Out for the year....

[SonnyThomas]

Feb 26. Plowing 4 or 5 inches of new snow. Zipping right along on my ATV and smacked a snow covered ice block. ATV stopped and I all but launched through the handle bars, but held on. Left arm, tore tendon or bicep. Holding on to the handle bars, I went forward (yeah, right) and both shoulder blades evidently meet. Bruised them good. Right side; Right arm traumatized. Wrist, elbow and shoulder separated and torn rotor cuff. Bicep also torn. I guess my separate shoulder is on the mend.
April 23 surgeon starts putting me back together. Fixing multiple rotor cuff tears, one partial tear and one complete tear. This gets healed up and then they make decisions on my torn biceps. Might just be the left that needs repaired.

[C.Roberts]

Sounds like those old muscles are telling you they are not what they were back in those motocross days. Hope they mend quickly and you are jumping those Camel Back humps real soon (lol)... Claude

[Elkhunter]

Sorry to hear that Sonny --- here's hoping for a quick mend. I know EXACTLY what happened to you, as I had a similar experience many years ago. I was lucky though, as I did go airborne, clearing handlebars, etc, and landed in the top of the big snow pile I was pushing snow into.--- it's like ya put on air breaks when it happens, I did hit head-first --- maybe that's why I'm so goofy now huh !!!

[SonnyThomas]

Thanks. Talking of motorcross, I've got to get my 750 up and running. Older Yammer, but sure does fly. Nice wheelie bike.

[Elkhunter]

Dirt bikes are fun too, as long as you stay on the "seat side" of the handlebars !!!

[SonnyThomas]

Elk, I raced motorcycles in my earlier years. Local Short Tracks, Scrambles, Half miles, and Enduros. Shop sponsored, I went to Florida during Daytona Speed Week. Ran in the Alligator 200 Enduro. I took a 3rd in my class, 125 cc. Man! The sand, mud and water... And them slick softball size rocks! And my poor bike. I took in the Stone Mountain 100 Mile National in Dalton, Georgia on the way down. Two races and my bike had to be overhauled or rebuilt, piston rings, front shocks, drive gears and chain and rear tire. Glad I was sponsored.

[Elkhunter]

I never raced them, but I got about 100,000 miles on them. Had several road bikes --- my first two couldn't stay up on their wheels --- kept falling over on me --- one time it slid out from under me trying to take a 15 mph corner at 95 --- good thing I was very relaxed, and didn't panic --- spent 3hrs on the ER table pulling stuff out of my hide, as we slide together with it on top of me for quite a ways. The last one I had I gotter up to 145mph with 500 rpm left, and I somehow ran outta guts, and backed it off before I ran it off the road. When you go that fast down a 2-lane road the road gets to be only as wide as the yellow line --- kinda scary. I also piled up a snowmobile doing 92mph --- I hit a bunch of those guard posts oh the side of the road, but that only knocked me out for a bit.

I knew two brothers who used to race Daytona for many years --- they were champions --- Joe and Phil Peterson.--- they raced back in the late 40's and 50's --- maybe into the 60's.

Oh well.

[SonnyThomas]

I had more racers than street bikes. But I put together a basket case 1972 Harley Sportster. Yep, last of the chrome leggers. Amazingly, it had "P" cams and over size carburetor, last year Harley offered both. .060" over bore, few tweaks here and there, done some sprocket changes and I had a scooter that would haul....Roger Reiman, yep, the one and only, gave it touch or two. Sad day when he passed away. He thought it cranked pretty good so he ran it at the airport to see what it'd do. 145 mph at 6,000 rpms and the bike wanted to keep cranking. I had it up there a few times. Telephone poles do go by quick... Little faster and they'd looked like a picket fence.
I had a big Yoko tire on the back and had to drill metal screws through the rim to keep the tire from slipping. Sold it to my brother, but he never had the intestinal fortitude to take it the top end. I had always suspected that bike being different and it was. It was low to the ground, knock over a pack of tall Pall Mall cigarettes. Found it was one of only a few made. Brother ended up selling it to a collector for a nice sum....

