I'm not really sure this is the correct category for this - but it seemed the closest. Admin, please move if necessary.
Back in March, my wife, Jeannette and I met up with a bunch of fellow FJR riders for a multi-day Death Valley experience, and had an absolute blast. This was my wife's first ever trip on the FJR - and we covered 1130+ miles in 4 days. She's now hooked !!
Now - I haven't told but two other folks about this, as Jeannette wanted me to keep it quiet, cause she's a bit embarassed, but I felt this info should be out there for everyone.
Coming home from Lone Pine that Sunday, we pulled into the gas station due south of Lone Pine on 395. Now Jet is tall - 5'11", but she has some limitations on movement due to RA which she's been dealing with for some time. So - we worked out a routine for dismounting the bike - I stop the bike, lean onto the side stand, and when I tell her it's ok, she holds my shoulders, stands up on the pegs, and swings her right leg over the tail and down to the ground.
So - we pull into the station, we go through the routine - only there's a little difficulty - her right leg 'catches' somehow, and she fell off the bike - she said she thought about grabbing me, but she worried about pulling me off the bike as well - and she also thought about putting her arms back to brake the fall - but she figured that might break both her arms - (all of this in the time it took her to fall) so she just 'back flopped' - landed flat on her back, and let the gear take the impact.
Keep in mind that the passenger pegs on the 06 are what - about 10" off the ground? So here she is at 5'11", add 10" to that height, and you have 6' 9" - a fairly long distance to 'lever' or swing your head from vertical to horizontal, and then stop the acceleration with a concrete slab.
When she hit the concrete, I heard the wind knock out of her - and I distinctly heard her brand new Caberg Justissimo 'CLACK' on the concrete - not once, but 'clack clack clack' -
I was off the bike very quickly - leaned over her, looking for little things like breathing, pulse, etc. - and I could see tears - so I figured she was ok - it took me about 2 minutes to get her back up off the deck - about which time a few of the other couples that were also fueling up to leave arrived at the station. They didn't know this had happened.
Now - to the gist of this story - I am a firm proponent of ATGATT - those of you who have seen me wearing my Roadcrafter in 106 degree heat know that I'm a stickler for the safety gear.
When we arrived home that afternoon, I immediately ordered another helmet - just like the first one.
Here's a picture of the back of the helmet - you will note what appears to be a very small scratch on the 'edge' of the molded surface - other than that, there was absolutely NO INDICATION of any damage - but I replaced the helmet anyway.
I wrote 'DO NOT USE' in large letters with a sharpie across the top of the helmet, and set it aside.
So - I finally got around to stripping it down - I pulled both visors, the cheek pads, and liner - these 4 parts when purchased run about $200 - so I didn't want to discard them with the bucket.
When I pulled the liner out- I about freaked - here's what I found -
As you can see, the styrofoam did EXACTLY what it was supposed to do - it absorbed the impact. Note the large round indentation where the back of her skull deformed the foam - and the crack from the impact. Had the helmet been one of those 'almost' half helmets, the results of her fall could have been very different - I'd probably be spoon feeding pureed pees to her at the local extended care facility - or worse. When I discovered this hidden damage, it really did shake me for a bit - it appears that my bride of 27+ years took a really hard hit - but the gear did it's job. Thank God.
When I took the MSF class in June 05, we were told to replace a helmet if it was ever dropped, or involved in a slow fall, even if there was no evidence of any damage - because it could be hidden.
So - here's hard evidence that cosmetically near perfect helmets can be damaged in a fall or drop - and should be replaced, as recommended by the MSF and the manufacturers - it's not just an 'opinion' to increase sales.
Guys and Dolls, if any of you are wearing a helmet that has been through a fall, or slow speed drop, or whatever, EVEN IF IT DOES NOT SHOW ANY DAMAGE - and even if it still has that 'new helmet' smell, replace it. Don't screw around. Just bite the bullet, and get it done, OK ? Your brain is worth more than any $$ you might save.
