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PUBLIC SAFETY Grants Pass state rep walks away from motorcycle crash unscathed Carl Wilson of Grants Pass says he doesn't remember what happened after car hit him Comment By Chris Bristol Grants Pass Daily Courier MailTribune.com By Chris Bristol Grants Pass Daily Courier Posted Apr. 12, 2015 at 7:55 PM By Chris Bristol Grants Pass Daily Courier Posted Apr. 12, 2015 at 7:55 PM » Social News Hours after an out-of-control car took him out on his motorcycle on a busy Salem thoroughfare, state Rep. Carl Wilson said he still couldn't believe he avoided serious injury. "No broken bones, no gushing blood, no road rash — I'm basically unscathed," the Grants Pass Republican said Friday night, speaking by phone from his daughter's home in West Salem. His motorcycle, a 2014 Harley-Davidson Ultra Limited touring bike, was not so lucky, however. Wilson, 62, told the Daily Courier he was heading to a House Education Committee hearing at the state Capitol when an out-of-control car careened into his path. Photos of the crash posted by Wilson on his Facebook page showed his 900-pound Harley lying on its side, its front wheel, fork and fender missing. He identified the silver sedan in the photo as the car that hit him. A light pole is lying in the street. "All of a sudden I look up and a car is flying at me," he said. "She hit a light pole, then she went over a median strip and across the grass to get to me. I just saw her for the last two or three seconds and I knew it was going to be either head-on or a glancing blow. Kind of split the difference really." He said the collision "basically swept the bike from underneath me," and that he doesn't really remember much after that — including how he managed to avoid getting hurt. "For the life of me I don't know what happened from where I bailed out to when I'm sitting on the sidewalk," he said. "My ankle's throbbing, but that's about it. There's no scuff on my jeans. Nothing on my helmet, either. Some scuffs on my jacket, but they're small." Wilson said the other driver, whom he described cheekily only as "older than me," also managed to avoid serious injury. "She told the police every time she stepped on the brake it made the car go faster," he recounted, describing a common scenario where a motorist hits the wrong pedal and then panics. Although he wasn't seriously injured, he said he was taken by ambulance to a Salem hospital where he had X-rays on his leg and ankle, as well as an MRI. Wilson had been planning to serve as master of ceremonies at the open house event Saturday for the new food bank warehouse at Raptor Creek Farm near Grants Pass, but those plans were shelved after his doctor told him to stay put. He had gotten the big bike out Friday with the intent of cruising back to Grants Pass after the committee hearing recessed. He is no newcomer to motorcycles, riding them as his preferred mode of transportation since he was a senior at Grants Pass High School in the late 1960s. Although he has another Harley as a backup, the Ultra Limited was almost brand new, and he candidly admitted he will be mourning its short operational history for the near future. As for his own operational history, he said "I've been hurt worse in two crashes that weren't as dangerous as this … if that makes sense. "The potential of this one was really ugly." By Chris Bristol Grants Pass Daily Courier MailTribune.com By Chris Bristol Grants Pass Daily Courier Posted Apr. 12, 2015 at 7:55 PM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. 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