Member Contributer IntAceptor Posted May 26, 2008 Member Contributer Share Posted May 26, 2008 I attended the Tri-Star HSTA (Honda Sport Touring Association) event in Sparta N.C. over the weekend. On Saturday, after morning rain and waiting for the roads to dry a bit, my riding partner Lee (not our own VFR Lee) took off on one of the routes with me in front with the GPS. About and hour in at high noon and after cresting the top of Big Walker Lookout on Rt.52 at about 1/2 mile north and taking it real slow (35 MPH or less) due to some damp conditions and bits of gravel on the road, out of the shadows appeared, not a jolly old man with 8 tiny reign-deer but just one good sized doe. It was like a 3 frame movie. The first frame being a perfectly clear road, the second frame being filled with one dumb a$$ animal that just begged to die, and the third frame me on the ground watching my bike slide to a halt. It was all that fast. Well I was not only being good about speed and caution but I had full leathers on with back protection. I landed hard on my right shoulder but x-rays showed no breaks. It jostled some stuff around and I am sore but I don't think I'm in trouble. I did cancel my "T" time today to let things calm down. The deer was laying on the side of the road doing a bit of moaning and I was going to ask the 911 boys if I could shoot it. More for spite than to put it out of misery but it jumped up and made a quick exit before I could get an answer :wheel: . As for the bike, it is a 99 with 51K miles and according to Kelly, still has about a $4800 value. I can't confirm if there is any frame damage but the front cowl sub-frame is probably tweaked. It doesn't appear to have fork damage but I will take them apart and roll them on a flat surface to know for sure. The muffler got it, the break peddle got it, the front fender got it, the right grab handle got it and the break lever and handlebar end got it. The bike was ridable and I got it home (275 miles). I'm o.k. but finding it difficult to fathom how fast something like this happens. Even with cat like reflexes :biggrin: there was just no time to do notin'. So, I guess we have to remember that any time and any place it can happen. If they total the bike, I may attempt to negotiate a buy back and repair it myself or possibly just part it out and give you guys a shot at some good parts before hitting e-Bay. You can see the slight damage to my helmet hanging off the left mirror. It is the white mark. I did not hit the noggen too hard. Thank goodness, I don't have to pay for damage to the road that would have occured if my head hit harder :beer: Mess Damage Protection Good to wear a lot of stuff Deer Fuzz Where she left her mark The hit took place more toward the right side of the picture. You can see the mirror laying on the ground. Location of the event Out of the shadows she came Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer BOBINOTTAWA Posted May 26, 2008 Member Contributer Share Posted May 26, 2008 Wow. Glad you weren't hurt too badly. The Viffer is dented and bruised but hopefully, she will rise again with most of her current parts. You are so absolutely right about it happening so fast that there is no reaction time possible. I have had a deer pass in front of me but not resulting in anything but a newfound respect to wear ATGATT. Glad you were wearing yours. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 26, 2008 Share Posted May 26, 2008 I am glad you are ok. Gosh I wish you could have shot that deer too! I hope your shoulder doesn't act up too much later. Just take it easy and remember to stretch often and keep it moving. It may suck but gotta do it ... everything in moderation. I hope you can spare your bike from those nasty insurance papers that have not a wick of emotion for your bike. Glad to see you still have a sense of humor. Very Righteous! Let us know how you are doing. We will be looking for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maddog Posted May 26, 2008 Share Posted May 26, 2008 Glad to hear that you survived the incident, sorry about the damage to your bike. Out here in the west, we have the same problem with critters, but they can be deer, elk, moose, cattle, bear, etc... I've hit marmots (big speed bump) and dogs, and had way too many near misses with all the animals mentioned above. +1 on the ATGATT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Nicole Posted May 26, 2008 Member Contributer Share Posted May 26, 2008 Glad you are OK! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spud786 Posted May 26, 2008 Share Posted May 26, 2008 Glad the gear protected you I run into alot of deer alot , most is a non event, but I have had some close encounters 35mph ? , so you'd say you were in second gear? Did you have any braking time or the deer just popped out and try to jump your head Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Ducatti20 Posted May 26, 2008 Member Contributer Share Posted May 26, 2008 ATGATT for life now brother.... Glad you are relatively unhurt... You'll ride again either on that 5th gen or another.