Crazy Uncle Johnny says it best.. Crashin' Sucks! We all hate to think about it but we also know it could happen any time. Even the best riders can't account for all conditions or for that matter other drivers and that's just a risk that we have all accepted to enjoy our favorite pastime. It's why we wear helmets, jackets and pants with armor in them, boots, and gloves. Wearing gear is pretty easy to remember and we're usually pretty excited about getting new protective equipment (let's face it, some stuff does look cool) but there is something else we can do for ourselves in the event of a crash. Make sure you have I.C.E. information easily available.

I.C.E., or In Case of Emergency information, contains contact information of friends or family that can provide emergency services workers important information in the event your crash has left you unable to respond. Certainly paramedics will be able to determine your basic injuries but might not know about an important medical condition that could effect the way that your injuries should be treated. In fact it is a good idea to make sure your I.C.E. information also lists any of these conditions or drug allergies you are aware of.

Now there are a lot of applications available these days for mobile and smart phones that can rescue workers to the right contacts in your phone to notify, but these phones are not always that tough. I personally think my Blackberry is a great device but if I'm in a crash that is bad enough to knock me out there's a good chance the phone will be out of it as well. Think about how large the screens are on newer phones these days. Sure they look great but that big display panel is unfortunately sort of delicate and could easily make your phone un-readable even if the phone functions are still working. My point? Write it all down.

Better yet, make your own ICE card using the templates listed below. These PDF and Word files are set up to make four wallet sized cards that can be folded in half  and contain contact info on one side and places for medical information on the other. I would recommend laminating it if you can to make sure it stands up to being in your wallet every day. For that matter make two and put one in your tankbag! Since the template makes four cards might as well make some for friends and family while you're at it. People have been known to get hurt even when not riding motorcycles!

ICE Card in PDF format

ICE Card Word Doc Format

ICE Card Word Template (dot) format