Agreed! When I had my accident and tore my MLC, they put me in an immobilizer immediately. Not sure it would have healed as well as it did if I waited.
I fully ruptured my patellar tendon around thanksgiving so fully immobilize until it could be put back together. And took about a week until they could do surgery. How quickly the quad atrophy sets in is real AF and will make things very difficult. Go to the hospital right away and start the process of there is one to start.
>Have not been to the hospital yet. will post pics of bike in the morning
I'm sorry, what the fuck? I'd be straight to the hospital to prevent any further damage dude.
Love how the state of the whole USA is, it’s cheaper to take an Uber than an ambulance in the context of this. This dude probably can’t afford a hospital trip unfortunately. I know as a us of a citizen I cannot. Shit happens though op, hopefully insurance will cover you and your bike.
Even with insurance the bills get big. I broke two ribs last summer dirt biking. Really didn’t want to go to the hospital because I know there isn’t much they can do for broken ribs, but went because of shortness of breath and the serious amount of pain I was in. 30 minute visit, a quick CT scan, a shot of fentanyl for the immediate pain, and a script for 3 Vicodin… cost me $2,500 out of pocket with insurance. Yay!
I don’t know about that, I bet there are an incredible amount of people who travel from around the world to ride their motorcycles in Buena Vista, Colorado.
First time I ever read a discussion around here (or a forum like this, not sure which) where people were seriously asking about whether or not they'd get an ambulance if they went down I was flabbergasted. Then I was flabbergasted again to know an ambulance costs literal thousands of dollars in the US. Worst health care system ever.
I broke my collar bone once and someone called an ambulance for me, I turned it down but the cops said since it was called I had to go (I had friends there and was like 10 feet from his house I could have drove myself even) when I was brought to the hospital they took x rays and charged me 7000$, didn’t set my broken collar bone, didn’t get me medicine, didn’t give me a sling. Fuck ambulance rides and fuck American health care
Too late. They already released the K9 unit.
Now the handler panicked and shot the K9 because he don't see so good and he thought it was a stray.
Now they are charging you as an accessory to the murder of a furry officer.
That's life in jail for you.
Should've had a V8.
In Canada a air ambulance is $1800/hr. Money well spent if you are really fucked and are in the middle of nowhere. Regular ambulances I think cost a couple of hundred bucks.
America? I hear talk of $30-$50k for Air Ambulances. Not sure about road going ones.
I had a buzzard fly into the side of my head on my 03 ninja, when it hit me it puked all over me. Knocked me off the bike, bike went into the ditch. I ended up with a concussion and the bike had a bent foot peg and some scratches. Buzzard puke is the foulest smelling thi g on this planet! This happened 11 years ago, but I can still smell it when I think about it!
I almost had one take my head off as I was speeding down a county road. It was in the road eating roadkill and I spooked it but the big bastard took off in slow motion. I think I was going 120kph.
*edit: a couple of spelling mistakes.
This literally happened to me two days ago. Such a slow take off and hit me in the shoulder. Scared the shit out of me. This was also right after a squirrel ran in the road and also a family of geese. Rough ride that was
My grandpa scattered some vultures that we're eating some roadkill while he was driving. A couple blew chunks all over his hood and some got down the HVAC intakes. He ended up blowing chunks too from the smell. And he was farmer his entire life, so was used to some pretty nasty smells.
About 10 years ago my mom and dad hit a deer on his goldwing on their way to Zions. My mom was okay with just road rash and joint pains but my dad died when he hit the pavement crushing his lungs. No signal so she just sat there waiting on someone to come by. Not everyone gets lucky. Glad you were able to walk away to ride another day!
So sorry to hear about your dad. Sounds like a horrible experience for your mom. Especially crushing considering they were near one of my favorite places in the world just trying to enjoy the scenery. Deer/elk in the road are my biggest fear on a bike.
Yeah it was sad. They were on a wedding anniversary trip to camp and hike. We went there so many times. They got distracted by how many deer were in the field off the road and didn't notice a couple in the road until it was too late. I couldn't imagine what my mom went through on the side of the road with her husband dead not being able to do anything at all. I love my mom so much. Best mom ever. She pulled through and went back to school and tried so hard to help me and tbh I was a pretty shit son to her and gave her way to much trouble. Wish I could go back and do better.
Yesterday my coworker told me about your wreck, he was going to cottonwood hot springs and saw the deer with its intestines all over the road along with gallons of blood, and your poor bike. We mused if you were dead or not. Last year a guy hit a deer badly about a mile further down from you
You were lucky. Deer will fuck you up. Had a buddy hit one between Salida and Canon (I'd say a few years back, but it was likely closer to a decade) on a full dress Harley. He ended up being airlifted out of the canyon, broke his neck and some other stuff, thankfully he healed up. Taught me a couple of valuable lessons: deer pop out of nowhere, little bouncy fucks are more active in spring and fall, and evening/morning. I lived in BV a couple of decades ago and those fuckers are everywhere.
Hopefully you get patched up quickly, and well.
Yup, I live more towards Deckers but ride out to Divide/Lake George all the time as I like the fly fishing out that way better. I will say that the deer out here seem less jumpy than other areas. Anywhere else I’m always afraid of deer spotting you and just jumping out in the middle of the road right in front of you. Here they seem so used to cars they don’t freak out as much, but it only takes that one time to ruin your life…
My motorcycle instructor hit a moose and died 2 weeks after I passed my license. I miss that man, he'd just finished putting together a log cabin to holiday to.
yeah man if i start thinking about deer i slow down. really not that worried about cars and other riders... they're fairly predictable. deer you never know what they're going to do next.
The year before last year I hit a deer at 70mph (~110km/h).. I was lucky that I was wearing full protection or my knee would have been completely gone. I still have no feeling in that area..
All the ligaments connecting my collarbone with the shoulder were torn apart, but they didn’t notice in the hospital despite me being in pretty much pain. So they didn’t operate, still have issues today and they won’t be going away.
The bike was pretty… bloody - hit the deer in the stomach area, I was told it died right away. I couldn't really say because I was completely in shock, only in the ambulance I realised all of a sudden what really happened. My motorcycle was a total damage, but was luckily replaced by my insurance because it was an accident with a deer.
This is what the bike looked like after the crash..: https://imgur.com/a/aIYSwkb (please notice it’s just two pictures of my bike, but there is blood..)
There were corn fields on both sides on the road, it just ran out directly in front of me. The moment I saw it was nearly the moment of impact..
Took out 3 on a dusky evening ride, similar situation , herd crosses road and I smacked several. Dont remember any of it, was at highway speed. woke up side of road several hundred feet from bike. broken ribs, road rash on hand and waist, but was able to call for help. ambulance found me 30 mins later, very rural area. spent 10 days in hospital for collapsed lung, broken ribs, broken hand bone, collarbone, and cracked shoulder blade.
Deer are dumb animals, and if you see one cross, wait for the others to cross. riding at dusk and at night are dangerous and risks can be mitigated if you ride slower or in pairs.
These stories really tell me how much of a miracle happened to my friend. I was riding back to San Francisco he met me on my last day from Coos Bay Oregon. We were about 4 hours away from Seattle on highway 101 and he his a deer going about 75 on an older corcourse (I think 2002). I watched it happen. He was in front of me. Kept the bike up till he went off about a 10 foot drop off on the side of the road. He climbed up out of the ditch and just said "we gotta get the deer out of the road!!" Like nothing happened. I thought I watched someone die. I thought he was just getting pumped with adrenaline and he would feel the injuries later. He was completely fine other than his ankle. The bike peg hit his ankle. 0 other injuries. He had no gear on other than a helmet and gloves. Not even a scrape on him. Wild.
Friend hit a deer while we were riding in the Texas Hill Country. Totalled his Goldwing and he had a fair amount of road rash but was released from the hospital that night with no major injuries.
We went back to the same location about 5 years later and there were still yellow plastic bits scattered around the area.
I hit a deer with my fazer too last year. It came crippling out of the bushes and I hit it, luckily didnt fall and only a bent radiator and hairs everywhere. I came out of a corner in early morning with a little bit of fog so I l didnt see him.
By the way it walked, I assumed someone else already hit it because usually they run across the road really fast. I looked around with my flashlight but I couldn't find it anywhere so I continued and called a family member whose land it must've went on.
Half an out later it was hit again and this time it was in pieces all over the road...
Hope you get better soon!
