SGT. 1ST CLASS BRIAN MOSS
439th Quartermaster Company
U.S. Air Force Reserve
New Haven, Connecticut
For years I have bought my children small dirt bikes and gone riding with them. I never let them ride without wearing their personal protective equipment and always set the example by wearing my own — except that one day when I made an exception.
It was late on a Sunday afternoon during a Labor Day weekend and I was working with friends to roof a barn. The kids had gotten bored and went looking for something more exciting to do. Eventually, they found their dirt bikes and dragged them out. Having been sitting for a while, the bikes were difficult to start, so I came down from the roof to help get them running.
Once I got the bikes started, the kids rode them up and down our 900-foot-long dirt driveway a couple of times. My kid complained his bike wasn’t running correctly, so I decided to give it a quick check ride. I ignored my own rules about wearing PPE and didn’t put on a helmet, gloves or other protective gear. After all, I was only going up and down the driveway. What could happen?
About two-thirds of the way down the driveway, the engine started to over-rev. I couldn’t get the bike to downshift, so I tried to slow it down by using the rear brake. Well, that didn't work either and I was fast approaching the end of the driveway, which opened onto a busy state road. Instead of going for the shut-off valve, I grabbed the brake handle, locked up the front tire and spun to the left. I then launched over the handle bars, landed on my left shoulder, flipped and slid face-down for at least 25 feet. Altogether, I managed to break my collarbone, burn my left leg, get a nasty case of road rash on my right arm and face (got four stitches there) and tear up my knees and elbows. Some example I was.
Had I been wearing my helmet and other PPE, the only injury I probably would have suffered would have been the broken collarbone. Instead, I provided my children with a perfect example of what not to do. Maybe at least seeing the consequences made an impression on them. Hitting the road certainly made an impression on me!
I’m glad it was me on the bike and not one of the kids when the engine malfunctioned. However, at least they were wearing their safety equipment — which reinforced a lesson for me. There is no situation so safe or harmless that you don’t need to wear your PPE.