My Weekend Trip

1024 · 2004-02-02, 12:39 AM

That is the car i was riding in. The road was icy - as you can imagine, with the snow - and the driver lost control and we hit a snow embankment on the side of the road.

No one is really sure how the car ended up how it did. We were going a reasonable speed around a gradual right turn, when all 4 tires lost traction and our front right corner hit the snow. When we hit, one of two things happened:

When we hit, the snow under the car built up and formed a ramp ice, throwing the right side into the air, while the car was spinning.
As we hit the embankment the backside of the car swung around and the momentum made the car rotate until we were in the position we stopped in.

After we came out of the air and hit the road, we slid aobut 30 feet.

During this entire time 4 people were in the normal 4 seats in a car. None of us were hurt, for the simple reason that we had our seatbelts on.

I wasn't even looking up when it happened. I was messing with a video camera (that survived) and the next thing i know i hear a scream, everything goes blurry, and I black out. I didn't black out due to a collision, but just for the fact of information overload. I was being thrown around while trying to understand whats going on while wondering if i'm going to die while worrying about my friend and family.

When i came to my friend who had come with the family was standing on the left backseat passenger window. Immedietly he was screaming to open my door. We had landed with the top of the car facing from where we came from, the front of the car facing to the left of the original lane we were in, flipped onto the left side of the car.

When i realized what happened, i immedietly reached to open my door, which was locked. I had to manually pull the plastic tab to unlock the door. The locking mechanism was partially broken, so it took quite a bit of strength to get the lock undone. After i had finally gotten the door unlocked. I pulled the handle and pushed as hard as I could. Car doors are incredibly heavy.

When i got it open my friend was telling me to get out, but i told him that i couldn't as i could not hold the door and lift myself out at the same time. So he maneuvered around meand got on top of the right side of the car, holding the door so i could get out.

We immedietly jumped off the top of the car and made sure my parents were allright. They had already started to get out through the sunroof. After we made sure everyone was alright, my friend and I started to run up the road to make sure oncoming cars stopped. About 3 seconds after turning around a brown jeep pulled up and screached to halt as i stood in front of it yelling to the driver to stop, about at the spot where we hit the snow.

My friend proceeded up the road to try and warn other cars. Concequently two other cars - which happend to be employee cars from a ski lodge down the road - came aroudn the corner. The first hit the rear of the jeep, breaking it's radiator. The third came around and stopped enough to just scartch the paint once it hit its partner car.

One thing you must realize is that my friend and I had just come from getting out of the snow. Our clothes were damp, and we had no shoes on. When we got out of the car it was about 27�F. We had jumped from the top of the car and done all that in wet socks, and we didn't even realize it until everything had stopped.

The employee cars had radios inside, so the immedietly called for the rangers, who were there in about 15 minutes. It was about 3 hours until we had gotten the car upright, made some temporary repairs and drove back to the village and our hotel.

The one thing that angered me the most was that right after we had stopped sliding, and about as soon as i opened the door, another car coming from the other side of the road came by, and kept going. They fucking saw us on the side of the road on our side, and kept. fucking. going. Those assholes are going to burn. in. hell.

I have defiently learned the importance of a seatbelt. If it wasn't for the fact that we had all been wearing ours, there would of been some very serious injuries. Please, learn from my lesson as much as I have, wear your seatbelt whenever you get into a car. You always hear stories of these kind of things happening, but you never can really comprehend that this kind of thing can happen to you. Trust, i'm living. fucking. proof.

More pictures:
http://home.comcast.net/~christaplin...te2004_015.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~christaplin...te2004_020.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~christaplin...te2004_021.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~christaplin...te2004_022.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~christaplin...te2004_024.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~christaplin...te2004_027.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~christaplin...te2004_031.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~christaplin...te2004_033.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~christaplin...te2004_037.jpg

Jaged · 2004-02-02, 12:45 AM

Woh dude, are you alright? Where were you when this happened? You live close to me, so I assume you were probably near the Sierra mountians crossing into nevada. I could be wrong though. That is really weak though. What kind of repairs did your car need?

Fragmatic · 2004-02-02, 12:46 AM

Ouch dude, glad to hear your ok, that seatbelt thread was a lifesaver then!

coulda ended up like this -

1024 · 2004-02-02, 12:47 AM

Woh dude, are you alright? Where were you when this happened? You live close to me, so I assume you were probably near the Sierra mountians crossing into nevada. I could be wrong though. That is really weak though. What kind of repairs did your car need?

I'm fine, thanks to the seatbelt(i can't stress this enough - i would of been toss around inside the car if it wasn't for it).We were in Yosemite National Park, on an annual trip. Not sure on the repairs. This happened last night, and we just got back around 6:00 pm today.

Originally Posted by Fragmatic

Ouch dude, glad to hear your ok, that seatbelt thread was a lifesaver then!

coulda ended up like this -

Isn't that your halloween pic?

Jaged · 2004-02-02, 12:49 AM

You and everyone in that car should really see a Chiropractor. You are out of adjustment, trust me.

Fragmatic · 2004-02-02, 12:49 AM

yeah :P

dscytherulez · 2004-02-02, 12:49 AM

Glad to hear your ok. Did you get the repair bill yet? Your parents probably won't like that one...

1024 · 2004-02-02, 12:51 AM

We have insurance, so no worries on the repairs. Only real worries is about everyone in the car, and our insurance rates.

Rayder · 2004-02-02, 12:51 AM

What were you doing on that last pic?

Too bad you didn't manage to grab the camera while you were getting out and nap a pic of the car that past you and it's liscense plate, just so we could hunt it down.

At least you didn't hit an ice bank.

1024 · 2004-02-02, 12:53 AM

That last pic was me being artistic in a time of distress.

And i so was to kick that guy who passed us in the nuts.

SO BAD!!

SDM · 2004-02-02, 12:53 AM

That was me that drove by. I would have stopped but my GF was giving me a hummer, and I might have spilled my beer.

j/k Glad you're allright! Frightening stuff.

Rayder · 2004-02-02, 12:55 AM

A video camera and you took pics? C'mon! Movies are better

1024 · 2004-02-02, 12:58 AM

Originally Posted by SDM

That was me that drove by. I would have stopped but my GF was giving me a hummer, and I might have spilled my beer.

j/k Glad you're allright! Frightening stuff.