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Oh Crap I'm Crashing... WHEEEEE!!!

Posted: Wed Mar 31, 2010 11:28 am
by Jamz
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A few years back I was chatting with my Ex-Stepdad who races single-seaters. In fact he's a former Formula Vee UK Championship winner.

We got onto the subject of crashing, and his biggest off in particular.

He was racing at Cadwell Park in SuperVee (bascially Formula Vee with slicks and wings - now long dead in the UK), and came a cropper big-time at a fast corner. This lead to him flipping the car end-over-end quite a few times and resulted in a very painful broken scapula (shoulder blade), but miraculously no other real injuries.

We were talking about what you actually experience whilst having a big crash. He vividly remembered the sounds of crumpling metal as the car smashed into the ground, and the contrasting total silence as it was in the air.

Even more was the feeling as the car spun through the air.

Then he surprised me.

He told me that he found himself quite enjoying it! He liked the feeling as he spun through the air, watching the sky and ground flying past, but then said it was scary each time the back went over because the weight of the engine made it all rotate violently faster.

I thought he was an absolute -ing nutter! But then I had a think about some of my own crashes...

Probably my biggest was a highside on the road that launched me right up in the air, and I remember that aside from being a bit worried about hitting the ground and tring to make sure I didn't damage my helmet or snap my back, I was quite enjoying it! Well, Until I saw the looks on the faces of the two Officers in the Police car coming towards me, anyway...

It's a similar story with some of the close calls I've had.

It's a rush.

It's exhilerating.

Dammit if I don't ENJOY crashing!

Not the actual pain and smashing into stuff - I'm not quite that mental yet - but the whole experience is so EXTREME you just have to find a bit of enjoyment in it all!

I saw an interview on the TV show 'Top Gear' a while back with F1 driver Lewis Hamilton, where he expressed the same views. I wonder if it's a common thing for racers and bikers? I wonder if many people like me don't even realise it?

Here's the Lewis Hamilton interview:


Re: Oh Crap I'm Crashing... WHEEEEE!!!

Posted: Wed Mar 31, 2010 12:29 pm
by zimm
ive had 2 crashes i "enjoyed",

1) twatted into the side of a sierra that turned right without indicating - the bike stayed upright in the dent it made in the side of the car and i executed a perfect somersault over the car and landed on my feet..

2) highsided a gt550 over a wall and into a carpark in the rain ... - found myself giggling hysterically from the moment the back stepped out to the moment it all landed in a heap..

having said that, i dont reeally "get off" on crashing.. im more a control freak than an adrenaline junky.

Re: Oh Crap I'm Crashing... WHEEEEE!!!

Posted: Wed Mar 31, 2010 1:31 pm
by Jamz
Yeah I know what you mean Zimm. I'll do my very best NOT to crash, but when it all goes pear-shaped you may as well enjoy the ride!

It's not every day you get to do things that are that extreme! :smt003

Re: Oh Crap I'm Crashing... WHEEEEE!!!

Posted: Wed Mar 31, 2010 3:23 pm
by cargo
Good thread.................

My first racing crash was in the wet and very slow I stood up and picked the bike up pushed it away and thought no more of it.

Second crash was a "little" faster I had just come home from two weeks racimg on the IOM and I went straight to a race back at home. I had a 3th gear crash I made a mistake and went off into the gravel trap and hit a tyre wall straight on I landed on top of the tyre wall. Later I spoke with the flag marshal and he told me he had heard me laughing out loud as I was heading for the tyres ??????

My big crash ( see video elsewhere)...............was strange I have no memory of anything after the bike went out of control flying in the air is a complete blank.............first thing i do remember is being on the ground in the field and not being able to get a breath that frightened me ( a lot)................then came the pain...................I stood up walked 3 paces and fell down again then I asked for the doctor. Not once did I feel like the pain was too much to bear and did mange to smile even laugh with the doctor and marshals. As I was carried into the ambulance I even gave a quote to a journalist friend.
The real pain and tears came later............................

