Upon arriving at Big Barn HD for their open house event today, I learned that my friend Theresa - from the Estrogen Ride and other events, shown on the right in this photo - had been in a serious accident on her bike last night. She was southbound, and a drunk driver in the northbound lane made a sudden left turn in front of her, causing her to t-bone the car. I’m familiar with the intersection where this happened, so I’m guessing she probably hit the car going 30-35 mph. She is alive, with multiple serious injuries, and tonight is still in the ICU. Her beautiful HD Wide Glide has been totaled - folks, I saw the photos, and it is chilling: the forks are pushed back into the engine and the front wheel is twisted into nearly the shape of an 8.
“T” has a loving family and many, many friends, and I believe that ultimately she will be okay. But, she has a very long road of recovery ahead of her.
I am begging you all to please please PLEASE ride safe. Know that others do NOT see you, and that their judgment may be impaired, and that ANY car could be the one that makes the move that changes your life. I am also begging you - don’t drive drunk. When you drink, your judgment becomes impaired whether you think it is or not, and you could easily change/ruin/end the lives of innocent people - including your own and those of your loved ones.
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September 8th, 2007 at 8:48 pm
Almighty God, Author of life and health, have mercy on Theresa, that You would be glorified in her life. Theresa is helpless without you. We know that her soul and physical life are in Your hands. You sent your beloved Son Jesus to die on the cross for Theresa to make her whole, cleansing her of her sin so that she would inherit eternal life in heaven. Take full possession of Theresa’s heart and life.
Be with Theresa every moment of each day, protecting her and preserving her. Grant her peace of mind that comes from sins forgiven and the joy of knowing You. Open Theresa’s eyes to see the truth of your unfailing love, open her ears to hear You calling her name. Open her mouth with words of repentance and trust, breathe life into her body that she would bring glory and honor to Your name.
Bless the efforts of Theresa’s doctors to restore her health. Bless the nurses and all who are taking care of her. Stay close beside her always. Give Theresa all the strength she needs and grant her steady improvement. Make her recovery swift and complete. Ease her pain and let Your divine forgiveness speak peace to her soul through Jesus Christ.
Father, give Theresa’s family patience to await Your deliverance. Enable her family and friends to entrust her completely to you, giving them hope, patience, courage and confidence. If it is your will that Theresa lingers on her sickbed, grant them confidence that You do all things well.
Through this experience, draw them closer to You. Preserve them from temptation by the evil one. Forgive their fears and impatience. Grant them the courage to look into the future unafraid, knowing that You are with them and that they have no cause to fear. Help them overcome discouragement, remove all self-pity, take away all resentment and help them to live trusting you one moment at a time as they lean on you.
May Your Peace, which is greater than all human understanding, fill their hearts and minds, through Jesus Christ. Amen.
September 9th, 2007 at 4:00 am
Hey, cool site! Thanks for the comment on my blog. Have I mentioned I’m hooked on my bike? LOL DH says it’s “new bike syndrome”, but I don’t think so. I think it’s more like “Freedom Syndrome”!
Living in Minnesota sucks, as ride season is SHORT! But I’m working on my ride calendar for next season and would love to hear about some events coming up. I’m working on adding a sidecar to my bike so that my daughter can ride with me, thus removing the one limitation I have to MORE TIME IN THE SADDLE!
~Leah~
ride like nobody sees you, arrive because they heard you.
September 9th, 2007 at 2:48 pm
Rag, that’s lovely - thank you taking time to compose it.
Leah, thanks for visiting! Believe me, “Freedom Syndrome” is more like it! Take care and ride safe - the sidecar sounds like a very cool idea!!
~ Janet
September 10th, 2007 at 10:52 am
Update on Theresa - I spoke to her boyfriend late Sunday afternoon and she has been moved out of ICU to a regular room. They are probably going to try to set her pelvis (6 fractures) on Tues. Having to wait to do surgery on her wrist (shattered) until the swelling goes down.
I have also been told that the Bikers Assistance Fund here in Des Moines will be planning a benefit ride for Theresa in the near future….will keep you posted as I hear more.
Cards for T can be sent to her c/o Big Barn Harley, 81 NW 49th Place, Des Moines IA 05313.
We did take up a collection for T Sat evening at the open house and raised a pretty good chunk. Please keep T and her family in your thoughts & prayers!
September 10th, 2007 at 4:13 pm
[...] this was a tough weekend… I learned that a friend of mine had been in a motorcycle accident Friday night - she is recovering from a variety of serious injuries and it certainly reminded me of the need to [...]
September 10th, 2007 at 9:04 pm
Just got back from visiting Theresa at the hospital. She’s very responsive and, in true, independent T-fashion, p***** off about what has happened. She is in quite a bit of discomfort. Her pelvis is going to have to heal on it’s own but she is to have surgery on her wrist (plates, pins, etc) this coming Thursday.
Unfortunately, she is left handed and, of course, that’s the wrist that is shattered. T is such a strong independed woman that it is very hard for her to accept that for the time being she’s going to have to rely on others. She was about in tears when we got there because she was trying to feed herself (chicken noodle soup!) with her right hand. Try that tomorrow and you’ll realize one of the challenges she is facing.
