I saw a show called 'Impact!' on Discovery Health Channel last night. One segment dealt with a T-bone accident that killed 4 people and took down a traffic signal pole. The task was to figure out which vehicle ran the red light. Fascinating stuff! They were able to determine who had the red light by looking at the filaments in the lights. The green light filament was broken by the impact. The red light filament was deformed but not broken, because it was warm, revealing that the red light was on. Then they were able to determine which direction that light cluster was facing. The drunk ran the red and hit the tweaker. But, the really interesting segment was the one about the guy on one of those Honda Harley clones. After an argument with his wife, he got on his bike and rode off. Returning home, he inexplicably dropped the bike on an easy curve, going about 30 mph, and slid into the front of an SUV, killed instantly. Authorities were puzzled. Why would the bike fall and go into a slide? And, why did he die from this low-speed accident that he could have survived? Well, gents, the miracle of Forensic recreation shone again! Two factors came into play. One, he used what they said was "rubber polish" on his tires. Probably Armorall, which says right on the bottle, "do not use on seats or tires." He put it all over the sides of his tires down to a 20 degree angle. When he went into that turn, the bike leaned more than 20 degrees, which put the Armorall in contact with the street. They did tests on a track to determine what angle one might lean at 30 mph or that particular curve. It was well over 20 degrees. Next, the autopsy showed that he had a hole punched in his head over his left eyebrow, which was fatal. Since he was wearing a helmet, they were wondering if it was murder or something, until they did more studies. What happened was, when he hit the ground in the slide, the beanie helmet rode up to the back of his head. When he hit the SUV, his head slammed into the turn signal cluster on the left handlebar. They found tissue on the turn signal switch, eeugh. Any way, the last part of the show, they displayed the beanie helmet and the label inside that said, "Novelty use only, this helmet is not DOT approved." A cautionary tale for the people who choose style over function, no? -- -- Barb Chaplain, ARSCC "Comparing Scientology to a motorcycle gang is a gross, unpardonable insult to bikers everywhere. Even at our worst, we are never as bad as Scientology." -ex-member, Thunderclouds motorcycle "club"
I'd have looked at the colors and markings on the cables at the control-box end and the light-cluster end. I dunno, but if I was in charge of a city's traffic lights, I'd institute a policy that required cables to be clearly marked with tags or color codes, and a chart in the control box to let you know which is which. But then as QA guy and sysadmin, I'm like that. Leaving aside the poetic irony of someone who polishes his motorcycle tires with Armor-All getting killed by a light switch hitting his brain... I find myself with nothing else to say.
A cautionary tale for people who ride while adrenaline poisoned. Going to bed angry may cost you your marriage, but going on the road in that condition is life-threatening. Rich, Urban Biker
Unless you're riding a Honda Elite... -- -- Barb Chaplain, ARSCC "Comparing Scientology to a motorcycle gang is a gross, unpardonable insult to bikers everywhere. Even at our worst, we are never as bad as Scientology." -ex-member, Thunderclouds motorcycle "club"