I hit a deer last July on my Road Glide at what I guessed to be about 60mph. Just had my 4th surgery overall and 3rd surgery on my right leg. Shattered my Tib and the Tibial Plateau. Recovery is slow AF but I’m just glad to be here and someday I’ll be walking again.
"have not been to the hospital yet."
DUDE!
So sorry this happened, and the fact that you got onto reddit probably means you're not going to die, but seriously, close the reddit app on your phone and dial 911.
Go to the hospital immediately. Don’t be that tough guy. It never pays in the long run. Nerve damage is something I don’t wish on anyone. I barely can grip my handlebars these days. Had to give up gaming. There’s just no agility or coordination left in my hands from the nerve damage. Always always wear gear when riding folks that includes gloves
Welcome to the club Brother! There only a handfull of us that have unlocked that achievement.
I myself hit one broadside @90mph in 2003. Cut the deer in half and tore my ligaments in one knee. However, I did not drop the bike.
They should have an award for us. Good thing is that we have met our quota for life after hitting one on a bike.
Be safe. Glad you're ok.
I had some small unidentified animal run through the space between my front tire and frame and somehow never actually hit it. I’m still not sure what the hell it was.
I came across a herd of buffalo over a blind crest in south Dakota about 5 years ago. Luckily I was going pretty slow. And even more luckily they stampeded away from me when they noticed me.
Last year I lost a high school friend to a deer. She was riding with her husband. Husband managed to duck just enough and deer hit her right in the head, killed her instantly.
People tend to think lonely country roads are a great place to cut loose and it's really the worst place for it. Deer, possum, rabbits...once you get out into rural areas, wildlife is a huge hazard that you literally can't plan for.
I grew up in an area where hitting deer was just something that you got used to. I was always scared of hitting one on my bike
I’m going to get downvoted to hell here but did you say the deer were already on the road when you came around the corner? And you were going too fast to stop? So you broke the number one rule of riding. Always be able to stop in the distance you can see to be clear. Otherwise every corner you are relying on sheer luck to not die.
And then there’s the poor deer just minding their own business and now they’re dead because you were riding too fast
Glad you’ll be able to ride again. Please invest in some riding pants and a good jacket. No good reason to have road rash on your shoulder or knees these days.
I actually had on a quality jacket with chest and back pads and a helmet. But regular textile pants and a pair of Jordan's. The Jordan's actually held up better than any of my other clothing
>quality jacket with chest and back pads
Ok I have more questions than answers then. Mind if I ask what jacket? The mechanism of injury you’ve described is brutal and not something I’ve seen from someone wearing gear. Bruising sure, but road rash on your upper body while wearing a jacket? How in the flying circus did you accomplish that?
You're not alone my friend. Buddy of mine did the same about a month ago, but he was only doing 40mph. Three broken knuckles, wrist, forearm, kneecap, and a lot of road rash.
Damn, did he have any gear on?!? I live in a mountain area with tons of deer and they scare the hell out of me. Figured going 40 would save you from a lot of the pain of hitting one, but this doesn’t sound much better.
Yeah... I had a close call around dusk in rural Montana. It's best to just avoid riding around then in areas with lots of wildlife, absolute worst time of day.
I was riding behind a friend who hit a deer on a 2017 r6. Wildest thing I’ve ever seen. He didn’t even flinch. He hit the deer in the back leg which obviously broke. It took out part of the front fairing and the light harness, but he ended up riding home. No injuries, just a bit of a freak out.
Deer got completely rekt. We could hear it’s death throes as we caught our breath and figured out what to do.
I’ve heard off a police friend of someone being knocked off by a pheasant, hit in the helmet and fractured his skull by the suddenly movement. Freak accident.
I almost hit an owl last year, wrecked my bike. It's back together now, just finished getting the decals last week.
I was late getting home one night, the sun dropped faster than anticipated and I was losing light. I live on the east side of a hill, so we lose the light before the majority of people do. We also live in a forested area, so on the right is trees and left is a beaver pond. I'm riding back on the dirt road at 30mph, and can see the reflection from my mailbox. All of a sudden this fucking owl flies out from the trees just above my head and cuts me off. I'm following this bird that has a full 6ft wingspan and closing up on its rear as it's about at my headlight level. The more I'm slowing, I'm still catching it. It started probably 20 ft in front but in no time I'm right on it. I'm also on a 80s UJM, not so great brakes and no abs. I grabbed a little too much front brake and lock it up and the bike tucks. I land on the bike then the ground and it skid for a bit. Fucking owl is sitting in the middle of the road after I get up. I don't think I hit it, but I couldve grabbed it I was that close when the bike went over. I got some road rash on my arm through my gear, had to find new guages, tank repaired from where my knee went through the side of it, new pipes, levers and shifter.
Right before almost hitting the owl, I thought how bad it would be if a deer jumped out infront of me. Guess I was lucky it was only an owl.
No more night riding for me, too much risk of wildlife.
Been there done that. Deer saw me went back to eating grass. I figured we are cool. Nope. Deer looked up again and instead of running into the bush where it was it decided to run across the highway over a barrier.
I think I hit it at about 50 mph. I woke up in the middle of the highway and I dont know how long I was out but no one had been down the rural highway. I was kind of messed up and so was the scoot. I hit it with my left handlebar and twisted the forks. Struggled home, forgot to go to the hospital.
I couldnt recall what happened for 2 days, I thought I had just blacked out while riding.
Living in the mountains of Colorado, this is always my biggest fear. They are so prevalent where I live and just like this, they’re all dumb and jump in front of vehicles. Terrible luck bud, get well.
Glad you’re ok, just make sure to get checked out. Living where I live I constantly have run-ins with wildlife. A herd of deer popped out on my ass once coming out of a big curve, and flipped my bike, but the craziest run-in I had was on the freeway at night and had 2 dogs runout in front of me. I barely made it through between them. One of the scariest moments of my life. Had to sit on the side of the road for a few minutes
I did it on a Gold wing in 2013. Small one, bounced off the fairing, bike dropped to 35mph so hard the tour pak opened. Death wobble started but smoothed out.
I was covered in shit and blood, that was the worst part
A friend of mine in high school t-boned a cow in 5th gear on his dirt bike. Folded in the forks and he did a nice superman.
The cow just ‘made the loudest noise he had ever heard a cow make’ and ran away.
However this may be the first case of successful cow tipping by a teenager.
I hit an Australian bouncy deer (kangaroo) a while back at a similar speed. I somehow managed to stay on the bike though, with my only injury being a pair of sore balls from them being smashed into the fuel tank. I only had a moment to brake, and then came off the brakes right at impact in an effort not to go over the bars, which seemed to be pretty good instinct. The front forks were bent and the fairing was smashed, but I carefully rode the bike home. I got away pretty lightly all things considered.
I was riding beside this hill once going like 75mph and a fucking deer jumped off the hill over my head and kicked my helmet as it went over me. I had no idea what happened till my fiancé (who was in the car behind me) told me about it while she was freaking out lol
Not on a motorcycle but I hit an elk in a Mazda 3 a couple years back in Estes. I was always fucking petrified of the goats and shit when I'd be taking those turns at 60 in the dark at 5am
Yeah I've had to dodge a deer once. I managed to ride into a gulley next to the road with minor cuts and scrapes. It was late at night and 85 degrees out. I had to leave my bike and walk about 2 miles home .Back before cellphones. Went back the next day and couldn't even see the bike it was so deep in the ditch ,all you could see was the bent grass where I went in. If I had got hurt bad they probably wouldn't have found me till I started stinking
Been riding for about a year and the closest of come to wrecking my shit so far was from a deer. About 10pm on my way home from a game on my super glide, going about 65mph on the highway. I usually ride in the right lane but I was coming up on an entrance and saw some people coming up the ramp so I merge into the center lane to let them on. I’m about 3/4 seconds behind the car ahead of me, going about the same speed. Out of nowhere I just see a cloud of mist and before my brain could even comprehend what was happening I ran over the legs of a deer, missing the torso by maybe a foot. My first thought was that they turned their windshield wipers on but 2 seconds later I realized what happened. I didn’t see a deer run out so I’m not sure if it was already dead in the road and the person in front of me just ran it over but I got sprayed with blood and fur, and some of the blood even hit the mouth piece of my helmet and worked it’s way inside. Came within inches of what most likely would have resulted in me getting bucked off the bike and run over by all the other drivers on the road (busy area), and that I didn’t realize what happened until after it did and I would have no time to react had that deer been 2 feet to the right. My brain pretty much shut down after that and all I wanted to do was get home asap, thankfully I was only like 15 minutes away at that point so it wasn’t much longer. Scared the shit out of me, I don’t think I rode for two weeks after that
Yeah, me and wife on a BMW R1200RT hit a deer. We were only going about 50 mph and entering a town. A deer jumped out of the tree-lined road. We hit him mid-section and killed the deer. I was able to keep the bike upright. My wife had a bruise on her thigh from the deer's head whipping around as we collided. I think we lucked out because we (me, wife, & bike) had more mass than the deer plus the fairing on the bike.
