Friday May 23rd, 2008

I was in a motorcycle accident today.   

I'm okay.  I bit bruised, battered and bewildered but okay.  

I picked up my new pair of glasses on 14th street and went to talk with some friends on the corner of 19th and 7th avenue and left them with the intention of going to get something to eat at Rickshaw's on 23rd and 6th.  There was no parking available outside the eatery so I decided to go home by taking 1st Avenue all they way to the Bruckner Expressway.  

Traffic was a mess going down 1st Ave.  People were in a hurry to get out of the city or get home to start the three day weekend.  I got to the 90s without incident but at 94th street there was heavy breaking and screeching of tires on my left (I was in the middle lane) and the car directly behind the heavy screeching car jams his break to avoid the car that stopped short in front of him.  Unfortunately he wasn't stopping in time and swerves into my lane to avoid hitting the car in front of him.  I swerve to avoid him, he hits me, the bike goes skidding away from me off to who knows where.  I go flying banging my head against the ground the sliding along my right side then my back finally ending up against the curb on 94th and 1st Avenue.  My knee hurt and I had a little bit of road rash but other than that I knew I was fine.  

Before I could get up there were not one but two nurses there on the scene.  One just happened to be a specialist in neurosurgery who gave me a complete once over while lying in the street.  The other checked my pulse and limbs to make sure that nothing was broken.  The was also a first responder on the scene who also contributed to my care.  I couldn't have been in better hands.  EMT and NYPD were on the scene straightaway.  

Spent the next 4.5 hours in the hospital.  X-rays of neck came back fine.  They gave me Motrin for the banged up knee (I'm sure it will be killing me tomorrow) and some bacitracin ointment for the slight road rash on my shoulder and back.  

I asked the nurses (the ones on the street) if anyone was hurt when the motorcycle went flying.  She assured me that no one way.  Thank God.  No gas leak or anything either.  Still don't know the extent of the damage.  The engine should be fine as I have engine guards on the bike.   I'm just pissed that now I have to deal with insurance and police reports and hospital charges and the like.  Fortunately everything should be covered.  

I had the police call my sister Sharon who in turned called the rest of the family.  My brother Rob was the first to show up followed by my sisters Donna and Sharon and Sharon's boyfriend Rick.  I'm glad they showed up.  I sent them all home because it looked like I would be there for a while while they decided when they were going to send me to Xray to check my neck and I didn't want them to waste their time since I wasn't bleeding and dying and a low priority to the hospital staff.  They all left accept Donna.  She insisted on staying.  I'm glad she did.  We had a good time talking, making friends with the other infirm and stealing hospital supplies.  What!  (I need hospital masks for my visit to China. And yes I'm still going.)   

Finally I told a nurse that I was going to leave because I had had enough and shortly after my doctor came over telling me that the xrays were fine and I could leave.  Take Motrin as needed, get rest and come back if I have a headache that won't go away.  Okay, but who's going to pay for the shirts that were cut off me?  

As an aside:  I come across motorcyclists in every situation that I'm in (special hello to LN in Cary) and this situation was no exception.  So as I'm laying on the gurney in the ER the cop who rode in the ambulance with me and the EMT tells me that he likes my boots.  Now these were my brand new motorcycle boots that I'm wearing outside for the second time.  Admittedly they are nice boots but not all leather.  So as I'm laying there in obvious pain from my knee and he's going on about how nice they are.  "Thank you", I say.  "Where'd you get them", he says.  "I got them online at a motorcycle store.  Can't... remember...(sharp in-take of air because of knee pain)...the name though."  He's looking at me expectantly.  "Yeah...it's not coming (adjust the neck brace I'm wearing)...not coming to me."  "Oh okay."  he says dejectedly.  I'm like "do a google search on motorcycle boots.  The store is a bike name store it should be one of the sponsored links."  Then all of a sudden I hear Whitney Houston singing in my head and I remember.  I blurt out Whitney something or other.     "JC Whitney Mr. Police man", I say "J.C. Whitney.com I got them there."  He brightens up.  My work here is done people.

So I'm okay.  I'll check on my bike in the morning.  Hope that I can still ride it.  Yes, I plan on riding.  This hasn't deterred me from riding in the least.  I will consider giving up my bike if and only if my brother gets me that sports car he thinks I should drive instead of riding a motorcycle.  I know he won't do this so it looks like I'll continue riding.  

I'm hoping that I can still salvage this long weekend without too much pain.  

P.S. I did not have any alcohol in my system prior to the accident.  I met my friends outside the bar they had just left.  I was not drinking.  Just want to go on the record saying that.  

Have a great Memorial Weekend everyone.  - Wil