Deer strike part II

[zore]

Looks like I'm going for a record of deer hits on triumph motorcycles as I scored number 2.  Got hit by a big buck on Tuesday and got a sweet a$$ ambulance ride.  Not sure what happened but a skinned knee and a broken collar bone were the result.  I mangled a few fingers but nothing broken other than an extensor (sounds important).  Saw the bike yesterday and I think it fared better than I did.  All I have to say is, wear your damn gear.

[h2olawyer]

Glad things weren't worse!  Bones mend & chicks dig scars.   ;)  Heal fast.

Good advice about wearing gear.  Your helmet doesn't look too bad, it should polish out.   :D

Which bike were you on?

H₂O

[zore]

I was on my Daytona 675.  Last time it was my Sprint ST.  I'm wondering if Triumphs just attract deer.

[Night Vision]

get to hear you dodged another bullet....

two down and six to go...... unless you count Rudolph

thought about changing your user name?


maybe..... Zoro the deerslayer?


... how 'bout Dodger?

[YellowJacket!]

Wow!  Man, am I glad you are OK.  The picture of your helmet speaks volumes about wearing the right gear.  I'm glad you are OK.  Heal quickly.  ;D

David

[Tiger]

 :) Is this an American thing!!! Here in Canada they just go out and shoot Bambi :o  :D :D :D :D :D :D

:-\ Maybe you should try a Triumph TIGER next time :D :D :D :D :D :D... ;)

Glad to know your not to bad bro'...and good to know that the "gear" did its job...Heal well 8)

                     8).......TIGER....... 8)

[Rick G]

I'm sure H20 is kidding about "polishing out" your helmet . Helmets are like  fuses , when they have done there job its over . Kind of like hay that's been through the horse.

[h2olawyer]

Most positively kidding about polishing out the helmet.  Some companies used to like to get them back for analysis after they have received impact / sliding damage.  You might want to see what HJC would like to do with it.

Again, glad things weren't worse.  You might try some of those deer whistles.  I've heard the electronic ones actually work.  The Colorado State Patrol uses them in the heavier deer population areas of the state.

We shoot 'em & eat 'em down here, too.  I've got about 45 pounds of deer & elk meat in my freezer at the moment.  A friend got one during archery season and the other during black powder season.  Lots more meat than he can eat in a year & his wife is a (mostly) vegetarian.  She eats foul fowl on occasion.

The ones that get hit are often taken to meat locker plants, butchered and given to local food banks or other charities.  At least they do that when the carcass is fresh enough and not too mangled.  (I mean the deer, not the rider.)  (NOT Meatloaf Again!  ;D )

H₂O

[don_vanecek]

Bambi strikes again, hope you heal up OK (and I hope this doesn't scare you off bikes, or scare your family off bikes!)

Would be interested in how your jacket, pants, boots and gloves held up when you get a chance and any recommendations you may have.

Riding season season is basically over here in NE, Bambi season is going strong, local paper lists two or three car deer accidents each week or so now.

Support your local deer hunter!

[Aelwulf]

Now that IC an see the pic it seems every pic I see of a full face the visor et all is scraped to heck & back.  It might just be the shape of the helmets,  but either way I just don't see how folks use half (or even 3/4) helmets.  Maybe when I get older and less worries/time remaining I'll risk it but not at the moment.

[YellowJacket!]

Not to mention bug strikes.  I've been hit in the visor several times by large bugs, pebbles and other projectiles...enough to know it would either seriously hurt or cause an injury.

David

[zore]

Well the bike was totalled.  I'm getting 6300 for it plus 650 for my gear.  I'm buying the bike back for 2k and it will have a clean title.  Seems 90% of the damage was cosmetic.

[h2olawyer]

Ask inanecathode about bird hunting on a Vision!  Also, the June Bugs around here can feel like rocks.  They're about 1/3 - 1/2 inch in diameter and very hard shelled.  However, even worse is a swarm of insects.  I've gone through miles of flying ants on one occasion and gnats on another.  No pain involved except for the ant stings (very minor) but cleaning all their remains off a visor is nearly impossible.  Nothing compared to hitting large wildlife.

