Another reason to wear a Helmet....

Oh behalf of my brothers and sisters in EMS, please express our thanks to her for wearing that helmet.

We would much rather come see a conscious and alert, albeit hurting patient than come put a breathing tube in someone who will go on to be a long-term vent patient with a traumatic brain injury.

Matt Larson, NREMT-P
Paramedic Batallion Chief
Montgomery County, MD

Glad to hear your wife is okay. How did the fall happen?

MattLarson said:

Oh behalf of my brothers and sisters in EMS, please express our thanks to her for wearing that helmet.

We would much rather come see a conscious and alert, albeit hurting patient than come put a breathing tube in someone who will go on to be a long-term vent patient with a traumatic brain injury.

Matt Larson, NREMT-P
Paramedic Batallion Chief
Montgomery County, MD

Hi Matt,
I passed on your thanks to her, and by the way, Hats off to your Brothers and Sisters in MD and those that arrived at the scene from Southern CA yesterday, they were absolutely awesome, they treated my Wife as they would a member of their own Family, they have my eternal thanks...they kept their cool whilst I lost mine, I'm ashamed to say...and got her to the ER extremely quickly...they have my eternal thanks...

And I wish I had the names and #'s of the road bikers who stopped to help, the Ambulance turned the wrong way on the trail, so one of them hopped on his Bike and went in full pursuit....and one was with her when I arrived at the scene...unfortunately they all left the same time as the Ambulance so I didn't have time to thank them properly...

As I said in my previous post, she did lose some layers of skin in large patches, but that will heal, at least I'm not arranging her Funeral or visiting her every Day in intensive care...

Keep up the good work my Friend, and thank your Brothers and Sisters for us...you're all awesome!!

Peter.

Jaguar27 said:

I'm not preaching, just re-affirming the importance of always wearing a Helmet...
My Wife and I were out riding along the back-bay in Newport Beach today...

She had a very bad 20-25mph crash...when the Paramedics arrived they asked if she was wearing a Helmet...and I said "Yes, here it is"...I didn't notice but he said "WOW, look at this"!! It was completed dented in the temple area, and actually had split clean through in 2 places from the lower edge, just in front of the ear, clean across the Vents, right up to the top of the Helmet.....

It was at that point they made a decision to get her to Hospital asap in case she had suffered a Head Trauma...The Hospital performed a CT Scan and founf nothing....thank God....I truly believe I would be a Widower tonight if it wasn't for her Helmet...

Thankfully, all of her (very painfull I may add) injuries will heal...she actually summersaulted and slid for quite a long way...lots and lots of deep abrasions...a badly damaged Hand and arm etc....but it could have been much worse!!!

We're gonna keep the Helmet as a souvenir....

I was a non-helmet type until a friend of mine was hit by a car and wound up needing brain surgery. The top of the helmet was totally destroyed, and it probably saved him from death. Now I wear my helmie like a good boy! 🙂

puma said:

Glad to hear your wife is okay. How did the fall happen?

Hi Puma,
Thanks for the good wishes....

I wasn't there when the fall happened, I was about 4 miles in front, my cell rang and when I answered it a Guy gave me the bad news...I did a U-Turn and rode back, probably the fastest I'd ever ridden in my life...I almost had an accident myself when I arrived at the scene...I braked hard and "almost" forgot to clip-out...

She was riding downhill and saw a dead Bird, believe it or not, we have had a few outbreaks of west nile disease here, so the health Authority has asked us to report any dead birds....it's a well known fact that if we see an obstacle or object whilst riding and either look or stare at it, there's an excellent chance that we'll hit or ride over it...unfortunately the Kerb was between her and the Bird...

So a tip for the novices amongst us, something well worth passing on, if you see an obstacle in the road, a Rock, a Hub Cap..OR a Dead Bird...fix your eyes on a path that will avoid it...you should then automatically steer past and not INTO it...

But obviously, more experienced Riders make mistakes, that's why (In my opinion) we should always wear a Helmet...Dress for the Crash, not the Ride...
🙂

Quoted post said:

it's a well known fact that if we see an obstacle or object whilst riding and either look or stare at it, there's an excellent chance that we'll hit or ride over it...

Glad your wife is ok jag...very scary incident it sounds like. That phenomenon by the way is known as target fixation. You go where you look.

KMKS said:

Glad your wife is ok jag...very scary incident it sounds like. That phenomenon by the way is known as target fixation. You go where you look.

Thanks for the kind words KMKS, and yes, it was very scary...

Also, thanks for pointing out the "Target fixation"....

Just echoing sentiments, from one rider to another, glad to hear she's ok. Will keep y'all in my prayers for a quick recovery and safety on the road!

Charlie Chaz said:

Just echoing sentiments, from one rider to another, glad to hear she's ok. Will keep y'all in my prayers for a quick recovery and safety on the road!

Thanks very much for the kind words Chaz...we really appreciate it...

And safety on the road for you too...ok?

🙂