Hi guys,
I went and started posting on the coming to NZ thread without first introducing myself..... sorry about that, its just rude.
My name's Johnno and I am a motorcycling addict.
I came late into riding at 22 and have been riding now for the last 26 years. All of my riding up until this point has been on road, but I am going to buy myself a DR650 so I can go play in the dirt as well.
My bike history is as follows
1982 gsx250 (POS)
1986 FJ1100 (the boat anchor)
1992 CBR1000F (great touring bike)
2008 kwikasfuki ZX14 (simply awesome)
2010 Ducati Multistrada 1200S
1981 XJ550 project bike
and Beryl, my father's old 1986 BMW R65.
I love to ride and the hardest time I have ever had is after I highsided my ZX14 and speared head first into a tree back in 2010. I broke 9 vertabrae in my neck and spine, 6 ribs, sternum, collar bone and I had 2 brain bleeds that required me being put into a coma for a week to minimise brain damage.
When I woke up from my coma my first question was 'will I walk again?' followed closely by 'when can I ride again?'
I spent 3 weeks in hospital, followed by a further 4 weeks in Full time rehab, and I am only just coming to the end of rehab now 3 years later. I had to learn to drive again and learn to ride as well, but I must have been the only guy ever to show up at a 'P' plater course on a 1200 Ducati.
Then just last weekend I crashed again.
I was riding with Melbourne sportsbike riders on Beryl, and was doing a pretty good job of keeping up. I love overtaking 750 and sometimes litre sportsbikes on my club registered old girl, but the red mist descended, I got carried away and got caught out on a decreasing radius left turn.
I tried to adjust my line with the back brake, but I wound up locking up and the back end stepped out on me. Then to make matters worse I shut down the throttle, the back end gripped and I got flung off the bike.
As I flew through the air I remember calmly thinking 'this is gunna hurt', and I was not disappointed.
Some fella's from the ride showed up, they picked up my bike for me, got the old girl going again and I did a quick damage assesment. The front brake didnt work, the instrument panel glass was cracked, the windscreen was cracked, the handlebars were bent back towards the tank, but other than that, she seemed to be ok, so I climbed on, used my right hand to lift my left hand onto the handle bars (I couldnt lift it by itself), and headed home.
I rode about 15km to yarragon, and dropped into the yarragon ale house for a rest and a couple of beers with my mate cricky then rode another 80 or so km home.
When I got home, the girlfriend told me to get straight into the car and she took me to casualty where they told me I had broken my left scapula into 3 pieces.
So now I have 6 weeks off riding while it heals ..... and just when the weather was getting good too.
At least I will be ok for my trip across the ditch to see you guys in feb.
OZ
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Originally Posted by haydes55
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