swilson Posted January 26, 2011 Share Posted January 26, 2011 This weekend I took my family camping at Oceano Dunes (Pismo) with my good friend of nearly 15 yrs and his family. I'm new to dirt bikes and was really excited to finally get a chance to ride with my buddy who has about 20 years experience riding in the dunes and has always impressed me with his riding & driving abilities. I've four wheeled with him for nearly 15 years and was pretty excite to finally join him on two. While our wives were watching the kids and playing on the beach looking for shells, my friend and I got our first chance to take the dirt bikes out just the two of us. We had a great time riding. We'd find a great dune to jump stay there for a bit, and then head off to find a new dune. While in search of a new spot to jump I took the high road and was riding the ridge of a tall dune and my buddy was paralleling me just 50 feet to my left and 30 feet lower. While I had a smooth level route, his was up and down a series of 3 dunes that were perpendicular to the normal orientation of dunes. (parallel to the waterfront) The last dune was only 30-40 feet tall, but had quite a peak to it. He came up to the top expecting to have some level sand to ride, but instead was surprised by the steep drop on the other side. Trying not to launch his bike, he chopped the throttle, and the the front wheel dove down the other side and was going to go end over end. He was only going about 10-15 mph. He dove away from the bike superman style trying to get away from the bike. It was not a violent event and with the low speeds I wasn't even considering he could get hurt. I changed course to meet him at the bottom with a grin on my face ready to make fun and help him pick up the bike. Instead as I dropped down the face of the dune I found him screaming in pain. He had tried to land flat (belly flop) on the sand, but as he came off the bike he was rotating in the air and his feet tried come around behind his head, breaking his back. He is now paralyzed from the waist down. The docs says the chances of him regaining any feeling are nearly zero. I clean up after vehicle collisions for a living, so I'm well aware of the risk of accept by enjoying life on two wheels. This one did catch me by surprise when the injury was so severe from a relatively minor crash. Anyway, I'm mainly sharing this just to remind you all to be careful out there. Its scary how quickly things can go bad. Doesn't matter how good our skills are, we're just one wrong move away from a wheel chair, or worse. Please be careful. Link to comment
bendbill Posted January 26, 2011 Share Posted January 26, 2011 Damn. How quickly it can all be taken from us. God grant him, his family, and friends like you the strength to endure the challenges to come. Link to comment
ShovelStrokeEd Posted January 26, 2011 Share Posted January 26, 2011 I feel for you and wish your buddy the strength and courage to adapt to his new condition. There really is no such thing as a minor crash on a motorcycle. You may get fortuitous results from a crash and so consider it minor but, the potential is always there for severe injury. Look at it this way, how many people die in the bath or shower every year, an activity considered by most to be safe. Link to comment
cris nitro Posted January 26, 2011 Share Posted January 26, 2011 Wow, very sorry to hear about your buddy. Your right, it doesn't take much for it to go very wrong. Although, given the smae situation, I'm not sure what could have been done different, short of not riding at all. Link to comment
upflying Posted January 26, 2011 Share Posted January 26, 2011 Sad and shocking news. I've been at Pismo a few times but have not been there in more than 40 years. For our readers, Pismo is an official California off-road vehicle recreation park. It's the only place that I know of in Ca where the public can drive a vehicle (car,truck,van, RV, street motorcycle) on the hard-pack beach without getting stuck. Behind the beach are many acres of dunes and soft sand to play on. Many bring toy haulers, set up camp and enjoy ATV's and bikes on the sand. On major holidays it gets crowded and scary since there is little to no control of the direction or travel of vehicles operated by young and old alike. Accidents are common and in this situation it may have prudent to check the other side of the dune before riding over it. Off-road ATGATT was non-existent back in the day but today pads and body bracing devices can be purchased. Since cops only have friends who are also cops, I suspect the worst here. This accident will be career ending if that's the case. Wishing a speedy recovery for your buddy and the challenging life he has ahead of him. Link to comment
Danny caddyshack Noonan Posted January 26, 2011 Share Posted January 26, 2011 Scott, Shocking and sad news. I used to ride down there also and probably had my closest call, including street, down there due to flying ATVs. Please keep us posted with any updates. Link to comment
RT Russ Posted January 26, 2011 Share Posted January 26, 2011 Damn. How quickly it can all be taken from us. God grant him, his family, and friends like you the strength to endure the challenges to come. +1 to that thought. Sad news indeed. Link to comment
