Everyone tell me about your worst wreck.

 

My friend had a Yamaha Big Bear. I had a Yamaha Timberwolf. We were on the highway comming home from riding one day. He was in front of me and I was behind. I had my head down so I could go faster. We came upon a horse and buggy and he slowed down like he was gonna turn but then he didn't so my friend layed on the brakes, and I tried but I didn't have very good brakes. I smashed right into the back of him, I hit him so hard I almost broke his damn axle. I slide across the road with my 4-wheeler and he fell off on the opposite side of the road. I got my 4-wheeler picked back up and moved it out of the way. I helped him pick his up. We tried to start his but it wouldn't turn over. Then we pushed it back down the hill. We started looking and saw that when I hit him I knocked off his batter cables (that's a hard hit). My 4-wheeler was still drivable so we loaded up on it and headed home. We picked his 4-wheeler up later.

87 Banshee

 

Yam,

I have 3 to tell about, none I was involved in, but I witnessed all first hand.

1) Good friend on a late 80's Suzuki 250 4-stroke sport bike. We were riding in and out of a long winding creek bed that was mostly dry. One particular part of the "trail" was to cut across a bend in the creek. The path was humped, and sloped toward the creek. He came out of the creek, with the throttle hammered. At the crest of the hump, tires got traction and brought the front end up. It was cool, except he needed them on the ground to follow the path around a tree. He let off the gas to bring the front down just in time to avoid a straight impact. The Suzuki hit the 8 inch diameter tree between the front tire, and the middle of the bumper. Impact was probably 25 mph. He was thrown against the tree, the handlebars were jammed to one side, and he hit the side of his head on the tree. It bent the frame, knocked him out, badly bruised his shoulder and messed his wrist up. He got his bell rung, but he had his helmet on for the first time because I pointed out he needed to set a good example for his 12 year old son who was with him.

2) Wife of a good friend, riding at Deepwater MO. Coming down a short but steep hill of that terrain that is somewhere between sand and gravel. Someone stopped ahead of her at the bottom to pick up a hat that had blown off. She hit the brakes and started sliding. She panicked and pull on the brakes harder, causing more sliding. The Suzuki 250 4x4 slid sideways, caught on a root and rolled. She went over on the downhill side and evidently was caught or tried to hang on, but it rolled over her twice. End result, customized handlebars and racks, and one completely broken rib. In addition the helmet they bought that that morning because I gave her and her husband a hard time about not wearing helmets had a very deep gash in the side from a rock of a part of the 4 wheeler.

3) Wife of another friend on a Polaris 325 Magnum. She was heading up a hill that she had not been on before and had not been warned about. Halfway up, the hil gets steeper, and pitches to the left toward a tree. Snow was melting and ground was still frozen just below the surface. She started up without any momentum. I yelled for her to stop, but she coudn't hear me. Halfway up, she started spinning and sliding. She got stopped, and realized the awd was not engaged, she pushed the button and took off, but the entire machine slid sideways. We all yelled to jump clear and she did, downhill. She rolled a few times, and was kneeling over to stand up. The problem was the Polaris slowly tipped over and started rolling down the hill. She didn't hear it or us because she was already in pain from breaking her wrist on her initial landing. The Polaris rolled once, then somehow gained momentum and more or less vaulted into the air. It came down right on top of her, just as she was standing up. It came down with the rear wheels straddling her shoulders, flattened her to the ground and stopped at a 45° angle against a tree. It turns out she was very fexible and the flattening only resulted in soreness and some bruises. The scary part was the sound of the differential housing whacking her on the back of the helmet that her husband and son made her wear since this was her first trail ride as the driver.

Does anyone see a pattern here?

Yammer_Hummer
2000 Grizzly, and a well aged helmet given to me 15 years ago as a gift when I got my 1985 Honda Big Red ATC250(ES?) I believe that was for electric start, not electric shift!

