If it can Happen to Me, It can Happen to You
(con’t. from page 4)
We rode into Alexandria from Pineville on Hwy 165 with me riding
behind Ginger, “protecting her” as I always do. When I ride behind
Ginger it is always to the front of my mind: protect her, don’t let
anyone hurt her! The ride so far had been great, then we were on
MacArthur Drive, turning onto Louise to England Drive to go to
AmVet’s. We had the only right of way at the intersection. Ginger
disappeared and I was looking to see where she was, I came almost
a complete stop, looked to my left when I saw a car jumping as if it
wasn’t sure if he should go or not. My thought was do not let him
get behind Ginger so I started to go. Ginger had seen the same car
coming quickly to the yield and not appearing as if he would stop,
so she stopped.
Let me stop here and say I always check, double check, and even triple and quadruple check for my biker brothers and sisters. The best
and truest friends I have are bikers; I have always watched out for
them. I wasn’t texting; my phone was in my purse in the passenger
seat; I wasn’t even talking on the phone; I wasn’t tired; I was totally
aware…or so I thought.
I heard it before I saw it. I had bumped Ginger on her bike. I saw
Ginger’s arms go up in the air the way a ref will do for touchdown… then my friend disappeared. As soon as I heard it, I put on
my brakes and put the car in park. Thank you, God for giving me
enough sense to do that without thinking or hesitating!! I remember
throwing the door open and screaming her name, I just knew I had
killed my best friend. There is no feeling in the world like thinking
you have just killed someone you love; I hope and pray to never
have that feeling again or that any of you have to feel it.
The best news of all, my friend was alive!! But then I was worried
about her back or neck being broken or a concussion or anything
truly serious. So what do I do? She starts to raise up and I holler
at her, “YOU’RE NOT SUPPOSED TO MOVE, LAY DOWN!”
& push her back down. Yeah, true story. Thank you, Lord again
because immediately a lady biker with a Combat Vet patch came
up telling us she was trained and told Ginger not to move; she took
over and had someone call 911. She was also headed to the State
Board meeting; many heading to the meeting stopped to checked
on Ginger. Ginger had no broken bones; she had a gash on her leg,
about 3 inches long, an inch and a half deep. She hurt but she’s
alive.
I sent a text to our State VP, Rob Breedlove telling him I quit; I’m
out of the biker world because I “ran over” my best friend. I told
Ginger, our A.B.A.T.E. friends at the hospital with us, and Ginger’s
husband, John I was out. How could I “run over” my best friend
and continue, to be a part of (out of all organizations) A.B.A.T.E.?
All of them told me I wasn’t allowed to quit. I type this part with a
big smile on my face knowing they still love and want me.
I keep being told “everything happens for a reason” and Ginger
keeps saying “if it happened to you, it could happen to anyone.” I
have been told I have to tell our story, so here I am. I sat down the
day after the accident and wrote this. Ginger & I both were so blessed, so lucky; the most serious physical thing was a gash on her leg.
It really bothered me that I didn’t see Ginger even though she was
there, I couldn’t understand how I didn’t see her as careful as I
always am….always! We have since learned the section between
the windshield and the door is a major blind spot plus there are
frequent accidents at that intersection.
I just want everyone to know, “IF IT HAPPENED TO ME, IT
CAN ALSO HAPPEN TO YOU!!!” Those are Ginger’s words for
30
me to use and guess what, she still trusts and loves me and wants
me protecting her back door! Eight months, 1 day after the accident
I finally rode behind Ginger again. She wanted me to ride behind
her the day before, which just happened to be another Saturday the
14th, but I told her absolutely not!
I still relive the accident through nightmares at times, but they are
less frequent thankfully! N
Stacey and Ginger continue to be friends, and both
are active in the local motorcycle community. Both
will be contributing to Louisiana Biker Magazine on
a regular basis.
Riding Again
(con’t. from page 4)
Once I was able to walk again, I began to get out of the house
more. As we’d drive through town and bikes would go by, I noticed
I was feeling left out. I would think, “That should be me”. I began
thinking about trying to get back on, but when I did, fear welled
up inside me and told me, “No”! It took me about 2 months to
convince myself to just try being a passenger. Maybe I could settle
for that instead of riding my own again. So, I asked my fiancé to
take me for a short ride. Oh, how glorious th