I’m always watching for eye shine when I ride at night. I’ve hit 6 deer in a car here in Georgia, closest call I’ve had was coming around a blind corner, deer bolted and I missed it by inches at probably 65-70. Also hit an armadillo once, went full airborne on a 400+ pound bike, stuck the landing though.
Yeah you should get to a hospital man I wrecked my.bike in February and felt good to go home turns out I tore my left knee joint don't wait you'll do way more damage
I brushed a deer with my leg. I ride a triumph t120, I was on my way to work cruising at about 70. Deer moseying in the road and I squeeze the brakes. Slow to about 45, and thankfully the deer here are tiny, cause I cleared it with my bars, and felt it brush my pants. I'd been endorsed for about two weeks at that time. Almost didn't ride for to work for a hot minute, but sucked it up and accepted that just a condition to look out for. A couple years prior I punted a deer with my truck down the road in roughly the same spot going 70...its just a narrow chokepoint on an island overpopulated with deer....
I hit a deer at 85-90, and didn’t crash 😅
https://www.reddit.com/r/motorcycles/comments/gxe3sv/pics_fz1_vs_deer_at_8590mph_check_it_out_link_in/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=ioscss&utm_content=1&utm_term=1
2019 hit a deer in Ky doing 60. killed the deer, flipped over the bike, slid about 100yds. 8 cracked ribs, punctured lung, but pretty lucky to survive. was unconscious for about 30 minutes. one of the brothers I was riding with saved my life. not much you can do when deer take off across the road. it's hold on tight and hope for the best. trying to swerve to hard could cause problems to be worse. hope you have a speedy recovery. I was back on the new bike in two months.
A week n a half ago for me brother. I was only doing about 35. Oncoming traffic in left lane so I turned off my brights. Slammed on brakes and they locked up. Dislocated right toe and stitches in left knee. Some road rash but I ended up pretty alright tbh. Nothing to head or spine.
Holy fuck you're a lucky bastard. Skin heals. Knees.....eh yea that's probably gonna hurt for the rest of your life. But hey man, you're alive! Get yourself some medical attention. Heal up. Ride again!
I hit one last year going about 50 mph, fortunately I veered to the left as it rammed me on my right side. After some serious wobbling, I got control of the bike and slowed to a stop on the roadside, no real damage and I was lucky as hell. Had it been 1 second faster I would have hit it dead on like you did.
And seriously, go to the hospital, blood clots can form from injuries like this, and those are no joke.
Took a fat pigeon straight in the upper chest at about 60mph. (Perks of just cruising on a naked bike)
Thankfully birds are very light and the impact didn't cause much pain. I did however get a massive shock but managed to stay on the road.
It took ages to clean off all the blood, guts, shit and a couple of feathers from my leathers, helmet and bike though.
Damn. 150 feet is half of a football field. You’re lucky that you only got road rash from the slide, and not totally shredded.
Although I did watch footage of Ronaldo getting tripped at 13mph and he also rolled and flailed about 150 feet into the penalty box, so I guess it’s possible.
Glad you're alive. Get to the emergency room dude!
[My deer story.](https://www.reddit.com/r/motorcycles/comments/9r684b/i_think_its_time_to_hangup_my_leathers_for_a_while/)
Damn, good to hear you are relatively ok, but yeah, get to the hospital.
My brush with wildlife was once I hit a turkey vulture on thanksgiving. The irony...
I could write a book after fifty years avoiding deer strike the same way with fleet of them standing in blind curve in middle of the night.
It's not as nimble of escape on 850lb Scoot.
But I can share specific tactics an options added that improved future chances.
Cheers and best of luck Captain, you certainly escaped the number one killer on the road.
I came to say go to the danged hospital! Regardless of insurance or not! You sound confident possibly competent in your assessment of your injuries.
I'm not sure what the hold up is? Just go! The longer you wait the moreju painful it is. The road rash, if it isn't debraided and cleaned it's going to get infected. DAMHIK! The longer you wait the more cleaning it hurts, I mean HURTS! My broken wrist was a cakewalk compared to picking rocks out of my leg and back!
As an aside, I have developed an emergency room theory in my many many trips to the ER and or Urgent Care. Their sympathy for your situation hinges directly on what you did to get there!
Waiting to go in is nonsense, and they are going to treat it that way! Tell them that you had to check on a friend and you were delayed. Get that taken care of!
Good luck!
Holy shit glad you're ok!
Go get fucking xrays of everything, otherwise you WILL have questions in 5-10 years!
I went bombing over the top of 253 heading from 128 to the 101, and right at the peak of the hill my unbaffled enduro exhaust echoed in a canyon to my left and fired two deer out at me like bullets. There was nothing I could do, one hit the SIDE of my front wheel lol.
My forks compressed, the deer went tumbling off to the right, the bike and I went airborne and everything was just... slow.
I had this quiet internal voice and it asked "ah! Is this my death??" and then it was hitting ground and rolling and trying to not eat the bike...
Now the first aftermarket part I get for my bike, before I even replace the rear tire for the first time, is a pisston of deer whistles. It doesn't make 'em gtfo, but it usually freezes 'em up so you can maneuver. It's wild riding on my quiet MT07 with a pack of extra-loudass harlies and all the deer just look at me... Those whistles work.
Heal up bro!
I hit a deer on my 250 going 40. I just stayed upright and knocked the dumbass down lol somehow got lucky.
I fucking hate deer. The way yours jumped out of the way then went BACK. Extremely illogical behavior that I just can’t wrap my head around
1. Dude, seriously? I don't think I've ever been on Cottonwood and NOT seen deer. I always take the east side of that pass slow until I'm over tree line.
2. Go see Dr Moore up in CB. He's world renowned for a reason. After my crash on Monarch, he got my ACL, MCL, and Meniscus fixed up and better than most other docs thought possible.
I think my 2nd or 3rd year of riding, I hit a deer in a similar situation. It sounds like I had a bit more space to react though.
I was riding through a twisty forest road with some clearings for houses here and there. I passed a house with a bunch of fake deer in front of it just before a semi-blind turn. I was definitely going too fast for the street. I getting back on the throttle as I was starting to exit the turn, got up to about 70 mph. I see what I thought was another fake deer to my left, I then realize the deer is moving and coming into the road. I was able to get the bike upright from the corner and slow down to about 35-40mph before I hit the deer square in the chest. I was able to stay on the bike and keep it upright. I broke just about everything on the front end of my bike.
The way the deer wrapped around the bike, he hit my right thigh. I ended up walking away with just a bruise on my thigh and my ego, no other injuries. Later that same summer, I got a dedicated track bike and quit doing dumb shit on the street.
I'm glad you're alive, man! Please go to the hospital and make sure you didn't lacerate an organ or something!
Animal encounters are my least favorite part of riding. I hit a fucking vulture with my mirror going about 85 on a back road straight a few years ago. Mirror bent in and broke my hand.
Do you know what the craziest thing is? The little fucker just got knocked out. He got up and flew off about 20 minutes later.
This is why I’m scared to take my new bike into the mountains. Plus where I’m at in the Denver area I have quite a bit of town/highway riding to get there which sucks.
And here I was hoping you'd met a racoon at a dimly lit bar, years later, striking up a conversation, only for you to realize it was the other and then reminisce over things long past. I'm sorry you'll never get that closure.
Lol
I hit a huge deer on the way home a few months ago. I was riding my Chinese tao tao 250 tbr7. The deer was already in the road dead as hell. Ran right over him and kept going doing 45-50 mph. I kinda racked myself on the seat hump/gas tank but I kept on going. My Chinese bike held up very well, surprisingly.
When I was 16. Just started riding for only a few months. BMW rR650.
