Have You Ever Almost Died

[4X4]

But then walked away with mere scratches? I've had a couple close calls, but yesterday really tripped me out. I've been trying to forget about this for ~24 hours, but I can't.
I work in land development (we build custom homes) so I'm around constructions sites daily. Yesterday, I was going into one of our projects and the ramp gave way and I fell about 3 feet and landed on my back. Doesn't really sound like much until you consider that as I rolled over to get up, I encountered a piece of rebar sticking up out of one of the pilings for the (future) deck. This thing is sticking up about a foot out of the ground. And it wasn't close to my leg or my ass, it ended up between my back and my arm. Imagine that. Falling a few feet off a gangplank, landing on your back, and a piece of metal seperating your torso and your arm.
So I was within inches of having a long piece of metal pierce my lung or heart, but instead, it did nothing at all. My elbow hurts. That's all. Oh, and my clothes got dirty.

Needless to say, I drank heavily last night.

[MelBridgeman]

you win some, you lose some
you won!
now go buy a lotto ticket

[bigtmac19]

Originally Posted by 4X4

But then walked away with mere scratches? I've had a couple close calls, but yesterday really tripped me out. I've been trying to forget about this for ~24 hours, but I can't.
I work in land development (we build custom homes) so I'm around constructions sites daily. Yesterday, I was going into one of our projects and the ramp gave way and I fell about 3 feet and landed on my back. Doesn't really sound like much until you consider that as I rolled over to get up, I encountered a piece of rebar sticking up out of one of the pilings for the (future) deck. This thing is sticking up about a foot out of the ground. And it wasn't close to my leg or my ass, it ended up between my back and my arm. Imagine that. Falling a few feet off a gangplank, landing on your back, and a piece of metal seperating your torso and your arm.
So I was within inches of having a long piece of metal pierce my lung or heart, but instead, it did nothing at all. My elbow hurts. That's all. Oh, and my clothes got dirty.

Needless to say, I drank heavily last night.

Holy crap, that's creepy.
Glad you got lucky.

[Flames_Gimp]

wow..close man

[Tower]

I almost had sex with Rita Macneal - I was very Drunk...

ha ha J/K
only bugging you...

Glad to see you are okay though..

Today I drove the company vehicle to Red Deer and the side window shattered! Passanger side thank goodness but wow... Crappy. Scared the bajesus out of me... Drove back to work and switched to the little truck and it had a flat!!! Some thing did not want me driving today....

Again I'm glad you are not hurt.

[Cowboy89]

Originally Posted by 4X4

But then walked away with mere scratches? I've had a couple close calls, but yesterday really tripped me out. I've been trying to forget about this for ~24 hours, but I can't.
I work in land development (we build custom homes) so I'm around constructions sites daily. Yesterday, I was going into one of our projects and the ramp gave way and I fell about 3 feet and landed on my back. Doesn't really sound like much until you consider that as I rolled over to get up, I encountered a piece of rebar sticking up out of one of the pilings for the (future) deck. This thing is sticking up about a foot out of the ground. And it wasn't close to my leg or my ass, it ended up between my back and my arm. Imagine that. Falling a few feet off a gangplank, landing on your back, and a piece of metal seperating your torso and your arm.
So I was within inches of having a long piece of metal pierce my lung or heart, but instead, it did nothing at all. My elbow hurts. That's all. Oh, and my clothes got dirty.

Needless to say, I drank heavily last night.

Glad you're okay and taking care of yourself by pausing to ensure that you don't ingest bad Salsa!

TBQH I haven't had too many close calls yet in my life. Knock on wood!

[calf]

Driving between some really small towns in Saskatchewan this past December, I hit some ice & lost control of the car...crossed into oncoming traffic (nothing that close, fortunately), hit the ditch (on 2 wheels part of the way in).

[ken0042]

Once after a head on collision on the highway was my mangled wreck was spinning out of control I was headed off a cliff. About a 200 foot drop. I happened to land on a ledge that was about a 20 foot drop. Said ledge was barely wide enough for the car.

Probably the closest I've been.

[4X4]

Originally Posted by calf

Driving between some really small towns in Saskatchewan this past December, I hit some ice & lost control of the car...crossed into oncoming traffic (nothing that close, fortunately), hit the ditch (on 2 wheels part of the way in).

This reminds me of a friend I used to have (not dead, just an a-hole) that was driving up the QEII one icy day, and he lost control, crossed the median (ditch) and then passed through oncoming traffic and ended up in the ditch. Or maybe that happened on Crowchild N. I can't remember. But scary shizz nonetheless.

[4X4]

Originally Posted by ken0042

Once after a head on collision on the highway was my mangled wreck was spinning out of control I was headed off a cliff. About a 200 foot drop. I happened to land on a ledge that was about a 20 foot drop. Said ledge was barely wide enough for the car.

Probably the closest I've been.

OK, that is f'd up. That makes my piece of rebar sound like a teddy bear.

