So, I'm Tommy's buddy Jim that is developing a bit of a reputation for crashing out Motopia members right in front of him. In particular on Gixxers. Another member last year wadded his 750 in a throttle induced high-side coming out of rattlesnake clockwise right in front of me. I know if I were a Gixxer, I'd be scared of the Buell, too...
T is fine... like a good man he went to the hospital and got checked out. Lord knows I wish all the people I have known to crash were smart like T and not the belligerent "I'm a man" they usually are... Anytime the helmet touches and there's a knot on your grape, go get scanned... So good on you Tommy, and I know everyone is glad to know you are OK.
The crash was more or less as described. I was coming up on the inside of T going into Tombstone setting up for a pass. Running CCW, that's a great place to pass because the pass-e will be setting up to use all the track wide and it gives the passer a clean line on the inside that won't disrupt the other rider. From my perspective, I saw Tommy's front tuck, slide, grab, twist and then toss. It happened really fast. He was a bit off line, but there aren't a lot of marbles and unexpected elements on the track there since the cars do a good job of clearing it...
There's no question something loaded the front tire -- possibly that shift -- but I also think there's a chance he simply bottomed his suspension. We had been working on it in the paddock, and I had gotten to the point where damping, compression and rebound were all at the max, and T was still using up almost 80% of the fork travel even at low speeds. So, it's always worth getting a bike sprung and valved for your weight and skill level...
Now it's so cold we can only talk about riding...