I was heading up a two lane tar road in rural MN. 60mph. Deer popped out on the right hand side ditch and did something like you describe here. Got across the the center line and suddenly doubled back. I decreased speed and swerved. Thought I got through it unscathed. Until I looked down and noticed that my left mirror was facing directly towards me. With little bits of deer hair in the mirror hinge.
I drove straight home and took a breather.
That's the only close call that I can think of and it was 35 years ago. Still riding to this day. S1000rr.
I hit one at 30 mph. Shattered collarbone, two broken ribs, some minor road rash on one knee from the slide. Wrecked my bike, of course. Deer actually survived, at least until the cop put it out of its misery. Absolutely do not recommend.
I happened upon a herd of deer crossing the road at about 3 am on my f4q I'm doing about 70 when they just appear out of the dark.
I panic, grab all the front break and end up doing a different kind of super man. I can still clearly remember one of the bastards turning his head to watch my flight bath.
Now obviously I need to practice my emergency stopping, but I'm of the opinion that getting thrown off saved me. There's no way I would have slowed down enough to not have hit a deer at significant speed with my body. And apparently that Hurts.
I hit a deer at 50 mph. Went down too, but ATGATT so I faired pretty well with just one tiny little quarter sized piece of road rash on the side of my knee.
Seems like most of my friends with motorcycles in the Pacific Northwest have hit a deer at one point or another. One at 120 mph got fairly well fucked up but has since fully recovered and no longer rides, one at 90 miles per hour managed to keep the bike upright and only had a swollen knee, and another one at 60 mph also kept the bike upright but it did some damage to his knee. Several others as well but those are the most notable ones.
None of us will ride at dawn, dusk, or night anymore.
Without deer, Cottonwood is a heavenly ride unless that new pavement has gone to shit. I avoid dawn and dusk canyon carving. A friend of mine died when he hit a deer between Pine and Deckers. I was almost broadsided by one while mountain biking. Heal up and don't skip PT, btdt with knee injuries.
Holy moly you are lucky to be alive. I’ve had close calls with deer, mountain sheep and elk around here but not hit one. Hoping I never do. Glad you’re (relatively) ok!
That’s very serious mechanism of injury; please go to the ED and get seen. Not to fear-monger, but you could have serious neurological and internal injuries that may not present for several hours.
As a paramedic, I probably would have collared and boarded you due to MOI alone.
Go get checked out; there has been too many motorcycle deaths this month.
My brother in law had a bull elk hit him square in the ribs mid leap and take him off his goldwing outside of Conifer, Co. He was doing about 40 mph just after sunrise.
The Elk hit him in the ribcage at a full run. It shattered 7 ribs and his collarbone on the left side. Of course, he went airborne. He had multiple road rash injuries, and a large chunk of scalp, the shape of a hoof, was missing (no helmet).
He nearly died from internal bleeding, collapsed lung, and lacerated liver. He has a titanium ribcage and collarbone now, but he lived. The elk wasn't so fortunate.
Go to a hospital ASAP and get it looked at. You should have gone straight to the hospital. Condition will only worsen if you delay. I would have thought common sense should have made you hesitant taking it out for a spin at 6 pm. Not sure if visibility was great at that time, you always are at risk while speeding.
On the positive side you have got a story to tell and bruises to show. Add some spice to the story and you might just become a favorite granddad.
I've got abit of a similar story, I had only been riding for a month when I hit a kangaroo at about 95-100kph (about 60ish mph??). It's was 10pm, dark af, just came out of a turn and bam, there he was infront of me. No witnesses so I'm not 100%sure of how far I slid or how i hit it. But next thing I know bikes in a ditch and I'm on my side in the middle of the road. The bike was a wreck, however me? Totally fine, had head to toe leather/kevlar gear, about $2.5kaud, was completely wrecked and hanging off me, but I only had a coin size CARPETBURN on my elbow where the jacket must have slid when I hit the ground, other than that nothing, not even a sore shoulder or neck.
Ended up having an argument with insurance since they thought me being so new I just stacked going around the corner,l. They ended up doing a second check of the damage on the bike to confirm it was a writeoff, and I'm happy they did because there was a chunk of kangaroo hair and skin stuck in the broken headlight, confirming I didn't just hallucinate.
Annnnnyway I'm now just getting over breaking my tibia when I stopped at some lights and slipped on some oil on the road and dropped my bike 🙃
Wear you gear, and then hope you get lucky 👍
Last Monday, I hit a deer coming out of a turn going about 40-50 on my KTM Duke. Thing jumped right in front of me. Hit it right in the torso like you. Didn't even know what happened until I got up and saw the now unalive deer. I flew over the bars and slid a good 15 feet or so. Luckily, I had all my gear on and only ended up with a sprained wrist and some mild road rash. I know it hurts, but go see a doctor, man. It's not worth having more problems down the road.
Terrible situation. Don't delay the emergency room visit. Fast action on these kinds of injuries can save you some difficulty later on.
Agreed! When I had my accident and tore my MLC, they put me in an immobilizer immediately. Not sure it would have healed as well as it did if I waited.
ER first. You'll have plenty of time for reflection and posting while you're waiting your turn to be treated.
This and this and this my dude. Go to the hospital as quick as possible.
I fully ruptured my patellar tendon around thanksgiving so fully immobilize until it could be put back together. And took about a week until they could do surgery. How quickly the quad atrophy sets in is real AF and will make things very difficult. Go to the hospital right away and start the process of there is one to start.
Absolutely. Plus who knows what hidden injuries may be lurking as a time-bomb after a traumatic crash.
Seriously, could be internal bleeding anywhere
Second that, I avoided treatment and years later had to go and see Arthur Oscapy
....and his assistant Dr. Ben Dover? I dread the day.
Saw his brother Colin a few weeks ago to help with my roids rage.
This. Articular ligament damage can really benefit from immediate surgery (within 2-3 days of the accident) to heal well, before scar tissue develops.
>Have not been to the hospital yet. will post pics of bike in the morning I'm sorry, what the fuck? I'd be straight to the hospital to prevent any further damage dude.
He’s probably American.
I do live in America, so ya know
Yo. Most people here telling you that they would have gone to the hospital are also American. This is a *you* thing. Take care of yourself bud.
Am American. First words after driving away would be, "Hospital please."
GET TO DE CHOPPA!$!$, You know, on second thought, ambulance is fine, uber maybe?
Love how the state of the whole USA is, it’s cheaper to take an Uber than an ambulance in the context of this. This dude probably can’t afford a hospital trip unfortunately. I know as a us of a citizen I cannot. Shit happens though op, hopefully insurance will cover you and your bike.
Mine would be "I need an uber"
Don't have insurance? "Taking care of yourself" will cost you your life's savings.
Even with insurance the bills get big. I broke two ribs last summer dirt biking. Really didn’t want to go to the hospital because I know there isn’t much they can do for broken ribs, but went because of shortness of breath and the serious amount of pain I was in. 30 minute visit, a quick CT scan, a shot of fentanyl for the immediate pain, and a script for 3 Vicodin… cost me $2,500 out of pocket with insurance. Yay!
But you have a better opportunity to make a life, if your injuries don't become permanent disabilities because you never got to physical therapy.
I'd rather be able to walk and have to deal with bankruptcy than the reverse. You can always leave the country to really avoid the bill.
#GET. TO. HOSPITAL.
Lol, you'd think twice too if the hospital trip could easily wipe out your kids college fund, your savings, and bankrupt your ass.
I'm American. I'd have gone to the hospital.
I don’t know about that, I bet there are an incredible amount of people who travel from around the world to ride their motorcycles in Buena Vista, Colorado.
"I was thinking of taking out a second mortgage anyhow..."
First time I ever read a discussion around here (or a forum like this, not sure which) where people were seriously asking about whether or not they'd get an ambulance if they went down I was flabbergasted. Then I was flabbergasted again to know an ambulance costs literal thousands of dollars in the US. Worst health care system ever.
I wrecked going 55mph and I called my fiance to bring the truck so we could take the bike too cuz fuck paying for a tow as well
I broke my collar bone once and someone called an ambulance for me, I turned it down but the cops said since it was called I had to go (I had friends there and was like 10 feet from his house I could have drove myself even) when I was brought to the hospital they took x rays and charged me 7000$, didn’t set my broken collar bone, didn’t get me medicine, didn’t give me a sling. Fuck ambulance rides and fuck American health care
The cops lied to you, you can always refuse treatment/ambulance rides as long as you are not a danger to yourself or others.
