survival story

[Bogdan Swider]

> > Nah, I don't blame the tires at all. I think the problem was an edge > trap that I didn't see, and I don't see how a different tire would > make a significant difference in how the front reacts to an edge trap. > > However, I sure would have loved a steering damper! Something that > doesn't get involved until the third oscillation or so would seem > ideal.

TKC-80s would seem to be aggressive enough for that situation. Don't recall seeing a damper on a klr. Bogdan

[Blake Sobiloff]

On 9/11/06, Bogdan Swider wrote:

> Don't recall > seeing a damper on a klr.

Me either, and Matt thinks the idea's a bit silly with a lot of disadvantages in everyday use, but as I sit here all broken... -- Blake Sobiloff http://sobiloff.typepad.com/> http://sobiloff.typepad.com/klr_adventure/> San Jose, CA (USA)

[Adam]

Hey Blake, Just got back from a few days off and riding in the sierras. Sorry to hear about the accident. Hope you have a speedy recovery and glad it wasn't worse. I used to be a lone rider until I got hurt out by myself and had to spend the night with a broken ankle and ride out in the morning. Big lesson here is to ALWAYS ride with a buddy. Adam 04 KLR650 04 KTM450MXC The guy with all the torque values at your tech day --- In DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com, "Blake Sobiloff" wrote:

> > Hi all, > > I just got back from my supposed-to-be 2-week trip on the > Trans-America Trail. While in Utah, on the way out to Colorado to > pick up the trail, I crashed pretty hard. It looks like I caught a > slight edge trap while going about 40 MPH on a straight section of > dirt road. This sent the bike into a tank slapper and I couldn't

get

> my hands off the bars before the bike wiggled into the piled-up

gravel

> between the tire tracks that made up the road. > > Once in this gravel, the bike ejected me off the high side and upon > landing my left collarbone broke. This freed my shoulder blade to > push back into my ribs and break five of those. Ouch! (At the

time I

> knew only that I'd broken my collarbone and possibly one rib; I

had no

> idea four other ribs were fractured, too.) I also saw stars out

of my

> right eye for a minute or two. > > Despite this bad turn of events, I had some good luck coming my

way.

> Matt, my riding buddy, is a firefighter/EMT, so he did a super job

of

> taking care of me. I guess I gave him quite a fright initially,

as he

> first asked me if I could wiggle my fingers and toes and my only > response sounded to him like a "no." What I really said was > "uuunngh," as the wind was thoroughly knocked out of me! It wasn't > until I started cursing my broken collar bone and rolling over to

my

> un-injured side that he realized I might not be paralyzed. > > We were 20 miles from the nearest ranger station, so after Matt

got my

> arm in a sling, a cold pack on my collarbone, and me seated off the > road, he left to get help. I was reclining against my luggage in

the

> shade of a small bush, a good supply of food and water at hand, as > well as a signal mirror and a whistle. I gave Matt my GPS (which > survived the accident) and set the "Man Overboard" function so

that it

> would always guide him back to my location. > > (I should note at this point my admiration for Rev. Martin; despite > our similar injuries I was in no condition to ride out. Than man

has

> some serious sand!) > > On his way to get help Matt encountered an extremely nice couple of > older Dutch tourists who were exploring the same road in a rented > Explorer. After flagging them down and explaining what happened,

they

> agreed to find me and stay with me until Matt could return with

some

> help. I was alone for probably less than an hour before the Dutch > showed up, and they did what they could to make me comfortable.

Just

> their simple companionship was a tremendous morale boost, but the > woman also used to be a nurse, so my good luck continued. > > Big thunderstorms were brewing along the peaks to either side of

the

> valley I was in, but fortunately all we got were a few light

showers.

> The storms were quite concerning, though, as the area is known as

the

> Bentonite Hills--they quickly turn into impassible goo with each > rainstorm, and the lightening would surely keep any aircraft

grounded.

