I would like to thank the Academy... And my family [Pic Heavy, NSFW]

[Mocha Man]

Coming home from college on a motorcycle on a busy street is not the most fun thing to do, but that was unfortunately the route I chose to travel home from school.

I was following two cars at a safe distance. I had decided to change lanes so I was doing a head check. In the split second I was doing so, I not only noticed a car in the other lane, but the car that was in front of the guy I was following decided to slam on his brakes and not use his turn signal. They guy in front of me had to slam on his too and by the time I had snapped my head back round, it was too late for me to stop. At about 35 mph, my only choice was to slam on my breaks or hit the truck in front of me. I decided the former was the best idea because I didn't want to have to repair a truck as well. So there I went, flying over my handlebars and leaving my chin exposed to take the full impact of the belly flop I did into the pavement.

I slowly opened my eyes to the view of a clear, blue sky, an indication that I was still alive. As I rolled on my back, a few people who had witnessed the crash rushed over to see if I was alright. The man who came over told me he would take my helmet off, to which I replied "DON'T. TOUCH. MY. HELMET." (thankfully I had read a safety thread @Alex had posted). The lady told the man he was an idiot and then asked if I was alright. She said, "It looked like something right out of a movie!" I assured her that everything was fine and she called the paramedics for me. I don't remember the sirens or the medics showing up so I'm assuming I blacked out at this point. Once I regained consciousness, the paramedics were staring down at me and asking if I was in pain, which in hindsight seems like the absolute dumbest question you could ask someone who just flipped over his handlebars and landed chin-first on the pavement. I told him I was and he flipped me over, removed my helmet like you are supposed to when someone is in a crash, and checked my vitals, which were fine. Next, he bandaged up my extremely bloody chin and said, "I don't want people seeing you like this on the street. They'd scream and run away." I replied with "Meh, who says they don't do that anyways to my regular face?" They were amazed at how I could make jokes after being in something so serious. The paramedic told me to get in the ambulance but I insisted that I was fine and told him to call my mother instead, who worked only a few blocks away. She arrived and my dad came and got my bike while we talked to the police and then headed to the E.R.

Upon arriving at the E.R. I was met by a stupid receptionist who just wanted to chat with this other lady. I was pretty pissed at this point, having a bloody jaw, leg, and a possible broken finger, so I just groaned (somewhat loudly), "Man, I wish someone would actually help me here!" The receptionist got irritated and reluctantly agreed to help me. I got called in a few minutes later, where I was given pain killers and nausea medicine while the doctor was helping someone else. Eventually, he came in got my hand x-rayed and got my head a CT scan, which both turned up normal. He finally stitched up my chin (after 4.5 ****ing hours there) and said I was free to go home. They didn't even bother cleaning my bloody face up or anything and said that I would just have to do that by myself when I got home. That really pissed me off.

Anyway, I finally got home and lied down in my room with my swollen leg and finger propped up. My girlfriend bought me a movie and Skyrim for the 360 since my PS3 version stopped working, along with otter pops and milkshakes.

Here are the pictures I took after the incident, including some somewhat ugly ones that you may want to avoid. I will update this thread later as I heal up.

EDIT: sorry about the pictures being sideways, m phone has been orienting them that way for some reason

[outasight20]

Glad you came out relatively well from this accident. Could have been much worse.

I don't get one thing though, How did you smash your chin into the ground with a full face helmet? Was the helmet too loose on you or was the chin strap just not fastened tightly enough?

I'm sure you learned from this incident. Did you brake too hard and therefore endo over the bars? If you didn't hit the car in front, it sounds like you had enough room to make a safe emergency stop.

[cuong-nutz]

Glad you are ok for the most part. I learned to hit up emergency clinics. Just got to know where the good ones are.

[Mocha Man]

Originally Posted by outasight20

Glad you came out relatively well from this accident. Could have been much worse.

