[Total Heckler]

Yesterday am I was on my way to work riding with the flow of traffic coming up on a red light. It was a 3 lane part of the road, I was in the middle lane soon to be turning into the far left turn lane.

When all of the sudden the guy in a Mercedes in front of me brake checks me with multiple car lengths of empty space in front of him. I don't have much time at all to react and just clip the very edge of his bumper. I hit it and get knocked to the left of the car and tumble into the turning lane.

I start to get up and feel some serious pain on my left thigh. I sit up and see my shorts drenched in blood and starting to quickly pool up on top of my shorts and on the ground around me. I started to feel light headed and I laid back down. I tried to keep looking to my left to make sure I wasn't going to get hit by any cars, but it was hard to do at the time. I started hearing a bunch of car doors open and shut around me. After a few seconds and man came up to me and started putting pressure on my leg where the source of the injury. He was a awesome guy who quite possibly saved my life before the EMT's got there.

The EMT's were pretty sure I could have severed my femoral artery and wanted to get me taken care of asap. They were waiting to hear from Stanford Hospital's helicopter to see if they could fly me out there. But because of the weather, they weren't able to land anywhere close. So the EMT's brought me to the closest hospital so I could start getting treatment.

After MRI's, ultrasounds, and xrays, they came to the conclusion that I partially severed a femoral vein rather than the artery. After everything I ended up getting stapled shut. The hole is about an inch long and 3-4 inches deep. I was VERY lucky to miss the femoral artery and to have made it out alive. Pretty freaking scary day yesterday.

After examining the wound more today, it looks like my brake lever did it. Yikes.

Here is my super swollen leg:

 

[dan-o]

Broken collarbone, broken wrist, broken shoulder socket. All with a side of concussion.
Car, car, poor steel grating repair on chicago drawbridge.

 

[geargrrl]

hit and run? Anyone get the liscense of the mercedes?

Glad to hear you are OK.

 

[PatBranch]

Fvck!! that's crazy. Glad you're okay!

 

[TN]

Damn, fella.

I hope you heal up quick!

 

[sanjuro]

horrible.

 

[bdamschen]

That's gnarly Josh- Glad you're alright.


So ah, when are you going to be well enough to have a "I'm stoked I didn't die!" party?

 

[Total Heckler]

Thanks everyone.

I will have my "I'm stoked I didn't die!" party sometime after I get back from my 2nd year anniversary in Hawaii with my girlfriend. =] Were leaving on Saturday. A little bummed I wont be able to do any ocean swimming, but oh well. A week off work, plenty of time to drink and relax... cant wait.

 

[sanjuro]

A hundred bucks there will be no charges against the driver.

No Justice, Just Us.

 

[Total Heckler]

A hundred bucks there will be no charges against the driver.

No Justice, Just Us.

Yeah the police said there will not be any tickets given. I was more worried about me having to pay for clipping the brake checking jerk.

 

[Heidi]

Ouch, I actually just got a small cash settlement from the car that hit me back in 11/06.

Glad you're "ok"

 

[ire]

Wow, glad to hear you're okay! I've never been hit by a car, but I've come close many times. Gotta watch the a$$holes in the Mercedes...they think they own the road

 

[spectaculardark]

dang man! that was a close one. Glad you're OK!
Freshman year in college, commuting to class, and pregnant lady jogging, while listening to her ipod walked out in the road and stopped to tie her shoes! she didnt even look before she did. I was going to go behind her when she decided to turn back and get on the sidewalk again. Not wanting to risk injuring the unborn baby(she was huge man i tell ya) i dropped off the bike and busted my inner thigh wide open. She then proceeded to chew me out and curse me up and down....never again will I drop off the bike to avoid hitting someone that stupid.

 

[Prettym1k3]

Shoot, man.

I had a woman do something similar while jamming through downtown a few weeks ago. She apparently found the fact that she had to wait in traffic like everyone else to be unacceptable. So what did she do? Slammed the gas right in front of me, drove right into the bike lane, just to see what was ahead. I ripped my brakes hard enough to flat spot my rear tire and drag the bike to a near dead stop before wanting to smash her window with my fist.

I'm glad you're okay, man. Heal up fast. And NO MORE INJURIES FOR YOU!

 

[jimmydean]

Sounds like you made out ok all things considered.

My bike is about 46 pounds, I hurt myself every time I try to commute on it.

 

[stinkyboy]

I could rant on ya TH, but I won't. I'm glad you're OK young man.

 

[stinkyboy]

My bike is about 46 pounds, I hurt myself every time I try to commute on it.

You should ride with my bro Kavu, he goes to the ER everytime he drinks/rides with me...

