Two weeks ago today our buddy Cindy Hicks tested the limits of human resiliency by launching herself onto the unforgiving asphalt of Richmond's south side. While her trusty moto "Lefty Lucy" is in need of a new wheel, tank, set of forks, etcetera, Ms. Hicks got the shorter end of the stick. The current tally includes nine broken ribs, a concussion, a broken scapula, broken collar bone, bruised lung and lacerated liver.

Thankfully, Cindy's boots, jeans and jacket saved her from an even more uncomfortable recovery.

Believe it or not, she's up and walking around and looking surprisingly spry considering her near death experience. I took her out for some therapeutic BBQ today and we traded info about the crash. In between wide-eyed grimaces (ribs shifting, no doubt) and requests not to make her laugh, Cindy recounted her time in the intensive care unit at the Medical College of Virginia. She doesn't remember me visiting her the day after the wreck, or for that matter, anything from a few days after that. Judging from the way her helmet looked, I guess that's understandable.

In reality, Cindy wasn't much help in reconstructing her flashy dismount, so I developed my own theory. I've watched Cindy leave me in the dust on plenty of exit ramps, so I was not exactly surprised when such a ramp existed at the scene of the crash. I'm guessing she snaked through the downward esses, looked over her shoulder to see if it was clear to merge and drifted a tad too far left where a eight-inch curb was waiting to greet her.

It's just a theory, but Cindy says it's fair enough.

Of course, Cindy being Cindy, there's no talk of hanging up her helmet, only plans to be extra careful once she and Lucy are all patched up and riding again.

Needless to say, here at Classified Moto, we're all feeling very lucky that our friend is alive and on the mend. That outcome was not a given, and we're sincerely grateful. And our hearts go out to the staff at MCV. There's no telling what Cindy put them through during those days she can't remember. Oh man. —JR