FOR DCCC NEWSLETTER /BLOG

June is a great month to be a motorcycle enthusiast in Colorado. Why? Because with hundreds of roads above 8,000 feet, in June you can venture up and up into mountain passes that reach 11,000 feet and daytime temperatures are quite comfortable. If you’ve ever been in the Colorado Rockies in June, the spring snowmelt has made the valleys lush and green and bursting with life. It is June now and the entire agenda for today is to ride my Harley-Davidson motorcycle with friends. With just enough coffee to “get the motor runnin’” – we head out on the highway. Stoplights in town give way to that highway. We’re lookin’ for adventure and  - oh shit, did I just fall into a Steppenwolf song? Am I Billy? Are you Wyatt?  Or George? Shit, where were we?  Oh yeah, we were riding our Harley-Davidson motorcycle. Correction, we ARE riding our Harley-Davidson motorcycle. The wind is cool but the sun’s warm rays make up for it. I roll my right wrist and the motor responds. We enter a canyon, going slightly up a grade. The river to our left and moving against us. Sweeping turns give way to tighter ones, rolling left and then right, each bend leading seamlessly into the other. The bike FEELS like a fighter jet. Barely above the treetops but in complete control. The canyon gives way to a plateau, the road levels off and straightens out almost immediately. We are now on a high desert plateau in the Colorado Rockies in June- what could possibly be better?  “This does NOT suck.” I muse to no one. The temperature rises as the morning matures. My friends and I stop to shed a layer and, of course, some of those 2 cups of hotel coffee too! Back on the 2 lane, the high plains reveal fences. This is rancher country now. Look at the sky. Have you ever seen such a shade of blue? It’s perfect. And tonight, our little group on our Harley-Davidson motorcycles will marry up with a larger group of friends on their Harley-Davidson motorcycles. We will regale the highlights and lowlights of our separate journeys to one another into the wee hours. But enough “mind wandering” I command my brain. Nothingness has given way to sparse housing – Ranch houses and farm buildings. There’s a small town in the distance, on a river, could be the Green River. I estimate 15 miles or so. I am down to a third of a tank and I know that my friend’s bike drinks a bit more fuel than mine. That’ll be a good town in which to top off. But I am getting ahead of myself. I pass a speed limit sign- 65. Reminding me that I am still in the country- the 2 lane is freshly laid asphalt with small stones embedded. Tar and chips as we called it back in Ohio in front of Brion Furry’s pig farm near Lima. The yellow lines are crisp and straight too – “Good job CDOT” I mutter. Again, to no one. Oncoming truck ahead in a left turn lane, he’s going slow, does he see me, he sees me, right? He’s nearly stopped, of course he s… He turns! He’s pulling a Trailer! Noooooo! I hear myself scream. ABS engaged. Left side of my lane straight into the rear axle, green pickup. I hear a tremendous thud- Yet I don’t feel it- Unconscious.

Today is exactly 6 months later, 182 days, December 22nd , 2022.   I sip my coffee and type this to you. I have physical therapy and chiropractic today. Usually twice a week. They will probably want to do a “D-comp” session as well. A medieval device in sheep’s clothes. It literally stretches your spine for 12 minutes at a time. Starting gently but building tension- 26 ft. pounds is my jam as the cool kids say. Don’t sweat it sista, the human head weighs 13 lbs. alone, so 13 lbs. is just like having someone hold your head for you. Ya dig?  Ok, back from the 70’s. So why did I sucker you in with a good story about a summer ride and then… Whammy!?  I did it because I have wisdom to share. Ok, Stop laughing if you are- if you didn’t laugh, I want to get to know you, you seem like good people.