I don't get one thing though, How did you smash your chin into the ground with a full face helmet? Was the helmet too loose on you or was the chin strap just not fastened tightly enough?

I'm sure you learned from this incident. Did you brake too hard and therefore endo over the bars? If you didn't hit the car in front, it sounds like you had enough room to make a safe emergency stop.

I'm not sure how it all happened. I think it must have been slightly loose because I remember not tightening it all the way when I was leaving school. I think I may have smashed my chin into the helmet or the chin strap was just too loose and the helmet came up. The damage my helmet took is shown below.

I didn't have any time at all to stop. I was checking over my shoulder longer than usual and when I looked back he was about a foot from me. I honestly have no idea how I didn't hit him. I think I swerved a little and my bike went to the right of his truck. I couldn't swerve all the way into the other lane though because there was a car there.

[bkh2]

Imagine the damage if you were wearing a skull cap instead of a full face... Let's just say it would have sucked if you didn't have dental coverage.

[Alex]

Glad you're mostly OK! How did the bike get removed from the scene, have you picked it up yet?

[psych0hans]

I'm glad it wasn't any worse bro!!! That by itself looks pretty nasty. Heal up quick!!!

[Motofool]

I am very sorry that this has happened to you, Nolan.

[Live2ride]

Hopefully you heal up soon! It happens to the best of us.

[koenigcitizen]

Wow, full face helmets FTW.
Glad you are ok! Get better, good lesson for all of us

[set608]

Glad your mostly alright man! heal up fast and get us pics of the bike as soon as you can! Also get started on the whole insureance crap as soon as you can!

[Racer x]

Sucks. Glad you a at least OK

[akima]

I keep catching myself doing bad shoulder checks (turning my head to far and for too long). Thanks for the reminder about what can happen when you get them wrong. It looks from your photos like your face is going to heal up nicely. Hope the rest of you will be ok too.

[Mocha Man]

Finally got my stitches out today and took my splint off of my pinky. Everything seems alright for the most part. My jaw still hurts and I'm getting really bad headaches ever since the crash but I'm healing up well and got a new helmet ordered, along with some better gloves.

[aharnak]

Glad you're okay dude. Nicely done on wearing all that gear. It saved you from being hurt a lot worse.

[Mocha Man]

Originally Posted by Alex

Glad you're mostly OK! How did the bike get removed from the scene, have you picked it up yet?

My dad rode it home for me. Clip ons were crooked but it was still running. He got it home and we've fixed it all up to normal

[psych0hans]

Glad you're getting better bro! Heal up quick

[JohnnyBravo]

Glad your here typing the story... Sorry bout your experience though

[Mocha Man]

Originally Posted by psych0hans

Glad you're getting better bro! Heal up quick

Thanks!

[Mocha Man]

Ordered a new helmet a few days back. This time I got one that was both SNELL and DOT certified. Also am thinking of getting a new pair of gloves as well since my old pair has some seams that are coming loose. I'm looking at the Joe Rocket GPX 2.0 gloves: http://www.revzilla.com/product/joe-...leather-gloves

Anyone heard anything about them? Or are there any other good quality gauntlet gloves you can recommend?

[BlueHairSar]

Sucks, dude, but glad you're alright!

Also: medics asking about pain is pretty standard. If you're NOT in pain after something like that, it can be a sign of **** being SERIOUSLY ****ed up.

[Mocha Man]

Originally Posted by BlueHairSar

Sucks, dude, but glad you're alright!

Also: medics asking about pain is pretty standard. If you're NOT in pain after something like that, it can be a sign of **** being SERIOUSLY ****ed up.

Yeah, I know it is. Still seems like a dumb question though

[Madman44]

Glad you're OK for the most part. I know all too well how much it sucks to go down. I'm also glad to hear that you've fixed your bike up back to normal. Just try to keep even more space ahead of you and practice quicker head checks. Ride safe bro.

