And Then It Happened

I took the Accident Scene Management course in November 2024 at Harley Davidson of Scottsdale. Theresa Martinez was my instructor. Since I ride with friends, I wanted to get some knowledge if our group ever had an accident. After taking the course and having a general knowledge of what to do, I never wanted to have to put what I learned into action. If it did happen, would I remember all the information I received? I can also tell you that when I am riding, I think about what to do trying to keep the information fresh. 

Then it happened. A group of us were on a ride collecting Tour of Duty stamps. We were about 14 miles west of Bagdad on Rt 96 when one of our riders went off the road and down an embankment. It was a twisty road with no extra roadway beyond the solid white line on the right side of the road. He was making a turn in the road to the left and got too close to the rider in front of him. He later told me it was all his fault. He was also a very experienced rider. Trying to correct himself, his back tire went off the roadway and it shot him to the right, sending him over the handlebars and his bike down the embankment.

He came to rest against a small bush which limited his fall further down the hill. His motorcycle ended up almost parallel to him about 20’-25’ away. He was about 25” down the embankment. This is what the rider behind him told me. The side of the hill was littered with rocks about the size of soccer balls. Once the paramedics took his helmet off, you could see that he hit those rocks on his left side, right side and the back of the helmet, indicating that he was rolling down the hill. I’m not sure he would still be with us if he was not wearing his helmet. He was also lucky because he had a 3/4 helmet and the front face shield had been ripped off but his face did not hit one of those rocks.

I rolled up on the scene being a few minutes behind the rest of the pack. One of our riders was already by him and I immediately got my first aid kit and tourniquet. I first remembered to make sure we had one person directing traffic from both directions and someone was already calling 911. We were lucky that we had cell service out in the middle of nowhere. He was laying on his right side when I got to him with his arms folded over his chest. He was alert and talking. I questioned him about how he felt. I asked him if he could move his toes, his arms and hands. He complained that his right side hurt and his left leg hurt. The left leg of his jeans was ripped and I looked for any bleeding or a compound fracture of the leg. I did not see anything. The only blood I saw was a little on his cheek parallel to his lips. I figured he bit his lip.

The right side of his head was resting on a rock, like a pillow, and I took a traffic cone that was laying on the hill and put it under his neck to try to relieve any stress on his neck. I checked his pulse and it was very slow and steady, almost like he was at rest. I was expecting a fast and steady pulse. Figuring that he was resting as comfortably as he could be I tried to keep him calm and talked to him. He was worried about us finding his wallet so he could get his insurance card for the hospital. I assured him that was the least of our worries right now. I continued to talk to him the whole time. I was holding his head against the rock so he wouldn’t move it.

A few minutes later a couple rolled up and got out of their car. He was an EMT and she was a nurse. He came down the hill and started to talk to our downed rider.  We used the scissors in my kit to cut his pants to further investigate his left leg and he used my flash light to check his pupils. He went through more questions than I asked him when I first got to him. We were lucky to have 2 people who do this for a living at the scene.

The Paramedics and fire truck finally arrived and they proceeded to help him. I would love to tell you how long it took for them to get there, but I had no idea of how long it had been. They put him on a back board and put a cervical collar on him and carried him to the road and into the ambulance. My friend later told me that the ride to the hospital was the worst as the ambulance’s ride was terrible and bumpy. They took him to Prescott, and then transported him by helicopter to a hospital in Phoenix. He suffered 4 broken ribs, pulmonary contusions and a compound fracture of the left tibia. I could not see the compound fracture when I first checked him out. He had surgery on his leg and spent 5 days in the ICU. He is doing really well right now and can’t wait to get back on a motorcycle.

I was lucky that he was conscious and talking when I got to him. However, going back over my class materials I realized how much I did remember, and also how much I didn’t remember. I also forgot to put on my rubber gloves, which Theresa told us to do first. I think that was the last thing on my mind. Maybe I’ll remember the next time, but I hope that never happens. However, I am glad that I took the course and plan to take the advanced course next.

Bob Forwark