wtb: red, right-side cover

[Ross Lindberg]

Four miles from Walcott I can see the flashing lights. I'm betting they aren't from a road construction crew either. Sure enough, at the curve in the road leading into town there are 2 police cars and an ambulance. In the ditch are the twisted remains of a Harley dresser rolled up into a ball. I stop and ask two riders who are flagging traffic what happened this time. "Rider didn't make the curve" is the only explanation I get. As I pass the scene I hear the radio on the bike still playing. It seems like some kind of sick joke. I pull into town and see Vicki and Terri waving to me. I bright green KLR certainly is easy to spot. I join them and we decide to walk uptown and see what's happening. The accident is the main topic of conversation. Apparently the rider passed the leader of the convoy and all the guard riders. He was so busy cruising at a high rate of speed that he was unable to make the corner. The organizers of the ride were absolving themselves of any responsibility by saying that he wasn't a member of the ride because he passed the lead biker carrying their club flag. They even go so far as to claim that being ahead of the lead bike means that they have no responsibility to lend assistance. As far as the FM Crusaders are concerned, the rider is on his own. Thankfully, other riders strongly disagree with this logic and return to help in what ever way they can. The only report on the status of the fallen rider is that he is in bad shape. Once again, no helmet. No protective gear. We stroll around the small town and once again the beer is flowing. To their credit, the folks I regard as real riders are sipping bottled water and soda. The SPB members are having their regular beverage. "Me big bad-ass biker. Me need beer!" I realize that I do not feel comfortable with the vast majority of people in this group. Bikers wearing Nazi SS logos on their vests along with patches that say "Proud to be White". It makes me embarrassed to be associated with these people. Luckily I run into Rick again and we get to spend some more time visiting. Rick is a super nice guy and I am glad to have met him. We have a great discussion about the Thermo-Bob that he installed on his bike as well as his fork brace, and about his near miss panic stop early on in the ride. All too soon we hear bikes starting up so it's time to go again. We bid each other farewell in case we don't meet each other at the next stop and promise to keep in touch. Vicki, Terri and I head for our bikes and get our gear back on. I am pleased to find out that the next stop will be the final one of the ride. I have had enough. There is far too much stopping and not enough riding for my taste. As we wait our turn to proceed out of the parking lot the air is filled with the sound of roaring V-Twin engines and squealing tires as a few members of the SPB feel the need to do a burn-out before leaving town. 3 miles out of Walcott the procession slows. Another wrecked Victory is lying in the ditch; its rider lying motionless beside it. Terri immediately pulls over and dismounts, followed by Vicki and I. Terri has First-Responder training and it is immediately apparent that the fallen rider's companions have no idea what to do. The rider is laying face-down and isn't moving, even after Terri checks on him. I know then that this is very serious. Like the other riders before him there is no sign of a helmet or any other protective gear. I am not certain yet if he is dead or alive. I tap Terri on the shoulder and let her know that I have a very basic First-Aid kit along, but I know deep down that this guy needs a lot more than that. One of his friends is holding his hand and weeping and softly calling his name. It is tough for me to watch, plus I don't know what to do to help so I think it best to just stay out of the way. Debris is spread all over the roadway, so I start collecting it before someone has a flat tire or crashes again. A couple more riders with medical experience stop and I hear that another rider is down behind us. I can hardly believe how this day is turning out. At first I am puzzled by the debris I am collecting. I can tell that not much of it came off the Victory. I pick up a light and bezel that looks like it came off a pickup truck. I glance around, but don't see anything matching that description, so I remain puzzled for the time being. The second thing that catches my attention is the expressions on the faces of the riders slowly passing by. The geared up riders show concern in their eyes. The SPB riders act like this is a common occurrence that doesn't even rate a passing glance. I find myself angered by their indifference. Apparently is doesn't occur to then that they may well be the next injured victim being pulled from a road ditch. Finally I have most of the debris picked up, the end of the group passes by and I can see the flashing lights of a rapidly approaching ambulance. I hear some soft, mumbled word and realize that the injured rider is alive. That is good news. Two other riders have the idea of moving the wrecked motorcycle away from the rider to give the paramedics more room to work. We have to be very careful because the bike is very close to the rider's body and we don't want to touch him in case his neck or back are broken. All three of us grab it and lift the front end of the bike and swivel it away from the rider. We then tip it back on its wheels. I hold the front brake to keep it from rolling further down the ditch. We try to push it up the ditch, but it is still in gear. I try to put it in neutral, but the shifter is mangled along with much of the bike. I pull in the clutch and thankfully it releases and we are able to move the bike. The ambulance crew arrives and gets information from Terri as to the status of the victim and she helps them with a plan of action. It