Folks Of Interest CRAZY LUCKY! Hot Rod Gods Watching Over Us!

If you have seen my build thread on the Austin, you will know about my Dad. You will have even seen his Rod. Well we are all counting our blessing this morning as Dad and the Rod took a pretty wild ride yesterday. A car pulled out right in front of him, so close he didn't have time to apply any brake. He T-Boned the car. Upon impact, the little roadster's rear left the pavement according to multiple examples of Newton's Laws and promptly catapulted him right out. He went over the car he hit and then to the asphalt beyond.


I do a lot of work for the local Sheriff's Department and one of the officers I know quite well was first on the scene. Dad was lucid and told him to call his son (me) at my work. He recognized who I was and called me on my cell. He was trying to appropriately break the news to me about what had happened but I can hear my Dad in the background as he keeps interrupting him with concerns about the car. The EMT arrived and I can still hear Dad telling them what to do with his car. I told the Deputy to simply assure him that I said I have it under control and left to meet the ambulance at the hospital.


While in route to the Emergency Room I called a friend's tow company and arranged to have it picked up and dropped at my work. Dad looks like a few miles of bad road as you can imagine but after a ton of tests and scans etc. all they could come up with was one broken rib. Not bad for a 66 year old tossed out of a car! Crazy Lucky. After he finally made it to a room last night, he said you know I have been thinking about the car, if the frame not bent maybe we put the Model "A" cab on it and build a bobber style rod...LOL. That is all I need, another build thread. But certainly thankful to at least have the chance, if you know what I mean...

 

Wow, narrow escape!

 

Good to hear he wasn't hurt badly. With spirit like that he'll recover and move on quickly.

 

I don't know if it's Inappropriate to like a post about an accident, but it's always good when someone can walk away from a crash like that!

Best of luck with the rebuild!

 

OMG, glad your Dad is ok. That could have been so much worse. We were just talking about this last night, after hearing about the couple in California who died in their Model A. We hot rodders really don't have cars that give up much protection, so we have to be extremely careful and watch out for the idiots around us.

Hope your Pop continues to heal ok, the car is fixable.

Don

 

So glad your dad is ok....He will be back driving it in no time. Best of luck!!

 

Boy oh boy, the good Lord was looking out for your dad. Scary time but hopefully all will be well. Best wishes for your dad's recovery.

 

Wow!!! Cars can be fixed. Glad your Dad is OK.

 

Ya'll have a God watching over you for sure. But, it was not some generic Hot Rod god. That much I can promise you.

Glad he's ok.

 

Given all the threads in recent months about hot rod wrecks that ended tragically, it's good to hear one that turned out ok. Especially given the circumstances. Obviously people don't often walk away from something like what happened to your dad. Crazy lucky is right.

One thing folks, seat belts. I'm guessing there weren't any in this case. As much of a "traditionalist" as I am, that sissy strap will save your life. My Father in Law was driving his late model pickup one night coming out of the mountains when he reached for something. He drifted off the road and hit a boulder. He didn't even have time to react and hit the brakes. Destroyed his truck but he walked away without anything more than a sore chest from the belt.

So glad your dad walked away, ready to get back to work. A true hot rodder!

 

Agreed!!

 

Glad you Pop is on the mend, what a blessing to only break a rib, the Rodney will recover as well!

 

from someone who's dad is failing, spend as much time with him as you can and rebuild the car!

 

Amazing that it turned out so well - imagine more aches and pain will show up. but, taking it easy during recovery will help your Dad heal up faster. yep, really need to think through the rebuild/new build. sure that safety of driver & passenger will be the priority. wishing your Dad all the best, lucky that he has a Son like you.

 

Hope he gets well soon....but:
Missouri Revised Statutes Chapter 307
Vehicle Equipment Regulations Section 307.178.1
August 28, 2014
Seat belts required for passenger cars--passenger cars defined--exceptions--failure to comply, effect on evidence and damages--penalty--passengers in car exceeding number of seat belts not violation for failure to use.