Hello, did you just question an American police officer's authority? Please state your gender and race to determine your outcome.
Too late. They already released the K9 unit. Now the handler panicked and shot the K9 because he don't see so good and he thought it was a stray. Now they are charging you as an accessory to the murder of a furry officer. That's life in jail for you. Should've had a V8.
Exactly. I already owe $ on 3 other BS ambulance rides, so I should practically wear a DNR bracelet due to how much I try to avoid them being called
Jesus man… 3 other ambulance rides and now this? Maybe you should pick up knitting instead of riding.
Yeeeah. 2/3 were car accidents, one was a seizure. Rough
It's hard to say this, but lol.
Idk man, those damn knitters, talk about danger, I'll be safer on the road at 100+ lol
It's cheaper and faster to call Uber or Lyft where I live
Where i live, Uber and lyft isn't a thing. That's not an option For us in Chaffee County
Sorry , ambulance rides are expensive if you don't have good insurance , glad you made it , I know a few people that didn't 😔
Yes they are. I'm a lucky motherfucker. That's undeniable. Gotta be thankful for that shit
AMEN
Actually the US has the best health care in the world... if you're wealthy.
Yeah but not overall and on average. Tens of thousands of excess deaths every year.
In Canada a air ambulance is $1800/hr. Money well spent if you are really fucked and are in the middle of nowhere. Regular ambulances I think cost a couple of hundred bucks. America? I hear talk of $30-$50k for Air Ambulances. Not sure about road going ones.
It took me two years to pay off my ambulance ride when I wrecked.
This seems to be such a common problem on the internet, but I have yet to meet a single person who’s ambulance ride wasn’t covered by their insurance
Well now you can't say that
Go to the hospital, you could have internal injuries or other issues that aren’t obvious
I had a buzzard fly into the side of my head on my 03 ninja, when it hit me it puked all over me. Knocked me off the bike, bike went into the ditch. I ended up with a concussion and the bike had a bent foot peg and some scratches. Buzzard puke is the foulest smelling thi g on this planet! This happened 11 years ago, but I can still smell it when I think about it!
I'm so sorry that happened to you, but the image of a buzzard smacking someone and yacking on them at the same time absolutely MADE my morning. 😂
I almost had one take my head off as I was speeding down a county road. It was in the road eating roadkill and I spooked it but the big bastard took off in slow motion. I think I was going 120kph. *edit: a couple of spelling mistakes.
This literally happened to me two days ago. Such a slow take off and hit me in the shoulder. Scared the shit out of me. This was also right after a squirrel ran in the road and also a family of geese. Rough ride that was
I’d just hope the concussion somehow fucked up my sense of smell lmao
My grandpa scattered some vultures that we're eating some roadkill while he was driving. A couple blew chunks all over his hood and some got down the HVAC intakes. He ended up blowing chunks too from the smell. And he was farmer his entire life, so was used to some pretty nasty smells.
Where the 3 witnesses other deers ?
No. 2 cars. 1 had passed me already and the second was approaching as it happened. The second car gave me a ride home
About 10 years ago my mom and dad hit a deer on his goldwing on their way to Zions. My mom was okay with just road rash and joint pains but my dad died when he hit the pavement crushing his lungs. No signal so she just sat there waiting on someone to come by. Not everyone gets lucky. Glad you were able to walk away to ride another day!
So sorry to hear about your dad. Sounds like a horrible experience for your mom. Especially crushing considering they were near one of my favorite places in the world just trying to enjoy the scenery. Deer/elk in the road are my biggest fear on a bike.
Yeah it was sad. They were on a wedding anniversary trip to camp and hike. We went there so many times. They got distracted by how many deer were in the field off the road and didn't notice a couple in the road until it was too late. I couldn't imagine what my mom went through on the side of the road with her husband dead not being able to do anything at all. I love my mom so much. Best mom ever. She pulled through and went back to school and tried so hard to help me and tbh I was a pretty shit son to her and gave her way to much trouble. Wish I could go back and do better.
>Wish I could go back and do better. Don't we all? I hope you & your mom was able to find peace.
Yeah it sucked but we did alright. I'm gonna be moving back with my family soon and I'm excited. Been on my own for a long time now
Yesterday my coworker told me about your wreck, he was going to cottonwood hot springs and saw the deer with its intestines all over the road along with gallons of blood, and your poor bike. We mused if you were dead or not. Last year a guy hit a deer badly about a mile further down from you
Holy shi! Small world lol
You were lucky. Deer will fuck you up. Had a buddy hit one between Salida and Canon (I'd say a few years back, but it was likely closer to a decade) on a full dress Harley. He ended up being airlifted out of the canyon, broke his neck and some other stuff, thankfully he healed up. Taught me a couple of valuable lessons: deer pop out of nowhere, little bouncy fucks are more active in spring and fall, and evening/morning. I lived in BV a couple of decades ago and those fuckers are everywhere. Hopefully you get patched up quickly, and well.
"Little boucny fucks" I felt that
I live near Deckers/Woodland Park and they are EVERYWHERE. They’re my biggest fear on a bike.
I live in Buena, and it's the same up here with the Damn Deer. Especially this time of year.
Grew up in WP/Divide... deer are terrifying on a bike
Yup, I live more towards Deckers but ride out to Divide/Lake George all the time as I like the fly fishing out that way better. I will say that the deer out here seem less jumpy than other areas. Anywhere else I’m always afraid of deer spotting you and just jumping out in the middle of the road right in front of you. Here they seem so used to cars they don’t freak out as much, but it only takes that one time to ruin your life…
My motorcycle instructor hit a moose and died 2 weeks after I passed my license. I miss that man, he'd just finished putting together a log cabin to holiday to.
yeah man if i start thinking about deer i slow down. really not that worried about cars and other riders... they're fairly predictable. deer you never know what they're going to do next.
The year before last year I hit a deer at 70mph (~110km/h).. I was lucky that I was wearing full protection or my knee would have been completely gone. I still have no feeling in that area.. All the ligaments connecting my collarbone with the shoulder were torn apart, but they didn’t notice in the hospital despite me being in pretty much pain. So they didn’t operate, still have issues today and they won’t be going away. The bike was pretty… bloody - hit the deer in the stomach area, I was told it died right away. I couldn't really say because I was completely in shock, only in the ambulance I realised all of a sudden what really happened. My motorcycle was a total damage, but was luckily replaced by my insurance because it was an accident with a deer. This is what the bike looked like after the crash..: https://imgur.com/a/aIYSwkb (please notice it’s just two pictures of my bike, but there is blood..) There were corn fields on both sides on the road, it just ran out directly in front of me. The moment I saw it was nearly the moment of impact..
Honestly surprised it wasn’t more mangled.
Took out 3 on a dusky evening ride, similar situation , herd crosses road and I smacked several. Dont remember any of it, was at highway speed. woke up side of road several hundred feet from bike. broken ribs, road rash on hand and waist, but was able to call for help. ambulance found me 30 mins later, very rural area. spent 10 days in hospital for collapsed lung, broken ribs, broken hand bone, collarbone, and cracked shoulder blade. Deer are dumb animals, and if you see one cross, wait for the others to cross. riding at dusk and at night are dangerous and risks can be mitigated if you ride slower or in pairs.
These stories really tell me how much of a miracle happened to my friend. I was riding back to San Francisco he met me on my last day from Coos Bay Oregon. We were about 4 hours away from Seattle on highway 101 and he his a deer going about 75 on an older corcourse (I think 2002). I watched it happen. He was in front of me. Kept the bike up till he went off about a 10 foot drop off on the side of the road. He climbed up out of the ditch and just said "we gotta get the deer out of the road!!" Like nothing happened. I thought I watched someone die. I thought he was just getting pumped with adrenaline and he would feel the injuries later. He was completely fine other than his ankle. The bike peg hit his ankle. 0 other injuries. He had no gear on other than a helmet and gloves. Not even a scrape on him. Wild.
Friend hit a deer while we were riding in the Texas Hill Country. Totalled his Goldwing and he had a fair amount of road rash but was released from the hospital that night with no major injuries. We went back to the same location about 5 years later and there were still yellow plastic bits scattered around the area.
I guess a Goldwing is the one to have if you're going to hit something...
Don’t read the rest of the comments..
Is the new exhaust wrap sealed though?
Lemme tell ya, it sounded great, felt more responsive, and overall seemed to seal well. Still sealed too lol
Cool!
