Motorcyclist down

[SandM]

Yes that was my son Dustin who went down on Hwy 205 this morning as a result of a driver who changed lanes into him. The other driver's statement to the CHP was "I had my signal on and looked over and he (Dustin) should have yielded".

Mike or Tom, want to comment on that statement?

Dustin is fairly bruised up and the bike is trashed (Photos to come). What's left of it is being scraped up off the highway and taken to Tracy Motorsports. I'm going to guess at this point it is a loss and he will be in the market for a new one shortly.

According to his statement and a witness, he was thrown about 20 feet in the air before comming to rest on the shoulder. I guess walking away with only briuses is a blessing.

[UncleMark]

Holy crap... All I can say is I am glad he's OK... Bruises heal... Keep us in the loop about all of this...

Dustin's a tough kid. And it sounds like he was ATGATT... He just happened to have a little M/C caretaker on his shoulder this morning. Thank God!

[brasters]

Glad to hear Dustin is OK, let me know if you need any help with the bike, I can come over with a trailer if needed.

Hope they ticket the person for unsafe lane change and reckless driving.

[RTrev]

The other driver's statement to the CHP was "I had my signal on and looked over and he (Dustin) should have yielded".

Unbelievable. He saw the motorcyclist, determined (incorrectly) who had the right of way, and then proceeded to change lanes. That would be like deciding a pedestrian didn't have the "Walk" signal and that therefore running over the person would be just fine.

It sounds to me like there should be criminal charges for this one.

Thank God Dustin's okay!

[scottydawg]

I hope your son heals quickly, I am so glad to hear no major injuries occurred.

Terrible but typical attitude of the driver, many really think motorcycles have less right to the road.

[mikerd400]

Without having both sides of the story it is hard to say exactly. If your son was at a reasonable speed and the other person saw him and expected him to yield, the other driver is at fault.

Hopefully witnesses saw everything. I like having witnesses, it makes it much easier in cases like this.

[SandM]

There were four independant witnesses and one who was directly behind the driver who after the accident drove back to the scene and validated Dustin's statement. She said she told her son in the car with her as it was unfolding in front of her "look, that guy doesn't even see that guy on the bike" then BLAM.

He is home from Kaiser now with some "Go" pills and a few bandaids.

The scarriest part was that we have the CHP CAD site up at work in the morning to advise our drivers of impending traffic hazzards and I saw it come across the site and did not put the two together until my wife called. 45 minutes later another MC accident a mile away from Dustins site involving a solo female rider happened and again my heart sank. As you guessed in a pannic I called my wife and was glad to hear her voice on the other end asking why I was paniced.

Too much for one morning.

[RTST]

Steve
Great to hear Dustin is "OK", he probably won't think so when the soreness hits in a couple of days but that will pass (thats where being young helps out). Let us know if you need anything. Give Dustin our love, hope to see you guys this weekend.
Larry
P.S. It sounds to me that he is owed a new bike of his choice by the person that thought he should yield to them!

[haughty]

THis is the thing that gets my goat... he thought he should yield.. when the MC had the lane.... is this wrong or what?

I am glad he is doing ok. my prayers are out there for all MC riders everywhere.

be careful and aware.

MIkey

[hallzee]

Dayum Steve, glad to hear that Dustin is alright! From what I have seen when riding with him, I can only assume he was ATGATT, which saved a little more pain.

Hopefully this means that he's gotten his "getoff" out of the way, and smooth sailing from here on out!

[ADVRandy]

Sorry to hear your Son was in the accident. Very glad to hear he was only ruffed up. I too ride to and from each day and am constantly amazed at how careless cages are towards us.

Tell your Son to hang in there and as one parent to another, you and your wife hang in there too.

Randy

[RaffyK]

Dang it.

Sorry that you had to go through the panic. Glad your son is not seriously hurt. Have him checked out completely. There will be pain long after the meds have done their job. Hope he didn't crack any ribs etc.

Raffy

[gglove]

Hope your son heals quickly.

[cfell]

Very happy for the outcome... sorry it happened of course.... wishing you guys all the best...

[nelson61]

Hey Steve...So glad hes ok .Bike is not big deal....Son is everything.

[webcrum]

Glad to hear Dustin will be good as new, and a new bike always makes you feel better.

[hallzee]

Hey Steve...So glad hes ok .Bike is not big deal....Son is everything.
+1 on that! In about '94, my oldest daughter started driving, so I bought her a sweet little Honda to drive to school. Get a great deal on it, low miles - just like new. It lasted all of two weeks until it was totaled!

My wife calls, saying "Theresa has been in an accident!". After freaking out just a tad about her, I calmed down enough to hear that she was fine; just some bruises, but the car was totaled.

Turns out, the accident was her fault - she pulled right out in front of an oncoming Buick. After hearing that she was OK, and her (my) wrecked car was her fault, I was pissed. There went all that money...

Well, then I saw the car, and I wasn't mad for long. Did I mention she pulled out on front of a Buick? It was a 1973 LeSabre - she had a couple tons of all-american steel impact her side of the car at 40 mph. Luckily, the point of impact was behind the driver's seat (the back seat/passenger compartment was obliterated). Had the impact been just a foot and a half forward, we would have suffered the worst nightmare a parent could suffer.

When I realized how truly blessed I was to only be losing a car, my outlook changed instantly. Man, am I glad Dustin is OK too!

My daughter had to wait 2 years before I allowed her to buy her own car (my limit is one per kid!). Hopefully Dustin will be back in the saddle sooner than that!

[SandM]

His first reflection came last night when he wondered if he should ever get back on the horse again. His mom and I said that it will be his discission when that time comes and certainly not hours after the incident.

This morning he is understandably sore and has some significant bruising, but has a brighter outlook and was looking at 650 Dakars on line. Not necessarily the way I would have chosen to upgrade to a new manufacturer, but I like the brand choice.

[ducatigirl]

Best wishes to all of you, my heart just sank when I read the e-mail, soooo glad things weren't worse. Dustin get well soon :)

Lisa

[RMoore007]

I just talked to my son in Carmichael yesterday and he's on his Ninja quite a bit plus his off-road bike at Prairie City almost every weekend with his friends. I would not want to get THAT CALL out here in Maine.:p I'm glad your son's ok and hope he heals up quickly.

[sonnata]

Sure glad to hear Dustin is relatively OK. That driver's statement is a lesson for us all.

[meese]

Glad to hear Dustin survived with relatively minor bruising. That's about the easiest way to learn the tough lesson that they really are out to get you. Bikes can always be replaced, people can't.

I had the exact same thing happen while crossing L.A. yesterday when a pickup came right into my lane without warning. I braked, swerved, locked up the front tire, felt the bike start to low side, felt the ABS kick in, felt the front regain traction, continued slowing and swerving, and managed to avoid the truck by a couple of feet. Gotta love ABS and quick responses honed by years of riding. There's a reason I no longer commute in that mess every day . . .

[cfell]

Wow, Ken... sure glad you didn't get hurt!

[meese]

Wow, Ken... sure glad you didn't get hurt!Yeah, me, too. :eek:

To his credit, the guy did see me about the time my front tire locked up, so he pulled back a little. And he did give me a "sorry" shrug when I glared him down. But none of that would have mattered had we been just a couple feet closer together when this all went down.

ATGATT and remember, they really are aiming for you.

[hallzee]

ATGATT and remember, they really are aiming for you.
+1 on that. Best advice my dad gave me when teaching me to ride street bikes in the 70's was "Always assume you're invisible". That advice has saved my a$$ more than once!