Good news / bad news

[Toystoretom]

Wow! You are a lucky young man!! 

I'm glad that wasn't any worse!

Let me know what ya need to fix your bike up, I may have some stuff. We got to keep those runners running!

[old smokey]

This morning I was driving the car to work maybe 20 minutes before sunrise.
I wasn't even a mile from home thinking it has been exactly 4 weeks since my accident.
Moments later a doe comes running up the embankment and stops about 20 feet from the road as I'm hitting the brakes hard. It turns around and heads back down the embankment.
Maybe I'll try spraying some gun oil on the front of the car....?
Co-workers tell  me they want me to go hunting with them since I seem to attract the deer.

[old smokey]

Well, a little more bad news. Today I made the time to pull the carb off the left side and shine a light inside with the intake valve open. Don't forget - I made this test ride with the carb covers off and I'm going to pay for that mistake.
I can see dirt and grit inside the left crankcase area. Going to have to get the engine torn apart before it can be started again...

[bsforever]

Hey smokey, thanks for the story about the unfortunate mistake of running the bike without the carb covers on....makes others more aware of something NOT to do. I have my engine apart to check things out to repair/replace parts as necessary, and i think it would be routine to check the rotary valves for scouring, chipping,burnt sections etc. but are there any micro measurements that are allowances for rotary valves to be deemed unuseable if some measurements are not up to par? I am not sure, but if dirt/sand/grit would get in to the rotary covers would be a concern for replacing the valves? Anyway, i hope it isn't too severe for your discovery that you may need to rebuild the entire engine??? Are you recovered from your bike/deer accident?

[old smokey]

Overall I'm doing really well.
My left hand is about 90% strength now, otherwise just a little skin discoloration from the road rash.

[coxy]

hopefully the dirt only got as far as the rotary valves good luck with it   

[old smokey]

I don't know if the picture shows it clearly enough, but I can see dirt 1-2" beyond the rotary intake.
Since the engine had already died by the time I became aware of my surroundings and now that I see dirt well into the crankcase I am wondering if maybe I was unconscious a little longer than I thought. The good old 2 stroke might have ran on its side until it ran out of fuel from the carb?
It was still in 5th gear after the crash, but maybe the rear wheel was off the pavement quick enough to not lug the engine down enough to die?

I stopped by a shop to see about buying another make & model for a front-end donor but he had closed up before posted hours.

[old smokey]

It looks like the front end of a Yamaha XS500 will be what I attempt to swap onto the GTR.
If it all works out, I'll have the donor bike early next week.
Interesting that the XS500 fuel tank has a tap on each side.
Merry Christmas to me!

[edward]

WOW! Who know what would have happened without the right safety gear!
  Thanks for the post. great reminder to always be cautious

[Kenneth Pagel]

Great that you are not too much the worst for wear! I just re-located from WI, to GA, and always remember the deer threat there. Georgia has lots of deer, too, so I'll also be on my toes! Hope you can eventually repair the BS!

[old smokey]

Geez, the more I tell my story to local friends the more stories I hear that had outcomes worse than mine. Although this one doesn't fit that category - it does bother me that it happened to the guy at 2 in the afternoon. He saw a buck running towards the road and got slowed down, but the buck kept coming and he had one of the antlers graze his arm.
I've also heard 3 different stories of guys hitting a deer while going extremely fast and killing the deer but staying upright on the bike through it all. Maybe the key is MORE speed!

Hey 'nysz1b' - was it your brother Greg's shop where I got the XS500? He shipped a white GTR to Georgia right after Christmas.

[Bikenstein]

So glad to hear you're ok after that. We're overrun with deer here in Alabama. I know what you mean about wondering when it's gonna stop. Anybody thats ever had a high speed accident knows about that. I went down on mine at about 70. Never heard untill now about a bike hittin' a deer but I had a friend that hit a cow on a dirt road on his 450 Honda. He broke a few bones including his neck. Cows don't move. He made it ok but quit ridin' for a while. Just keep it slow at night and watch for the eyeballs shining. Can't let the animals take the pleasure out of ridin'.
Good to see these guy's offering help to get your bike back in shape, too............ Keep it between the ditches

[coxy]

hey David a mate of mine hit a cow on his Harley his daughter was pillion   he got a few broken bones his daughter didn't do so well .you couldn't tell what sort of bike it was after  .another mate had a high speed impact with a backhoe he now has a plastic scull and missing a piece of his frontal lobe if it wasn't for an American brain surgeon holidaying here he wouldn't be around     

[Bikenstein]

Man! I don't even like to think about it. You have to really be careful and wear a good helmet. When I started ridin there were no helmet laws but I still always wore one which was a life saver in the accidents I had. I still protested a bit when they made them mandatory in Georgia but I protested against a lot of stuff back then. A backhoe really doesn't give. Almost had a head on with a Mack dump truck once.

[old smokey]

Last week I was talking with a worker from an office near Dulles, Virginia.
He rides a Kaw Concours 14. Last year he said he almost hit a bear, and then after missing that he almost got hit by the car following behind.
My left hand grip strength is pretty much 100% now. I still feel a little soreness when I dry my hands, but that is just a little reminder of what could have been.
The GTR certainly survived the battle better than I would have expected.

[Bikenstein]

I hope you keep postin' the good news part. My dad broadsided a grocery getter on his Guzzi in 72 and messed his left hand up so bad he had to use it like a hook to pull his clutch in. He never had much ability to grip anything after that. He totalled his bike but got a new 750 out of the deal. I still have the new one. I'm glad your bike survived too. I'd help you out with parts but I'm short on em myself. I hope you get it runnin again soon.

[old smokey]

I'm keeping a little hope that the GTR sees the road again in 2012, but not a "for sure" thing yet.
I'm going to outsource some of the repairs (engine) as I don't have any quality measurement tools to decide what is good and reusable versus what needs to be replaced.
I'm hoping to do the front assembly, gas tank and seat swap myself. Painting will probably go out to the member from Manitowoc. And the cylinders might need replating so I'll have it done in town here at Millenium.

[Bikenstein]

Happy to hear you have it planned out for repairs. Is the Millenium company the same place Steve Reed was referring to? I can get my cylinders done in my area but I'm a little skeptical about using them since I am not familiar with nickel silicon plating cylinders. I would rather use someone who has done these cylinders before and can provide the proper clearances for the pistons and not alter the port chamfering and stuff. If you guys recommend them, I'd rather send mine there to be done.

[old smokey]

Yes, Millenium in Plymouth, WI is the place Steve Reed has used. I haven't stopped by their shop, but it's only a few miles away from me. I believe Oldswartout is running some of their work also.

[old smokey]

I thought I had posted another deer story from the local area. Maybe not. The day before my accident another rider nearby hit a deer. He was NOT wearing a helmet. He was very lucky with no head injuries but spent 5 weeks in intensive care. Broken ribs, some organ problems, a few days of induced coma, etc......
Anyway, last weekend the same couple who told me his story gave me this update.
Yes, the deer could have killed him and he had a long recovery.
During the recovery he had a CAT scan done to check his recovery from the accident.
They ended up finding that he had some cancer on an organ (forgot which one), so the deer may have saved his life in the long run as he had no signs yet of the cancer developing.