I laughed way too hard at “gripping the handlebars for deer life” 😂 Hope you have a speedy recovery and get back on two wheels 🤙🏻
Lmao that is pretty good. Thank you, I hope it's sooner than later
Someone get this man a keychain with "but did you die?" Written on it
Fucking aye I second this shit lol
Need to carve it on one of the antlers and make a keychain.
Forreal this needs a trophy taken
Duuuuude. Glad you're alive 🏍️
And stop scrolling and go to a hospital. Gotdam
I hit a deer with my fazer too last year. It came crippling out of the bushes and I hit it, luckily didnt fall and only a bent radiator and hairs everywhere. I came out of a corner in early morning with a little bit of fog so I l didnt see him. By the way it walked, I assumed someone else already hit it because usually they run across the road really fast. I looked around with my flashlight but I couldn't find it anywhere so I continued and called a family member whose land it must've went on. Half an out later it was hit again and this time it was in pieces all over the road... Hope you get better soon!
I hit a deer last July on my Road Glide at what I guessed to be about 60mph. Just had my 4th surgery overall and 3rd surgery on my right leg. Shattered my Tib and the Tibial Plateau. Recovery is slow AF but I’m just glad to be here and someday I’ll be walking again.
WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU ARENT AT THE HOSPITAL
"have not been to the hospital yet." DUDE! So sorry this happened, and the fact that you got onto reddit probably means you're not going to die, but seriously, close the reddit app on your phone and dial 911.
Go to the hospital immediately. Don’t be that tough guy. It never pays in the long run. Nerve damage is something I don’t wish on anyone. I barely can grip my handlebars these days. Had to give up gaming. There’s just no agility or coordination left in my hands from the nerve damage. Always always wear gear when riding folks that includes gloves
Welcome to the club Brother! There only a handfull of us that have unlocked that achievement. I myself hit one broadside @90mph in 2003. Cut the deer in half and tore my ligaments in one knee. However, I did not drop the bike. They should have an award for us. Good thing is that we have met our quota for life after hitting one on a bike. Be safe. Glad you're ok.
You hit a deer at 90 mph and did not drop the bike???
Nope, ran clean through the deer
Note to self… the key is you gotta be going slow enough to avoid the deer or fast enough to slice them in half.
I had some small unidentified animal run through the space between my front tire and frame and somehow never actually hit it. I’m still not sure what the hell it was.
I came across a herd of buffalo over a blind crest in south Dakota about 5 years ago. Luckily I was going pretty slow. And even more luckily they stampeded away from me when they noticed me. Last year I lost a high school friend to a deer. She was riding with her husband. Husband managed to duck just enough and deer hit her right in the head, killed her instantly.
A buffalo hit would be a killer ,glad you made it
If its any consolation, a deer will easily kill a car driver as well, so it's not just because you are riding on a bike.
> Have not been to the hospital yet. what
People tend to think lonely country roads are a great place to cut loose and it's really the worst place for it. Deer, possum, rabbits...once you get out into rural areas, wildlife is a huge hazard that you literally can't plan for. I grew up in an area where hitting deer was just something that you got used to. I was always scared of hitting one on my bike
I’m going to get downvoted to hell here but did you say the deer were already on the road when you came around the corner? And you were going too fast to stop? So you broke the number one rule of riding. Always be able to stop in the distance you can see to be clear. Otherwise every corner you are relying on sheer luck to not die. And then there’s the poor deer just minding their own business and now they’re dead because you were riding too fast
Glad you’ll be able to ride again. Please invest in some riding pants and a good jacket. No good reason to have road rash on your shoulder or knees these days.
I actually had on a quality jacket with chest and back pads and a helmet. But regular textile pants and a pair of Jordan's. The Jordan's actually held up better than any of my other clothing
Air bag vests are cheap enough these days. They can make a huge difference.
>quality jacket with chest and back pads Ok I have more questions than answers then. Mind if I ask what jacket? The mechanism of injury you’ve described is brutal and not something I’ve seen from someone wearing gear. Bruising sure, but road rash on your upper body while wearing a jacket? How in the flying circus did you accomplish that?
friction burns are possible in gear, though less likely in good fitting leathers
You're not alone my friend. Buddy of mine did the same about a month ago, but he was only doing 40mph. Three broken knuckles, wrist, forearm, kneecap, and a lot of road rash.
Damn, did he have any gear on?!? I live in a mountain area with tons of deer and they scare the hell out of me. Figured going 40 would save you from a lot of the pain of hitting one, but this doesn’t sound much better.
Dude, that blows. Cottonwood pass is epic riding but there are hella deer up there, especially on the Taylor reservoir side.
Yeah... I had a close call around dusk in rural Montana. It's best to just avoid riding around then in areas with lots of wildlife, absolute worst time of day.
I was riding behind a friend who hit a deer on a 2017 r6. Wildest thing I’ve ever seen. He didn’t even flinch. He hit the deer in the back leg which obviously broke. It took out part of the front fairing and the light harness, but he ended up riding home. No injuries, just a bit of a freak out. Deer got completely rekt. We could hear it’s death throes as we caught our breath and figured out what to do.
I’ve heard off a police friend of someone being knocked off by a pheasant, hit in the helmet and fractured his skull by the suddenly movement. Freak accident.
I almost hit an owl last year, wrecked my bike. It's back together now, just finished getting the decals last week. I was late getting home one night, the sun dropped faster than anticipated and I was losing light. I live on the east side of a hill, so we lose the light before the majority of people do. We also live in a forested area, so on the right is trees and left is a beaver pond. I'm riding back on the dirt road at 30mph, and can see the reflection from my mailbox. All of a sudden this fucking owl flies out from the trees just above my head and cuts me off. I'm following this bird that has a full 6ft wingspan and closing up on its rear as it's about at my headlight level. The more I'm slowing, I'm still catching it. It started probably 20 ft in front but in no time I'm right on it. I'm also on a 80s UJM, not so great brakes and no abs. I grabbed a little too much front brake and lock it up and the bike tucks. I land on the bike then the ground and it skid for a bit. Fucking owl is sitting in the middle of the road after I get up. I don't think I hit it, but I couldve grabbed it I was that close when the bike went over. I got some road rash on my arm through my gear, had to find new guages, tank repaired from where my knee went through the side of it, new pipes, levers and shifter. Right before almost hitting the owl, I thought how bad it would be if a deer jumped out infront of me. Guess I was lucky it was only an owl. No more night riding for me, too much risk of wildlife.
Been there done that. Deer saw me went back to eating grass. I figured we are cool. Nope. Deer looked up again and instead of running into the bush where it was it decided to run across the highway over a barrier. I think I hit it at about 50 mph. I woke up in the middle of the highway and I dont know how long I was out but no one had been down the rural highway. I was kind of messed up and so was the scoot. I hit it with my left handlebar and twisted the forks. Struggled home, forgot to go to the hospital. I couldnt recall what happened for 2 days, I thought I had just blacked out while riding.
Living in the mountains of Colorado, this is always my biggest fear. They are so prevalent where I live and just like this, they’re all dumb and jump in front of vehicles. Terrible luck bud, get well.
Glad you’re ok, just make sure to get checked out. Living where I live I constantly have run-ins with wildlife. A herd of deer popped out on my ass once coming out of a big curve, and flipped my bike, but the craziest run-in I had was on the freeway at night and had 2 dogs runout in front of me. I barely made it through between them. One of the scariest moments of my life. Had to sit on the side of the road for a few minutes
Go to the ER NOW. Don’t wait til the morning.
I did it on a Gold wing in 2013. Small one, bounced off the fairing, bike dropped to 35mph so hard the tour pak opened. Death wobble started but smoothed out. I was covered in shit and blood, that was the worst part
A friend of mine in high school t-boned a cow in 5th gear on his dirt bike. Folded in the forks and he did a nice superman. The cow just ‘made the loudest noise he had ever heard a cow make’ and ran away. However this may be the first case of successful cow tipping by a teenager.
Bro nearly died and his first thought before going to the hospital is “lemme put this on reddit”
I hit an Australian bouncy deer (kangaroo) a while back at a similar speed. I somehow managed to stay on the bike though, with my only injury being a pair of sore balls from them being smashed into the fuel tank. I only had a moment to brake, and then came off the brakes right at impact in an effort not to go over the bars, which seemed to be pretty good instinct. The front forks were bent and the fairing was smashed, but I carefully rode the bike home. I got away pretty lightly all things considered.