Keep praying and sending good thoughts her way! Thanks to everyone for their support!
Food for thought…why has there been no mention of the accident in the DM Register???
September 10th, 2007 at 9:30 pm
Holly - that is a very good question, and one I have been thinking about. I plan to contact the Des Moines Police Department and inquire (as a member of the “media” - hey my site IS called Biker Chick NEWS! LOL) as to whether the Register ever asked for the police report. A couple of possibilities come to mind: perhaps the person who was driving the car was well-known and managed somehow to keep it out of the paper? (I searched the Polk Co. “inmates on the web” site today and didn’t see any bookings for anyone from that time period… wasn’t the driver in this case female?) Another thought: the Register has an interesting habit of reporting on those cases where a motorcyclist who is NOT wearing a helmet is killed. Since T survived… and probably wasn’t wearing a helmet… my thought is that perhaps the story doesn’t fit their agenda of promoting helmet use. I know that sounds awful, but I have noticed it too many times for it to be a coincidence. I’ll be doing a little digging to see what I can find out. ~ Janet
September 11th, 2007 at 10:13 am
I saw this post and my advice to all motorcycle riders is get eye contact. Drive like no one is seeing you. When you approach another car or truck or any vehicle on the road or close to the roadway, look at their eyes and see if they are looking at you. If not then slow it down until you get eye contact. It might seem like a little thing but it’s important to have eye contact with the other drivers and operators. Because, if they aren’t looking at you then chances are they don’t see you. And that’s the safest assumption that you can make.
Steve Lombardi
September 11th, 2007 at 7:26 pm
Steve, I appreciate your input, and your point is an important one. Making eye contact with other drivers is a good idea, but it’s not always possible - this particular accident happened at night, for example, when it would be difficult to determine whether eye contact was made. Also, apparently T on her bike was already in the intersection when the driver decided to make an unsignaled left turn, so even with eye contact there would have been no time to react. I hear many folks echo your sentiment about the importance of making eye contact, but I also don’t think that doing so is any kind of guarantee that a driver won’t do something stupid. Unfortunately, sometimes even when they see you - they don’t really see you. Or possibly don’t care, or possibly have impaired judgment. It is certainly one way you can try to protect yourself, however. Again, really appreciate you taking time to read and comment! ~ Janet
September 12th, 2007 at 10:10 am
Steve has a good point but I know there have been times when I have made eye contact with drivers and they still don’t see me. At intersections such as four-way stops, I tend to wait until the driver I’m looking at nods to me to indicate that yes, he’s actually “seeing” me. We just have to very vigilant on watching other drivers and always assume they don’t see us.
Janet, any word as to why no mention of the accident in the DM Register?
September 17th, 2007 at 10:21 pm
[...] went up to the hospital and visited Theresa today, where she’s still recuperating from her recent accident. She had surgery on her wrist on Thursday of last week, and she said it went really well so [...]
September 19th, 2007 at 9:45 am
Oh, darnit! Please let her know that a complete stranger is rooting for her and wishes her as speedy a recovery as her body will allow.
September 19th, 2007 at 11:41 am
Linda, that is so kind of you - thank you, I will be sure to share your well-wishes with her! Thanks for reading and posting! ~ Janet
September 20th, 2007 at 9:10 pm
[...] benefit ride for Theresa is scheduled for Saturday, October 20 at 11:00 a.m. Registration will be 10:00-10:45 at Big Barn [...]
October 7th, 2007 at 7:13 pm
How is she doing? Hope she is making good progress… Laura
October 11th, 2007 at 1:46 pm
Laura - Theresa got out of the hospital last Thurs and is continuing her healing at her sister’s house. She got her cast of her wrist and is getting full mobility back in her hand & wrist. Can’t put any weight on her right leg yet. Plans are to start outpatient physical therapy in about three weeks. In the meantime, the drs are telling her not to overdo things. She has quite a bit of pain still and can’t sit in a chair very long (5-10 mins). Is more comfortable reclining in bed.
She does plan to attend the benefit dinner on 10/20 for a little bit…not sure how long she will be able to stay.
She appreciates everyone’s concerns, good wishes & prayers. Thanks to everyone!
October 20th, 2007 at 10:26 pm
[...] last weekend’s Toy Run rainout, I was anxious to see what the weather would have in store for Theresa’s benefit ride. I needn’t have worried - our high for the day was in the upper 70’s, with a beautiful [...]
April 28th, 2008 at 6:51 pm
I think this is a very good site and amy sorry to hear about your friends. I have a site that I have just put up on different prayers that I have found for bikers if you would like to stop by and see it. I am a new rider and had to have a trike not a bike do to having polio when I was young. To all that are out riding be safe.
Nancy up here in Alaska
Nancys last blog post..THE NIGHT RIDERS
May 4th, 2008 at 8:39 pm
Nancy, thank you for stopping by. I did try to click through to your site, but Blogger said the blog could not be found. I will keep checking back, though - it’s probably a temporary problem, especially if the blog is new, maybe it’s just not “live” yet. Wow, Alaska - you must have a really short riding season up there, hope you are able to make the most of it!
~ Janet