DC told me about this post on the phone earlier today. I stopped him halfway through reading it. A couple on an ultra losing it in a curve and throwing both passengers....too many similarities for me. Then I asked DC (aka Dawg) did he remember hitting his head or having a 1" cut on his temple and having blood run down his face when they pulled him out of the ditch. He became very quiet for a few minutes.
DC was wearing the same style "brain bucket" (so thin that it didn't keep gravel from cutting his head). I was wearing one of the larger and thicker DOT half-helmets with mini-visor. I saw that same helmet this weekend. I shivered when I picked it up and was still shocked by the deep scrapes in the helmet (on the right side from temple to behind ear, by the way). He gave me a different helmet but then he put on the same brain bucket he was wearing during the accident. I was surprised that he hadn't already replaced it because he knows its no longer safe, and he didn't want me to wear the one from accident. Anyway, I didn't remember the cut on his temple until he read Rebel's post TODAY. I actually remember thinking, as I hit the ground, "Man that should have hurt a lot worse. THANK GOD it's been raining!" I know my face and head would have been a mess if I had not been wearing a helmet that was almost 2" thick. That skullcap did little to protect him. I didn't realize how lucky (or blessed) DC actually was until I read this post. If it had not rained for two days, the rocks and gravel would not have been absorbed by the mud. The cut most likely would have been a gouge or the rocks would have imbedded into his skull!! I honestly think the mud prevented me from being seriously injured and kept the Dawg from getting killed.
BTW, the worse part of that trip wasn't the accident. It was having to pick up the phone and call his brother to tell them we had been in an accident and that he was hurt. I don't know that I could have handled calling for the alternative. (Are you listening, Mike?) They're hot and they don't look cool, BUT I know my kids don't really care what I look like as long I'm here. The same is true for everyone's children, grandchildren, wife or husband, mom and dad, brothers and sisters, and friends! I won't ever go without a helmet again - not in Florida, not in Myrtle, not in Sturgis. I read something by a 30-year veteran biker/freelance writer about helmets. He said you used to not wear a helmet to be a REBEL. Today, you can still be a REBEL...WEAR a helmet at Sturgis! Show them you're not afraid to be different! Another point is that 103tHunDer and Firedood are right about the emergency contact info. If Dawg had not used my phone earlier, I would not have had his brother's number on my phone.
Rebel, Bobby, Firedood, and others - God gave us all different gifts and talents. He gave you the "gift" of service. Not everyone can do it! It is a selfless job. It's rewarding when you save someone, but its crushing when you lose someone. All the ff's I know try to make light of by joking about it, but we know that it is sometimes the only way to deal with grief. To this day, my ex-husband will turn white if you mention the 5-year-old little girl that he treated in a car accident that is now paralyzed because she was in the front seat in just a seatbelt. Our son was about to turn 5 when the accident took place about a mile from our house. He didn't cause her paralysis, the seatbelt and airbag did. Yet, he still wonders if he moved her head slightly while putting on the collar or if he could have done anything differently to change the outcome. DCFiremann had a rough experience on a fire call with an infant that was the same age as his baby daughter at the time. I think there is always one call that is so similar to you or someone you love that it sticks with you forever. All we can do is thank you for a job well done, pray for you to have peace, and pray for Dave's wife and family, AND your wife and Bobby.
Since our accident, I make sure that I don't take anyone or anything for granted. I received the news about my mom about an hour before we wrecked. I was panicking because I was afraid I wouldn't be able to talk to her one more time and knew I didn't have any time to waste! I don't think I had stopped sliding before I bolted out of the ditch. JR, DC, Scot, and Nascar's Fatboy (a non-site member) provided me with the right words of wisdom and comfort at exactly the right time. Don, JC, Andy, Terry, Candy, Hubbard, and others on and off this site have been great friends and offered words of encouragement along the way when it was needed most. I hope and will pray you receive the same, Rebel. Godspeed, my friend.
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Topic: Rough Month (Read 10933 times)