The wisdom is this: You can be doing 100% right on your Harley-Davidson motorcycle and still be completely fucked. Both my 2015 and my 2022 wreck were caused by a truck or van failing to yield the right-of-way (ROW). So, what we are dealing with (in this wonderful tale) is a wreck where the driver of the SUV or truck is the negligent party. Negligence is probably one of the most important concepts in Law. Negligence can be assigned to one party or shared between parties. You don’t want the Negligence. Negligence means you were responsible or “at fault”. And negligence usually means that other people were adversely impacted by your action or inaction. Here’s what else I have learned. Get a lawyer or firm that specializes in motorcycle accidents. Do this first. The lawyer will assign a paralegal- get to know your paralegal. Mine is Leah. You know why you get the local lawyer first? They know who they like to work with when it comes to documentation of YOUR treatment: the physical therapy, chiropractic and pain management side of things. You had better already have high limits on your insurance policy. UM/UIM, Underinsured and Uninsured Motorist coverage is key here. Remember that when the negligent party is a p.o.s. with no or minimal coverage, your insurance is what pays to make you whole. And rich people don’t ride around with no insurance because (if they’re negligent) you take THEIR money not the insurance’s money. Replacing a $32,000 Harley-Davidson motorcycle is the cheapest part of the legal case if you or your passenger are injured and need even moderate medical care.

Okay, so the wreck was about 2 weeks ago. Right about now, the insurance company (yours or theirs) is going to want to establish a value for the wrecked bike. This process is frustrating at best. I have experienced one wreck where they determined that they would pay to repair the motorcycle and one where they totaled it out. In both cases, the answer/decision was not arrived at quickly and not without going back and forth over many phone calls/emails. Tell them to send you information in emails. Literally, in the first case they wanted to rule my bike a total loss (not worth fixing it) until I asked them where I was going to get a replacement for the $$ they were proposing they give me. In the current case, I told them *repeatedly* that the motorcycle was totaled and they basically took that as a sign I was pulling rank. By God it was going to be a repairable motorcycle until they sent an adjuster to BFE and made a ruling based on his “expert” report. I think I even said once over the phone, “I rode that fucking thing into the side of a truck- I think I know what shape it’s in.” Did I mention that a concussion can alter one’s brain chemistry? And you say shit that you normally wouldn’t say in casual conversation. Having all your receipts on file for all upgrades, mods and accessories is key here. I didn’t have this. As a result, we had a $4,000 gap and that took weeks to bridge to my satisfaction. In short, you can and will need to negotiate the valuation of your bike either way. If the first number they present to you makes you smile, say yes, sign the paperwork and go have a beer.

Now let’s talk about fixing YOU. If you were judged to be “a total loss” you wouldn’t be reading this. So, we know you are repairable. A great starting point. Go to all your physical therapy, chiropractic and pain management appointments. If you cannot, reschedule, don’t be a no show. Also, be proactive and push ahead with your care. What do I mean by push ahead? If a procedure by a certain doctor cannot be scheduled for 10 days at your local outpatient facility, but they can get you in tomorrow at a place 1 hours’ drive (same doctor), make the trip. Push ahead with your care and move your treatment forward. Speaking of driving to appointments, keep a log of your miles. I use excel because it is easy to cut and paste reoccurring appointments. Keep a journal. Document in real time all the daily activities that used to be easy as pie and now they are painful AF or impossible. Your attorney/paralegal should have given you this advice if they are worth their salt. Document also all the things your family and friends are doing to help you each day. Think about how this journal is going to accurately describe your new situation to your lawyer, a judge, a jury; literally anyone who reads it.

Get to know the paralegal assigned to your case. Do you remember mine? I told you her name earlier. Record (along with your mileage) all your out of pocket medical expenses. Co-pays, deductibles, prescriptions. Keep it organized- whatever system you prefer. Remember, you may very well have 12 different providers sending you bills soon; especially if your wreck occurred somewhere other than your hometown. Ambulance ride, ER, ER imaging procedures, the services of a technician to read the imaging and make a report, any surgical consultations or subsequent interventions, not to mention the physical therapy, chiropractic and pain management visits. Everyone is going to want to get paid and you’re not getting a settlement for at least a year. Nothing is going to happen from a legal standpoint until your treatment is either completed or options exhausted. A general rule is that 4-6 months is needed AFTER your treatment is complete for your lawyer to reach a settlement. Lastly, you will never be 100% of what you were before; that’s why it’s called a settlement. You settle. But, if you’re lucky, like me, you’ll meet a bunch of really caring people in your rehab journey and 1 or 2 might even become friends. And friendship, like fellowship, is priceless.

Go Fast, Don’t Die - Text me when you get home.   -BikerBrad