I once managed to crash twice in one day and I believe it was the first one that broke my foot..............but each time I just got up laughed it off once again the pain came later.

I reckon when your crashing you body gets itself ready to deal with whatever is to come.................adrenilin or whatever..................and that is what can make it a pleasant experience...............

Re: Oh Crap I'm Crashing... WHEEEEE!!!

Posted: Fri Apr 02, 2010 4:59 pm
by liam7200
yeah cargo i think you hit the nail on the head when you crash or are about to crash ... your body shuts everything down and goes into fight or flight mode it pumps blood to your muscles to get ready to fight it, in doing this all pain you in counter while in this mode is seen by your body as a weakness so it shuts that off for a brief time BASICALLY we go back to being animals your body becomes a machine hence why you like it, were one of the most complex s thing in the world and we only ever feel that power when your on the edge cause saciaty thrown's upon it but at the heart of it we all love it!!!

being a keen adrenalin junky i have crashed a fare few time on pretty much everything lol

im 22 and had 9 cars and 3 bikes

i crashed a punto gt at 127 on motorway on way to see gf in withinshaw and span it 3 times and went into central reservation in reverse very surreal feeling and god bless that car i managed to drive away park up at gf n laugh to my self that i was still alive!! funni thing was i crashed into her gate while parking up lol i been thru that gate like 100 times lol

i crashed my dt re 125 going round a roundabout lol a civic hit me side on i went 6 ft in the air and span round like a fairy haha don't remember all that much but when i stood up and went into fight mode chased the car bout 300meter then went all dizzi lol and sat down!!


i crashed my dads cbr 600 into a bus haha not a good idea the buss will always win haha

all in all i think i crashed everything ive owned and a few friends lol but i can onistaly say that each crash i lernt somthing from and never made the same mastake twice :P but bloody hell i loved it ... knock on wood the only smashes ive had laterly are from falling of my bmx which herts more than any of the above lol


Sorry about spelling i do try but im got server dislexia and find it hard even with spel checker!!!

Re: Oh Crap I'm Crashing... WHEEEEE!!!

Posted: Sat Jun 15, 2013 12:16 am
by Blackandpurpleblur
This is an awesome thread. On the subject I was in Woking going round some unknown roads and short story. Sharp corner. '60' mph limit. Patch of diesel. Either way I ended up high siding it. Missing a road sign and what looked like an oak tree and then landed in a river. All I can say is that the first few thoughts were. "Do my feet work, yes. Do my arms work, yes. O F*** MY HELMETS FILLING UP WITH WATER."

Needless to say am still here today but it gave my old man a right laugh when I told him. oldman

Re: Oh Crap I'm Crashing... WHEEEEE!!!

Posted: Sat Jun 15, 2013 8:19 am
by banner001
car pulled out in front of me and i hit it doing 40mph straight into the side of it...was like hitting a brick wall.

i broke both wrists and broke my hip...i wasnt laughing.

Re: Oh Crap I'm Crashing... WHEEEEE!!!

Posted: Tue Aug 06, 2013 2:03 pm
by Jamz
banner001 wrote:car pulled out in front of me and i hit it doing 40mph straight into the side of it...was like hitting a brick wall.

i broke both wrists and broke my hip...i wasnt laughing.
That's because you didn't catch any air! You should've jumped! winks

Re: Oh Crap I'm Crashing... WHEEEEE!!!

Posted: Tue Aug 06, 2013 4:15 pm
by ross46
I had a little crash about 6 months ago, was just about to pick my mate up, turned my bike on, got on it, rode to the end of the road, braked, looked both ways and opened the throttle, tyres were cold so it highsided me, I managed to get flicked on the air, do a front flip and land on my feet, a neigh or saw it happen and looked baffled when I turned to him and said 'that was fun!' with a big grin on my face, was only doing ten mile an hour, rear wheel more like 40 but the bike was fine apart from a broken gear lever which I just walked back to my house and changed and off I went again