Yup, my baby got banged up yesterday. I was riding on a desert trail that was heading downhill. It was not steep and I was going about 20mph which was safe for the trail conditions and my skill level. Up ahead, the trail suddenly got steeper and turned to the right. I hit the brakes to slow down as I approached the curve but I just started sliding. So I had about half a second to make a decision. I looked to the left and if I let the bike track where it was sliding I might be ok. Yeah, I might take out a bunch of bushes but that was ok. Suddenly, I am airborne and there's no bike under me. I flipped and landed on my shoulder and left side. As soon as I came sliding to a stop, I realized that there might be a 600 lb. ATV rolling down the hill behind me...and I might have to get out of the way! I looked up and saw my BF laying on its side in a cloud of dust. Ahhhh!!!!
The guys I was riding with took about 10 minutes to make sure that I was ok before we even looked at the bike. We pushed it over and realized the front left wheel was flopping around. On closer inspection, I saw that the knuckle on wheel that the A-arms connect to had split in half! The lower A-arm was hanging on the ground with half of the knuckle attached. The tie rod had snapped off and was bent. I went back to the crash site to see what happened. As was sliding, the left front wheel caught a narrow 12" deep rut. The wheel went in and the BF faceplanted on the left side, coming to rest on its side.

I could not have wrecked in a worse place on our ride. There was no possible way to get a truck back to where we were. Nothing but narrow technical trails one way and 10 miles of sand in the other direction. I was going to have to ride it back. So we had to get the BF back in "rideable" condition. We removed the lower A-arm because it was just dragging on the ground with no way to reattach it. We had to make sure that the axel stayed in the front differential so that no dirt got in. So we used a tow strap and bungie cords to "hold" the tire in place. Because the wheel would not turn, I had to drag on the tire all of the way back. We decided to take the 10 miles of sand so that the tire would not get torn up. I slapped it in low and limped my way back. I started overheating a few times and averaged about 5 mph. Two hours later, I got to where I could get my truck and it took 4 guys pushing and pulling to get the BF up on the trailer.

As for me, my shoulder and left leg are pretty bruised but the doctor said everything else checks out. I live to ride another day. That's the important thing. Thank God I was wearing a helmet. Although my head did not impact, it saved me from grinding my scalp against the rocks as I slid down the hill. Please always wear your helmet if you have one!

Now that I've got the BF home, I started looking at the damage. Looks like I need a new knuckle and tie rod. Everything else can be bent back into shape. The A-arms and the main frame did not bend at all. The knuckle took the brunt of the hit and snapped in half before the arms had a chance to bend. The frame around the radiator and the front bumper are bent up good, but I should be able to get them back into shape with heat and a crowbar. Plastic is ok too. I am going to have to take the front differential apart too because I am afraid some dirt might have gottem in there when the axel popped out on impact. I will check for pricing and availablility tomorrow. I'm so glad I have the service manual. It's going to come in handy really soon!

You can see pictures of the damage at this website. I'll have pictures of the BF stipped down up on the web tomorrow.

"Gravity can teach you some hard lessons."

Brian

 

WoW, nice hit! What would have happend if you were going faster!

What was your last ride?

 

scoobieBri ;That would have probably dumped any thing but a a live mule named Ruth and Festus....good job on not getting hurt bad, and gettin your ride back to the truck, fix it go again. off roadin it s#(t happens, good story thats some heavy hairy riden indeed. jh

 

Quick update...I ordered the parts today. Knuckle...$190 Tie Rod...$13 and stay for the front rack...$40. I could have probably bent the stay back into shape, but it would have taken alot more effort than $40 is worth to me. All of the parts are in stock at Kawasaki in Wisconson. Should be here in a week. Woohoo. That will give me a week to completely tear down and rebuild the front diff (to clean out any dirt that might have gotten into it.) Hopefully, I will back on the trails before the month is out...

Brian