is decided that a back board and a neck brace are needed. While they gather and lay out their equipment I see another rider sadly watching the action. I ask him if he saw what happened. "No, but I know what happened. He ran right into the back of me. The traffic slowed and he didn't react quickly enough." I ask him if he is okay. He tells me he's fine, but the impact tore a big hole in the left side saddlebag of his Gold Wing. Mystery solved. Now I know where the odd wreckage came from. Another ambulance arrives and blocks the road from the east. Two police cars are approaching from the west. At the same time a pickup truck approaches the scene from the east and drives around the ambulance blocking the road and ignoring the crew's directions. It continues towards me, and the police cars which are attempting to get closer to the scene are forced to park farther back to avoid the oncoming pickup. I yell at the driver to pull over and stop. The driver is a lady in her late 70's who says she is going to get her mail. Angered, I grab the mirror of her vehicle and shout "Look lady, we have a guy who is damn near dead lying in the ditch. Why don't you show a little respect and allow the emergency personnel to make it to the scene? I think your mail can wait a couple of minutes!" She stops, but the police and highway patrol have pulled over to the shoulder and are sprinting to the scene. The crew is working on stabilizing the crash victim when I hear some chilling words. "We need a Life-Flight". The highway patrol man gets on his portable radio and calls for the chopper, while the sheriff's deputy looks for a suitable landing spot for the chopper. I tell the lady in the pickup to leave the scene and take a different route home because the road will be blocked. She grumbles about the delay getting to her mail, but leaves. The patient is rolled on to the back board, the neck brace is installed and he is secured in place. As he is rolled onto his back I notice a wedding ring. He has involved more people than just himself in this accident. I think about a loving wife who is about to get a phone call that will really ruin her day, if not change her life. More help is needed to retrieve him from the ditch, so I grab the end of the back board by his feet and we carry him to the road. It is an eerie feeling carrying a person like that and knowing that he is seriously injured. It is not a comfortable feeling for me and I think of Revmaaatin. How many times has he been to a scene like this? Too many I decide. There is nothing more we can do, so Terri, Vicki and I gear up and prepare to clear the scene. Terri tells us that he will live and that alcohol was definitely a factor in the accident. Once we leave the scene, the ride is peaceful. All the other bikes are long gone and it is just the three of us. The stress of the day finally hits me and I am not ashamed to saw that I cry in my helmet for the first three miles. Tears of hurt. I think of the wife named Suzy who just got a call that no one ever wants to get. Of the two families who's loved one is injured and of the possibility of children being involved. Tears of frustration. Every accident that I have seen today could have been prevented. There is so much needless suffering that could have easily been avoided. And tears of anger. I know that I will be a better rider after witnessing all that I have seen today, but realize that the majority of the riders I have seen today will never change. This sad scene will be repeated over and over again as time goes on. We take the shortest possible route to the finish point. As we pull into Fargo and take the final exit, I am tempted to keep riding and head for home. I feel sick inside and the fun I had hoped to have has long since departed. Besides, Vicki is still my riding partner and I stick to her like glue. Her husband cannot make many of these rides that she attends and is very thankful that I come with to look out for her. We park the bikes and head for the lunch line. There is supposed to be music and a dance later, but none of us are in a party mood. I run into the Magna rider and get distracted visiting with him and get separated from Vicki. We head to the back of the food line and run into Rick again. Rick and I have a delightful visit and I get the chance to eat supper with him and meet another of his friends. Visiting with and meeting Rick are definitely the high point of the day. After dinner I rejoin Vicki and Terri, bid Rick farewell and Vicki and I head for home. I take the lead as darkness is approaching and lead the way back to Ada, lost in my thoughts. I vow that I will never again ride in this event. I have never witnessed anything like this in my life and never want to again. What sealed the deal for me was seeing the club members slapping each other on the back and exclaiming "Great ride!" No boys, it's not a great ride when 3 people are in the hospital. I restrained myself for telling them so because I know they wouldn't get the point anyway. We make it to Ada without incident and I help Vicki get her bike Sadie Jade into the small garage. Sadie Jade is a beautiful bike that was given to her by her best friend Tammy who died of cancer this spring. Tammy was the one who got Vicki into motorcycling and was the reason that Vicki wanted to do this ride. We sit in silence for a few moments, and then Vicki says "I think you should go on the women's ride with me tomorrow. This will likely be the last ride for me this season. We have had so much fun riding together this summer, and I don't want it to end like this." I don't want my season to end this way either, but I'm seriously thinking about riding alone from now on. I tell her that I will give it some thought on the way home and giver her my decision when I call to let her know that I arrived safely. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

