My First Wreck

• Author: mijunkin (---.mccormackbaron.com)
• Verified User: mijunkin
• Date Posted: 04-28-08 09:25

So yesterday I show up to the St. Louis weekly fix-it day and ride dealie. Rick shows up a few minutes later with his Pacer and newly-mounted biturbo, and tells me to take it for a ride. Rick’s top speed so far was 42.8mph, and I’m smaller than him, so I decide I can totally beat that. I get out on Gravois, down a little hill. I pull over and wait for green lights and no traffic. Get down in a tuck and let her rip. As I hit 38mph, a little black car pulls out from a side street right in front of me. I pop up out of the tuck, hit the breaks, and I’m wobbling like an epileptic at a rave. I try to let go of the breaks and tuck back down, but this car is right there. Luckily I’d done a lot of pretty intense mounting biking for a long time (Xterra triathalons and such), so I’d learned to fall gracefully. Pacer goes flying over there, I jump, tumble, and pop back up. I collect the two halves of my glasses, some shit that fell out of my pockets, and go turn the bike over. Walk her back to tell Rick I wrecked his bike (and apologize like 50 times), and assess the damage to me and the Pacer.

Pacer:
Mangled wiring on the bars
Kinda smashed up headlight’
Bent exhaust bracket
Messed up left brake lever
Messed up right brake cable

Me:
Road rash on right elbow, hip, and knee
Broken left middle toe
Scuffed and bruised left palm
Sore as hell today
Glasses broken in half (yeah, got the traditional dork tape holding them together)

I don’t think we made out too bad for a wreck at 38mph. I gave Rick a new headlight, and he fixed everything else and was riding the Pacer by day’s end. I went home and whined to my girlfriend and had her tend to my wounds, then decided to drink until I couldn’t feel the hurt anymore. I wish I could do that today…but I’m at work. Blah.