OMG! The engine quit!

[896tr]

Paul Z, yes I have been lucky enough to walk away from every crash that I have ever had.......so far. I don't want to die "doing what I love to do". I love off roading, flying, hiking, fishing, well you all get the picture. Dying is the last thing I want to happen when I am enjoying doing something that I love. The worst motor cycle crash cost my health insurance company $34,000 for the trauma center to confirm exactly what I told the highway patrol officer, the ambulance crew, (that just happened to be the same crew that was dispatched to the plane crash), And the 3 people that stopped to help me and direct freeway traffic around me. Those 3 people all told me they thought I was dead. One witness said he quit counting when my head hit the pavement the forth time. The short version is that the front fender came loose and wedged against the tire and locked up. I had the cruise control set at 73 mph so I know I was going that fast when it happened. That speed was 22 mph slower than I usually rode through that area, in full safety gear, in 114 degree heat because of the people that were in a bad mood from their monetary losses in Vegas. That day was only 95 degrees and I wanted to enjoy the ride so I only had my helmet, work uniform. and boots on. I have lots of road tattoos now. The helmet kept me from dying but was destroyed, the whole left side was ground off.
The plane crash was in a weight shift ultra lite trike that I was selling for my nephew. It had been in storage for 2 years and I spent a week taxi testing and looking for the reason the Rotax 447 engine wouldn't keep running. After replacing many parts including the fuel filter, twice, I finally found a small black speck in the carb needle. Cleaned the carb for the 4th time and added fresh fuel. Back out to the runway. Three high speed passes and I was ready to get airborne. back taxied and announced on the radio that this could be the time I would try it.
It lifted off like a dream. I glanced at the airspeed indicator and it showed 65 mph. OOPS! 65mph and one foot off the ground.
I pushed the bar forward to climb and at that speed it got real ugly real fast for me. I only had one hour of flight instruction in a weight shift.
I was at 100 feet above the runway when the engine stopped. I'm thinking OK, I have enough runway left to safely glide down, CRAP!!!, the engine just coughed out whatever was in it's throat! OK,OK,OK, still enough room.
Wrong! single engine fixed wing training kicked in. I could hear Wolfgang's voice saying "vat are you goink to do now"? So I pushed the "stick" forward to set up for a glide, wrong direction. I was immediately back up to 100 feet with full throttle when the left side of the wing stalled. I hit the ground with full throttle.
The first 4 people to get to me told me not to move because i was
"hurt bad" and they all had called 911. I finally convinced them to just help me peal the metal off of me so I could uncramp my left leg. "And for goodness cancel that stupid 911 call!"
I walked away from that wadded up mess with only a dent in my left knee. cap from a piece of gravel on the runway.
The cause of the engine failure you ask? Ethanol in the auto fuel ate the fuel lines and almost microscopic pieces made it past the fuel filter and waited for their buddy's to reunite at the "needle bar".

Lesson learned-NEVER, EVER USE A DIRTY NEEDLE!!!!

Steve

[efwd]

Awesome........