[Wookie]

Yeah, this winter i wiped out and crashed on the highway - was cursing f, I'm dead I'm dead, I'm dead as I tried to regain control. Managed to recover and with a little luck was fine. Shook me up for a few days.

When I was 16 - 17 I ended up driving down a sidewalk on 12th ave after swerving to avoid a car cutting me off. I was going probably 100km/hr. I almost hit a store/telephone pole, phone booth, tree, parking meter.

Almost stepped into oncoming traffic when not paying attention once. I actually stepped into it, just happened to be no car at that second, when I realized and moved back a car flew by.

I'm sure there are plenty more - and more to come... creepy thought, especially since one could be my demise.

[4X4]

Originally Posted by Wookie

When I was 16 - 17 I ended up driving down a sidewalk on 12th ave after swerving to avoid a car cutting me off. I was going probably 100km/hr. I almost hit a store/telephone pole, phone booth, tree, parking meter.

WTF were you doing 100 on 12th? By "cut off" do you mean that someone changed lanes 100m in front of you? Heh heh...

[Machiavelli]

Yeah, when I was about 4 I nearly drowned. My dad almost didn't realize that I had wandered into the deep end, but got back to me just in time . .

[burn_this_city]

I was driving back from edmonton one time.. Me and three of my friends in my Firebird, it had really really bald back tires.. I had just bought the car, and thought I could get away with one quick boot up to edmonton for the labour day rematch in September.. We're driving back on the sunday and it starts to rain pretty bad. I didnt think much of it since the tires had a lil tread on them, and the fronts were brand new. I also rationalized since they were michelin pilots (supposidly the best tires money can buy) that I could continue to do 140.. Anyways I'm driving on a completely straight flat stretch in 6th gear when all of a sudden the car goes sideways, I start spinning the wheel the opposite direction and it starts sliding the other direction. I'm literally driving out the side windows.. Back and forth the car is sliding from right to left to right to left, each time its getting faster and faster, and by now I'm counter steering it all the way to full lock.. With every pass the shoulder on the left gets closer and closer, my one friend keeps saying "This is it" everytime I correct.. Anyways by about the sixth cycle back and forth I regain control.. Everyone praises the flying spaghetti monster and we continue on our merry way.. I slow down to 90-100 for the rest of the voyage.. We get a little closer to Airdrie and it happens again, this time there is traffic around me, and the road construction on either side has reduced the grade a couple of feet.. I figured this was perfect conditions to put the car on the roof.. Back and forth we go and its alot harder to recover this time, by the fourth or fifth pass the car settles down and I drive straight to the side of the road.. We roll down the shoulder into Airdrie and wait out the storm.. I have never been so weak knee'd in my entire life.. My buddies to this day are convinced if we hit the center median on the first loss of control we woulda gone into oncoming traffic.. Or rolled the stupid thing if we went into the construction on the highway side by Airdrie.. I dunno if we would died but it would have been close..

I also narrowly missed a head on collision in my mustang when a girl fell asleep at the wheel and clocked a semi..

[bigtmac19]

Originally Posted by ken0042

Once after a head on collision on the highway was my mangled wreck was spinning out of control I was headed off a cliff. About a 200 foot drop. I happened to land on a ledge that was about a 20 foot drop. Said ledge was barely wide enough for the car.

Probably the closest I've been.

Yes, definitely scariest story yet.

[arsenal]

My story.. i was driving with a friend, it was around new years, snowy and icey.. He had a huge lifted suburban. He was drunk ( i know ) but anyway.. we where coming off an off ramp, and he ended up loosing control, and we side swiped a lamp post. It hit the driver side rear door, basically right dead center of the vehicle. I figured if it had hit anywhere else but dead center, we would have spun, and probably got hurt bad. As it turns out, we where both fine, but we had to do some serious repair as one of his huge 35 inch tires tore off his rim. That was a crappy night.

[Crispy's Critter]

once I was driving really slow in the left hand lane on Deerfoot, and out of nowhere comes this butthole in a 4X4 doing about 140, and almost ran right over me!

[FlamesAddiction]

I had a near drowning. I was swimming under water and became disorientated. When I tried to surface, I was under a dock. So I swam away (still under water) and tried to surface but was just at the other end of the dock.... and then I did the same thing one more time and was under a different dock. Finally, on the 4th try, I was able to surface for air. I was at the point that I couldn't bear to hold my breath any longer.

That is what happens when you swim at a boat launching area of a marina I guess...

[stuck_in_chuk]

I was once driving from Oakville to Toronto on the QEW to hang out with some friends for my birthday. I was coming into Mississauga and noticed right behind me a car spin out and smash right into the side of another car. Caused a big pileup, and I later found out one person died. Apparently the one car blew a tire as he was passing the car behind me and spun out.

[4X4]

Originally Posted by Crispy's Critter

once I was driving really slow in the left hand lane on Deerfoot, and out of nowhere comes this butthole in a 4X4 doing about 140, and almost ran right over me!

Well done...