Death of a Land Cruiser

[Paul_L]

Wow, those are some pics. Glad you're OK, obviously one tough chick! I don't think your husband has to worry about whether you will joining in on future bike rides.

Best wishes & hoping for a speedy recovery!

Paul

 

[M-80]

Holy Crap!

Good to see you came out relatively well. Im still amazed that these trucks being as old as they are hold up so well. I showed my wife the pics of your truck and reminded her why Im keeping ours.

I was in a similar wreck in a Contour SVT 5 years ago(impact was pass. offset, I was driving) and came out much worse.

I had a nasty tib/fib frax on the left leg and heel frax on the right foot. Doc told me the same thing-long recovery, wont be doing the same things and wouldnt be a medic/firefighter again. At 9 months I was back on the job. Year mark I was like it never happened. Had some of the tib/fib hardware removed this year to make biking easier.

Doc originally told me to find a new line of work and wouldnt be the same again.

Hang in there and push like hell thru recovery and rehab.

You give me much hope. I know I have some pretty serious hardware in my heel right now.

I am lucky to have a good job. I have six months with full pay, and then I go to 70%. Hopefully, I don't make it to 70%. That being said, this job is our lively hood. I probably would not be as positive as I am if I did not have confidence that I will go back to work. It is also a extremely physical job, and they won't let me come back until it is right, probably the same "Fitness for Duty" test you had to go through, except I won't have to pull a dummy up a stairwell!

Thanks again for the positive thoughts and encouragement!

 

[M-80]

Wow, those are some pics. Glad you're OK, obviously one tough chick! I don't think your husband has to worry about whether you will joining in on future bike rides.

Best wishes & hoping for a speedy recovery!

Paul

Thanks, Paul. Now all I have to do is convince my husband that I do not need a hand bike, and I will be good!

 

[M-80]

Wow Marde, just wow.

I'm glad you are Ok and the truck did do an admirable job giving it's all to protect you.

You'll find another to replace it.

Humbling, isn't it?

 

[shfd739]

You give me much hope. I know I have some pretty serious hardware in my heel right now.

I am lucky to have a good job. I have six months with full pay, and then I go to 70%. Hopefully, I don't make it to 70%. That being said, this job is our lively hood. I probably would not be as positive as I am if I did not have confidence that I will go back to work. It is also a extremely physical job, and they won't let me come back until it is right, probably the same "Fitness for Duty" test you had to go through, except I won't have to pull a dummy up a stairwell!

Thanks again for the positive thoughts and encouragement!

Youre Welcome!!

I know the position you are in. Short term disability then long term disability are the only things that saved us.

There is a light at the end of the tunnel. I went back to work a little too soon (pushed hard on the fit for duty and fudged the pain level some) and my partner had to pull some of my weight; I couldnt stand being at home anymore.

Hang in there.

 

[M-80]

Youre Welcome!!

I know the position you are in. Short term disability then long term disability are the only things that saved us.

There is a light at the end of the tunnel. I went back to work a little too soon (pushed hard on the fit for duty and fudged the pain level some) and my partner had to pull some of my weight; I couldnt stand being at home anymore.

Hang in there.

Ahhhhh...someone is working graveyards tonight!

I, for one, am very grateful that your partner was willing to help pull your weight a little. I am sure he/she did not mind.

Thank you for all you do. Like I said in my story, I was very comforted when the first responders made their appearance. Knowing that fire truck was protecting me and some idiot was not gonna hit me again made all the difference in the world. They took very good care of me. It always amazed me that medics are the only people that can get IVs in with one try and minimal pain!

You, and everyone else that works as first responders, deserve a standing ovation. Thanks!

 

[arndog123]

WOW! I'm glad you came out safe and the Cruiser did it's job.

 

[NLXTACY]

Holy cow wait a minute!!!! Wait wait what?!?!












You're a chick?!?!?










Your calmness is what will help you through this whole ordeal. Sucks about the LC but she did EXACTLY what she was meant to do. I'm sure another LC is in your future once the insurance money kicks in. I'm glad you didn't accept the first "knee jerk reaction" doctor's suggestion. I know the recovery is going to suck bad but like you said, it will give you plenty of time to do all those things you've never had time to do.

I almost died from a stupid accident while in Rio and all I did was fall off a stupid fence and break my elbow. I'm 18 months in and although my arm is basically useless, I recovered from everything else and I can still do most of the stuff I need to do. Just keep working at it you will mend.

I say thank your Toyota engineers because they were your real guardian angels.

 

[jeffro109]

For sure a tough truck, one of the reasons I got one...since you made it out fairly well, what sort of car was the other one, and how did it fare?

 

[M-80]

Holy cow wait a minute!!!! Wait wait what?!?!

You're a chick?!?!?

Yes. I am a chick. A very tough chick!

 

[M-80]

For sure a touch truck, one of the reasons I got one...since you made it out fairly well, what sort of car was the other one, and how did it fare?