 

[splat]

Gladt ohear you are PK , Any damage to your Bike ?


I have been Doored twice commuting to work, crashed twice on Ice patches.

 

[SkaredShtles]

Good to hear you're OK man!

Just to make sure I'm not reading it wrong, though - you ran into him, correct?

 

[Total Heckler]

Yeah, I ran into him because he stopped his car quickly with multiple car lengths still in front of him for some reason. I am pretty damn sure he brake checked me on purpose. In Santa Cruz there is a lot of car aggression towards bikers because of all the fixed gear hipsters not ever following traffic laws. I however, follow all of the traffic laws while riding on the roads. I think the driver knew what he did too because he avoided filing charges against me or even getting insurance involved.

I am really happy to be alive. I got my bike back yesterday and its more damaged than I thought. Broke my derailleur hanger, broke my shifter, broke my lock on grip off and bent my front wheel a bit too.

Thanks everyone. Again, really just happy to have survived.

 

[SkaredShtles]

Yeah, I ran into him because he stopped his car quickly with multiple car lengths still in front of him for some reason. I am pretty damn sure he brake checked me on purpose. In Santa Cruz there is a lot of car aggression towards bikers because of all the fixed gear hipsters not ever following traffic laws. I however, follow all of the traffic laws while riding on the roads.

Sounds like a total a$$hat move on his part... however - it's still your responsibility to maintain enough distance to stop safely. You know that, though.

Glad the other motorists stopped to help, too.

 

[davep]

First let me say that I am glad you are OK and that everything turned out fine....



Now I feel compelled to ask some of you guys to read the original story.....T.H ran into a car in front of him....not the other way around. Like everyone else on the road, the driver/rider following is required by law to provide enough room to prevent running into the vehicle in front...does not matter why or where he stopped, the follower is required to NOT run into him.


In all hoesty, the accident is T.H's fault if anyone's....sorry but it is true.


If this were turned around and the car was following, would any one of you guys blame the cyclist for 'stopping too fast'....it is the bikes fault that the car behind did not pay attention and ran him over?? Or two cars...one stops and the other rear-ends him..who is at fault??

Think about it.


********************semi-on-topic rant*******************

I am all for cycling rights on public roadways, and I have all types of incidents my self over my 30+ years of riding (bottles thrown at me, sprayed in the face with a supper soaker while going mach 5 down a super step hill at night, etc)...

but unfortunatly a huge part of this bike vs car crap is due to cyclists that disobey all laws and do whatever they want on public roads. If we want any respect as cyclists, we have to respect ourselves enough to follow laws that we so insist that cars follow....
The way things are now, most cyclists that I see on the road make me embarassed to be considdered part of their 'group'.

Running red lights, not signaling, riding the wrong way on one way streets, blowing through stop signs, riding 'all over the road', no lights, etc, etc

all these do is serve to 'prove' to motorists that we DO NOT BELONG on the roadways....and they have a point that gets stronger and stronger the more cyclists ride like they are above all else....


**********EOR**************************

 

[SkaredShtles]

First let me say that I am glad you are OK and that everything turned out fine....

All been covered already.

 

[Total Heckler]

I am not denying this being my fault at all. I hit the guy, I said that in my first post on this thread.

Now, the fact that the guy did not get insurance or a real police report involved really makes me think that the brake check was done intentionally. I think the guy felt bad about what he did and didn't want to cause any more trouble.

I see myself as a very cautious cyclist, especially on the roads. I have had cars swerve at me, brake check me, beep at me (when I am riding in the bike lane), etc to try and scare me for no reason. I am not riding down the street flipping everyone off, riding in the road going under the speed limit and holding up traffic, and I'm sure as hell not running red lights and not following traffic laws. People in the area have a seriously bad attitude towards bikers because there are so many that don't follow the laws and cause lots of trouble on the roads. I have taken lots of flack from cars when I am doing nothing wrong.

 

[Total Heckler]

I am just glad I made it out ok and nobody else was injured.

Moving on.

More sweet bruise photos and pictures of the damaged bike to come. =]

 

[Prettym1k3]

Show me that sexy thigh, Joshy... I wanna' see it!

On a side note, frickin' heal up, man! Winter riding in Santa Cruz has been PRIME so far!

 

[blue]

I am not denying this being my fault at all. I hit the guy, I said that in my first post on this thread.

Now, the fact that the guy did not get insurance or a real police report involved really makes me think that the brake check was done intentionally. I think the guy felt bad about what he did and didn't want to cause any more trouble.