> > Luck again went my way, however, and the road remained dry enough

for

> Matt to return with a Ranger and three local wilderness guides

(Angel

> and two guys whose names we didn't catch) who happened to be in the > area. After much conversing and strategizing, the Dutch couple > volunteered to slowly drive me the remaining 14 miles to the exit

of

> the park and to the waiting ambulance. > > We crawled along for nearly two hours, crossing sand washes, > washboard, multiple dry creekbeds, and, finally, a hub-deep water > crossing about 30 yards long. Once at the ambulance, I said my

thanks

> to everyone and was whisked away to the nearest clinic an hour's

drive

> away. Meanwhile, Matt took the Dutch into the nearest town to buy > them dinner in appreciation for what they did, and got both of our > bikes to a hotel. (Yes, amazingly enough my bike was still > rideable--it was just missing the mirrors, the speedo glass was > shattered and the shifter was a bit tweaked.) > > Once at the clinic I had a series of x-rays that showed the

surprising

> number of broken ribs. Concerned about the potential for > pneumo-thorax, they loaded me back into the ambulance to go to the

big

> hospital an hour further north for additional x-rays and an

overnight

> stay. > > The big hospital in Richland did a fine job of making me

comfortable

> overnight and discharged me after a last set of x-rays in the

morning

> confirmed no further complications. Matt then picked me up in a > U-Haul truck and let me rest in a motel for the remainder of the

day

> as he figured out how to get the bikes and the rest of our gear

loaded

> up. He also did a great job of cheering me up, renting a couple a > DVDs for us to watch (no comedy, though!). > > Yesterday and today we bounced along the highway from Utah back to

San

> Jose. Matt is being a super friend and is staying with me through

the

> weekend to help me get situated. A BIG THANKS to Matt for all his > help, and great apologies for ending our trip so early! > > Matt had some pretty interesting adventures of his own while in

search

> of help for me, but I'll let him post about that. > > A note on gear: ATGATT. Arai Signet GT helmet (now trashed; I have > some bruising on my left temple, which would explain me seeing

stars

> out of my right eye). T-Pro armored shirt and pants; I have some

nice

> bruises around the edges of the pads on my left side, so no doubt

they

> saved me from additional injury. Held gloves. Asterisk knee

braces.

> Sidi Crossfire boots. Aerostich Darien jacket and pants (with the

TF2

> pads removed). If only there was some sort of hard armor to

prevent

> collar bones from breaking! > > -- > Blake Sobiloff > http://sobiloff.typepad.com/> > http://sobiloff.typepad.com/klr_adventure/> > San Jose, CA (USA) >

[James Morrow Sr]

Yes I had a brused lung and did lung exercises, every hour I was in the hospital. My doctor prescribed standard exercises for a "Frozen Shoulder" (copied them from his medical book) and I did them religiously for 4 weeks. Really helped, I have 100% range of motion now. If he prescribes Alieve, make sure you take with a meal, eliminates nausia.

On 9/11/06, Blake Sobiloff wrote: > > On 9/11/06, James Morrow Sr wrote: > > > > Wow, according to my calculations, you didn't receive hospital care for > > 4 hours. When I broke my collar bone and 7 ribs in May, I barely made 15 > > minutes, until the hellicopter EMT got me some morphine. You are one tough > > dude to make 3 or 4 hours. > > > > Actually, I crashed at around 12:15, started riding the truck to the main > road around 3 PM, got to the road and the waiting ambulance around 4:45, and > made it to the clinic around 6 PM. Transferred to the hospital at around 8, > and by 9:15 or so I got my first food since breakfast and my first pain > pill. This is the third time I've broken a collarbone, so the pain and > healing process is getting to be waaay too familiar. > > > Also, I needed 5 days just to be ready to ride in a Car on smooth > > roads. Took me 2 weeks to return to work is some pain. 6 weeks of painful > > exercise to have full range of motion. Of course I am 63 years old, keep > > forgetting that (G). > > > > Thanks for the stats; I hope I progress as well. > > > Make sure you do your exercises, really helps in getting back to > > normal. Collar bone and ribs have been the most long term pain I have had > > to experience. > > > > > The only exercises I've been prescribed so far are lung exercises to make > sure I don't get pneumonia. I see my local orthopedic Wednesday morning, so > I'll see what he has to say about exercises. > > Thanks, James! > > > -- > Blake Sobiloff > http://sobiloff.typepad.com/> > < http://sobiloff.typepad.com/klr_adventure/> > San Jose, CA (USA) > -- James Morrow Sr Union, MO '00' RT + dual plug + Bunkhouse '00' BUSA + 15hp '05' KLR650 + big fun factor [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

