Witnessed An Accident Today

[Greenday]

I don't even know what to think after seeing that.

I was driving my girlfriend out to dinner and we were sitting at a red light. As we were sitting there, I saw a motorcycle coming. The guy riding it was wearing regular street clothes, no helmet, no pads, nada. I was going to comment on how bad that could turn out for him to not wear any protection when he starts to turn left at the light. I watch him and it looks like to me that he was too low to the ground while turning. Near the end of his turn, he guns it and the bike goes out from under him. He better thank his lucky stars that he wasn't too fast. He got up and I asked him if he was alright, but he said he was cool and just picked up his bike. I figured if he had the strength to get up right away and pick up his bike, he was ok.

I cannot explain how ironic that was. It was so ironic it left me speechless. Anyone else ever notice stuff like that happen?

[blas]

I've never witnessed a biker wipe out, but I see lots of motorcyclists without helmets around here. My ex roomate was an avid biker who refused to wear helmets. He correlated it with seatbelts, I guess....the whole idea "It's my decision, blah blah blah...." (let's not make this a debate, I was just stating his opinion on the matter). He liked to go up and down the street popping wheelies.

I told the story in Sightings about the biker in front of me popping wheelies every time a light turned green...

Just last night (since the snowstorm last Thursday/Friday, the weather has gotten surprisingly warm and nice lately) there was a biker in the lane next to me, and when the light turned green, he gunned it and within seconds was probably miles away.

I just wonder where the cops are when stuff like this happens.

[ArcticChicken]

One of my friend's uncles rode a motorcycle. One day he was out drinking and decided it would be a fantastic idea to go for a bike ride. He pulled up at a red light. Right next to a cop. He then proceeded to fall over. See, he got so distracted thinking "Oh Dog, don't act drunk, don't act drunk" that he forgot to put his feet down.

[Shangri-laschild]

I hate bikers like this who give the rest of us who actually ride safe a bad image. It's dumb plain and simple. Eventually it will catch up with some of them though. While I don't wish it on them, if you don't drive safe and you crash because of it, you really can't blame anyone but you.

[protege]

I got to see a biker get into a *serious* accident right in front of my grandmother's house. Like most of the people who ride motorcycles down there, he was going way too fast.

I heard the bike roaring along...then a loud squeal of brakes, followed by an "OH SHIT!!!" as he went flying :eek: Somehow, he lost control on the straightaway...veered into the other lane, and hit a culvert. How he missed the fence, the trees, the rusty feeding trough, etc. I'll never know.

Good thing I was home, otherwise, he'd probably been seriously hurt. I went into the house, dialed 911, and had him sit on the berm. Within minutes, the fire department and ambulance took care of things. Even though the kid's sport bike was totaled all he went away with was a broken shoulder and some scratches on his helmet.

There have been plenty of wrecks on that road...both cars, and plenty of bikes over the years. They simply go too fast, and usually lose it in the curvy parts.

[blas]

I cringe every time you tell those stories, protege. I keep imagining some kind of windy road and people flying at 90 mph and biffing it right in front of your house.

[Boochan]

Living literally at a very busy intersection between my road (5 Lanes all up in this area), and a fairly major feeder route through the suburb below me leaves me witness to many accidents. Latest was a few months ago during the night when somebody went through a red and a car scored a direct hit through someone speeding through the green light. Some injuries, and both cars were written off, and the whole intersection blocked for quite a few hours.

When we first moved here, it was just an intersection with stop and give way signs. Their used to be a couple of accidents a week. In 2001 they decided to add traffic lights (after first wanting to add a traffic circle, which probably would have worked better), and their has been a marked reduction of accidents, but still a lot more then the traffic circle would have reduced it too.

[Geek King]

My ex roomate was an avid biker who refused to wear helmets. He correlated it with seatbelts, I guess....the whole idea "It's my decision, blah blah blah...." (let's not make this a debate, I was just stating his opinion on the matter).

It stops being your decision when its my taxes paying to put you back together in the hospital when your insurance runs out.

The most experienced bikers I know wear full helmets and crash leathers. Even in 100+ degree weather.

[blas]

But Geek King, honey, you've read my stories about the guy. His engine never runs on all cylinders.....

[protege]

I keep imagining some kind of windy road and people flying at 90 mph and biffing it right in front of your house.

We've had several bad ones. Nearly all of them were people simply driving too fast. That's why I said that the 45mph speed limit on that road is a joke. We've had cars come through the fence (multiple times), slam into the guard rail on the corner, somehow get themselves airborne into the fields across the roads, or plow into the rocks where the road starts to twist.

The most serious was about 25 years ago. In those days, that road didn't see nearly the traffic level it does now--you could go all day and only see a single car or two. As such, the intersection at our corner had (and still has) a stop sign. Heading south (past her house) there's a guardrail to keep cars from going off the bridge or into the creek. On the other corner, there wasn't anything at that time--a telephone pole, and a cheap fence was it.

Anyway, one night a woman was coming from town, and fell asleep at the wheel. She rode the guardrail over the bridge...and directly into the telephone pole at the corner, snapping it off :eek: She was killed instantly when it fell on her :(

I'm not sure if it's the booze or what, but people drive like idiots on that road...even after reading about the wrecks in the papers. I've had people pass me (on a double-yellow line...which is *illegal* in PA) even at 55-60mph :eek:

That's nothing compared to an area I call the "Mulsanne Straight" (after the section (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mulsanne) of Le Mans with the same name). That's well over a mile long, perfectly straight downhill section a few miles before you hit the PA/WV border. Quite a few people like to do 70+ through there, and accidents aren't uncommon.