Im glad your ok, that was one of those disturbing videos that you take to heart and look at and even though you posted it, when your sitting there and you fell over when sitting there trying to figure out what the hell happend, I was like, dont tell me im watching you go into a coma and maybe not come out. Ive been in the ems/firefighting world for 20 years and even that had me cringing! Ive had some scary hits in hare scramble racing but that was by far the craziess thing ive seen, especially on video. Props to your buddy Darrell and all the help of the other riders and EMS. Ride safe Joe.
Glad to see that you can tell us about your adventure. Analysis is always a hard one to figure out. Did you figure out why the bike was running poorly? Fuel, loose electrical? Michel
Sorry guys, i dont mean to vent, but sometimes things just happen that you just dont expect. I had what turned out to be a stump that thru me into a tree that damn near ended my life and riding. Shit happens!. Take it for what it is and realize things happen weather on the street or on the trail. Be thankful hes ok and think about the possible things we have to deal with for the freedom of riding. Nothing more, nothing less. It is what it is. Like life, you never know the what the next day or next step will bring you.
That's right, it happens fast and most of the time when you least expect it. Just an example...lets not try to analyze this one, it was posted somewhere else and has already been analyzed here. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrzW0IZ8L_8 Other than to say glad your OK...all the speculation on coulda, shoulda, woulda is pointless. If you have ever been to or watched a Pro Race on TV, I'm pretty sure at some point in time you will witness a top rider bite it hard, be it road racing, MX/SX, Endurocross, when it happens it happens fast. Cheers to you Joe..."Old Guys Rule"! Tech23
Joe, glad you are ok. That could have been really bad. No way I am letting my wife watch that video! I rode that trail in June last year, but I rode down that section. I remember on the ride down thinking to myself, "I sure hope I don't have to turn around and come back up this!" My DR650 was loaded about as heavy as yours appeared to be. Later in the year I rode a section of road near Moab and had a very similar experience, except I suddenly found myself veering to the left UP a cliff, stalling with my feet dangling in the air while momentarily paused at the apex of the 3 foot hill climb, then just as suddenly continuing the fall to the ground. It happens so quick, no time to react! Luckily in my situation, it was just a precarious stall and tip over. Just hurt my pride! Wish I had had some video of it though, all the same. Get the bike running again, put the fall in the past and keep riding! I need to do my own write-up of my two trips before the year mark sneeks up on me. Sure enjoy reading about everyone's TAT trips.
wow that was scary. Glad you're ok. Things can turn bad real fast. I'll be thinking of getting a spot real soon if/when I do a big trip. Cheers, Dave
Holy crap. Glad you were relatively okay. That could have ended much worse for you (and your bike). Pretty awesome that you were ready to give it another go right after this mega-crash... and that it was primarily your bike, not you, that caused you to reconsider. I hope you do decide to write a ride report. If you do, please post the link here so that I don't miss it. Oh, and I'm sold on the spot now. I was debating getting one for the very remote trans taiga this summer... But the debate is over. I'll definitely have one for that trip.
I had chills looking at your video. I had an almost exact thing happen to me and it landed be with a broken pelvis and sacrum. An accident that still messes with my head. Your analysis is superb and also very glad you are well. I
I watched this video the other day on youtube and then today I find a thread about it. Weird. Just a couple comments. 1. Glad you are OK. 2. That the camera kept rolling is a testament to GoPro, but the part that amazes me is that the camera mount didn't snap off on impact. Evidently there are better camera mounts than the ones I have seen. 3. Had very similar injuries resulting from a touch too much front brake in the dirt that slammed me into a pile of rocks at about 45mph. 3 cracked ribs and a fracture in the left foot where the bike slapped down on it. So seeing you go face first brought back many memories and YES... Rib injuries SUCK. 4. I don't know if whiskey throttle is the correct term, but it did look and sound like the step may have rocked you forward and in compensating you rocked back and the throttle opened. It was lugging and in a high gear so it is not a quick high rev. This is why I fear the throttle on my 8GS. Low speed on rocky trails, standing or sitting can jar your hand a fraction forward or backward and that fuel injection on/off point can get you out of sorts easily. 5. If every ride went according to plan, we wouldn't have to spend all the money on SPOT's, GPS's, helmets, gloves, crash bars, crash jackets, etc. etc. 6. Glad you're OK.
It is good that the ride of the TAT has not ended in permanent injury if not on your body, in your memory. Heal well!! I've watched the vid a few times, read the foresight and hindsight, techniques that should or should not have been used. My question is "Would a bike in the 200cc to 250cc range have handled the TAT?" I read that a trip like yours should not be attemped on anything less than 400cc's?:huh
Just found this one... Lucky is sometimes way better than skill. I am glad you are doing well after that! Thank you for this post, it is a story well worth reading. Very nice job on it! One comment, the pic you posted with the rear tire skid, right before the point of no return... I was wondering if the rear tire hopped up and was a bit unloaded, maybe a pinch of dust on the rock surface, with a slight slope away from the edge - toward the right side of the road? Looks like maybe your rear went up to the right of the high center, if so, that could combine to slip the tire down the slight off camber and kick the rear to the right, helping to turn you to the left. Not to discount anything going on up front, but it would add to the quickness of the turn. The pic is very 2D, not 3D, so I could be all wet, just wondering I guess. The bike seemed to jump out from under you. Cheers - and I hope your next ride is a bit less exciting!
