While Walking Down Memory Lane...........
Bike Crash Story!!

When I was 14(ish) I used to ride my bike down the hill of our dirt driveway, around the curve and out the gate. I know I said "hill" but it was fairly steep, I lived on a 36 acre ranch, we had 4 or 5 hills.

Well, my neat trick was that I would sail down the driveway without applying the brakes,(speed junkie)and !! would guide the bike with one hand as I approached the bottom so that I could use the automatic gate opener to, of course, open the gate, and not loose any momentum off of the hill, round the turn and fly out the gate. WHAT A RUSH!!

Got pretty good at it too, but one time when I was clicking the button on the gate opener, I almost dropped it. Instead of letting it fall and just stopping safely to go back and get it, I (genius that I am) try to catch it. Well I DO catch it but I also torqued the handlebars in the process.

Since I was near the base of the hill when the handlebars twisted, the bike pretty much stopped in its tracks but I.....no......... I did not. I sailed through the air with the greatest of ease and even had enough hang time to consider how I would hit the ground and to make up my mind not to be a baby about it because the soaring made it worth it.

I was picking dirt gravel out of my right shin, right thigh, palm of my right hand and right elbow for half an hour. Since I went in an arc none of my injuries were terribly deep. Mostly, I had a few gouges from the larger rocks and a few layers of skin deep road rash.... I remember being pretty bummed that I had ruined my tan for that summer, and shaving that leg was out of the question for like 2 months.