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I think I used the 7th of my 9 lives yesterday!
It started out a little ominous when I headed up Highway 18 towards Crestline in the San Bernardino Mountains. As soon as the road started to climb I found myself in heavy fog and drizzle with about 20 feet of visibility. Of course I was wearing my sunglasses down in the valley, and now they are making it even harder to see, but there is no safe place to pull over. After a few miles I make out a couple bikes in a large turn out and I pull in. The 3 riders approach asking about 2 riders they were missing. I hadn't seen them in the fog, so they were going to return and look for them. I went on to Crestline to alert the rest of their group.
Once reaching Crestline it was clear sunny and warm. What an amazing change in weather! Task done and the remaining riders heading down to find the missing riders, I continued my journey.
The goal was to reach Big Bear to meet an old friend for lunch, who had retired there a few years ago from LASD. The ride along Rim of the World was absolutely beautiful I was above the clouds and traveling down a twisty road mile after mile. Life is good!
Once in the town of Big Bear traffic was heavy. After getting across town I call my friend who informs me he is heading to town for the annual car show. Cool. Big Bear is a small community, but the local car club has some really nice cars on display. It seems that whenever I venture there I catch a car or bike show in town. I can't think of a nicer place to hang around and check out some rides.
After the show, we caught up on old times and made some future plans. I decide it's time to head back down the mountain at a bout 2:45. I planned on taking Highway 38 down which puts off the mountain fairly far to the east, but a great road especially on sportbike.
About 45 minutes into the ride, while on a short straightaway, I'm gaining on a new Toyota Matrix and there is a right hander approaching. Then the Matrix starts heading towards the fog line. So I goose it to get by. Now I'm thinking cool, he's going to let me slip by and enjoy a brisk pace, WRONG!
Just as I'm about ten feet away and hugging the DY, he continues! Straight into the mountainside. I'm grabbing all the brakes I can and trying to stop short and get away. Now we are about even but the loose dirt of the mountainside is blinding me. I could see the car launch off the face of a boulder and begin flipping some 20 plus feet of the ground. Then it's gone, not really. My visibility is maybe 1 foot in the massive dust cloud. I have no idea where the car is and worse I'm no longer sure of my position on the road.
I do my best to shave speed and come to a safe stop, when suddenly I get hit hard in the right shoulder and chest, moving my front wheel and changing my direction. I found out later it was a window from the car. I'm being pelted with rocks and small car parts! Then In a brief flash I see what looks like a 6 foot 4 X 4 about to hit me in the head and left side. The impact wasn't to bad but it altered my direction again! Turns out it was part of an Aero kit that ran along the side of the car from wheel to wheel.
Now I'm really concerned. I'm essentially blind, have a cliff down to a deep ravine somewhere to my left, a rock wall to my right, a right hand corner somewhere ahead of me, and an out of control car somewhere close by!
With all this going on my tires are skidding on car parts, rocks and dirt, so I have to keep releasing and grabbing more brakes trying to get some traction to stop. At one point I ran over what was about half of the front right aluminum wheel of the car. It nearly ripped the bars out of my hands, but somehow I was able to stay up right.
Now it's getting quieter, the dust is thinning and I'm nearly stopped, amazingly still in my lane, but heading straight for the rock wall. I figure that I must have crossed the DY a few times. I park the bike and turn around to see 2 little kids running in the road.
Before I can even shed any gear I run off and scoop up both kids in my arms and get them over to the shoulder by the Gixxer. The little boy about 6 is asking if he is bleeding and if he will be OK. He is fine, not even a scratch. His sister about 8 is screaming for her Mom and asking if she is going to die! She has several severe head injuries and is loosing a lot of blood. I do my best calm them when the husband, father, driver emerges from the wreckage screaming "Oh my God what have I done! I fell asleep!" He was uninjured not a scratch, but of no use to help out!
About this time a mini van pulls up, and what luck, an ER nurse and she has cell service! My Nextel sucks! With the 911 call completed, she takes over the 2 kids and I head over to check the mother still in the car. It’s not good and I will leave it at that.
She was in the passenger seat and the roof above her was completely crushed as was the rest of the car around her. I did what I could for her until the paramedics arrived. All the while the husband was running around half out of his mind with what just happened to his family.
Nearly 2 hours after the initial accident, I had given my statement to the CHP and started down the mountain again. It was a very slow and somber ride the rest of the way home.
I hope the mother survived and the kids can deal with what happened. It seems to have filled my thoughts all day today, so I thought I’d post it and maybe get it out my system.
I took a few pictures during the ride, a few at the car show but only one of the accident, after things were wrapping up. I’ll post them a little later.
I hope everyone had a safe and enjoyable holiday.