[Jim]

Adam, Give us the details on this adventure. --Jim A-15

> Just got back from a few days off and riding in the sierras. Sorry > to hear about the accident. Hope you have a speedy recovery and > glad it wasn't worse. I used to be a lone rider until I got hurt > out by myself and had to spend the night with a broken ankle and > ride out in the morning. Big lesson here is to ALWAYS ride with a > buddy. > > Adam > > 04 KLR650 > 04 KTM450MXC > The guy with all the torque values at your tech day

[Adam]

--- In DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com, "Jim" wrote:

> > Adam, > Give us the details on this adventure. > --Jim > A-15 > > > > Now I will rewrite this for the group,

My in-laws have a cabin in the Stanislas National forest, can ride OHV out of the driveway. VERY COOL! about 15 miles of dirt out od Twain Harte CA. Some of the most beautiful riding I have seen. A KLR heaven. Anyway back to business, a few years ago I went on an evening ride by myself on my late XR 350, I crashed pretty hard and felt my ankle pop. I knew it was hurt but I did not know it was broken until 2 days later when I went to the doc. It was my right ankle and my bike was on it's side so it was flooded. I could not kick it and it was getting dark. I decided to spent the night and my brother in law found me the next day and started the bike so I could ride it out.

> > > > Adam > > > > 04 KLR650 > > 04 KTM450MXC > > BTW if anyone wants to go riding in that area, let me know as the

cabin is in the middle of it all. Fun day trips to Bridgeport, Beardsley resevoir, Pine Crest, Bodie, Columbia, etc........

>

[revmaaatin]

--- In DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com, "James Morrow Sr" wrote: SNIP Took me 2 weeks to return to work is some pain.

> 6 weeks of painful exercise to have full range of motion. Of

course I am 63

> years old, keep forgetting that (G). > > Make sure you do your exercises, really helps in getting back to

normal.

> Collar bone and ribs have been the most long term pain I have had

to

> experience.

UNSNIP James, Thank you for your personal encouragement to Blake, and to me during my own recovery this past summer. You: Back to work after two weeks. You are amazing. I been thinking... There must be a collar bone plague. Or is it a copy cat plague. Yikes! For the roll call: Guy Young, AJ aka 'Raven' (deer strike in Aberdeen, SD), James Morrow, the 'revmaaatin', and now Blake, (at least that is all I know) all in a 12month time frame. Hmmmm. Maybe it is time to pray for snow and stop the carnage. Just some thoughts without much contusion: Reflecting about these broken bones, it has caused me to think about the similarities of experience and training. Last August (05), I attended MSF course for the first time in Rapid City, SD but there was not anything (that I remember) in the Advanced Rider Course that addressed how to successfully handle the unscheduled 'get-off', not that you ever start out with the thought of -scheduling- a crash. Perhaps we need some analysis on how to execute a 'get-off' with the least amount of damage to the rider. Perhaps there is some discussion out there that I am unaware of, and someone could share it with us. I was recently watching some of the X-games type stunts where a wintertime MX-stunt at a ski-lodge went bad and the guy pushed off the bike during a back flip, (you see it all the time on the mx- bicycle's). The point being, the rider made a deliberate choice-- give up on the bike. He was hurt very badly, but at least, he did not have the bike fall on him. In Blake's previous post, he suggested that he did not get his arms away from the bike and help break the fall, i.e. give up on the bike! When I read that, I immediately went back to my own collar bone/rib fracture and I could visually see myself as I rode the bike, hands on the bars, feet on the pegs until full impact. As I passed through 89degress of Angle-of-bank, I thought, "this is not going to work out." Riding the bike, all the way to the accident site, must be a carry over from my aviation experience, 'keep slapping switches and moving levers until all violent motion stops'. Personally, in the moments after impact, I sat there dumbfounded that I had been 'spit-out' by such a small obstacle (rut), and how fast I went from the status of rider-in-control to nothing more than baggage at the crash site. I have watched many of the moto-GP riders perform some pretty spectacular get-offs, but I am not really convinced that they have much control (after all, it starts in an out of control situation) of the initial impact, but many seem to exhibit the presence of mind to get their arms out for a super man slide. Perhaps it is from some previous thought out actions or sheer blind coincidence aka luck. Slow tipovers allow us the possibility of getting away from the bike, but any event that involves speed, it seems to me, all bets are off for getting our hands in front of us. In Blake's event at 40mph and mine at ~15 mph, it might just be that the broken collar bone is a smaller 'fee' to pay for the get-off rather than broken arms, wrist, or more that might occur with the arms in front of us during an impact. If given the choice between broken arms/wrist over broken collarbone, I think I would take the collar bone...as for the ribs...I am not so sure. The ribs are pretty painful. Perhaps someone could comment on the plastic roost protectors and how much rib protection they offer. I have a '661 Pressure Suit' but post accident examination, I don't think it would have offered much in the way of additional protection over what I was wearing last May (Feldsheer, armored ballistic nylon). All that said, we can armor for the mild impact, but I doubt that we could ever armor up to take into account for all possibilities. Blake commented about the 'small' amount of damage to the bike, i.e. mirrors mostly. For a 40mph getoff, He got off cheap. as did I at only 15mph. My bike equipped with Moose Barkbusters and AL skidplate, H-T PD nerfbars, HT brake billet and brake reservoir cover, Dr. Krock's shark fin, and mirror isolators (the items directly involved with the impact) did the job they were supposed to do. I was pleased with every dime that I had spent for armor, and would equip my next KLR with at least these same items. From all of this: If you are going to ride to more remote places, armor up your bike and carefully select your body armor. It is not a matter of 'will' you fall down, if you ride in remote, difficult places, you ARE going to fall down. As our friend Jeff Saline often suggest: "Access [realistically]the amount of risk you are willing to take when selecting the farkle you put on your bike/body (sic)." Proof? All I did was remove the dirt stuck in the brake pedal, adjust the mirrors, and the bike was ready to ride again. Blake had two broken mirrors, and the speed/forces were exponentially higher when compared to 15 vs. 40mph. Do the most to protect yourself (and your family) by selecting the best armor you can afford. and. Having a 'smart' riding partner is also very helpful... and it might be the best armor of all. All that said, bike and body armored, go change the gas. revmaaatin. 14 weeks after impact, back at it. 911 Careflight, Aberdeen, SD (return to duty, 25 Aug)

