I promised not to post much, but I must share this. On December 19, 1999 Myself and a friend decided to leave my house on our motorcycles and go to the local Hooters restaurant for wings. We never made it. After watching the space shuttle night launch from my driveway, we departed. Approximately 1.4 miles from my house, in a residential area, going 35mph, a drunk driver coming from the other direction crossed the centerline and hit us head on. I had the most severe injuries. After a long hospital stay, and many months of recovery, I finally was able to get back to work and life. My point????
Since I was old enough to ride, I have owned, raced, wrenched, prepared, and trained on motorcycles of every different caliber. I wore the best safety equipment, became a certified safety instructor, and was considered by all who knew me to be one of the safest motorcyclists around this area. "Never in a million years would I dream that it would happen to you", is what people would say to me. But it did. Preparation, knowledge, a mentality of safety first, and all of the scenario practice cannot stop what may be simply inevitable. Or maybe it can. I don't wish to expound my religious beliefs on anyone. But I believe that when it is your time, you will die. That night, it wasn't my time. It was Steve's time. It may be yours next. >From someone who came close, please listen to me. You can analyze Steve's accident all you wish, as it's a good tool to learn. You can prepare your plane all you like. But if you haven't walked up to the people you love and told them so lately, you are not prepared. Because, all of you great engineering minds, statistics show that it isn't your plane that will kill you.....it's disease. ANd you can't engineer your way out of that one. So when you are done reading this, you can heed my advice, curse me, love me, or tell me to go away. But tell someone you love them, before it's too late. Because no matter what you think, you just never know when it's time. Was Steve's wreck cause by an accelerated stall from the added weight and a steep turn? I don't know. Was it control surface failure? I don't know. Was it a mistake on his part? I don't know. What I do know is that the show of support from all these friends is the true measure of what his life really was. Can you say that about yourself? Live his example.....with or without the damn parachute. Scott __________________________________ Yahoo! Mail - PC Magazine Editors' Choice 2005 http://mail.yahoo.com