Dale (Just glad to see another day.)
It started out a little ominous when I headed up Highway 18 towards Crestline in the San Bernardino Mountains. As soon as the road started to climb I found myself in heavy fog and drizzle with about 20 feet of visibility. Of course I was wearing my sunglasses down in the valley, and now they are making it even harder to see, but there is no safe place to pull over. After a few miles I make out a couple bikes in a large turn out and I pull in. The 3 riders approach asking about 2 riders they were missing. I hadn't seen them in the fog, so they were going to return and look for them. I went on to Crestline to alert the rest of their group.
Once reaching Crestline it was clear sunny and warm. What an amazing change in weather! Task done and the remaining riders heading down to find the missing riders, I continued my journey.
The goal was to reach Big Bear to meet an old friend for lunch, who had retired there a few years ago from LASD. The ride along Rim of the World was absolutely beautiful I was above the clouds and traveling down a twisty road mile after mile. Life is good!
Once in the town of Big Bear traffic was heavy. After getting across town I call my friend who informs me he is heading to town for the annual car show. Cool. Big Bear is a small community, but the local car club has some really nice cars on display. It seems that whenever I venture there I catch a car or bike show in town. I can't think of a nicer place to hang around and check out some rides.
After the show, we caught up on old times and made some future plans. I decide it's time to head back down the mountain at a bout 2:45. I planned on taking Highway 38 down which puts off the mountain fairly far to the east, but a great road especially on sportbike.
About 45 minutes into the ride, while on a short straightaway, I'm gaining on a new Toyota Matrix and there is a right hander approaching. Then the Matrix starts heading towards the fog line. So I goose it to get by. Now I'm thinking cool, he's going to let me slip by and enjoy a brisk pace, WRONG!
Just as I'm about ten feet away and hugging the DY, he continues! Straight into the mountainside. I'm grabbing all the brakes I can and trying to stop short and get away. Now we are about even but the loose dirt of the mountainside is blinding me. I could see the car launch off the face of a boulder and begin flipping some 20 plus feet of the ground. Then it's gone, not really. My visibility is maybe 1 foot in the massive dust cloud. I have no idea where the car is and worse I'm no longer sure of my position on the road.
I do my best to shave speed and come to a safe stop, when suddenly I get hit hard in the right shoulder and chest, moving my front wheel and changing my direction. I found out later it was a window from the car. I'm being pelted with rocks and small car parts! Then In a brief flash I see what looks like a 6 foot 4 X 4 about to hit me in the head and left side. The impact wasn't to bad but it altered my direction again! Turns out it was part of an Aero kit that ran along the side of the car from wheel to wheel.
Now I'm really concerned. I'm essentially blind, have a cliff down to a deep ravine somewhere to my left, a rock wall to my right, a right hand corner somewhere ahead of me, and an out of control car somewhere close by!
With all this going on my tires are skidding on car parts, rocks and dirt, so I have to keep releasing and grabbing more brakes trying to get some traction to stop. At one point I ran over what was about half of the front right aluminum wheel of the car. It nearly ripped the bars out of my hands, but somehow I was able to stay up right.
Now it's getting quieter, the dust is thinning and I'm nearly stopped, amazingly still in my lane, but heading straight for the rock wall. I figure that I must have crossed the DY a few times. I park the bike and turn around to see 2 little kids running in the road.
Before I can even shed any gear I run off and scoop up both kids in my arms and get them over to the shoulder by the Gixxer. The little boy about 6 is asking if he is bleeding and if he will be OK. He is fine, not even a scratch. His sister about 8 is screaming for her Mom and asking if she is going to die! She has several severe head injuries and is loosing a lot of blood. I do my best calm them when the husband, father, driver emerges from the wreckage screaming "Oh my God what have I done! I fell asleep!" He was uninjured not a scratch, but of no use to help out!
About this time a mini van pulls up, and what luck, an ER nurse and she has cell service! My Nextel sucks! With the 911 call completed, she takes over the 2 kids and I head over to check the mother still in the car. It’s not good and I will leave it at that.
She was in the passenger seat and the roof above her was completely crushed as was the rest of the car around her. I did what I could for her until the paramedics arrived. All the while the husband was running around half out of his mind with what just happened to his family.
Nearly 2 hours after the initial accident, I had given my statement to the CHP and started down the mountain again. It was a very slow and somber ride the rest of the way home.
I hope the mother survived and the kids can deal with what happened. It seems to have filled my thoughts all day today, so I thought I’d post it and maybe get it out my system.
I took a few pictures during the ride, a few at the car show but only one of the accident, after things were wrapping up. I’ll post them a little later.
I hope everyone had a safe and enjoyable holiday.
Dale (Just glad to see another day.)
