Scratch one Santa Cruz Blur

gtluke

The Moped
the problem with my situation is that "book value" on motorcycles is retarded. they value them as if you put i think 6k miles a year on em. mine was a 91, and kinda a collector bike and they wanted to give me $400 for it. it had 5,600 miles on it, practically brand new. After printing out like 20 ebay ads of the bikes selling for over 2k, they got sick of me and paid me what I wanted.
It took almost 4 years to get my medical stuff taken care of though. Its STILL not done. NJ is a no fault state, so even though I was blindsided I had to pay my bills. You don't get medical coverage with motorcycle insurance, and my car insurance denied it because it was a motorcycle normally available to me, and my health insurance denied it because it was an auto accident.
Horrible situation. Thankfully my GF's dad took care of it for me.
 

Cyclopath

Shop Owner / Employee
Shop Keep
Ouch!

It hurts all over just to look at that mess.
Amazing you're not totaled too.

Glad you're okay.
Good thing the bike was on the car and not under you when that idiot came along.
 

larkin42

New Member
I know this isn't the first thing on your mind, but if you need a bike to ride, I have an 08 5" AM bike you're welcome too. Good Luck
 

NJMX835

New Member
Wow, glad to hear you're ok!

Also glad to see my Element can take a shot like that, although maybe I'll pass on that hitch rack I was going to get....

Good luck with the insurance companies, don't take no wooden nickels! :D
 

sixseven

New Member
Glad to hear you walked away from that.
Those pics sold me on the Element. Hope you can strip some of the parts off the Blur, I know you are one to keep parts in rotation.
Good luck with the aftermath.
 

xc62701

Well-Known Member
Also with such a big hit I'm surprised at how well the sides of the element held up. It looks like the doors weren't affected at all. I was in a front end collision that was much softer and the door was hard to get open. I've heard they were pretty stout in collisions, this proves it big time!
 

woody

Well-Known Member
Wow - that blows! :mad:
Glad you're OK. :)

From now on, my bike gets buckled into the passenger seat. :rolleyes:
 

MTB Aussie

Member
Thanks for all the well wishes, and the friendly advice.

A couple of comments on numerous posts. The Element did handle that hit rather well. I don't recall what the offending vehicle behind me was except it looked like a mid-size pickup.

I have two concerns on the crash performance of the Element. One: the rear bumper didn't absorb anything, the other vehicle came in high above it and sheared everything off above the frame rails. The woman at the collision shop today said the bike rack and bike took some of the hit and transferred it lower (to the hitch - and I now chuckle about the durability of the class 1 hitch that i installed and how I thought that three bikes might be too much for it!)

The second question on the Element is why the drivers side air bag didn't deploy when the passenger side did. You can't see it from the pics I posted but the impact was mainly drivers side on the rear (that's why the bike fork appeared unscathed since the bike was across the back with the rear wheel to the right). The front of the Element has more damage on the drivers side and yet the driver AB didn't go off. I could have used it to prevent my seat belt injury. Otherwise she proved she is a tough little bus. The drivers door was a little hard to open from the front panels being pushed back but the rear door swung open fine.

Woody you mention buckling the bike inside the car. I have zero plans to put any bike inside the car with me from now on. I was thinking how a bike inside the car would have been propelled forward and skewered me to the dash had it been behind me which is where I usually put it when I store it inside the vehicle.

On the bike front I will be happy if I can get most of the money I poured into it back. I already have a claim with my homeowners and I still have receipts for the frame, fork and build kit. This stuff hasn't gotten any cheaper so they may want to pay original cost.

The total loss on the car will suck since I'll have to drop cash to buy a new Element, or try to find a used one of similar wear and equipment as the old (2006 doesn't seem old) one.

Anyway, I'm happy to be walking and hopefully pedaling again soon. Now for the "what if" When I rode six mile I did an entire loop and wound up at the river crossing. Not wanting to get my feet wet I bagged out and rode back the way I came (blue back to red), adding miles and at least 30 minutes to my ride. Had I not been a ***** and ridden through the river I would have been home, showered and drinking a corona when this idiot plowed into some other poor sucker. Lesson learned. Don’t be a *****, ride through the river, get wet, get home safe!
 

Wazu

New Member
OMG glad yer okay. See a lawyer immediately and don't post how you feel in public forums! You may be one hurting pup in the future, seriously. Check that you don't have the cheap car insurance that doesn't let you sue. I had the same incident as you, including the drunk driver (car looked like an accordian) and unfortunately we had crappy insurance (thanks, honey). Please see a lawyer.
Your very near future may include high anxiety while driving that can result in attacks, neck issues, back issues, as well as mental problems and freaking pain even if you don't feel anything at all now. I'm not sue happy but it doesn't cost a dime to see these lawyers (I know a few good ones) and you may eventually REALLY need the compensation. You pay your premiums. Get what you deserve, not to mention penalizing the drunken bastard. Cool to see yer okay. I have a 2001 FSR Stumpjumper you could use for a while if you need a bike now. Good Luck man.
 