307.178. 1. As used in this section, the term "passenger car" means every motor vehicle designed for carrying ten persons or less and used for the transportation of persons; except that, the term "passenger car" shall not include motorcycles, motorized bicycles, motor tricycles, and trucks with a licensed gross weight of twelve thousand pounds or more.
2. Each driver, except persons employed by the United States Postal Service while performing duties for that federal agency which require the operator to service postal boxes from their vehicles, or which require frequent entry into and exit from their vehicles, and front seat passenger of a passenger car manufactured after January 1, 1968, operated on a street or highway in this state, and persons less than eighteen years of age operating or riding in a truck, as defined in section 301.010, on a street or highway of this state shall wear a properly adjusted and fastened safety belt that meets federal National Highway, Transportation and Safety Act requirements. No person shall be stopped, inspected, or detained solely to determine compliance with this subsection. The provisions of this section and section 307.179 shall not be applicable to persons who have a medical reason for failing to have a seat belt fastened about their body, nor shall the provisions of this section be applicable to persons while operating or riding a motor vehicle being used in agricultural work-related activities. Noncompliance with this subsection shall not constitute probable cause for violation of any other provision of law. The provisions of this subsection shall not apply to the transporting of children under sixteen years of age, as provided in section 307.179.
3. Each driver of a motor vehicle transporting a child less than sixteen years of age shall secure the child in a properly adjusted and fastened restraint under section 307.179.
4. In any action to recover damages arising out of the ownership, common maintenance or operation of a motor vehicle, failure to wear a safety belt in violation of this section shall not be considered evidence of comparative negligence. Failure to wear a safety belt in violation of this section may be admitted to mitigate damages, but only under the following circumstances:
(1) Parties seeking to introduce evidence of the failure to wear a safety belt in violation of this section must first introduce expert evidence proving that a failure to wear a safety belt contributed to the injuries claimed by plaintiff;
(2) If the evidence supports such a finding, the trier of fact may find that the plaintiff's failure to wear a safety belt in violation of this section contributed to the plaintiff's claimed injuries, and may reduce the amount of the plaintiff's recovery by an amount not to exceed one percent of the damages awarded after any reductions for comparative negligence.
5. Except as otherwise provided for in section 307.179, each person who violates the provisions of subsection 2 of this section is guilty of an infraction for which a fine not to exceed ten dollars may be imposed. All other provisions of law and court rules to the contrary notwithstanding, no court costs shall be imposed on any person due to a violation of this section. In no case shall points be assessed against any person, pursuant to section 302.302, for a violation of this section.
6. The state highways and transportation commission shall initiate and develop a program of public information to develop understanding of, and ensure compliance with, the provisions of this section. The commission shall evaluate the effectiveness of this section and shall include a report of its findings in the annual evaluation report on its highway safety plan that it submits to NHTSA and FHWA pursuant to 23 U.S.C. 402.
7. If there are more persons than there are seat belts in the enclosed area of a motor vehicle, then the passengers who are unable to wear seat belts shall sit in the area behind the front seat of the motor vehicle unless the motor vehicle is designed only for a front-seated area. The passenger or passengers occupying a seat location referred to in this subsection is not in violation of this section. This subsection shall not apply to passengers who are accompanying a driver of a motor vehicle who is licensed under section 302.178.
(L. 1985 S.B. 43 § 1, A.L. 1988 H.B. 1512, A.L. 1997 S.B. 121, A.L. 2006 S.B. 872, et al.)

 

Glad your Dad is okay!

 

glad your dad OK & ready to rebuild... God bless. Now a request. How could the rod have been better built to survive or need strength where. 2nd & maybe more important - insurance and results with them. How can the rest of us prevent or prepare for such a disaster?

 

What a relief to see your Dad wasn't hurt more severely after a hit like that.

 

Glad your dad is ok! It's a calculated and understood risk we all take.

@Ricks Garage what is your point in posting the statue?

 

Happy to see your dad will be ok..................Metal can be fixed.

 

Thank God your dad wasn't hurt worse,hoping for a speedy recovery.

Cars can be replaced/fixed but people are much more fragile. HRP

 

I am glad your dads o.k. I am 62 and I don't bounce as good as I did 20 years ago.lol.Bruce.

 

Glad Dad is OK.

Makes me wonder if I want to put "Angel Eyes " on muy ride to better my chances of avoiding this myself !

 

I'd guess not too many people fly through the air in an accident and only come up with a broken rib. very lucky indeed.

 

Thanks for all the thoughts and comments. I thought they were going to kick him out if here today but the pain meds made him sick and the decided to keep him one more night. On a lighter note when they bring someone in with trauma from a car wreck here they give them a code name. Usually the model or make of car etc. Not sure why but Dad's code name was Spider Trauma. Any way we have been talking about the replacement build and Dad asked if I could come up with a graphic for it because he wants to call it Spider Trauma!

 

You didn't say, but did the seat belts break?

 

good to hear your dad will be ok sorry about the neat truck

 

btt

 

Two answer the seat belt question, he was not wearing one. I know, I know...believe me you are preaching to the choir here. My Austin has a 14 point cage and 5 point belts. But the roadster is a different animal from a different time. We have always had the opinion (crazy as it sounds) that we might be better off to bail out versus strapped in and ridding it out. I know that sounds nuts and maybe even irresponsible. Our true precautions with the car were how and where it was driven.

Of course there is always the other driver element that you can not control. But honestly that is a risk we all take not just in a traditional rod but any car. I have to say after finally getting my hands on what is left of the car last night (which by the way the initial posted photos from the tow company don't even begin to show the carnage) we were correct. The roadster does have seat belts but if he had been wearing them this would have been a very different thread. There is no way he would have survived strapped in the cockpit. I do not in any way want that to advocate for not belting up. It only shows someone with knowledge of the future had a hand in this build 20 plus years ago and was at the scene Friday as well. I don't think anyone in this hobby, if they are truly honest can have an attitude or a philosophy any more or less than "...as God go I"... But we do what we love and we do it with a certain amount of risk.

 

Very glad to hear your dad is OK. This could have turned out very bad. The driver that pulled out in front of him needs to sit down and think about how serious a situation they caused!