 

A friend asked his brother to take his brand new 2000 BigBear for a ride from camp in Northern PA. the day before buck season. He decides to try to climb a logging trail on the mountain behind the camp. They have tried to climb this same hill on everything with wheels, even an old Wheelhorse tractor. It has still never been done. This time on the new 4X4 BigBear he figures that he has it made. He makes it part way up the hill when the quad starts spinning. He lets off and tries to back into another logging trail running at a 90 degree angle to the one that he is on. The quad tips and rolls a few times, once on top of him. He went down the hill, and with the help of a buddy flipped the quad back onto its wheels, facing uphill. The damage at this point wasn't that bad, some cracked plastic and a bent front rack. He started the quad, not realizing that the throttle was stuck, he jumped off and it flew to the top of the hill, launched into the air (over 15 feet)came down and rolled and rolled and rolled to the bottom of the mountain crashing into trees and rocks the whole way down...over 200 feet. They said that it took so long, and looked and sounded so bad that both of them had to turn away. The owner of the quad heard the comotion from camp and jumped into his Dakota, made it partway up the hill when he saw his brother. He asked him what the hell happened, his brother just pointed to the bottom of the hill, where his quad was piled up. He took one look and started to puke! Literally! It had 30 miles on it and he hadn't made the first payment! He took it to the shop on December 2nd and still doesn't have it back yet. All plastic has been replaced, all four wheels were bent, both racks destroyed, all suspension gone, handle bars lever etc. all replaced. The racks were bent to the wheels on all four corners. He is still waiting for a back-ordered ball joint. Oh yeah, did I mention no insurance. The brother who crashed it is waiting for the bill, somewhere between $2000 and $3000. The guy who wrecked it didn't have any broken bones (that he knows of) but said that he hurt for a month.

 

I've got one of my cousin about 13 years ago, I was on an 85 ATC125M and he was on a 86 200SX. We used to ride around this field all the time, but one day he decided he was going to beat me by going through the field to the woods on the other side. We were going full speed (not much on these things) and I got to the end of the field and turned around to see where he was. He was way back in the middle of the field just laying there, I thought he was dead. I turned around and started heading back to him, and still no movement, his four wheeler was about 150 yards away from him, on it's wheels and running. When I got about 50 yards from him, he raised his head, I was relieved, but when I got a good look at him I just about fell of my bike. He had hit little squared edged bump in the field, making his shocks slam down and it bounced him off the front of his bike, running him over, breaking the front mouth piece of his helmet, ripped the visor off, and put a big brand new "wooly booger" tread across his shirt etched in grass stain, and aross his helmet. It was the funniest wreck I have ever seen, I wish I could of seen it actually happen, he wasn't hurt though, just bruised and trying his hardest not to laugh because of the pain. HEHEHE. It was great. Later

 

I have one for you. I just got my Polaris 400 Sport last May. I have to cross a river to get to one of my favorite riding spots. On the way back, I was crossing the river and about to climb out when my tire got into a rut. The front wheel started to ride up a tree. I couldn't stop it fast enough. All of a sudden I went off the quad laying on my back in the river. All I could see is this big yellow machine coming over on top of me. It smashed right on my head. Good thing for the helmet. So, here I am, in the river with a 500 pound machine on top of me. I don't know how I got it off of me. I got it off rolled it over, while still running. I bent the handle bars, broke the brake handle, and had a few cuts and bruises. The quad was only two days old. I don't know what happened. I have been riding for years.

 

I was riding my friends 96 Warrior cause mine was blew up and he dared me to jump this one little jump that we had, so I did. I got about 9 ft. high and jumped out about 35-40 ft. and it did a nose dive right in this real little gulley and threw me over the handlebars about 15 ft. away and the four wheeler flipped and landed on its wheels and rolled over my chest. My friends told me that I had gotten up and staggered for about 8 ft. and then fell down and stopped breathing. They were about to call the hospital when I came to. I was knocked unconcious and didnt know what happened. I told them that I was sleeping and i wasnt knocked out just sleeping. My friend had a DG front bumper on it and he only had 3 bolts in it instead of 4 and it broke where the top bracket is welded into the bumper cause he only had one top one in it. I am just glad that the four wheeler ran over my chest and not my head cause i didnt have a helmet on. I always wear my helmet now.

