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Adrenaline is still pumping through my veins. My thoughts are racing. Being rear-ended at a stoplight in a car can be scary, but it is incomparable to the experience of being rear-ended on a motorcycle.
I can still play the incident out in slow motion in my mind. I was about the 5th vehicle in line at the light, waiting for it to turn green, and it did. I thought to myself “I should be able to make this light with no problem, I will be on time for work.” I was wrong. The light turned yellow as the car in front of me entered the intersection. I was still moving reasonably slow, so I stopped for the light. I remember thinking, “wow that was a short light, it must not have picked me up on the sensor.” I checked my mirrors as I stopped, like I always do, and noticed the car behind me was not stopping, but there was no time to react. Before I knew it, I was sitting on the side of my motorcycle sliding to a stop. It only slid about ten feet. I was able to stand up off of the motorcycle and walk away, then came back and rolled the motorcycle out of the intersection.
The ambulance took only a minute or two to get there. The police took much longer. It was comforting to know that the paramedics would have been fast enough to save me had I needed saving. I walked away without injury. I was also able to ride the bike away, although there is some major cosmetic damage, both the front and rear brake levers are bent, the right mirror is loose, and the tail light is now above the rear seat, and the rear seat will no longer close. I am amazed I can still ride it. I plan on leaving it at the Honda dealer (the good one, not the one I bought it from) on my way home today. I will of course continue to ride, but I definitely learned from this experience.
First, I need to leave more following distance. It wasn’t my fault, but had I been further back, I could have slowed less rapidly and avoided this. Second, I should be more aware of my surroundings. Had I know that the person behind me was tailgating, I would have just gone through the light, and I could have done it safely. Third, I need to practice accelerating to avoid trouble. I will also throw in a swerve to the mix in case I meet a situation in which someone is trying to sandwich me between two vehicles. Finally, I think I want a brake light modulator, and possibly a brighter tail light. Had the other driver seen me better, he might have been able to stop in time.
So many factors went into this crash, and I keep thinking that there was so much I could have done to avoid this crash, even though it wasn’t my fault! The good news is that I walked and rode away, and the other driver is insured. Even if he wasn’t, I have uninsured motorist added on and collision, so I should get full payment from someone. It still sucks because I have only had the bike for 2 weeks. I haven’t even received the tag for it yet.
I can still play the incident out in slow motion in my mind. I was about the 5th vehicle in line at the light, waiting for it to turn green, and it did. I thought to myself “I should be able to make this light with no problem, I will be on time for work.” I was wrong. The light turned yellow as the car in front of me entered the intersection. I was still moving reasonably slow, so I stopped for the light. I remember thinking, “wow that was a short light, it must not have picked me up on the sensor.” I checked my mirrors as I stopped, like I always do, and noticed the car behind me was not stopping, but there was no time to react. Before I knew it, I was sitting on the side of my motorcycle sliding to a stop. It only slid about ten feet. I was able to stand up off of the motorcycle and walk away, then came back and rolled the motorcycle out of the intersection.
The ambulance took only a minute or two to get there. The police took much longer. It was comforting to know that the paramedics would have been fast enough to save me had I needed saving. I walked away without injury. I was also able to ride the bike away, although there is some major cosmetic damage, both the front and rear brake levers are bent, the right mirror is loose, and the tail light is now above the rear seat, and the rear seat will no longer close. I am amazed I can still ride it. I plan on leaving it at the Honda dealer (the good one, not the one I bought it from) on my way home today. I will of course continue to ride, but I definitely learned from this experience.
First, I need to leave more following distance. It wasn’t my fault, but had I been further back, I could have slowed less rapidly and avoided this. Second, I should be more aware of my surroundings. Had I know that the person behind me was tailgating, I would have just gone through the light, and I could have done it safely. Third, I need to practice accelerating to avoid trouble. I will also throw in a swerve to the mix in case I meet a situation in which someone is trying to sandwich me between two vehicles. Finally, I think I want a brake light modulator, and possibly a brighter tail light. Had the other driver seen me better, he might have been able to stop in time.
So many factors went into this crash, and I keep thinking that there was so much I could have done to avoid this crash, even though it wasn’t my fault! The good news is that I walked and rode away, and the other driver is insured. Even if he wasn’t, I have uninsured motorist added on and collision, so I should get full payment from someone. It still sucks because I have only had the bike for 2 weeks. I haven’t even received the tag for it yet.