Fubar Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 Truly saddened to hear it. I guess it really is an "any given day" kind of thing. That much experience in a familiar locale and still a horrific injury. Another eye-opening tale for all. Take care and realize it can happen to you. Best thoughts for your friend and his family. Link to comment
Lineareagle Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 Sorry to hear this, may your friend and family endure the coming months of rehab and change with some degree of success. A long road lies ahead for all involved. Having had several encounters with the instant of realization that things are going very wrong, but having survived each one relatively intact, I can appreciate the sorrow you felt when your friend did not rise up out of the sand grinning. All the best. Link to comment
Survived-til-now Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 Scott, I feel for your friend and for you. It is difficult not to be left with the idea that if it wasn't him it could have so easily been you and because of your closeness to your friend and his family you start to feel guilty that it wasn't you... I believe the perspective on this is that it just happened to be a dirt bike. It could equally have been ski-ing, mountain biking, a car accident on the way to work or a fall off a ladder... I wish your friend the best outome he can get in his recovery. I have known a couple of people who have suffered severe injury to their backs. One is still in a wheelchair: the other, after many months of painful and determined recovery was walking with sticks, an outcome that astonished the doctors. Let's hope for the best. Andy Link to comment
Kinsley Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 I feel for you and wish your buddy the strength and courage to adapt to his new condition. There really is no such thing as a minor crash on a motorcycle. You may get fortuitous results from a crash and so consider it minor but, the potential is always there for severe injury. Look at it this way, how many people die in the bath or shower every year, an activity considered by most to be safe. You're so right Ed. Sometimes we're closer to catastrophe than we know. Link to comment
w2ge Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 Very sorry to hear this.. I know this type of thing can really set you for a loop.. I guess with your background "perhaps" you're better able to handle the mental impact. On one of my last group rides of the season we had a rider go down and I was really pretty shaken up by it.. Now that he's doing better and with time, I look back on it and what happened to him and in a sick way, it was pretty funny. He flew off his bike (hit a guardrail) and his left butt cheek caught the steel girder on the back of the guardrail and nearly ripped his whole left butt cheek off. 3 weeks in the hospital, skin-grafts, etc.. and very lucky cause if went any deeper they were talking about bladder damage, etc... but he's okay now. Things can go bad.. So quickly. ATGATT Link to comment
Kathy R Posted January 28, 2011 Share Posted January 28, 2011 a sobering reminder indeed My sincere wish that JOY envelopes him in those moments when despair reaches out Link to comment
Edmun Santos Posted January 28, 2011 Share Posted January 28, 2011 Sorry for your friend.sand can be very unforgiving, the part that hit stops while the rest of the body keeps going.Hope for the best. Link to comment
Skywagon Posted January 28, 2011 Share Posted January 28, 2011 Scott...so sorry to hear about your friend. My nephew was a Sr. at LSU when a skiing accident placed him in a wheel chair. He never complained, never found the need to feel bad for his challenge, but rather took on the way of his new life with bravery and courage I could have never managed. He is some 20+years my junior but he really is a role model for me. I share with you his website; not for commercial purposes but for an opportunity for your friend to have someone to ask about the future. Have your friend send him an email and ask questions. He is an amazing young man who just got married 3 weeks ago. Again sorry to hear about your friend and hope in some way this will help him start the next phase of life. I wish him all the best. http://www.sagetraveling.com/about Link to comment
dba Posted January 28, 2011 Share Posted January 28, 2011 I clean up after vehicle collisions for a living, so I'm well aware of the risk of accept by enjoying life on two wheels. Scott, Even if we do clean up after T/C's I'm not sure we're prepared for the aftermath of one of our own being involved. Especially if it's a serious one and we witness it to boot. Good luck to you and your friend. Link to comment
BlueByU Posted January 30, 2011 Share Posted January 30, 2011 Sorry to hear about your friends accident.I live a short distance from the Dunes for the last 50yrs.I hear of this type of accidents quite often at the Dunes.Hope the Doctors are wrong this time.Are prayers are with him and is Family. Link to comment
bayoubengal Posted January 30, 2011 Share Posted January 30, 2011 Scott very sorry. Prayers said. Hoping for best possible outcome. Link to comment
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.