[boulder_adv_rider]

Ross - It's a pretty powerful piece. Thanks for sharing. I don't like groups myself. I first figured this out snowmobiling with a bunch of smokers. Imagine riding 5 miles and stopping for 15 min...in freezing cold! Then after 2 hours hit a bar and drink beer. Once is enough we all learn. As for rescuing people, good on all of you! People make stupid mistakes but we're not there to judge nor decide punishment. We must spring to action and provide the best care we can regardless. I can't tell you how many drunks or foolish riders and drivers I've rescued. Some in remote areas in the night where I was their only hope. At great cost and/or risk, I provided life support in things like climbing accidents. And just last year skiing in Vail I had to call in a helo after a guy hit a tree. It was so bad no one would even go near the accident. They all stood way back petrified. I look at it like a machine that needs repair..that simple. It's always hard on me and your post-emotion is what most of us feel. It's natural. But after those accidents and the people survive, you know YOU made the difference. Thank yous are rare. These people can (and do) change after these horrible events; this is a reward. Of course, riding solo has it's own risks. But I've warned about the hazards of group riding--especially 'group think.' Remember, group think was what caused the Challenger disaster indirectly. (Ultimately the decisions upto a failing o-ring cost lives.) You live and learn but never turn a blind eye on someone in need. Proper training can give you the confidence to respond, but the gut- wrenching emotions are the reward for 'no good deed going unpunished.' I could go on and on... Again thanks. I think you'll find 99% of this board avoids rides like these. Freedom of valleys, hills and streams is where you'll find most. Brian - who believes every saint has a past and every sinner a future.

[nakedwaterskier]

Anybody who rides much has had close calls even if they have never been injured riding. Anyone who doesn't wear a good helmet is a moron and their parents should have aborted them. Those novelty half helmets might help a little but why not wear a real helmet? It doesn't have to be fullface. Maybe I shouldn't care whether those Nazis/Skinheads wear helmets or not. But, they put a burden on the healthcare system if they are only injured and don't die riding unprotected. Top of the line 1,2,3,4 year old dot, snell, BSI rated helmets are available barely used on ebay or craigslist for less than $200 shipped. I would only buy Suomy, Bell, Arai or Nolan helmets...Supposedly the plastic ones have gotten much better and they are cheaper but I would stick to the quality names I mentioned that aren't considered plastic. But, a dot and snell plastic one is far superior to one of those novelty skid lids.

[boulder_adv_rider]

Our healthcare system is not over burdened by injured people. It's amazing what the govt (society?) has people believing these days. Once again, it's Wall St's shit-hooks in healthcare that destroyed our once respected system. I'm yet to go to any ER and have them say helmet-less riders are to blame! Or even stupid m/c riders. No. The explanations all center around greed. Greed in insurance industry on down to doctors needing more and more to support lavish lifestyles. For example, there is no reason why a simple x-ray should cost more than $10. It costs well over $250. What used to be go to your doctor and pay for a visit and for medicine is now...pay huge premiums and a lower price (if you have the good plan) or out the wazzuu if you don't. Call it a monopoly or oligopoly. Just show me were I can shop for the best price before I enter a hospital. I've never seen a coupon for a $299 broken leg or $2000-off any ER visit! If fact, the average h/c plan for a family is now $12k/yr! $12k even if your family is perfectly healthy and doesn't even go to the hospital. Yet suffer a bad injury without insurance and that family most likely will go bankrupt. This wasn't how it used to be and basic healthcare has changed. In fact, we still can't cure the common cold; rather we can connect you to all kinds of new, fancy devices and monitor the basic vitals for 100x the cost. Americans have been fooled again into a healthcare crisis. (FYI--Look at what happened with Tenet Healthcare once Wall St sent Trevor Fetter to be its CEO...you'll know exactly when/where the fall of healtcare began). Like I said I've done a lot of rescues and don't care if you wore a helmet or not. I care most that people were free and enjoying themselves responsibly. Even if irresponsible, I take no judgement as nature affects this. Besides just because someone chooses to not wear a helmet (you'll find it odd I don't always wear mine) has nothing to do with smart or deserving to injury/death, etc. In fact, I'm more cautious wearing no helmet than I am wearing one. After all if I tip over, the helmet will save me, right? It can give false sense of security and increase the risk we otherwise would avoid. I'm not looking to debate this rather suggest there are many ways to look at things. In fact, I've had plenty of road racing friends don their best leathers and helmets and all kinds of crash gear only to do just that--push the limits and crash. I bet if they were wearing jeans and normal jacket like I was, I wouldn't have scraped them up off the ground and into an ambulance. Again, I don't blame people for choosing. I don't blame our f-u healthcare system for making the cost of crashing expensive. Simply, I let nature take its course with people who act irresponsible and otherwise don't assume the risk that accidents do happen. You roll the dice. Brian - who believes freewill will free...