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer dbs05 Posted May 26, 2008 Member Contributer Share Posted May 26, 2008 Damn Bob after all that work, still no venison. What a crappy deal. Glad you are Ok. Glad to see your sense of humor is intact. Heel up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer dude Posted May 26, 2008 Member Contributer Share Posted May 26, 2008 Damn Bob after all that work, still no venison. What a crappy deal. Glad you are Ok. Glad to see your sense of humor is intact. Heel up. Glad your not too banged up, could have been much worse. I can see with those shadows it would be impossible to spot the critter :rolleyes: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer cruzinaz Posted May 26, 2008 Member Contributer Share Posted May 26, 2008 Glad you and your sense of humor made it ok. Wasn't a good weekend for riding in Az either. Why did you cancel T time tho??? dont they still have "beverage" carts out there?? :rolleyes: :laugh: :idea3: coulda been a caddy :beer: :beer: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer intercept this Posted May 26, 2008 Member Contributer Share Posted May 26, 2008 I just had a pucker moment with a deer this morning, my hearts still racing....Glad to hear your ok! Fix that thing and get back out there! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vfr_steve Posted May 26, 2008 Share Posted May 26, 2008 ouch, most important thing is the deer is ok :laugh: :rolleyes: .. seriously, glad your injuries were minimal, couple of scratches like that to a viffer adds character.. she will be good as new in no time Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Rivcyko Posted May 26, 2008 Member Contributer Share Posted May 26, 2008 Damn. Glad you're ok. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer IntAceptor Posted May 26, 2008 Author Member Contributer Share Posted May 26, 2008 Thanks for all the kind words. I'll be back even if I have to wait for the next gen bike to appear. I will make all attempts to fix the ole' girl till then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer skuuter Posted May 26, 2008 Member Contributer Share Posted May 26, 2008 Aw, man what a BUMMER. Really hate to hear that about your bike, but really glad you are basically OK............ :rolleyes: Deer are becoming a really over-populated danger in almost every part of the country....SCARY. Hope all goes well for you........... :laugh: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baileyrock Posted May 26, 2008 Share Posted May 26, 2008 Thank God your writing this report Bob as that could have been real bad for ya. We love gear, glad you made it through mostly unscathed! :rolleyes: Kev Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
turtlecreek Posted May 26, 2008 Share Posted May 26, 2008 glad you're ok...hope fixin'/replacing the bike goes easy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Earthshake Posted May 27, 2008 Share Posted May 27, 2008 Wow Bob, Glad you're OK brother. Damn deer these days, you'd expect them to show a little more respect for their elders! Take care. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 27, 2008 Share Posted May 27, 2008 Ouch! thats bad, mate. Good thing you were taking it easy, immagine how things could have been if you were at warp speed (Mind you, you would have passed by there much earlier and therefore avoided meeting said deer...:-D ) I hit a big german shepperd many years ago at 100km/hr (= 60 miles/hr). Both bike and I fared much much worse. So, glad to see things worked out for you. Oh and, hope that deer passed its lesson on to all its mates... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forum CEO HispanicSlammer Posted May 27, 2008 Forum CEO Share Posted May 27, 2008 Man oh man Bob, I am so glad you made it through without injury! I have not been on the buisness end of a bike deer collision myself - but awful close a few times, and I saw a friend go down right in front of me after he hit a deer. High noon eh? We have mule deer here in Colorado, and they stay to the side of the roads until about just before twighlight then they start crossing the roads to avoid night time predators. They will cross the road at any time but for the most part right before twilight they are the most dangerous. I think you should fix it yourself, from the pictures and your description its mostly cosmetic. I fixed my buddies bike, heating and bending the front subframe into alignment then repainted it, it looks good as new after we put on replacement plastics. His forks came out unscathed and they looked much worse than yours do - the front cowl took the collision mostly. I cant tell from the pics but I think your forks are good. I mean you rode it!! Maybe twisted up in the clamps but shoot thats nothin! So dont hesitate to post up what parts you need - somebody is bound to have somthing sitting around you can use. BTW (fyi) my little electrical problem at Tmac (turned out to be a bad brake switch so it was on all the time - which in turn fried the wires inside the switch housing so it was a double issue, bad switch and a short in the switch housing). Fixed it thanks for the help diagnosing!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hobie1dog Posted May 27, 2008 Share Posted May 27, 2008 Sounds like you got very lucky as there are quite a few fatalities every year from the same type of accident. Hope you get the bike back on the road soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimC Posted May 27, 2008 Share Posted May 27, 2008 Sorry to hear about the up close and personal with the stupid deer, but glad to hear you're OK. Thank God for gear! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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