Kampfire, thanks for this comment. I've put my bike down on slab and dirt many times and I suspect your commentary is spot on w/ regards to the armchair quarterbacking. I've been lucky and I've been really hurt, so I too greatly appreciate and respect Joe's openess and willingness to REPEATEDLY examine, dissect, and review his experience -- thank goodness he's here to do so and in great shape to boot. Joe, at this point, we're all trying to pick fly shit outta pepper, and it's A-Okay for you to step away from this thread and move on to more fun stuff. We are all thrilled at your survival, and frankly, I would like to point out that try as people may to seek out your failings in this experience, it might be a good idea for us all to realize that your experience, preparation, gear, and skill may have just as likely led to your surviving what could have been a much worse get-off. Short of having ESPN's multi-reverse-angle replay, we'll just never know what went wrong, and I don't think it matters any further IM humble O. Keep that rubber side down, and ride on brother!
Joe, Hopefully this thread is your "therapy" and not the terror of reliving it over and over though. My experience is your brain may move on quicker if you just assume a simplistic reason. Like - "rock steps caused unavoidable temporary loss of control resulting in hard collision, and severe damage to motorcycle" Sorry - I copied this out of my own police report and just replaced "bicyclist" with "rock steps".... Hey that's the way they look at it so......... Now, are these things "unavoidable" ? Only if you figure out how to reverse the spin of the earth....
I just want to thank Joe as well, and also hope (I haven't been reading it lately to see if he posted anything) he isn't taking it personally. It's a learning experience for us all, and if not it, many who ride a lot would still probably have something on our rides that, if recorded on a GoPro, many here would question and analyze. None of us execute all manuevers perfectly each time, and that's why Joe's all-the-gear set-up is so important for us all... we're all admitting that we may very well be the ones that will be in something similar to Joe's situation soner or later.
I thought the bike survived, did I miss something?...I thought the bike was tweaked back into shape and ridden. Was something major discovered later? Tech23
Hey everybody, I'm still around and reading your comments. Thanks for all the support and for keeping the discussion on the crash analysis extremely civil. I really feared the thread going off the rails there, but it went extremely well and was pretty thorough. As mentioned, I have some things I will be focusing on when I get back to the dirt. That said, unless someone appears with a second video showing a different view of the accident, I think I am personally done analyzing the crash. The reason being, if someone posts their own theory, then I would need to review the video again in light of their comments. I really want to be done watching the video, as that part is hard for me. I don't mind others continuing to analyze the crash. Just don't be offended if you don't get a reply/acknowledgement from me. I don't mind answering other questions regarding the incident. I'll also be sure to post when I get the DR running as normal again and if I start a prequel ride report thread on our TAT ride.
Well, it pretty much survived, but there were some gremlins. See http://www.advrider.com/forums/showpost.php?p=20867671&postcount=86 and http://www.advrider.com/forums/showpost.php?p=20867937&postcount=91.
Thanks Joe...Wow that plug sustained that damage in the crash while it was in the cylinder head? I know there are two plugs firing but I think I might take a close look at that spark plugs high tension wire/cap. Tech23
came across this today. read through all of your posts on the accident. I have to say... I've been to Moab in my Jeep and I'm familiar with the type of terrain. its easy to focus on the trail and miss the hazards to the side. our first trip, i focused alot on the trail, but had my wife riding shotgun to keep me reminded of the lines i took, the ledges and stuff. not such a luxury when the only voice(s) in the helmet is/are your own. there are a lot of posts in here... and i will read through more of them as time allows. but as to the accident, the only thing i could relate... when you started the obstacle, there was a loss in forward motion, the engine bogged and then it looked like two things happened. you initially appeared to correct left to compensate for balance. seemed like the bike was tipping towards the downward slope. i think the unexpected result was when the rear tire slipped, it pitched out due to the turn to correct balance. that turned you towards the slope and over the side. honestly. i dont think there is anything you COULD have done to correct that once it began. there was already enough speed to carry you or the bike over. in your favor, though, once the bike slid and you were pointed across the trail, there was an attempt to cut to the right, but there wasn't enough trail for it. i'm very happy to see that you fared as well as you did. thats a long drop and it clearly rang your bell. i give you kudos for spirit and conviction on making an effort to continue.... and more than that for recognizing when to stop knowing how it felt. i damaged my Jeep on my second trip to Moab on the Gold Bar Rim. I could have welded up the broken parts, but the stressed parts likely would have stranded me out on the trail. the injuries in my case were to my Jeep, not me. but it hurt not being able to continue and having to take up a vacant seat in another rig for the remainder of our trip.