[D Critchley]

Not that I am an expert, but it seems to me that anything which is deemed to be "socialistic" by the various overlords is a good place to get money out of the ordinary Joe. Health care, Dental care, higher education etc. Look at the school fees that some people are trying to pay, should that be a cost covered by the system? I would not want to be an underpaid single parent with about three kids starting school all at once. On the other hand, Halliburten (?) executives have to eat too. Just a thought, DC boulder_adv_rider wrote:

> > Our healthcare system is not over burdened by injured people. It's > amazing what the govt (society?) has people believing these days. > Once again, it's Wall St's shit-hooks in healthcare that destroyed > our once respected system. I'm yet to go to any ER and have them say > helmet-less riders are to blame! Or even stupid m/c riders. No. > The explanations all center around greed. Greed in insurance > industry on down to doctors needing more and more to support lavish > lifestyles. > > For example, there is no reason why a simple x-ray should cost more > than $10. It costs well over $250. What used to be go to your > doctor and pay for a visit and for medicine is now...pay huge > premiums and a lower price (if you have the good plan) or out the > wazzuu if you don't. Call it a monopoly or oligopoly. Just show me > were I can shop for the best price before I enter a hospital. I've > never seen a coupon for a $299 broken leg or $2000-off any ER visit! > If fact, the average h/c plan for a family is now $12k/yr! $12k even > if yo >

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

[revmaaatin]

--- In DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com, "boulder_adv_rider" wrote:

> > Ross - It's a pretty powerful piece. Thanks for sharing.

SNIP> Again thanks. I think you'll find 99% of this board avoids rides

> like these. Freedom of valleys, hills and streams is where you'll > find most. > > Brian - who believes every saint has a past and every sinner a future. >

Ah Brian, I notice you (thankfully) failed to include gumbo mud as a KLR destination. Have you shown perverse prejudice to specific riding conditions? revmaaatin.

[boulder_adv_rider]

<> Ah Brian,

> I notice you (thankfully) failed to include gumbo mud as a KLR > destination. Have you shown perverse prejudice to specific riding > conditions? > > revmaaatin.

Even though I struggle in the Valley of gumbo mud I fear not getting stuck, for You are with me; Your Gatorade and Your Powerbar, they comfort me. Brian - who believes you are never stuck...just spooling wisdom

[nakedwaterskier]

Healthcare...so are cig smokers a burden or not or they die sooner so they aren't? Or they linger and put a COST burden on society? A paralyzed motorcycle rider that wasn't wearing a helmet or armored jacket could also be a negligent long term COST burden. In SoCal, the county healthcare systems are clogged with people from other countries without documents that want to have or are having their children here. So, there is definitely a burden in this part of the country. All helmet makers claim helmets only have a life of 5 to 7 years even if just kept on the shelf in a box. I don't believe it. A high quality helmet is good indifinitely if cared for properly...I don't know about the plastic or polycarbonate ones.

[agh19]

Looking for red (2006) rear right-side cover (over airbox lid and muffler). Ron Ayers price is $59.13 for a new item. I'm hoping to pay less than that. Thanks in advance. Alan Raleigh, NC