After nice Sunday Ride up to Pink Floyd restarant filtered down through the horse country
to int 484/75 and got on I-75 for quick run down to Bushnell exit for burnt bird on the way
home.
Running in center lane at traffic pace I suspect was about 75mph I saw an opening to
move into the right lane where I would not be so crowded or quite so fast. When I made
my move into the right lane encountered wake turbulence or slight tar strip wiggle which
VERY rapidly in about 4-6 ocillations escalated into full unrecoverable lock to lock tank
slapper wobble which splattered me all over the pavement and then off the road onto
the paved shoulder and then the grass.
FHP report shows I tumbled 180 feet and the bike tumbled 219 feet from the point of
impact of the bike to the pavement. Report shows only 34 feet from first tire skid mark
to point of impact with pavement.
Sumter Co First responders next thing I remembered - they packaged me up for transport
to Shands Gainsville in helicopter.
Damage was 4 broken ribs, collapsed lung, bleeding spleen, broken right hand/wrist, some
spectacular road rash, and no glasses(I seemed to have eaten them-found glass in mouth).
Good news was no head, neck,spine,hip,knee,leg,ankel, or foot injuries other than road
rash. Yes - I was wearing helmet which looks scraped but not impacted. I wish I had
left the helmet home - I would never have gotten on the interstate without it.
Shands ICU stopped bleeding spleen without having to remove it by use of some tool
entered in big vein in groin area.
I was discharged noon Wed Nov 12 to go home and recover for followup at later
date relative to hand surgery not yet evaluated or scheduled.
Lynn and Mac Arimtage from Floral City area provided transportation for me and many
other helpfull services. Charles Root picked up the bike from impound and brought
its remains to my home.
The motorcycle is essentially destroyed - appears to have launched high in the air and
tumbled end over end. Had to be my favorite 1967 BMW I bought for a throw away
bike to ride to Alaska in 1989 and gave me in excess of 220k miles before trying to
kill me in an instant without warning or chance to recover - my mood at present
alternates between strip and rebuild or pack with dynamite and blow it to hell.
Beemerbob may be known for the immediate future as Slowmotion Bob.
I feel like a bag of disconnected parts tied together by strings of pain.
=================
Update Dec 23, 2008
=================
Recovered enough to begin riding again
Ribs bad at first ok now
Road Rash took about 3 week
Hand is and will be a problem for some time - enough motion and strength to ride Suzi with
hydraulic front brake but not enough motion or strength to work the cable/drum brakes on
any of my BMW airheads
.
.