[Elkhunter]

My "learner bike" was a 73 Yamaha 250 Enduro (poor thing) --- next was a 74 Yamaha RD350 --- 120mph in a half a heartbeat until I hit a coon at night doing 120. --- next on the list was a 75 Honda 750 Super Sport that I chopped out --- was the neatest bike, and rode it into the ground --- put a pile of miles on it --- put a troker kit in it that boosted it up to 836cc. My last one, that I actually kept for many years --- like 15, was a 77 Yamaha XS1100, that grew to 1200. Heck on our honeymoon alone my wife and I traveled 4500 miles, and the following year when I quit my job, and sold the house we rode 11,000 miles, lived in a tent n' sleeping bags while looking for a new place to squat, and ended up in northern Idaho. The most miles we ever rode in one day was 750, and rode thru hailstorms, and girted around tornados. There was a couple of times we were in such heavy sidewinds, that we leaned over so far against the wind that the pegs were almost touching the road.---- sure was scary when the wind let up !!! Our younger life was what one might call a little on the "adventurous side" --- LOL !!! Never got into the Harleys, but they sure sounded good with the baffles taken out.

[carlosii]

Sonny, as I recall the 72 HD was made by AMF...nuff said. Thank goodness the family reclaimed the brand and turned it back around.

Worst bike crash I ever had was on my niece's mini-bike when I hit a culvert...them 5 horses in that Briggs nearly ruined me.

[Elkhunter]

You got that right Carlos about the AMF Harleys--- you could track one around the United States by just following its "oil leaks" --- wasn't the only company degraded by AMF either.

[SonnyThomas]

AMF was into a lot things. I think there is a old bow in the back room at the shop with AMF on it.... Voit, maybe?

I had only one wreck while riding a motorcycle. Just got my 250 twin Kawasaki out of the repair shop, forgot my helmet and turned around to get it. From nowhere this car pulls out in front of me at this Chrysler dealership. Front tire nailed the fairly new Ford right behind the driver's front tire. Forks gave and I luckily went up and over the car. The car still moving my motorcycle went down the side of the car, tearing up the front door, back door, and rear fender. They total the car! Did $375.00 damage to my motorcycle. Young, I sort of bounced off the pavement and ended up with a bruised upper arm. Dealership paid for everything.

Now laying one down on the race track ain't really crashing, just parking your iron differently. And man can you think fast. Yeah, laid one down doing about 50 mph out of turn 2 on this short track. Just sort of sliding along and I saw these straw bales and I thought; "Oh yeah, this going to hurt." Still, I can't remember it hurting.

[Elkhunter]

Your right Sonny, being young didn't bother us much, BUT I guarantee you, that all those things that didn't bother me when I was young sure are haunting me now. My body hurts me in more places than it don't.

I never raced any motorcycles, but used to race snowmobiles on the oval track. It never hurt much when I flipped one, or got thrown off --- snow is a lot softer landing than pavement --- no so-called "road rash" involved. When they changed over from oval racing to snowcross where you jump over the hills on the track, that's when I quit --- too darn hard on the back and knees.--- course nowadays they have so much new technology with suspension systems the modern racers probably don't feel a thing --- then too, a good snomobile only cost $800 to $1k then --- now the good ones cost $15K, and up. Back then I had a fully modified 600cc Scorpion., and also raced an 800cc Arctic Cat Puma. I can't remember the year for sure, but seem to think it was around 1972.The Cat was a much more stable riding sled. In 1992 Speed and I both got Yamaha Phazers, and souped them up from:54HP to:80HP, carbides, and studs --- could go anywhere we wanted, as fast as we wanted, which was 90+.

I'd never live a day longer if I tried to do the things today, that I did back in the 70's --- sure WAS fun though.--- LOL. --- Oh well.

[jacoserv]

1966 Riding a BSA 650 Thunderbolt. Blacktop changed to gravel half way through a curve and I was unfamiliar with the road. Needless to say I was going a little too fast for gravel, left the road, hit a ditch, over the handlebars about 30 feet, result 3 broken vertabra'.s and 3 months out of work. Almost lost my job. Spent my 24th BD in the hospital. Just normal stuff for a 24 year old redneck!

[Elkhunter]

HA !!! --- It's finally come out Jake --- I always figgered you were a "heller" when y'all was young !!! --- Sure does hurt though when they pluck alla that gravel otta yer hide, and scrub it up good though --- don't it !!! Funny thing was, when I had it done it didn't seem the nurse felt any mercy for me, or maybe it was because she gaggin from the smella all that good booze I drank all night long before it happened.

Whose next with their "experiences" --- this is startin ta get good !!!