I got rear-ended...my story

[PhatPhizzixxer]

First of all, I don't have any pics...I don't ride with a camera but will probably get one now.

Last Friday I was on a ride...feeling good...weather was nice. I was coming up to a light but before you get to this light, the road does an S-curve left then right & you're at the light. (JonKerr will know this intersection well...Lake Jennings Rd. and Hwy 8 Business.) I was turning right so had my right turn signal on & had to stop behind a car also turning right. I'm looking left to watch traffic & also watching the car in front of me to see when he will go. Five seconds after stopping, all of a sudden I felt & heard BAM! as I lurch forward then fall to the right onto the ground. I was rear-ended by some guy who HAD to be looking anywhere else (phone maybe?) but in front of him. I had a HI-VIZ JACKET on...like the hi-viz vests but it's a jacket (by Olympia) along with all the other gear.

I pop up on my feet - probably from the adrenaline, then slowly sink to the ground putting my head between my legs. The guy gets out of his car & - I dunno - it was like he was getting upset about his car or the fact that he'd gotten in an accident...he NEVER ONCE asked if I was ok & NEVER apologized. All I remember is looking at his stupid white logo hi-top sneakers & wishing I was a guy so I could beat the crap out of him.

An eye-witness came over, asked if I was ok & started chastising the guy, but the guy got real defensive & they're getting into it while I'm sitting in the grass about ready to pass out. All I know is he sure wasn't sorry. Right across the street, a cop had been writing a ticket to someone else & within seconds, he walked over to us & started writing down all our information. Few seconds later, the fire truck & paramedics showed up & made me lie down & started strapping me to the board. I was trying to get up & turn my bike off at least but they wouldn't let me get up...my focus was on my bike & just sitting there looking at it on its side all jacked up & thinking of all the things I wish I could say to this punk.

I was trying not to pass out but I do remember trying to ask the paramedics to make sure they turn my bike off, get it off the road, get my helmet, BOTH my gloves & my tank bag...LOL...then I was just pissed as heck about this guy doing this to me, to my pristine bike...his lack of attention...phffffft...yeah, really pissed. The next 5 hours was spent in the emergency room, getting x-rays...etc.

It cost me $375 to get it from the tow yard. LOL...I had my son, on a GXR750, my brother, on a red VFR and my husband on his Kawasaki Concours all accompany me home after picking it up. With all of us together, it was pretty loud but I wasn't taking any chances. My bike was ride-able but something felt a little off. I'm surprised at how little damage there was...well, my rear signal light was hanging & my license plate was bent completely under, the right faring had a few scratches here & there & the tire was a little roughed up. So, all in all, not too bad. I'll be taking it in to the shop to have them do a thorough check-up, though; don't want to take any chances. My poor baby!!!

Now I just have to explain to my boss why I was riding my bike Friday instead of going to work! Doesn't anybody else play hookey so they can get a nice ride in?

 

[Heineken]

Thank god your okay. If your boss gets wise just tell him that he should thank god too, that your alright and can continue to make money for him

 

[Diluted]

Damn, there's been a lot of this happening lately. WTF is up with people and not paying attention? Glad you're alright. It sucks they made you pay to get it from the tow yard, especially when it got there because of someone else.

 

[JonKerr]

Oh man I know that spot very well. That's such a danger spot because the light is green so often and people fly down that hill. I try to avoid that hill at all costs. I'm sorry you had that happen. Dumb ass was probably flying down the hill saw the red light and didn't pay attention to the fact a bike was there. Idiot! If you're not going to have Motoworld do all the work and need some help working on the bike let me know. I can probably help.

 

[Kleinfalls]

Make sure you keep that receipt and let your insurance company know - the guy's insurance should reimburse it. I can relate when i was like 17 my folks were out of town - i wrecked my truck - when i told my dad over the phone he hung up - didn't ask if I was ok or anything LOL just human nature - self centered usually - and unfortunately reacts the wrong way

glad you are OK

all these stories are starting to make me paranoid - maybe we should all strap a claymore facing backwards on the back of our bikes - and then put the warning "explosives" sign on there !!!! LOL - maybe that would keep people back

 

[Diluted]

Maybe we should rig up LED's to say "Please Stop!"...

 

[PhatPhizzixxer]

Oh man I know that spot very well. That's such a danger spot because the light is green so often and people fly down that hill. I try to avoid that hill at all costs. I'm sorry you had that happen. Dumb ass was probably flying down the hill saw the red light and didn't pay attention to the fact a bike was there. Idiot! If you're not going to have Motoworld do all the work and need some help working on the bike let me know. I can probably help.

Thanks! I'm kind of in a fog right now. I've never been in an accident so I'm trying to figure it all out. When I was going east on Hwy 8 Business, I saw the guy who rear-ended me coming out of that AM/PM but since he had to wait for me to pass before pulling out, and I had the bright jacket on, and I turned my blinker on, I assumed (wrongly!) that he would notice. While I was sitting there, I couldn't see him behind me because as you know when you turn right onto Lake Jennings, you are not perpendicular to the intersection...I mean, my bike was straight but the right-turn lane is already turned, ya know? Man, I wanted to f'ing punch that guy...he was such a D*CK!!!

 

[PhatPhizzixxer]

BTW, how do you know if you need a lawyer in situations like this?