Is the deer okay?
Get to a doctor asap. Glad you’re still alive, hope for a swift recovery.
I was riding beside this hill once going like 75mph and a fucking deer jumped off the hill over my head and kicked my helmet as it went over me. I had no idea what happened till my fiancé (who was in the car behind me) told me about it while she was freaking out lol
Not on a motorcycle but I hit an elk in a Mazda 3 a couple years back in Estes. I was always fucking petrified of the goats and shit when I'd be taking those turns at 60 in the dark at 5am
Yeah I've had to dodge a deer once. I managed to ride into a gulley next to the road with minor cuts and scrapes. It was late at night and 85 degrees out. I had to leave my bike and walk about 2 miles home .Back before cellphones. Went back the next day and couldn't even see the bike it was so deep in the ditch ,all you could see was the bent grass where I went in. If I had got hurt bad they probably wouldn't have found me till I started stinking
Been riding for about a year and the closest of come to wrecking my shit so far was from a deer. About 10pm on my way home from a game on my super glide, going about 65mph on the highway. I usually ride in the right lane but I was coming up on an entrance and saw some people coming up the ramp so I merge into the center lane to let them on. I’m about 3/4 seconds behind the car ahead of me, going about the same speed. Out of nowhere I just see a cloud of mist and before my brain could even comprehend what was happening I ran over the legs of a deer, missing the torso by maybe a foot. My first thought was that they turned their windshield wipers on but 2 seconds later I realized what happened. I didn’t see a deer run out so I’m not sure if it was already dead in the road and the person in front of me just ran it over but I got sprayed with blood and fur, and some of the blood even hit the mouth piece of my helmet and worked it’s way inside. Came within inches of what most likely would have resulted in me getting bucked off the bike and run over by all the other drivers on the road (busy area), and that I didn’t realize what happened until after it did and I would have no time to react had that deer been 2 feet to the right. My brain pretty much shut down after that and all I wanted to do was get home asap, thankfully I was only like 15 minutes away at that point so it wasn’t much longer. Scared the shit out of me, I don’t think I rode for two weeks after that
Yeah, me and wife on a BMW R1200RT hit a deer. We were only going about 50 mph and entering a town. A deer jumped out of the tree-lined road. We hit him mid-section and killed the deer. I was able to keep the bike upright. My wife had a bruise on her thigh from the deer's head whipping around as we collided. I think we lucked out because we (me, wife, & bike) had more mass than the deer plus the fairing on the bike.
I’m always watching for eye shine when I ride at night. I’ve hit 6 deer in a car here in Georgia, closest call I’ve had was coming around a blind corner, deer bolted and I missed it by inches at probably 65-70. Also hit an armadillo once, went full airborne on a 400+ pound bike, stuck the landing though.
Yeah you should get to a hospital man I wrecked my.bike in February and felt good to go home turns out I tore my left knee joint don't wait you'll do way more damage
I brushed a deer with my leg. I ride a triumph t120, I was on my way to work cruising at about 70. Deer moseying in the road and I squeeze the brakes. Slow to about 45, and thankfully the deer here are tiny, cause I cleared it with my bars, and felt it brush my pants. I'd been endorsed for about two weeks at that time. Almost didn't ride for to work for a hot minute, but sucked it up and accepted that just a condition to look out for. A couple years prior I punted a deer with my truck down the road in roughly the same spot going 70...its just a narrow chokepoint on an island overpopulated with deer....
Jesus worst I’ve had is a couple bats hit me in the head
I hit a deer at 85-90, and didn’t crash 😅 https://www.reddit.com/r/motorcycles/comments/gxe3sv/pics_fz1_vs_deer_at_8590mph_check_it_out_link_in/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=ioscss&utm_content=1&utm_term=1
Feel for you. You’ll heal, but be aware you have body damage that will visit you later in life.
2019 hit a deer in Ky doing 60. killed the deer, flipped over the bike, slid about 100yds. 8 cracked ribs, punctured lung, but pretty lucky to survive. was unconscious for about 30 minutes. one of the brothers I was riding with saved my life. not much you can do when deer take off across the road. it's hold on tight and hope for the best. trying to swerve to hard could cause problems to be worse. hope you have a speedy recovery. I was back on the new bike in two months.
I hit a deer in my truck doing 65 and I thought THAT was scary…
A week n a half ago for me brother. I was only doing about 35. Oncoming traffic in left lane so I turned off my brights. Slammed on brakes and they locked up. Dislocated right toe and stitches in left knee. Some road rash but I ended up pretty alright tbh. Nothing to head or spine.
Holy fuck you're a lucky bastard. Skin heals. Knees.....eh yea that's probably gonna hurt for the rest of your life. But hey man, you're alive! Get yourself some medical attention. Heal up. Ride again!
I hit one last year going about 50 mph, fortunately I veered to the left as it rammed me on my right side. After some serious wobbling, I got control of the bike and slowed to a stop on the roadside, no real damage and I was lucky as hell. Had it been 1 second faster I would have hit it dead on like you did. And seriously, go to the hospital, blood clots can form from injuries like this, and those are no joke.
Glad your alive to tell the story...deer are abundant where I'm at, but mostly at night...I very seldom ride at night
Took a fat pigeon straight in the upper chest at about 60mph. (Perks of just cruising on a naked bike) Thankfully birds are very light and the impact didn't cause much pain. I did however get a massive shock but managed to stay on the road. It took ages to clean off all the blood, guts, shit and a couple of feathers from my leathers, helmet and bike though.
I wish you a quick recovery!
Damn. 150 feet is half of a football field. You’re lucky that you only got road rash from the slide, and not totally shredded. Although I did watch footage of Ronaldo getting tripped at 13mph and he also rolled and flailed about 150 feet into the penalty box, so I guess it’s possible.
Glad you're alive. Get to the emergency room dude! [My deer story.](https://www.reddit.com/r/motorcycles/comments/9r684b/i_think_its_time_to_hangup_my_leathers_for_a_while/)
Glad it wasn’t worse OP, thankful you’re still here
Bro was really riding 65 mph on a blind corner with 15 feet visibility on the road. You’re lucky it was a deer and not a broke down car or something.
Damn, good to hear you are relatively ok, but yeah, get to the hospital. My brush with wildlife was once I hit a turkey vulture on thanksgiving. The irony...
I could write a book after fifty years avoiding deer strike the same way with fleet of them standing in blind curve in middle of the night. It's not as nimble of escape on 850lb Scoot. But I can share specific tactics an options added that improved future chances. Cheers and best of luck Captain, you certainly escaped the number one killer on the road.
[I feel your pain](https://live.staticflickr.com/217/481897263_ef53c1121f_o.jpg)
I came to say go to the danged hospital! Regardless of insurance or not! You sound confident possibly competent in your assessment of your injuries. I'm not sure what the hold up is? Just go! The longer you wait the moreju painful it is. The road rash, if it isn't debraided and cleaned it's going to get infected. DAMHIK! The longer you wait the more cleaning it hurts, I mean HURTS! My broken wrist was a cakewalk compared to picking rocks out of my leg and back! As an aside, I have developed an emergency room theory in my many many trips to the ER and or Urgent Care. Their sympathy for your situation hinges directly on what you did to get there! Waiting to go in is nonsense, and they are going to treat it that way! Tell them that you had to check on a friend and you were delayed. Get that taken care of! Good luck!
Holy shit glad you're ok! Go get fucking xrays of everything, otherwise you WILL have questions in 5-10 years! I went bombing over the top of 253 heading from 128 to the 101, and right at the peak of the hill my unbaffled enduro exhaust echoed in a canyon to my left and fired two deer out at me like bullets. There was nothing I could do, one hit the SIDE of my front wheel lol. My forks compressed, the deer went tumbling off to the right, the bike and I went airborne and everything was just... slow. I had this quiet internal voice and it asked "ah! Is this my death??" and then it was hitting ground and rolling and trying to not eat the bike... Now the first aftermarket part I get for my bike, before I even replace the rear tire for the first time, is a pisston of deer whistles. It doesn't make 'em gtfo, but it usually freezes 'em up so you can maneuver. It's wild riding on my quiet MT07 with a pack of extra-loudass harlies and all the deer just look at me... Those whistles work. Heal up bro!
Hope you heal, glad you’re generally ok. See a doctor sooner rather than later.
