Collision with something at 70+mph on my motorcycle today.

[Yota Up]

My buddy and I are cookin' it through the backroads today.  We're doing a steady 80-85mph.  If you don't ride a sportbike you may think these are dangerous speeds, but you gotta know the bikes to realize it's no big deal.

Anyway - something odd happened today.  My buddy was right behind me and too bad he didn't have a helmet cam.

We were about 5 miles from my house when it happened.

Here's the windshield on my bike now:

[Yota Up]

Here's a little bit of blood spatter on my jacket, hard to see in the pics:

[Yota Up]

Even got a little funny stuff on my faceshield:

[RokCrawlinToy]

Hit a bird???

[Yota Up]

Ok, back to story.  I'm at about 80mph or so.  All of a sudden on the side of the road - a bunch of BIG birds take off and start across the road in front of me.  Had only a second until I reached them and went left a bit to avoid one in the face, barely had a chance to slow down even to 70mph, and then BAM - nailed one of them.  He went through my windshield, busting it, and slammed into my right side of my chest and off my shoulder.

Felt like a punch from Mike Tyson.

Buddy thought the bird went through my faceshield, but luckily not.
We turned around and found the bird still alive.

I strapped him to my bike and figured I'd take him home and either try to heal him or put him out if his misery.
He dripped blood on my bike on the way home:

[Yota Up]

Well, unfortunately he expired before I got home.
Took him off the bike and checked him out.

BIG BIRD!  This ain't no crow, it's a raven:

[Yota Up]

They got the entire sky to be in...
I'm stuck to the road, and they gotta get in MY way?

My should is feeling a little sore already.


Screw you birds!
(Hope the flipoff in the pic is ok)

[Loosekannon]

Holy Hell  I would of  myself

[jimbo74]

wow, good thing that hit the windshield and not your facemask...... that would have hurt considerably more.....

glad you are ok... that must have been a trip.....

[Yota Up]

Funny screenname, LK.  They used to call me that at the office, but that's a story for another time...

Yeah, really freaky when it was going down all slow motion.  It's like there were 7 or so birds, and I had to make a split second choice on which one to take out.  Which would result in his placement somewhere on my bike or body.  Lucky I didn't get it to the head - would have taken me off the bike and then the wife would posting this for me instead.  Either that, or hitting the faceshield it would shattered the plastic and jammed pieces into my face.  Then the wife wouldn't think I'm so handsome anymore. 
Imagine if it even hit one of my handlebars?  Lights out, guarenteed going down.

If you think about it, it as a perfect hit.  Glad I didn't lay it down or freak out, just came to stop nice and calmly.  My buddy was more freaked out than I was.

Whew.  Be safe out there if you ride.

[Stocker]

If the ravens took off from the side of the road, they were probably dining on road-kill when you interrupted them.

Glad you weren't hurt (sore shoulder doesn't count); that could easily have been much worse.  Buy a lottery ticket, it's your lucky day.

Years ago I was doing maybe 60 when a turkey vulture rose up off a dead deer on the roadside.  It crossed in front of me and would have made it, but dove down at the last moment (I later learned this is common behavior).  It hit my headlight, then windshield, finally my helmet and left blood and other bits on all...  Luckily all I got was a headache and an opportunity to clean up the bike.  Popped a couple plastic bits off the helmet, but I found them.

Be careful out there...

[kneedownnate]

Glad you're mostly ok man   Some of the backroads have critters who seem to have a death wish!

Years ago I was doing maybe 60 when a turkey vulture rose up off a dead deer on the roadside.  It crossed in front of me and would have made it, but dove down at the last moment (I later learned this is common behavior)

Picton and I learned this one day taking a backroad to platina, also found out real turkeys do the same thing 

An old man at work told me how to tell if the squirrel in the road is a male or female.  A male runs off the road.  A female darts back and forth indecisively, usually ending up squished

[emsvitil]

You need a little sticker of a raven to put on your bike now............

