Rock the Gear with Brittany Morrow at the International Motorcycle Show
If you’re attending any of the Progressive International Motorcycle Show dates as it travels around the country, make sure you check the Learning Curve schedule to see if Brittany Morrow is speaking. Her story is really moving.
If you’ve been a motorcycle rider who has used a forum or any other hangout on the web – I bet you know Brittany’s story even if you don’t realize it.
Founder of Rock the Gear, Brittany Morrow is a survivor. At the age of 20, she hopped on the back of a motorcycle as a passenger wearing an ill-fitting helmet, a sweatshirt, capri pants and sneakers. That day would change her life forever.
Brittany survived a 500+ foot slide along a hot New Mexico highway, when she came off the back of the bike which was traveling at about 120mph. From that day forward, she became The Roadrash Queen.
“No one plans on crashing.”
Listening to a person who lived through such an ordeal first hand, really adds a whole other level of “realness” to the story. Just hearing her mention how her kneecaps had to be reattached was gasp-worthy.
My hope is that someone who isn’t already practicing ATGATT hears her message and maybe changes their mind about not rocking the gear.
Even one changed person would be a success.
Brittany Morrows Rock the Gear video is awesome. I’ll be spreading her message!
I remember reading her story years ago. I have told it several times, but had forgotten her name. Thanks for sharing this.
Safe gear is so important. If I hadn’t been wearing it in 2003, I’d be writing this from underground.
A walking success story! Sorry it happened at all, of course, but glad your gear helped you to stick around to tell the tale.
You can only imagine how bad the internet connectivity is from down there 😉
Wow. I’d never read about her before. For so many years, we were quite careless about riding unprotected. Always a helmet and boots. Always jeans, too, which we thought were adequate. I’m glad we finally came to our senses before something like this happened to us.
I’m glad you didn’t have to learn from experience, too. The lessons to be learned from not dressing to minimize risk… all bad.
When we are young, in our own eyes, we are indestructible. Brittany is a very lucky girl indeed and it looks like she is doing a great job of trying to teach others from her own mistakes.
About 30 years ago, Ian was drunk at a motorcycle rally and for his stupidity got gravelrash on his back and forearms. He still has the photos of this somewhere.When a work collegue of his was having problems trying to explain to her son what could happen these photos were handed over. I think the message got through.
It still makes me cringe when we are travelling around to see motorcyclists riding without any protection. If you asked someone to put their hand on a brick wall, press on has hard as they could and run along the length of the wall, that person would think that we are mad, yet falling off two wheels and placing a hand on tarmac has the chances of being a lot more painful. Who’s mad then?
In May 2005, I was traveling 35-40 on a road nearby my home, heading to lunch. A female driver with a cell phone pulled out in front of me. No matter what I did that I was taught over a 35 year safe riding period, I was unable to avoid striking her left driver side quarter panel, was thrown off my bike over my windshield halfway through her windshield.
At the time I was wearing all PPE (Personal Protective Equipment), proper helmet, heavy riding jacket jeans and steel toed boots. Oh…it hurt, especially the impact to my sides and even my groin area. The fire department and local law enforcement that showed thought it was staged because of the odd way I was stuck inside the front windshield, like a missle. Believe it or not; I showed up to work the next day, none the less a little sore.
Anyone thinking they could have survived serious injury or death in such an accident without those items, is foolish. Everytime I travel to states without helmet laws, I “cringe” and it makes me really nervous. I have good pictures, but this site doesn’t allow for downloads.