And, yes, I'm keeping receipts...believe me! It's probably a good thing that my husband, son or brother weren't there because there would DEFINITELY been some fists flying & then they would have gotten into trouble. I didn't even acknowledge the guy other than seeing his stupid white sneakers...plus, the cop was right there between us & I just kept my mouth shut.

 

[Kleinfalls]

Or drag spike strips behind us - something!!!! ROFL People just have too many distractions in the car these days - radio / GPS / cell phone / built-in dash computer / eating / makeup / etc etc - I think everyone should have to ride a motorcycle at age 21 for a month - make them a better driver overall and let them live in our shoes for a bit

 

[PhatPhizzixxer]

The male nurse at the hospital was asking me about it & he had just gotten a new motorcycle & his comment was "This would make a good case for lane splitting." How do you all feel about that? I mean, I kinda agree; typically, I don't mind waiting for lights behind all the cars but now I'm not so sure. In this case, though, I'm not sure how I could have set it up differently. If I had moved farther to the right of the lane, the guy might have tried to share the lane; to the left of the lane, I might have been thrown into the car in front of me. JonKerr is right; that's just an all-round bad intersection...not sure I could have set it up any way other than I did.

 

[Kleinfalls]

BTW, how do you know if you need a lawyer in situations like this?

And, yes, I'm keeping receipts...believe me! It's probably a good thing that my husband, son or brother weren't there because there would DEFINITELY been some fists flying & then they would have gotten into trouble. I didn't even acknowledge the guy other than seeing his stupid white sneakers...plus, the cop was right there between us & I just kept my mouth shut.

That's your insurance company's job - you shouldn't need to get a lawyer - unless you are going for above and beyond for emotional trauma etc. A bodily injury lawyer would probably love to go after the guy - if he has anything to go after - but if you really don't have any serious injuries - then not sure it's worth it.

 

[Diluted]

BTW, how do you know if you need a lawyer in situations like this?

And, yes, I'm keeping receipts...believe me! It's probably a good thing that my husband, son or brother weren't there because there would DEFINITELY been some fists flying & then they would have gotten into trouble. I didn't even acknowledge the guy other than seeing his stupid white sneakers...plus, the cop was right there between us & I just kept my mouth shut.

As long as there's no issues with insurance I would say no personally. Even if there was I think your insurance company would bring the fight against the other guy.

 

[PhatPhizzixxer]

Ok, cools...just didn't know...this whole thing is totally new to me.

 

[Chip]

Wow! Glad to hear you are ok!!

 

[JonKerr]

Sitting alone at a stop light or even a stop sign without a stopped car behind is probably the most vulnerable place to be on a bike. That's why I try and split the lanes between cars to get to the front if it's possible. If not, I move as far to the right as I can (I see better directly behind me with the left side mirror) and keep an eye on my mirror with the bike in gear and the clutch in. I have had to roll forward a couple of times as cars have gotten closer than I think they meant to. Again, one of the reasons I hate riding in town. Give me my canyon twisties and I'm much more comfortable.

The other day they were doing traffic control at a 4 way stop sign that gets a lot of traffic on the weekends. (Base of WildCat Canyon for you PhatPhizzixxer) I was the lone bike on the south side waiting for a whole line of cars on my left to turn left and head up the hill in the same direction I'm heading. The cop came over and told me to sneak in line as soon as I can so I'm not sitting there exposed. I thought that was very cool of him.

 

[DragonBlu]

JonKerr brings up a very good point and something I have practiced for years that less experienced riders should heed and that is to sometimes create your own safe zone or safe situation when possible. I will do this sometimes when turning left off a two lane and that is if there is a line of cars behind me and on coming traffic. I will go past my turn off and find a safe place to pull over right,wait for traffic to clear and go back and make a safe right hand turn instead. Just my way of trying to not get run over. Glad to hear you did not get hurt too bad.

 

[SSgtBaarnes]

Glad to hear that you're okay. Hope to hear you back on the road soon.

 

[tractorboy]

First off glad your ok!! but wow the bike is ridable!

TOO MUCH OF THIS HAPPENING!! Even more than before people just dont pay attention....driving , walking, or anything! they are doing TOO much and are TOO impatient. Here in my area where I work you;d think a stop sign with a white rim around it actually means stop if you feel like it!!

as they pull out in front of you even when there is NO ONE BEHIND YOU!!

hang in there!

 

[MikeN02]

Seriously, I almost got merged onto today. Was riding on the freeway and this 300 decided he would like to take this exit and moved over the white lines and almost hit me, I braked and he went ahead on his way not even rolling down his window or waving an apology at me. I just shook my head, let it go and just kept riding.

 

[Detrich]

Ack, so sorry to hear that this happened Kjaersten... =( The important thing is that you're not seriously hurt. Sounds like your bike shouldn't be too expensive to fix too- probably mostly cosmetics and then just a rear wheel & chain inspection followed with a high-speed rotation test to make sure it's stable and secure.

Hopefully that scumbag at least had insurance and they will cover all your damages & medical bills. The absolute worst part was he showed no remorse or even consideration or care after injuring you. >=(

Totally suxors. But, get lotsa rest, get better, and get the bike fixed. =)

The silver lining in all this is that you are ok and your bike will get fixed. Try not to let it get you down and try to see this as a learning experience. Also try not to allow yourself to get cynical and negative, because then that scumbag would've done more damage to you as a person than he is worth.