[red]

ouch glad ur ok man i've had a few similar close calls but havent hit anything yet.

[Hammerhead]

Yep, your lucky day alright...

That windshield is alot cheaper than the hospital bills would have been.  Glad you're OK.

I had a wild dog almost take me down some years back so I kinda know how you feel.  Dang thing jumped up from a roadkill like it was gonna attack me and his head went between the forks.  If I hadn't been doing better than freeway speeds he might have survived the impact and had a chance to hurt me for real.  I was able to get stopped without falling and took a few minutes to calm my nerves.  I just needed to get the carcass out of my front end and clean the blood off my bike.

[Ramrod]

damn thats crazy, I hit something big and black doing like 85 on I-5 on my way back from chico a few weeks ago.  Suprised the out of me but I was too hung over to process what was going on fast enough to see what it actually was

[te51levin]

Glad you're mostly ok man   Some of the backroads have critters who seem to have a death wish!

Picton and I learned this one day taking a backroad to platina, also found out real turkeys do the same thing 

Almost got some myself last month in Medford, but they took off and stayed airborne.  Dang it, three of them right in the track and I still couldn't hit anything!

[topar]

Glad your okay.  Like that property around your house looks like a pretty place 

[Yota Up]

Glad your okay.  Like that property around your house looks like a pretty place 

It's great, even made myself a little wheelin' trail back there.



Best part?  My rent is half what it used to be and I'm on an acre and a half with deer in my yard everyday. 

[blackdiamond]

We're doing a steady 80-85mph.  If you don't ride a sportbike you may think these are dangerous speeds, but you gotta know the bikes to realize it's no big deal.

Disclaimer: If I owned a motorcycle I would have no problem with riding fast so don't take this as judgemental.   

You have to love the irony of this statement considering the story that it prefaces.  Riding a motorcycle at 80-85 mph isn't dangerous until you can't slow down fast enough to avoid hitting a large bird.  Speed is dangerous as it greatly increases the probability of accidents and increases the expected damage.

I have a friend that bumped over a dead deer one night on his R6.  He was going about 70 mph+ and slowed to around 40 mph before he hit it.

[Yota Up]

I hear what you say Diamond.  It's a risk we take.  The risk is small.  This time, it hit, in a small and somewhat controlled way.

We never know when a drunk driver could take us out on the freeway.  It's a small risk, but it's real.

Risks go with most things in life.  I consider myself a "safe rider" because I pale in comparison to the guys that do 120 on the double yellow between cars on a 2 lane highway.

Wheel safe, drive safe, ride safe.  Do your part and hope for the best.  Hope your friend on that R6(nice bike btw) is ok.

[norcalyoter]

those darn turkeys are pretty fast when they want to be i gave tried several times to hit them on my folks property lol but one time when i was coming home from our cabin in mineral i hit a large mountain quail on hwy 36 i thoght it was gonna make it across the hwy but i tagged it with the bottom corner of my windshield no damage to me just a huge dead quail

[kneedownnate]

no damage to me just a huge dead quail

How'd it taste?

[topar]

Might just have to move in next door do some back yard wheeling 

[kneedownnate]

damn good thing it was only big birds and not snuffaluffaguss's

  I worry about runnin into the sasquatch on my backroad rides

[Yota Up]

Crap fellas.  Bad news.  I called the cops and they told me I can not have the bird stuffed and mounted - it's protected.  Booo.

Maybe I'll let the maggots finish it and then just glue the beak to the front of my bike?

[Stocker]

Ravens are protected??  What the...  those things are as common as -- heck if I know what, but they are everywhere...   

[abnormaltoy]

Ravens are protected??  What the...  those things are as common as -- heck if I know what, but they are everywhere...   

They're as common as...crows!

[kneedownnate]

Last I checked there is no season for ravens, though there is a season for crows IF you are a farmer/rancher and have a problem with them.  Goes from like december till march?