/issue we all face. Cause I'm sure, most likely, if you ever had severely injured your legs riding you'd probably be like "legs are the my #1!". If you did have an accident now with street pants on and got some severe road rash like Rook, even in your wheel chair, and getting around, I'd think most likely (and naturally) you'd be doubting/regretting your lax pants rule. And I'm not really saying YOU, this really goes for anyone right?

lower legs/feet are one of the things that scare me the most. Shoes don't just come off... sometimes a foot comes off with them. This happens...a LOT.

Experience is a great teacher ...however...we still make choices.

Although I get the point. This isn't quite as accurate as it seems. My experience is it's actually OK for me to ride with no gear at all, except some blade sunglasses. Seriously...that's my experience with close to 40,000 miles of urban riding experience. I've never had an accident on a bike. Maybe it could be better said...

Bad experiences are great teachers ...however...we often still make stupid choices.

Play stupid games, win stupid prizes
And as I said if I was doing the completely idiotic riding with no gear thing and I had an accident and got some rash and other injuries, I would be DEFINITELY BE REGRETTING my idiotic decision, if I lived and/or wasn't a vegetable.

Then I was scrubbed with a Kiyi brush or similar till the nurse got all the embedded gravel out ..

They must call it that because people scream like a dog when it gets used on them. Ki-yi, ki-yi, ki-yi!

lower legs/feet are one of the things that scare me the most. Shoes don't just come off... sometimes a foot comes off with them. This happens...a LOT.

I had one foot drag under the bike for a while apparently. The laces were burned through but it somehow stayed on. No injuries to the foot except the big toenail detached and came off a couple weeks later. Now it looks like it might be growing back weirdly with a couple humps across it. I hope that goes away.

Seriously...that's my experience with close to 40,000 miles of urban riding experience. I've never had an accident on a bike. Maybe it could be better said...

I had about 47,000 miles of urban riding. The last 3000 of rural riding was what got me. I think urban riding is more predictable. I still wouldn't be riding without gear in the city. Of course, I only sport ride. Gearing up is all a part of the adventure whereas it's a hassle if you are commuting. After going down at speed though, I know I don't want it to happen again anywhere, especially without full gear.

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Vic Thing .
And this is the dilemma/conundrum/issue we all face. Cause I'm sure, most likely, if you ever had severely injured your legs riding you'd probably be like "legs are the my #1!". If you did have an accident now with street pants on and got some severe road rash like Rook, even in your wheel chair, and getting around, I'd think most likely (and naturally) you'd be doubting/regretting your lax pants rule. And I'm not really saying YOU, this really goes for anyone right?

I still have a pin in my left ankle from motocross and believe me when I say I got around
fine albeit with a cast for a couple of weeks, Shoot , I was back to work installing floors the last week of wearing the cast LOL. A lot of years and thought went into priorities in my post..When you can't bend your arms until you get enough skin back to stretch it so you can rip it and let more skin grow back and you do this every couple of days ,you begin to understand how important the various parts of the body are in affecting mobility. I would show my scars but the years have pretty much camoflodged (sp) them unless I point them out..
]

I think the bottom line is, nobody plans to crash, so we'll pretty much never know when it's going to happen, so dress accordingly all the time ... knowing that anything less, well, us non-newbies knew what we were getting into

* Last updated by: extrapolator on 12/5/2021 @ 10:03 AM *

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When you can't bend your arms until you get enough skin back to stretch it so you can rip it and let more skin grow back and you do this every couple of days ,you begin to understand how important the various parts of the body are in affecting mobility.

I have something like this on my right thumb. It never ripped open but the joint sure woiuldn't move s far as the left thumb. I thought it was a tendon injury but it was probably just not enough skin or not stretchy enough. It still eels a bit tight.

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Wish I didn't love riding my motorbike so much.
As Rook and so many others well know it's a heavy price to pay when things don't go to plan.

Wish I loved knitting instead!

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Takes at least a year to mend? With my 16 mishaps and 57 years of riding, seems a year clear is the 100% recovery. You're a June gloom, so you have another half a year, give or take to return to normal... or for my fungswaes seems to be.

Did MM listen to me? No.

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I think the bottom line is, nobody plans to crash, so we'll pretty much never know when it's going to happen, so dress accordingly all the time ... knowing that anything less, well, us non-newbies knew what we were getting into

Bingo. The old "dress for the slide, not the ride" is my mantra too.

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Dress for the slide, you won't need to debride!

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