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08 Nov 2006, 2:04 pm / Tired
Lately I've been feelin' a bad cloud loomin' over. A couple of months ago, when I found out about the divorce, I went to visit my brother. Now this deal was my fault, but when I pulled up to his house I goosed my Bettie a little to "announce" my arrival and she stuck me in the sand like a yard dart. Lost a mirror in the deal but nothin' else. Kind of a funny story told start to finish; maybe in another blog.
Then there was the deer incident detailed in a previous blog entry and of course the spoke thing in my last entry. In between those incidents have been an increasing number of close calls. People on cell phones, people not paying attention when trying to occupy the space I'm in etc. etc. Well on "the night of the broken spoke" it all caught up with me.
On Hallween night at around 11:15 PM I left the intersection of HWY 19 and Hwy 69 in Emory, on my way home. The home that my son no longer occupies. Anyway I see a blue, Ford 3/4 ton leaving the Sonic parking lot on my right at a pretty good clip so I slow up thinking they're just gonna shoot out onto the Highway. The truck stops before entering the Hwy so I add power and go on. Well the driver didn't see me and pulls out turning left. I drop power and apply all brakes, hard. On the right is a highway sign, a damn deep ditch and concrete culvart. Go left and I wind up in her grill so I lay the bike down. Damn she hit hard!
I didn't get kicked free so me and the bike are sliding with my leg caught under the right side. At that point I remember actualy relaxing a little thinkin' "This sucks but I'm pretty much on my back and sliding. I'll be ok." Then I saw that damn rear wheel. That's when I thought, "Well I'm done." She ran over my forks and chopped them off, spun the bike right tossing me off and I went bouncin'. I remember most of the impacts. Strange how what takes maybe 3 seconds tops seems like its playing out in slow motion.
When I stopped I could see my bike laying there still running. I crawled over and laid across the gas tank for a second, shut her off and stripped off my helmet. I could hear people asking me stuff so I stood up. I remember being embarassed cause my chap belt had busted and it looked like I was standing there with my pants around my knees. I didn't like that so I took 'em off.
One of the Deputies that came to the scene is a cool SOB. I had met him a few days earlier and he had invited me on a ride the following saturday. He came up with a big smile and said. "It don't look like your gonna make the ride." I just laughed. Then he took his flash light and started probing the ground asking "Where's your gremlin bell?" I replied "That's the problem. I aint got one yet."
At any rate I walked away. My Jacket can be salvaged. My helmet, that I don't normaly wear can't and neither can my chaps. The verdict isn't in on my bike yet but I think she can be saved and kinda hope she can be. I had intended on keeping her and buying a new or newer one in January.
I screwed up my right side pretty good and it's pretty much one solid bruise and swollen to hell. Noting broken and the leather really saved my ass; recieveing only minor road rash on my right arm.
Right now I'm sitting here writing this blog entry, drinkin' some cold beer and staring out the window wishin' like hell my son was here.
And oh yeah. I'm also tryin' to figure out how to go about gettin' to know my son's teacher a little better. I met her the other day and she's pretty damn cute. 
Be careful out there.
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