 

These instances sound almost like a testimonial for where your helmet. I know I will be wearing my helmut from now on when I enter the woods.

 

I was cruising back a lane at my house and at one point on the pretty much straight lane there is a 90 degree turn. And I always just slide around and keep going then turn around and slide back around it again and head home. Well on my way back home I went sliding around that turn and my Warrior kept sliding sideways when I corrected it it caught a small bump with the back wheel. That sent it flipping in the air and the rear wheel somehow hit my ankle and bruised it. Damage to the Warrior was scratched plastic on the right side and a bent steering stem. I can't believe the handlebars didn't bend to.

 

I have witnessed several freak accidents. The worst is up to your discretion and enjoy yourselves!

1) Happened in 3/6/00. I have a 1993 trx300fw with 26" blackwaters f/r and a superwinch 2000lb and my friend was borrowing my pop's 1996 trx 300. We were doing some rockhounding near the lake in North Georgia. My friend, a beginner rider, was ahead of me and cleared a rock w/ the front tires(which was under the bike at the time I warned him NOT TO GO any FURTHER)... you know what happens... what an [red] AIRHEAD [/red] ! BUT... not what you think.
He tips the quad and jumps off and runs into the lake (I couldn't figure this out). The quad was beginning to tumble and it tumbles as he runs into the 60 degree water and trips into the water. Luckily, the water stops the momentum of the quad. My friend, all the sudden, breaks out of the surface of the water and he looks like a scarecrow after a brief period of heavy downpour. The quad was submerged in waist deep of water and I winched the quad out and towed it back to the garage and did alot of s$#@ to get it working again. (btw there was a spectator sitting on the dock watching the whole thing laughing his *** off).

2) 2 days later... my friend flips the quad again on a ROCK (I told him to BE CAREFUL) and busted up his ankle... now he started listening to my warnings. He definitely learned his lesson... hehehe


seems to be that my friend has a [green] little [/green] trouble with rocks.

3) June/July 1992 - 8 years ago: I was on a 1985 trx125 *sniffle... i miss that bike * when I was descending a steep hill (like 50 degrees) that leads to a valley with a small creek. About 200 feet down the valley, the creek falls into the lake with a 3 - 4' falls.
As I descended the hill... my quad starts slipping sideways (there were alot of leaves there and it just rained... the worst combo - like an oil slick) and jumped off as it starts to tip. The bike rolls down the valley with a hell of alot of metallic banging (I was flipping out, and almost lost my dinner) - the problem was the falls... and the damage.
The quad tumbles for about 200 feet and stops within inches of the falls that lead into the lake which is about 2' deep and with the falls for a total of about 5 - 6' drop.
Luckily for me, I escaped with a bent handlebar and a bent rear brake lever. I thought that I was going to lose the bike until the winter came - we didn't have the equipment to pull the bike out and the best time to pull it out would have been during the dead of the winter when the water recedes - like 5 months of being submerged.

4) 12 years ago (July 1988): I was only 9 (I was a shrimp) at that time and I got stuck over a log (it was basically a stick... hehehe) with my trx 70. I went to get pop to get me out. My dad wrestles with the bike and accidently hits the gas; the bike zoomed up and on top of the log and onto my pop. My pop falls back with the bike on his chest. I suddenly hear this zzzzzzzzztttttt... sounds and I got the f#@$ outta there. My pop landed on top of a yellow jacket nest with my bike on top of him. He got stung like a zillion times and we had to take him to the doctor for treatments. He spent 1 month bathing and coating himself with calamine lotion to ease the itching, so he wouldn't be scratching like a dog with fleas.

[black] P.S. yellow jacket stings are not the most comfortable thing in the world and it feels worse than a wasp sting. [/black]

-E