[JBizzle]

Originally Posted by Mocha Man

Ordered a new helmet a few days back. This time I got one that was both SNELL and DOT certified. Also am thinking of getting a new pair of gloves as well since my old pair has some seams that are coming loose. I'm looking at the Joe Rocket GPX 2.0 gloves: http://www.revzilla.com/product/joe-...leather-gloves

Anyone heard anything about them? Or are there any other good quality gauntlet gloves you can recommend?

Sorry if I'm too late on this but I have the GPX 2.0 gloves and like them a lot, they are my daily summer time glove here in Florida. Very comfortable and feel a lot more protective than my previous shorty gloves from joe rocket. This is my only pair of gauntlet gloves I've owned but I've been very happy with them so far.

[Mocha Man]

Originally Posted by JBizzle

Sorry if I'm too late on this but I have the GPX 2.0 gloves and like them a lot, they are my daily summer time glove here in Florida. Very comfortable and feel a lot more protective than my previous shorty gloves from joe rocket. This is my only pair of gauntlet gloves I've owned but I've been very happy with them so far.

Hey thanks, man. I actually decided not to order them quite yet but I definitely will!

[lgk]

Hows the finger doing?

[Mocha Man]

Originally Posted by lgk

Hows the finger doing?

The finger is doing fine but my wrist still hurts whenever I put pressure on it and my Achilles is still swollen and numb. I'm worried about that more than anything. I got my teeth straightened though so I'm slowly getting in better shape.

[KawiKid860]

For gloves, I have perforated Cortech Latigos. Super comfy, way more comfortable and supportive than my hold short glove/long cuff Tourmaster ones. They flow a ton of air too so my hands stay a comfortable temp even when it's 90+ out. A ton of padding and armor too and IMO they look way better than those Joe Rockets.

[Mocha Man]

Originally Posted by KawiKid860

For gloves, I have perforated Cortech Latigos. Super comfy, way more comfortable and supportive than my hold short glove/long cuff Tourmaster ones. They flow a ton of air too so my hands stay a comfortable temp even when it's 90+ out. A ton of padding and armor too and IMO they look way better than those Joe Rockets.

I was looking at those but I've read a good deal of negative reviews on them. Are they as badly made durability-wise as people say?

[Mocha Man]

Update for anyone who actually still cares: Achilles is finally getting feeling back to it and my scars have mostly healed up. I still have one right below my shin and I believe my chin one is going to be permanent, despite what doctors keep telling me.

[lgk]

Grow a beard

[JohnnyBravo]

Glad your bout healed up I don't trust anyone without a scar, that's what my grand dad told me when I was crying about my first, but def not my last scar.

[greenaero]

Very glad you are feeling better. Scars can shrink over time and become much noticeable. I hope this is the case for you.
best wishes GA

[rasta]

I'm interested in this thread about correctly removing helmets after crashes....

[Mocha Man]

Originally Posted by rasta

I'm interested in this thread about correctly removing helmets after crashes....

This is similar to what was posted before, but not the exact one. The one I was referencing earlier went into much more detail but this sums up most of the things that were discussed: http://www.ambulancetechnicianstudy....l#.UrJwlfRDvn0

[csmith12]

^^^ that link is great but.... there is always a but right? Is it UK specific?

Most EMS I have talked to (US) say, "do not remove the helmet unless there a need." To stop profuse bleeding, clear airway, cpr, ect, ect.

Pro Tip: A lot of EMS will not even think twice about it and simply cut the chin strap. If and only if you can do it without harm to the crash victim, then undo the chinstrap. So the EMS workers do no cut it.

[greenaero]

When I was still working in as a firefighter paramedic we trained specifically on helmet removal for motorcycle trauma victims. 2 rescuers are needed: one to hold the patient's neck and head in neutral alignment as the other person spreads the helmet and removes it. No need to cut the chin straps. I used to donate my old helmets to our FD so that our paramedics and EMTs could practice this skill.