[revmaaatin]

--- In DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com, "Bogdan Swider" wrote:

> > .. > > > > So back to Blake's incident, what I found was that he was in the

middle

> of the > > road between > > the two tire tracks. What caught him was something I've never

seen

> before on a > > gravel road > > and I'm not sure how it formed, but there was a ledge of gravel

that was

> about > > 1.5" high. > > Matt, do you know what tires Blake was riding on at the time ? > > Bogdan

And was he using WD-40 for chain lube? I am sure that is more important than tires. (;~0 revmaaatin.

>

[revmaaatin]

--- In DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com, "Blake Sobiloff" wrote:

> > On 9/11/06, Bill Watson wrote: > > Get well Blake, I always enjoy your posts. > > Thanks--will do! > > > Hey, and quit trying to copy the Rev's every move!! > > Imitation and flattery, I guess. > -- > Blake Sobiloff > http://sobiloff.typepad.com/> > http://sobiloff.typepad.com/klr_adventure/> > San Jose, CA (USA) >

Boy's this is not a contest, gladly, I will relinquish 1st prize in advance. revmaaatin.

[E.L. Green]

--- In DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com, "revmaaatin" wrote:

> I have watched many of the moto-GP riders perform some pretty > spectacular get-offs, but I am not really convinced that they have > much control (after all, it starts in an out of control situation) > of the initial impact, but many seem to exhibit the presence of mind > to get their arms out for a super man slide. Perhaps it is from > some previous thought out actions or sheer blind coincidence aka > luck.

Take up rollerblading. You will swiftly learn how to fall -- or else you'll have a couple of broken arms *and* broken collarbones . I can't say I'd do any better than you guys in an accident. The one accident I had, I got launched off the side of the bike, but did land on my chest with my arms outstretched. Only thing that got banged up was my knee, which hit a rock where the armor weren't (ouch!). Well, and my wrist, which got slightly sprained from trying to hang on to the bike when I got bucked off. But I wasn't even going 15mph at the time, so that's hardly a fair comparison... -E