Sircrashalot

New Member
As far as your air bags go....bunch of stuff happens at the time of the hit. To make a long story short when the impact occurs the SRS (supplemental restraint system) control module looks at the data regarding forces during the crash. It uses this data to determine which bags should blow. Only the computer knows why it blew the pass. bag & not the drivers side. Angles of the hit, etc. make a difference. Believe me if the drivers bag went off your face would also hurt- they used to break your nose every time but newer bags just usually bruise you good, and of course you sometimes get burns from the gases that make the bag inflate so fast, and abrasions from hitting the expanding bag.

I had noticed that the rear shot was higher & kind of cleaned the quarter panels off of the floor- figured it was something high up that hit you.

BTW if you dont love the offer your homeowners ins. makes regarding bike/rack, etc. you can present that claim against the other drivers auto insurance. Your auto doesnt cover the bike or rack becasueit pays only for what is on your contract with them. Other drivers auto pays for all damage stemming from the negligence of their driver...
 
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Sircrashalot

New Member
OMG glad yer okay. See a lawyer immediately and don't post how you feel in public forums! You may be one hurting pup in the future, seriously. Check that you don't have the cheap car insurance that doesn't let you sue. I had the same incident as you, including the drunk driver (car looked like an accordian) and unfortunately we had crappy insurance (thanks, honey). Please see a lawyer.
Your very near future may include high anxiety while driving that can result in attacks, neck issues, back issues, as well as mental problems and freaking pain even if you don't feel anything at all now. I'm not sue happy but it doesn't cost a dime to see these lawyers (I know a few good ones) and you may eventually REALLY need the compensation. You pay your premiums. Get what you deserve, not to mention penalizing the drunken bastard. Cool to see yer okay. I have a 2001 FSR Stumpjumper you could use for a while if you need a bike now. Good Luck man.

OK..
1. No such thing as 'crappy insurance that doesnt let you sue'. Wazu was prevented from seeking damages because he wasnt really hurt and therefore didnt pierce the threshold that allows you to seek pain & suffering resulting from a car accident. 95% of policies have this provision. It is a two way street that to some degree protects us all & prevents premiums from being even higher...It exists to prevent frivolous bodily injury cases. :hmmm:
The threshold is not severe- if you hurt your back and need weekly chiro for 6 months you meet the threshold easily. If you play hurt but there is nothing physically there you dont. Wazu...its not your wifes fault that you couldnt sue because you weren't legitimately hurt. The system worked for once and prevented a frivolous case!


2. You dont need to sue to seek damages for pain & suffering for legitimate injuries that meet the tort threshold. Suit is what happens when either:
a). parties can not agree on reasonable damages (not too often)
B). an ambulance chaser lawyer gets involved who realizes too late that his case is weak and tries to force a settlement by making it more expensive for an insurer to defend a garbage case than to throw some money at it to make it go away.

3. It costs 33% of any potential pain & suffering settlement to see a lawyer. Fact. See my previous post for more explanation of when a lawyer is a great idea. The reason the wreck chaser guys advertise that they take no fee 'unless you win' is because if your case is crap they dont take it. If it is legit, they send a rep letter to the carrier, eventually send your medical records in for review just as you could do yourself, make one phone call, get the check the insurance carrier would have sent right to you, and take a third. I have been on the other side of the phone & settled many a bodily injury claim, attorney represented & not. I can tell you from experience at multiple companies that there is absolutely no difference in the review process or monetary offer made for a legitimate pain and suffering claim with or without a lawyer. Not a penny. I can also tell you from experience that the total work a lawyer would put into a case such as yours that is so cut and dry consists of sending one rep letter, one envelope with all your medical records when you are done treating, and one phone call to settle for what you would have gotten without the lawyer. Less than an hour in & they take one third of what you deserve for enduring all the dr. visits, pain ,etc. Its a joke.

3. Wazu is right that you shouldn't comment on how you feel on here. You could have injuries that will take some time to kind of 'set in'. Just dont put anything out there in the 'ol intterweb that a defense attorney could try to use against you in the future, just in case. Delayed onset injuries are not uncommon.

So far just from reading your posts, you are a 100% legit claimant seeking to get back to where you were before the accident. You are absolutely entitled to that. If you did suffer an injury that results in a disability, extensive (used loosely) treatment, or significant pain or suffering, etc. you are absolutely entitled to be compensated for that too. Just be honest, and you'll be treated & compensated fairly. If the process is a bit frustrating at times, know that the reason you claim is harder is because of fools like some posters on here who get tapped in a parking lot & think they just won the lottery!

Most important is that you are still here....man, imagine if the drunk that hit you rear-ended a smart car with two people in it.
 

elzoller

El Guac-Oh
NO MAMES!!
'cuz everything else has already been said :rolleyes:

But again, everything is replaceable and the MOST important thing, you are fine and with good spirit about the whole thing.
 
G

Greenman

Guest
Damn man that’s a bummer, but thankfully you are ok to ride another day :)

About the passenger airbag, does the Element have the feature that detects a passenger sitting in the seat? This could be the reason for no deployment. I know in my subie I have that.

Hopefully the insurance company will honor your receipts for your bike parts, and give you fair payment. My parents had the same unfortunate fate as you of someone plowing into them from the rear with both their bikes on the back of their camper. Good news is that they had their receipts and got the proper value for them.

I hope the offender in your case gets what they rightfully deserve for being an asshat :mad:
 
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