Glad the insurance is doing the right thing for you.  Amazing how fast a bike gets totalled by the insurance companies - even with just cosmetic damage.  Maybe that's one reason bike parts are comparatively more costly than car parts of similar construction / size.  The bike gets totalled and they figure a new one will be bought to replace it.  Then the old 'wrecked' one will also get refurbished, thus selling both a new bike and a bunch of parts.  Manufacturer and dealer come out ahead in both situations.

H₂O

[Night Vision]

I hit a possum while on the V, but he was pretty much dead already, I think....

one of those "cresting over a hill and looking ahead, but not looking down on the road surface"  :-[

my brother (driver) and I (passenger) ran over a fresh possum while toolin around in his old MG Midget...

thump..thump.. "hey back up, 'ya just ran over something"... (me, after opening door).... "GO GO GO!!!!!"

boy was that possum pissed off... hissin like a snake an showing full teeth  :o

tough little sob's

[zore]

Just to clarify, I didn't hit the deer, he hit me and knocked me over.  It's the only reason I'm buying the bike back.  No frame or fork damage.

[Rick G]

I've had  a few collisions with wild life , but they were all fairly small.
In OR. a sparrow dove at my bike , while I was going about 50 mph and hit the left side of the  engine , he died on impact. I'm sure glad he wasn't a cow !!
A large bug , with yellow guts hit the edge of my visor ( I usually ride  with it open to the first notch) and sprayed yellow goo on my face. My grandson thought the whole thing was hilarious!

In the early sixties , while riding east bound on The San Bernardino freeway (interstate 10) a bumble bee hit the gap on my open face helmet , at cheek level. He want inside  and was thoroughly pissed , and doing his best to sting me ! I slid across  4 lanes of traffic  with the rear wheel locked , doing my best to get the helmet off and release this  monster!

[motoracer8]

In 1987 I was riding along behind a friend of mine on a BMW K75S on the way to the BMW rally in Quincy Ca. This story does not end well, instently a deer came out of nowhere whitch he hit just about dead center, I managed to miss him and his motorcycle sliding down the road, When I got back to him he was unconscious but had a pulse, others went for help I stayed, when the ambulance arived some 30 minutes later he was still alive, but died on the way to the hospital. This happend at about 60 mph, east bound on hwy 70. It can and does happen, it got my attention for a long time.

  Ken G.

[Rick G]

Speed reduction is the essence of survival in deer country.
  I went for an evening ride , one summer in OR., while putting along a back road at 30 mph (really , it was a dark and an unlit road , with lots of forest. )  I saw what I believed to be a Great Dane,  standing in the ditch , looking at me. Surprise!!  it was a doe,nervously staring at me!
Further on  a trio of dear were standing in the road , on the north fork of the Santiam river. They bolted when I came along and after I reached the end of pavement and turned around, were at the same spot , going the other  way! A bit later, I spotted a family of skunks crossing the road , I rev'ed my engine and gave the little stinkers a wide birth.

A few miles from home, a 4 or 5 point buck bolted from the brush, about 50 feet ahead of me , but at 30 mph  I had plenty of time to brake.  I had installed a 90/130 head light bulb prior to this and I won't be with out it , although riding at night here in this part of AZ., you are more likely to encounter a coyote, or snake, than a deer.

[The Prophet of Doom]

IMO a really loud exhaust is the key to safe night time riding.  You have to scare the buggers off before they are attracted headlight like moths to a flame.  I fitted HID lights to my 4wd and added a couple of high beam spots.  Really nice to drive by, but I must have quadrupled the amount of roadkill I was creating.  I'm in two minds about trying an HID conversion on the Vision no matter how much it needs it

[visionless]

I don't know about deer and loud noises, but bears will come out to see what made the loud noise.  When trail riding in the mountains, the first rider never sees any bears, but the second rider gets the bear in the middle of the trail looking for the noise.