Wow... a lot of drama...
Eulogite, not all the TWT rides in Arkansas have involved with wrecks
In fact, it has not been until the last year and a half or so that they started becoming more common. Prior to that, an incident on ANY TWT ride was rare. I would suspect that a large part of the increase in incidents is the greater number of riders coming together that have never ridden together before and that cover a wider range of experience levels. Group riding is a skill like anything else, it is not just a bunch of people riding together. Having a lot of people inexperienced at group riding participating in a group ride, particularly somewhere like Arkansas, is a recipe for disaster. However, a group ride with an experienced group can be a FANTASTIC experience.
Making lots of rules and regulations is all fine and good, but my experience from leading a LOT of group rides is that most people will simply ignore them. Rules have to be kept short, simple and few in number. Even trying to get folks to provide their emergency info can be a real chore. In the event of an accident, the larger the group, the greater the chance for miscommunication and confusion as seemed to have happened here. Not everyone is cut out to step up in a situation like this and take charge, but that is really what needs to happen. However, trying to pick that person ahead of time won't always work. What if that person is the one that goes down!?
I am not saying that planning ahead is a bad thing, but I do think it can be easy to get carried away. An accident is a spontaneous thing and people need to be flexible on the scene to adapt to the circumstances.
Having a trailer can be a great convenience. On many of the large rides I have organized, I often had a trailer with extra capacity in case we needed to bring an extra bike or two back with us. On other trips, we rode up and back. Even if you take your trailer on every trip, you still have to have someone to go get it and bring it to you, so that is not a perfect solution either.
Regarding other riders not helping a downed rider, I really have a hard time believing anyone, TWT member or not, would intentionally refuse to assist. I am not saying this could not have happened, just that if it did, I am shocked. I would be much more inclined to believe, as was pointed out by a few others, that the problems associated with retrieving the bike were related to the general confusion. If it was intentional, that is the first time I have EVER heard of such a thing in the years that TWT has been up and running.
Billy, I am sorry you busted yourself up so well. I separated my shoulder in a highside on my GS a few years ago. It did not need surgery, but it still hurt something fierce!! I wish you all the best on your recovery.
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