DON'T SCREW AROUND WITH YOUR SAFETY GEAR !!!!
Back in March, my wife, Jeannette and I met up with a bunch of fellow FJR riders for a multi-day Death Valley experience, and had an absolute blast. This was my wife's first ever trip on the FJR - and we covered 1130+ miles in 4 days. She's now hooked !!
Now - I haven't told but two other folks about this, as Jeannette wanted me to keep it quiet, cause she's a bit embarassed, but I felt this info should be out there for everyone.
Coming home from Lone Pine that Sunday, we pulled into the gas station due south of Lone Pine on 395. Now Jet is tall - 5'11", but she has some limitations on movement due to RA which she's been dealing with for some time. So - we worked out a routine for dismounting the bike - I stop the bike, lean onto the side stand, and when I tell her it's ok, she holds my shoulders, stands up on the pegs, and swings her right leg over the tail and down to the ground.
So - we pull into the station, we go through the routine - only there's a little difficulty - her right leg 'catches' somehow, and she fell off the bike - she said she thought about grabbing me, but she worried about pulling me off the bike as well - and she also thought about putting her arms back to brake the fall - but she figured that might break both her arms - (all of this in the time it took her to fall) so she just 'back flopped' - landed flat on her back, and let the gear take the impact.
Keep in mind that the passenger pegs on the 06 are what - about 10" off the ground? So here she is at 5'11", add 10" to that height, and you have 6' 9" - a fairly long distance to 'lever' or swing your head from vertical to horizontal, and then stop the acceleration with a concrete slab.
When she hit the concrete, I heard the wind knock out of her - and I distinctly heard her brand new Caberg Justissimo 'CLACK' on the concrete - not once, but 'clack clack clack' -
I was off the bike very quickly - leaned over her, looking for little things like breathing, pulse, etc. - and I could see tears - so I figured she was ok - it took me about 2 minutes to get her back up off the deck - about which time a few of the other couples that were also fueling up to leave arrived at the station. They didn't know this had happened.
Now - to the gist of this story - I am a firm proponent of ATGATT - those of you who have seen me wearing my Roadcrafter in 106 degree heat know that I'm a stickler for the safety gear.
When we arrived home that afternoon, I immediately ordered another helmet - just like the first one.
Here's a picture of the back of the helmet - you will note what appears to be a very small scratch on the 'edge' of the molded surface - other than that, there was absolutely NO INDICATION of any damage - but I replaced the helmet anyway.
I wrote 'DO NOT USE' in large letters with a sharpie across the top of the helmet, and set it aside.
So - I finally got around to stripping it down - I pulled both visors, the cheek pads, and liner - these 4 parts when purchased run about $200 - so I didn't want to discard them with the bucket.
When I pulled the liner out- I about freaked - here's what I found -
As you can see, the styrofoam did EXACTLY what it was supposed to do - it absorbed the impact. Note the large round indentation where the back of her skull deformed the foam - and the crack from the impact. Had the helmet been one of those 'almost' half helmets, the results of her fall could have been very different - I'd probably be spoon feeding pureed pees to her at the local extended care facility - or worse. When I discovered this hidden damage, it really did shake me for a bit - it appears that my bride of 27+ years took a really hard hit - but the gear did it's job. Thank God.
When I took the MSF class in June 05, we were told to replace a helmet if it was ever dropped, or involved in a slow fall, even if there was no evidence of any damage - because it could be hidden.
So - here's hard evidence that cosmetically near perfect helmets can be damaged in a fall or drop - and should be replaced, as recommended by the MSF and the manufacturers - it's not just an 'opinion' to increase sales.
Guys and Dolls, if any of you are wearing a helmet that has been through a fall, or slow speed drop, or whatever, EVEN IF IT DOES NOT SHOW ANY DAMAGE - and even if it still has that 'new helmet' smell, replace it. Don't screw around. Just bite the bullet, and get it done, OK ? Your brain is worth more than any $$ you might save.
DON'T SCREW AROUND WITH YOUR SAFETY GEAR !!!!
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