The other car was a 2001 Honda CRV. My truck pretty much destroyed it. I remember looking over at it while I was still in my truck. It was punted 75 yards to the north and was in the opposite shoulder from me, so three full traffic lanes plus a turn lane away from me, plus the distance north. My heavy truck really passed the force over to the lighter vehicle. I had no idea it was a wanna be SUV. I thought for sure it was a little car, because it was balled up really bad. They worked for a long time to get the driver out of it. When we went to see my truck after the wreck, the Honda was beside it. Probably the only thing that saved that kid was the fact that he was drunk. The interior was crushed to almost no space at all.

Hubby and I were looking at pictures of that Honda later. Chris started laughing because that dang end piece of the stock bumper on my truck was planted deeply in the front of the CRV. He recognized it because of all the times he has had to put it back on!

 

[sterling]

Wow. Glad you are o.k.

Good to see the LC did its job, thats one of the reasons I put up with the gas mileage as a DD for me and my two young sons.

Good luck with your recovery!

I see an ARB or similar in your future.

 

[M-80]

Wow. Glad you are o.k.

Good to see the LC did its job, thats one of the reasons I put up with the gas mileage as a DD for me and my two young sons.

Good luck with your recovery!

I see an ARB or similar in your future.

That has always been my thinking. I would rather use more gas and be protected than be in a gas sipper and have no protection whatsoever!

 

[Kaveeks]

Thanks for sharing your story.
Wow! It's comforting knowing how well these trucks hold up. The fact that you survived a head-on collision without airbags is pretty amazing.
I hope you have a speedy recovery.

 

[Brentbba]

Wow - scary pics and super happy your cruiser gave up it's life for you.

Reminds me of another crash a few years back with, I believe Scott (?), a pilot, that drifted off the road, or skidded off in icy conditions (don't remember the details). Needless to say he hit a stationary object and his entire front end was gone, similar to yours. He lived to recount the incident just as you have. We are all very lucky to be driving such great machines.

All the best on your recovery!

 

[M-80]

Wow - scary pics and super happy your cruiser gave up it's life for you.

Reminds me of another crash a few years back with, I believe Scott (?), a pilot, that drifted off the road, or skidded off in icy conditions (don't remember the details). Needless to say he hit a stationary object and his entire front end was gone, similar to yours. He lived to recount the incident just as you have. We are all very lucky to be driving such great machines.

All the best on your recovery!

I remember that story well. His brother Doug wrote a very in depth account of the accident and the shape of the vehicle.

The sad thing is this is the second Land Cruiser I have been hit in. I had a pristine 1988 FJ62 that was totaled when a semi punted a Ford Explorer into at at a high rate of speed. That accident could have been worse, especially if I had been in a gas sipper.

 

[M-80]

Thanks for sharing your story.
Wow! It's comforting knowing how well these trucks hold up. The fact that you survived a head-on collision without airbags is pretty amazing.
I hope you have a speedy recovery.

Thank you. One of the most amazing things to me is the drivers window shattered, and most of that glass ended up on me, yet I did not get cut. The ER doc did have to retrieve all the glass that ended up in my left ear! We are pretty sure the huge gash on my knee came from hitting the keys in the ignition!

 

[richmondbob]

When you're up to it, I highly recommend you watch "Love the Beast", a 2009 documentary made by film actor Eric Bana (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aKpX5phKTZE).

"Love the Beast" tells the story of Eric's obsession with his first car, a Ford Falcon XB Coupe (of Mel Gibson's "Mad Max" "Road Warrior" fame). It covers him buying it, the relationships he forged with his friends working on it, him racing it, how it made him a car guy and - ultimately - the emotional roller coaster he went on after crashing it during the 2007 Targa Tasmania. He interviews everyone from Jay Leno (yup, that Jay Leno) to Jeremy Clarkson (Top Gear UK) to Dr. Phil trying to figure out why he was feeling the way he was.

I'd watched it three times since it came out but still haven't been able to watch it since our accident. Haven't been up to it. I'll probably do so this weekend.

 

[M-80]

When you're up to it, I highly recommend you watch "Love the Beast", a 2009 documentary made by film actor Eric Bana (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aKpX5phKTZE).

"Love the Beast" tells the story of Eric's obsession with his first car, a Ford Falcon XB Coupe (of Mel Gibson's "Mad Max" "Road Warrior" fame). It covers him buying it, the relationships he forged with his friends working on it, him racing it, how it made him a car guy and - ultimately - the emotional roller coaster he went on after crashing it during the 2007 Targa Tasmania. He interviews everyone from Jay Leno (yup, that Jay Leno) to Jeremy Clarkson (Top Gear UK) to Dr. Phil trying to figure out why he was feeling the way he was.

I'd watched it three times since it came out but still haven't been able to watch it since our accident. Haven't been up to it. I'll probably do so this weekend.

I will check that out. Lots of free time now!

 

[BrotherRob]

Wow, glad you're okay Marde. Remind you husband that he's a lucky guy. He has a cruiser chick with a good head on her shoulders.