Thread

Crash/Bang/Boom…
Note: Completely redid this post - the original sounded too much like a plea for sympathy (it’s not) rather than a warning.

What Happened: Very early morning (hour before dawn), rural highway that is fairly straight, rounding one of the few curves, oncoming vehicle was on the centerline, I moved to the shoulder, realized the other guy wasn’t correcting, if I kept going we were going to meet in the ditch, made an evasive left turn but not enough room - crash/bang/boom. Turned out the other guy was on the last leg of a very long (multi-state) drive, fell asleep. Unfortunately he had to do that on the curve I happened to be on. Moral of the story - don’t push it, take a break, get off the road. Don’t drive when you’re nodding off.

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From a personal standpoint…

So much for my beloved, old, extremely low mileage backwoods Jeep (see attached) :-(

Good News: I survived the head-on with just a broken leg and banged up knee 😊
Now have a 15” metal rod and 5 screws in my right femur. May yet need surgery on the knee but that should be minor (hopefully) in comparison.

Bad News: I’ll never get through airport security easily again :-(

Good News: All damage to me is healable 😊
Am finally able to get around on crutches. Not real fun and I’m not very fast but it’s progress.

Bad News: Blew my whole fall schedule :-(
For the first time in years, I booked out two months to go on a photo expedition (semi-commercial). Accident happened on my very first leg (sunrise shots in a big wind turbine farm), was 20 miles from my destination, 10 miles from my last turn to the farm.

Bad News: All my new camera gear was destroyed :-(
All is replaceable but dealing with insurance companies I’m sure is going to be a wonderful experience.

Good News: I lived to fight another day 😊

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6000: Wow, just realized this was my 6,000th post.

Oh my god, PX.  Looks like it was pretty traumatic; thank goodness that the damage is healable.

Actually LJ, it wasn’t really that traumatic. Everything happens so fast (nano-seconds) even though I remember it in slow motion, ie: the windshield breaking from right to left in slow motion.

The worst part, I was in the boonies at 5:00 am (virtually no traffic) with a destroyed cell phone so couldn’t call 911. Basically sat there for 15-20 minutes before red lights started showing up. Used the time wisely though, set my femur (there’s really no pain for 10-15 minutes, nerve endings stunned) and held it in place. The only bad part was the paramedics hauling my sorry ass out the side door (90 degree angle to the break) and “unsetting” by carefully set and pain-free leg. Until they got the leg in traction, all was not well.
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The really good part though was I was in between two trauma centers. I have two doctor brothers on staff at one of my choices so they chopper’d me there. My youngest brother used to work the emergency/trauma center so the trauma people, surgeon and everyone else knew them. I was treated more like family that just a crash victim. Wouldn’t say I got better treatment, just friendlier. And once out of the hospital I was able to spend the most immobile part of my recovery staying with my oldest brother.

All in all, if you’re going to be in a crash, it doesn’t get much better (or lucky) than that.

Edit-Add: The highway patrol officer on the scene was just a champ, searched my Jeep for valuables and managed to get them on the chopper with me.

You… set your own femur?  I ... I….

I know you said painless, but it makes me hurt just to think about it.

I"m just glad you came out of it ok. =)

I would describe the procedure in detail but I’ve brought some of my buddies to their knees with that description.
Wouldn’t want to do it once the nerves came alive though.

Edit-Add: Actually, the description of how I discovered the femur was broken is what takes them down 😊

Oh jeez,

Just woke up and read this. I am so glad you are okay. That must have been horrible. I’ve been in a couple of car crashes (not as the driver and none were the drivers fault) but nothing as bad as that.

So glad you got out of that with what you did (that sentence sounds wrong but hopefully you get what I mean). What’s happened to the other driver?

Best wishes,

Mark

Glad you’re OK, sounds (and looks) really bad.

Maybe some good news though - I have metal stuff in my leg as a result of a not-so-dramatic accident, and I get through airport security just fine.

By the way, I’m up for hearing the detail of that procedure, that sounds pretty hardcore!

:gulp:

Incredible Randy.  So glad to hear you survived! Take care and heal up!

(And BTW…that Jeep isn’t “old”...LOL).

Screw the equipment mate, no good if you’re not around to get new gear.

Glad you’re ok. I’ve not been in an accident this bad but I have been hit by a drunk driver. Scary and it happened in slow motion.

Geez, I take one day off the forums and look at the trouble you get yourself into!

I’m am so thankful you’re okay!

Wow Randy, I can only echo other in how glad I am that you’re okay.

In NZ, the main highways have signs reminding drivers to get 10-15 minutes of rest for every hour on the road.  Don’t know that anyone would pay attention to them here, especially after already forming the habits of extended road-trips, but it’s good advice.  If you don’t value your own life enough to stop and take a rest, think of the other people on the road!

That’s one mangled looking jeep. :gulp: Glad to hear you’re (relatively) okay.

Just now saw your post — and your photo of the Jeep. Glad you’re OK!

Good to hear you survived, scarred but smarter 😊
Take care now!

In NZ, the main highways have signs reminding drivers to get 10-15 minutes of rest for every hour on the road.

In Australia, every hour or so, during a commercial break, on most stations (at least last time I lived there) there was an advertisement - government sponsored, with various ways to encourage the slogan, “Rest, revive, survive.” at least once every 2 hours.

It’s one of my strongest memories of Aus, and I didn’t watch that much tv.