Some of you may have noticed the lack of my race reports and my selling all my trick SD bits as of lately. Well, now I will let everyone know why.
On the 28th of February I did a track day with my newly formed team, Uniform Speed. It was a cool morning and everyone was taking it easy, just laying down some smooth, easy laps.
I had problems with my KTM slipper and replaced it with a Yoyodyne clutch. I rolled out onto the hot pit, accelerating at my normal pace with the intention of just feeling out the clutch. Maybe 50-6- miles per hour and nearly straight upright.
Just before the exit to the pit where you turn left and enter the track, the rear of the bike shot out to the right. The feeling of this was the equivalent of someone stopping the front wheel and the rear shooting out the way it would when you grab too much throttle deep into a turn. The bike laid over on it's left side, planting my left side heavily onto the pavement.
The bike continued on, twirling and bouncing off of the barrier.
When I stopped rolling and sliding I waited a second to see if I was OK.
The first thing I noticed was pain in my left foot. I figured I would scoot over to the barrier and await assistance. That's when I notice my pelvis felt like a bag of loose beans or grain. Not Good!
The medics looked at me and within 30 seconds said "roll the helicopter"!
I spent 4 hours in a trauma room where they worked to save my life. I didn't realise how serious my condition until 10 days later when I spoke with the trauma surgeon.
I suffered a open dislocation of my left ankle with a fibular fracture. The muscles on the left side of my pelvis tore off but not before breaking the front of my pelvis. The front was separated by 4 inches and the left side was moved up by 3 inches. This strain caused the back of my pelvis to crush/shear at the sacrum. I had a torn urethrae and significant internal bleeding in my pelvis. (This was the life threatening part.) I compressed T-12. Tore my left triceps.
I had a procedure each day for the first 9 days in hospital.
I was released after 13 days and have been home for 3 weeks.
I am confined to a wheelchair for at least 2-3 months.
It seems I will make a full recovery with only a limp. It will be a long road though.
My racing career is over just as it started.
Time will tell.
I tell this story because I want to show what a great crasher the SD is. My bike will probably get totaled only because of the ridiculous replacement part prices. If the insurance company allows me to purchased the salvage rights on the bike, I will have many parts for sale in the future. I will only keep the LC8. Check out that front wheel!
I would like to note that I was wearing some very fine gear which helped keep the injuries from being greater.
I wore a Forcefield ProL2 back protector, their rib protector and adventure shorts padded underwear. My torso was bruised from my shoulders to my legs yet I suffered no rib injuries, punctured lungs or internal thoracic bleeding. I can't express how much this stuff saved me.
I wore Knox Handroid gloves. There was no tearing on any of the leather but at each place where there was a slider, the plastic was significantly ground down. They did their job.
My Alpinestars Supertech R boots are wasted. My tibia all but broke through the side of the boot. They probably saved me from further injury as the torsion devices on the inner boot is twisted and broken. they did their job.
Suit: $1000
Boots: $500
Rib protector: $100
Back protector: $140
Underwear: $150
Gloves: $250
Helmet: $800
All gear destroyed by crash or cut off by medics. Now useless.
Mates! Buy good gear! Protect yourselves at any cost!
The gear you think is costly now will seem like a bargain when you need it to perform!
On the 28th of February I did a track day with my newly formed team, Uniform Speed. It was a cool morning and everyone was taking it easy, just laying down some smooth, easy laps.
I had problems with my KTM slipper and replaced it with a Yoyodyne clutch. I rolled out onto the hot pit, accelerating at my normal pace with the intention of just feeling out the clutch. Maybe 50-6- miles per hour and nearly straight upright.
Just before the exit to the pit where you turn left and enter the track, the rear of the bike shot out to the right. The feeling of this was the equivalent of someone stopping the front wheel and the rear shooting out the way it would when you grab too much throttle deep into a turn. The bike laid over on it's left side, planting my left side heavily onto the pavement.
The bike continued on, twirling and bouncing off of the barrier.
When I stopped rolling and sliding I waited a second to see if I was OK.
The first thing I noticed was pain in my left foot. I figured I would scoot over to the barrier and await assistance. That's when I notice my pelvis felt like a bag of loose beans or grain. Not Good!
The medics looked at me and within 30 seconds said "roll the helicopter"!
I spent 4 hours in a trauma room where they worked to save my life. I didn't realise how serious my condition until 10 days later when I spoke with the trauma surgeon.
I suffered a open dislocation of my left ankle with a fibular fracture. The muscles on the left side of my pelvis tore off but not before breaking the front of my pelvis. The front was separated by 4 inches and the left side was moved up by 3 inches. This strain caused the back of my pelvis to crush/shear at the sacrum. I had a torn urethrae and significant internal bleeding in my pelvis. (This was the life threatening part.) I compressed T-12. Tore my left triceps.
I had a procedure each day for the first 9 days in hospital.
I was released after 13 days and have been home for 3 weeks.
I am confined to a wheelchair for at least 2-3 months.
It seems I will make a full recovery with only a limp. It will be a long road though.
My racing career is over just as it started.
Time will tell.
I tell this story because I want to show what a great crasher the SD is. My bike will probably get totaled only because of the ridiculous replacement part prices. If the insurance company allows me to purchased the salvage rights on the bike, I will have many parts for sale in the future. I will only keep the LC8. Check out that front wheel!
I would like to note that I was wearing some very fine gear which helped keep the injuries from being greater.
I wore a Forcefield ProL2 back protector, their rib protector and adventure shorts padded underwear. My torso was bruised from my shoulders to my legs yet I suffered no rib injuries, punctured lungs or internal thoracic bleeding. I can't express how much this stuff saved me.
I wore Knox Handroid gloves. There was no tearing on any of the leather but at each place where there was a slider, the plastic was significantly ground down. They did their job.
My Alpinestars Supertech R boots are wasted. My tibia all but broke through the side of the boot. They probably saved me from further injury as the torsion devices on the inner boot is twisted and broken. they did their job.
Suit: $1000
Boots: $500
Rib protector: $100
Back protector: $140
Underwear: $150
Gloves: $250
Helmet: $800
All gear destroyed by crash or cut off by medics. Now useless.
Mates! Buy good gear! Protect yourselves at any cost!
The gear you think is costly now will seem like a bargain when you need it to perform!
