Released for 2021, the third-generation Ford F-150 Raptor benefits from several suspension upgrades that make it more capable off-road than its predecessor. Its front suspension system notably offers 14 inches of travel. The truck's ability to withstand abuse off the beaten path is so great that it seemingly exceeds a human's: a man broke a vertebra after hitting a jump in a Raptor with an unmodified suspension.
Footage of the incident posted on Instagram by the truck's owner, who goes by Caz, shows the Raptor rapidly approaching a jump, catching a good amount of air, and landing on four wheels. "I aimed for 60 [mph] but it may have gotten beyond that as I wasn't looking at the speedometer. Got a nice, smooth jump but unfortunately I landed a perfect pancake; all four wheels at the same time," he told The Drive.
The extra travel didn't soften the blow, and the landing broke the driver's T12 vertebra in three pieces. He told The Drive that the injury caused the worst pain he has ever felt. "I literally threw the truck in park and dove onto the ground to straighten my back," he explained.
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In a follow-up Instagram post, Caz wrote that doctors repaired his vertebra with two rods and six screws. He said that the truck is fine; he hasn't been able to drive it because he's been hospitalized since the incident, but his father has and reported that there is nothing wrong.
"I knew there was a chance to damage my truck off-road, but I never in a million years thought about me being physically harmed. It's definitely a wake-up call," Caz concluded. He wasn't the only off-roader that landed in the hospital with a back injury. He added that the driver who hit the same jump at about the same speed in an identical truck right after his run was hospitalized with a fractured spine as well.
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