StEVEN Posted January 3, 2009 Share Posted January 3, 2009 Saw you just past Homebase, we were in the tintop....Yellow CSR with a black noseband didn't get the reg 😔... C7 XSL Xtra Super Light 🥰 🥰 CATERHAM GALLERY here Edited by - StEVEN on 3 Jan 2009 23:03:40 Edited by - StEVEN on 7 Jan 2009 12:21:21 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteS Posted January 7, 2009 Share Posted January 7, 2009 Hi Steven, That was me and the Mrs out for a gentle drive to keep the battery charged... Unfortunately that will be the last one for a while - if you had seen us 10 minutes later it wouldn't have been as pretty. Just after we joined the A21 London bound I crossed from lane 1 to 2, the back end stepped out and I lost control. We ended up going backwards into a tree and came to rest on the drivers side of the car. I was stunned/winded, but without a scratch... the Mrs wasn't quite so lucky though... she is now recovering from a fractured skull and shoulder blade. Luckily, that probably sounds much worse that it actually is. It could certainly be much worse. There are no other problems with fluids to/from the brain and she has all her faculties. There is quite a large haematoma on the right side of her head so they are keeping an eye on her, but she is making great progress and they are pleased with how well she is doing. she was up and gingerly walking about yesterday, whereas Monday she couldn't even sit up without the room spinning. Although we didn't both walk away completely scratch free, we still feel that we are testiment to the strength of the car and its ability to protect its occupants. Apparently it takes alot of energy to break a shoulder blade, but the car absorbed alot of the impact. I genuinely wouldn't have been doing more than 70 and wasn't accelerating very hard at all, we can only think that there must have been some black ice or something on the damp strip you get between lanes. Apparently there had been an accident in exactly the same spot a week before, and I crawled out onto the debris of another vehicle (there was no other car involved in our accident thankfully)! As always the emergency services were great, and so where the guys that pulled over to call them and help me. I had to make a snap decision to move Min out of the car as there was petrol leaking everywhere and I had just filled up. Again, I'm grateful she had no other neck or spine injuries. My only critisicm is that they didn't actually spot the skull fracture until she had been in the hospital for nearly 24 hours as she was continuing to be sick. This is dispite xrays and CT scans. I'm really not sure what state the car is in at the moment, its not at the top of the list of priorities really. The police recovered it to a Reliance Recovery depot in Clacketts, and as the insurance only covers one recovery I've now got to get it to the Caterham factory (AA won't do RTA recovery). The only other thing to say is sorry to Ben. You cared for that car so beautifully and we've enjoyed driving it so much, I'm sorry I bent it ☹️ Sorry to bear bad news, but we really are looking at the positives and are more thankful than you can imagine. A few weeks and she'll tippy top again... If you do have to drive out there in these conditions, no matter the breed of your steed, please be very careful. Pete. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stationary M25 Traveller Posted January 7, 2009 Share Posted January 7, 2009 Pete - ouch - sorry to hear that ☹️. It was a treacherous weekend with regard to the state of the roads - a lot of black ice across the south east. From our experience in Sevens at the weekend, the roads that were most dangerous were the major roads that had been salted - it is now retaining the grease and moisture - which freezes. Hope the recovery progresses well. Edited by - Stationary M25 Traveller on 7 Jan 2009 12:05:13 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Long Posted January 7, 2009 Share Posted January 7, 2009 Blimey That made for pretty shocking reading Pete!!!! Glad you are both ok, and good to hear Min is on the road to recovery. Sod the car (in the nicest possibly way), it's you guys that are important. It sounds like the CSR stood up to quite a beating. I do wonder how a standard chassis car would have stood up, given the CSR is supposedly a lot stronger? I'll call you in a bit Pete. Give my regards to Min. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drumster Posted January 7, 2009 Share Posted January 7, 2009 Pete, Very sorry to hear your news. Must have been quite a shock to you both. Speedy recovery to Min. When you do eventually decide to do something about your 7 let me know as I'm in Orpington and could quite easily collect and take it to Dartford for you. I have a tilt-bed trailer and winch. Hopefully the 7 can still be winched rather than needing to be lifted. Chris Alston C7CAT 1800 Supersprint R248 ....and then I jumped in Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drumster Posted January 7, 2009 Share Posted January 7, 2009 Doh! Just cottoned on to the CSR bit. Don't think my trailer will be wide enough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Carmichael Posted January 7, 2009 Share Posted January 7, 2009 Pete, YHM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ansar Ali Posted January 7, 2009 Share Posted January 7, 2009 Pete, I have just been advised by Sharon in Service of this post and of course the accident. Please extend my best wishes to your wife - I am just glad you and her 'walked away' from the incident. Also glad the CSR protected you as best it could. I wish you and your wife a full and speedy (no pun intended!) recovery. All the best, Ansar Ali Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteS Posted January 7, 2009 Share Posted January 7, 2009 Hello everyone. It's Min (the Mrs) here Well, I'm a little battered, reasonably bruised, few stitches & the afore-mentioned breaks but other than that, didn't even break a nail. Typing speed is pretty near normal (97 WPM!!) and I'm (we're) positively overwhelmed by the fabulous messages from you guys, thank you very much. Pete welled up (sssh, don't tell him I told you) after he'd spoken with Sharon at Service as we were both gob-smacked that a leading car manufacturer cares about "the little people". OUTSTANDING customer care, truly inspirational. A HUGE thank you to Caterham for your support. Evidently we had a rough trot this weekend but we've lived to tell the tale and after all the "what-ifs" and "could-have-beens" flood through your mind, you FULLY appreciate the strength of that little yellow CSR let me tell you. My four consultants (neuro, osteo, general and ENT) were all staring in disbelief when we showed the photo of our baby which we keep in pride of place as our mobile wallpaper ..."you had an accident at 70mph in THAT and you're ok?!" utter consternation. We had to drive back from the hospital today along the same piece of road where the accident happened and I was a little trepidous I don't mind admitting (well who wouldn't be, letting Pete drive again?!) but other than a few bits of bent tree, no-one would ever have known what took place on Saturday afternoon. Not 100% sure I could have done the trip in a Caterham just yet, but I really hope I don't go all girly over this and plonk me bum firmly in the seat in a couple of months (when the breaks are mended) - driving won't be a problem, it'll be putting my trust on icy roads & being a passenger again I reckon ) As you can tell, we're full of good spirits. As much as our CSR is our world, she's insured & that's what the stuff's there for, so she'll hopefully be back good-as-new in the Spring (when the ice has gone). We've lived to tell the tale & extol the virtues of the finest little car I've ever encountered. Thanks again & be careful on the roads! Min x Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stationary M25 Traveller Posted January 7, 2009 Share Posted January 7, 2009 Hurrah, Glad to hear you have got home ! Recovery will be much swifter without the hospital cleaners starting work at 5am. Hope you can get the car to a safer place soon too. Very best wishes from us all Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Z3MCJez Posted January 7, 2009 Share Posted January 7, 2009 I've only just seen this, as I don't check spotted. OMG. I was building my car that afternoon, within about 150 yards of the bypass. I can attest to many blue lights, and the temperature being about -3. My hands were freezing, but I'm glad you're both alright. Wishing you a speedy recovery. Jez Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin J Posted January 7, 2009 Share Posted January 7, 2009 So sorry to hear of your accident Pete & I hope your wife makes a swift recovery. I to had a shunt on Sunday morning. Same as you, black ice, lost the backend & hit an earth bank luckily not traveling too quickly. Some minor damage to the front end but an insurance job. Just bruised pride in my case. All the best Martin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mav Posted January 7, 2009 Share Posted January 7, 2009 Sorry to hear of your accident and gald you are both on the mend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteS Posted January 7, 2009 Share Posted January 7, 2009 Thank you all so very very much for your kind words, support and selfless offers of help, it truly is very much appreciated. Sharon has very kindly offered to recover the car for me (like many of her colleagues, she didn't hesitate to go above and beyond the call of duty - what a team) and they will then be able to assess it for repairs, here's hoping a bit of t-cut and it will be fine I'm actually quite keen to see the car now as I didn't really pay much attention to it after the accident. If I get to see it once it's recovered I may post up some pictures... Its been a really crap month for us in alot of ways. But we've also been surrounded by some bloody great people, and I count you all in that group too. We're gonna bounce back now, bigger, faster, better... so watch out world! 😬 I might just have a punt at that £50m jackpot on Friday too... Thank you all again so very much - I wish I could buy you all a drink. At the very least I will raise a glass to you at the next opportunity, cheers! PS - I didn't well up, I just got something caught in my eye!!! 😬 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StEVEN Posted January 8, 2009 Author Share Posted January 8, 2009 *eek*Pete & Min I am truly gutted for you both the awful events that unfolded after spotting you 😔....but great to read that the CSR did a sterling job of protecting you and that Min is now on the mend ..lets hope the CSR will be back on the road soon for you guys to be enjoying yourselves again, you certainly seemed to be when we saw you, actually our 4 yr old Daughter Phoebe saw you first, i've trained her well 😬 All the best and if any of the Kent crew can help you in anyway, just ask Phoebe says hi ....she should be in bed though 😔 C7 XSL Xtra Super Light 🥰 🥰 CATERHAM GALLERY here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich N Posted January 8, 2009 Share Posted January 8, 2009 Pete & Min, Quick note to say 'welcome back' from someone else who has wrecked one of Ansar's finest backwards into a collection of trees a short time ago. A shocking read but I'm pleased that even in the week you returned from hospital, at least one of you can type faster than I can, mid-day after 3 pints of coffee. I hope that your insurance dealings are swift and efficient, and can put you in touch with someone on here who buys up every shape of bent Caterham if they're not! Best wishes for further recovery; maybe see you out and about in the coming year! Rich p.s. if being 'spotted' like this seems like the final irony, then you'll also want to know that my only spotted so far was when my old car was seen on a flat-bed, battered and squashed, after my own indiscresion! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prangerman Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 Pete and Min Very sorry to hear about your prang but so glad it was not much worse. As Steve says, if there is anything we can do let us know. (The offer would carry more meaning if I had a trailer... ) 😬 Peter In Memoriam DMG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteS Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 Well thankfully the car is now in the best possible hands. We popped over to Dartford this afternoon to have a look, here is what we found - pics I know showing these may not be best thing to do in terms of its future value (should it be repaired), but I think there may be some use in showing them. Although nothing has penetrated the passenger seat, when you feel it, you can tell something is tight up against the back of it - this will have caused the fracture to the shoulder blade. Still not entirely sure what hit the head, but reasonably sure it was either the rollover bar or the roof stick that pierced the boot cover. We still think that given the point of impact was just a few inches behind the passenger, Min was very lucky. You can see how much the the passenger seat has moved and begun to crush against the tunnel. The over head shots make it all look very twisted. Thanks yet again to the superstar that is Sharon in sorting everything out so far... it is so very much appreciated. *thumbup* *thumbup* *thumbup* Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stationary M25 Traveller Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 Ouch - a real testament to the strength of the car Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StEVEN Posted January 9, 2009 Author Share Posted January 9, 2009 *eek*BL 🙆🏻 🙆🏻DY HELL .....Min was very lucky..i would say the seat and headrest probably helped in some way a tillet may have been a different story though...i take it the car isn't a write off 🤔 even though it looks like one as it can be rebuilt with a new chassis...have to say it does look like the rear frame did a good job of absorbing the impact in such a short distance ..must be gutting to see it in that state ☹️ 😔 Main thing is your both ok C7 XSL Xtra Super Light 🥰 🥰 CATERHAM GALLERY here Edited by - StEVEN on 10 Jan 2009 11:01:40 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin J Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 Blimey! Quite shocking pictures but the passenger "cell" looks pretty intact. I'm not suprised you suffered a fuel leak, that's a hell of a bash to the rear nearside. Thank God you both got out of the car ok & the fuel didn't catch! Glad to here Min is home & I assume that's her in shot with her arm in a sling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richyd Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 Pete - That is an awful mess.... I'm so glad you both managed to (just) walk away from it. I drive that part of the A21 twice a day, every day, and you can see a line of tar that runs down the road between the two lanes where the roadbuilders have bonded the two lanes together having laid the tarmac in two seperate lines. I think you must have spun a wheel on this line (right now it is very black and very shiney, I think it holds the damp a lot more than the tarmac) as you moved from lane 1 to lane 2.... Lesson for us all here, once you have looked at those pictures I don't think there is any doubt, you should have an FIA bar fitted - I know this has been debated before, but FFS get one fitted..... It should be a compulsory 1st upgrade methinks. Pete, I hope you and Min are back to full health and on the road in the not-too-distant..... Rich C7 DVA - It's a 1.6 187bhp screamer!!! (with FIA Bar)here Edited by - Richyd on 10 Jan 2009 11:11:07 Edited by - Richyd on 10 Jan 2009 11:20:09 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nickh7 Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 Pete & Min god speed for a quick recovery and it sounds like it hasn't put you off the 7. to Mr A his post and to the car for the way it absorbed the impact. A properly repaired 7 is always as good as it was before as they are so simple so dont worry on that point Look forward to seeing you at Stoneleigh etc Nick h Fuel your Addiction here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wight Skipper Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 Wow! Just looked at the photos. Sobering stuff. Very glad that you are both on the mend. All the best from all the Wight Seveners down here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RoyH Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 Pete, Min, Just read this, and saw the pics with some shock. The most important thing by far is that you are now both okay. The car will be as good as new when you get it fixed. Stay well and all the very best Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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