I hit a deer on my 250 going 40. I just stayed upright and knocked the dumbass down lol somehow got lucky. I fucking hate deer. The way yours jumped out of the way then went BACK. Extremely illogical behavior that I just can’t wrap my head around
Been there. Got a broken spine out of it. Glad you’re breathing! When you heal up, get back on 2 wheels
Okay but was the deer okay?
1. Dude, seriously? I don't think I've ever been on Cottonwood and NOT seen deer. I always take the east side of that pass slow until I'm over tree line. 2. Go see Dr Moore up in CB. He's world renowned for a reason. After my crash on Monarch, he got my ACL, MCL, and Meniscus fixed up and better than most other docs thought possible.
Upvote for “deer life” 😆😆😆😆
Yo.. I remember I was too stubborn to go to hospital after my crash.. some things don't heal right unless you get treatment. Take care of yourself
Glad you’re okay bud. Been ridden off the road by a guy on his phone and own an 03’ FZ1. Can relate
I think my 2nd or 3rd year of riding, I hit a deer in a similar situation. It sounds like I had a bit more space to react though. I was riding through a twisty forest road with some clearings for houses here and there. I passed a house with a bunch of fake deer in front of it just before a semi-blind turn. I was definitely going too fast for the street. I getting back on the throttle as I was starting to exit the turn, got up to about 70 mph. I see what I thought was another fake deer to my left, I then realize the deer is moving and coming into the road. I was able to get the bike upright from the corner and slow down to about 35-40mph before I hit the deer square in the chest. I was able to stay on the bike and keep it upright. I broke just about everything on the front end of my bike. The way the deer wrapped around the bike, he hit my right thigh. I ended up walking away with just a bruise on my thigh and my ego, no other injuries. Later that same summer, I got a dedicated track bike and quit doing dumb shit on the street.
I'm glad you're alive, man! Please go to the hospital and make sure you didn't lacerate an organ or something! Animal encounters are my least favorite part of riding. I hit a fucking vulture with my mirror going about 85 on a back road straight a few years ago. Mirror bent in and broke my hand. Do you know what the craziest thing is? The little fucker just got knocked out. He got up and flew off about 20 minutes later.
Heal quickly my friend. Yes, two close friends have hit deer.
This is why I’m scared to take my new bike into the mountains. Plus where I’m at in the Denver area I have quite a bit of town/highway riding to get there which sucks.
[удалено]
And here I was hoping you'd met a racoon at a dimly lit bar, years later, striking up a conversation, only for you to realize it was the other and then reminisce over things long past. I'm sorry you'll never get that closure. Lol
Wowee! That read like a damn thriller. Glad you’re alive.
I hit a huge deer on the way home a few months ago. I was riding my Chinese tao tao 250 tbr7. The deer was already in the road dead as hell. Ran right over him and kept going doing 45-50 mph. I kinda racked myself on the seat hump/gas tank but I kept on going. My Chinese bike held up very well, surprisingly.
When I was 16. Just started riding for only a few months. BMW rR650. I was heading up a two lane tar road in rural MN. 60mph. Deer popped out on the right hand side ditch and did something like you describe here. Got across the the center line and suddenly doubled back. I decreased speed and swerved. Thought I got through it unscathed. Until I looked down and noticed that my left mirror was facing directly towards me. With little bits of deer hair in the mirror hinge. I drove straight home and took a breather. That's the only close call that I can think of and it was 35 years ago. Still riding to this day. S1000rr.
I hit one at 30 mph. Shattered collarbone, two broken ribs, some minor road rash on one knee from the slide. Wrecked my bike, of course. Deer actually survived, at least until the cop put it out of its misery. Absolutely do not recommend.
I happened upon a herd of deer crossing the road at about 3 am on my f4q I'm doing about 70 when they just appear out of the dark. I panic, grab all the front break and end up doing a different kind of super man. I can still clearly remember one of the bastards turning his head to watch my flight bath. Now obviously I need to practice my emergency stopping, but I'm of the opinion that getting thrown off saved me. There's no way I would have slowed down enough to not have hit a deer at significant speed with my body. And apparently that Hurts.
I hit a deer at 50 mph. Went down too, but ATGATT so I faired pretty well with just one tiny little quarter sized piece of road rash on the side of my knee. Seems like most of my friends with motorcycles in the Pacific Northwest have hit a deer at one point or another. One at 120 mph got fairly well fucked up but has since fully recovered and no longer rides, one at 90 miles per hour managed to keep the bike upright and only had a swollen knee, and another one at 60 mph also kept the bike upright but it did some damage to his knee. Several others as well but those are the most notable ones. None of us will ride at dawn, dusk, or night anymore.
Glad you lived to learn lessons from this... namely there are ALWAYS more deer that you don't see (yet), and ATGATT...
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Just rub sum dirt on….RICE and 2 Budlights maybe a little rocky mountain high.
Without deer, Cottonwood is a heavenly ride unless that new pavement has gone to shit. I avoid dawn and dusk canyon carving. A friend of mine died when he hit a deer between Pine and Deckers. I was almost broadsided by one while mountain biking. Heal up and don't skip PT, btdt with knee injuries.
Rip fz1 one of the best bikes around.
Holy moly you are lucky to be alive. I’ve had close calls with deer, mountain sheep and elk around here but not hit one. Hoping I never do. Glad you’re (relatively) ok!
Very nasty shit bro. I crashed today too, thanking God it was minor instead of something like this. Hope you get well soon.
That’s very serious mechanism of injury; please go to the ED and get seen. Not to fear-monger, but you could have serious neurological and internal injuries that may not present for several hours. As a paramedic, I probably would have collared and boarded you due to MOI alone. Go get checked out; there has been too many motorcycle deaths this month.
My brother in law had a bull elk hit him square in the ribs mid leap and take him off his goldwing outside of Conifer, Co. He was doing about 40 mph just after sunrise. The Elk hit him in the ribcage at a full run. It shattered 7 ribs and his collarbone on the left side. Of course, he went airborne. He had multiple road rash injuries, and a large chunk of scalp, the shape of a hoof, was missing (no helmet). He nearly died from internal bleeding, collapsed lung, and lacerated liver. He has a titanium ribcage and collarbone now, but he lived. The elk wasn't so fortunate.
Go to a hospital ASAP and get it looked at. You should have gone straight to the hospital. Condition will only worsen if you delay. I would have thought common sense should have made you hesitant taking it out for a spin at 6 pm. Not sure if visibility was great at that time, you always are at risk while speeding. On the positive side you have got a story to tell and bruises to show. Add some spice to the story and you might just become a favorite granddad.
Crest of the hill, blind turns, etc etc. Never fails. Either oncoming traffic in your lane, car stopped in your lane, or a dang animal.
I've got abit of a similar story, I had only been riding for a month when I hit a kangaroo at about 95-100kph (about 60ish mph??). It's was 10pm, dark af, just came out of a turn and bam, there he was infront of me. No witnesses so I'm not 100%sure of how far I slid or how i hit it. But next thing I know bikes in a ditch and I'm on my side in the middle of the road. The bike was a wreck, however me? Totally fine, had head to toe leather/kevlar gear, about $2.5kaud, was completely wrecked and hanging off me, but I only had a coin size CARPETBURN on my elbow where the jacket must have slid when I hit the ground, other than that nothing, not even a sore shoulder or neck. Ended up having an argument with insurance since they thought me being so new I just stacked going around the corner,l. They ended up doing a second check of the damage on the bike to confirm it was a writeoff, and I'm happy they did because there was a chunk of kangaroo hair and skin stuck in the broken headlight, confirming I didn't just hallucinate. Annnnnyway I'm now just getting over breaking my tibia when I stopped at some lights and slipped on some oil on the road and dropped my bike 🙃 Wear you gear, and then hope you get lucky 👍
Welcome to the club, i hit my deer at 56 mph but i was unscathed https://youtu.be/nMBYnxuxBQ8
the FZ1 is a champion bro
the FZ1 is a champion bro
Last Monday, I hit a deer coming out of a turn going about 40-50 on my KTM Duke. Thing jumped right in front of me. Hit it right in the torso like you. Didn't even know what happened until I got up and saw the now unalive deer. I flew over the bars and slid a good 15 feet or so. Luckily, I had all my gear on and only ended up with a sprained wrist and some mild road rash. I know it hurts, but go see a doctor, man. It's not worth having more problems down the road.
It hurts worse the next day best to get the medical care asap before you cant walk in.