I see myself as a very cautious cyclist, especially on the roads. I have had cars swerve at me, brake check me, beep at me (when I am riding in the bike lane), etc to try and scare me for no reason. I am not riding down the street flipping everyone off, riding in the road going under the speed limit and holding up traffic, and I'm sure as hell not running red lights and not following traffic laws. People in the area have a seriously bad attitude towards bikers because there are so many that don't follow the laws and cause lots of trouble on the roads. I have taken lots of flack from cars when I am doing nothing wrong.

First off - great to hear you're all right Josh, opening up major veins and arteries is scary sh!t!

I've not been hit while commuting, but when I was a messenger I was hit ~3 times, once resulting in actual injury (broken hand that required screwing back together).

This is just my observation, but people around here in cars seem pretty lax towards cyclists, even given the huge number of idiots riding around (the idiot demographic is split between fvcker hipsters on fixies and bums on k-mart bikes). I have yet to get any sh!t during my twice a week 18 mile round trip commute. I've had a couple idiots not notice me, but no one actually being malicious. I'm usually going at or near the speed of traffic, not sure if that helps. I'm not the law-obeying uber-commuter, either...I run reds occasionally, and I split lanes when it's expedient to do so. I haven't even had to use my middle finger since moving here...that's pretty impressive. I thought Salt Lake was pretty bike friendly, but Santa Cruz is even more so.

 

[OGRipper]

Like everyone else on the road, the driver/rider following is required by law to provide enough room to prevent running into the vehicle in front...does not matter why or where he stopped, the follower is required to NOT run into him.

All well and good, as are lots of your other points. But there is no justification for intentionally endangering someone, regardless of where you stand in the eyes of the law. Those rules are intended to prevent accidents and hiding behind them to justify road rage/aggression is pretty fvcked up.

TH, hope you heal up fully and quickly.

 

[Reactor]

All well and good, as are lots of your other points. But there is no justification for intentionally endangering someone, regardless of where you stand in the eyes of the law. Those rules are intended to prevent accidents and hiding behind them to justify road rage/aggression is pretty fvcked up.

TH, hope you heal up fully and quickly.

Generally if someone intentionally causes an accident, they are at fault. In Arizona it's either a class 3 or class 5 felony to leave the scene of an injury accident.

TH, glad you're mostly O.K. I had an incident a few years ago where I was hit by a car, had a concussion, mild brain damage, a bunch of muscle strains, sprains and damage. Eventually it turned into fibromyalgia. It sucks.

 

[eric strt6]

I'm glad that the brothers from SCFD and AMR took good care of you and that Dieminnican [yeah thats its nickname] got the bleeding stopped.

FYI spend the $45 to get a Calstar membership [www.calstar.org] 2 out of the 3 helos that respond in Santa Cruz and the bay area are run by them [they also have a recip agreement with REACH] $45 beats the heck out of a $14,000-18,000 bill for the helo flight

 

[Muffler Bearing]

glad you hear your ok after that accident, josh.

just registered to say that and offer anything you might need from my parts bin to put your bike back together? were you riding a mtb or the cross bike?

i should be down in santa cruz in the next week or 2, irene will not be making it down with me, but ill give you a ring.

-j

 

[macko]

Whoa buddy...rapid blood loss in the street? That's hardcore. I'll have a drink for you, tonight.

During my commute(s) I've been laid a few times and turned into once. Got some gnarly road rash scars on me elbows and knees, some pretty badass hematoma but luckily nothing that required stitching. Thank gawd for good samaritans, eh?

And I know this debate has come and gone, but that "you need to maintain a safe following distance" only applies under reasonable circumstances. If someone decides to drop their parking brake on the freeway for no particular reason it's doubtful that officers are going to site someone for nailing them. Laws are just guidelines, folks. Common sense *should* prevail.

If I were in a similar situation, I think my last dying action before actually bleeding out would be swinging my u-lock into the driver-side window.

Knock on wood.

Enjoy Hawaii.

 

[Total Heckler]

Thanks guys.

J, really appreciate the offer. The rear 9speed shifter would be pretty badass. Mine is trashed. Shattered into a bunch of pieces.

Anywho, here is some sweet sweet thigh just for you Mike... =]

 

[?????]

One of the guys in my major got hit by the university's shuttle bus recently. He just got a few scrapes and bruises, but they offered to pay the rest of his tuition until he graduates... me=jealous.

 

[blue]

Hawt, but you should consider going Brazilian.

 

[Total Heckler]

lol I'm going to pass on that one. We should ride as soon as my leg is healed up. I have a new trail for us to ride.

 

[blue]

lol I'm going to pass on that one. We should ride as soon as my leg is healed up. I have a new trail for us to ride.

I haven't ridden mtn bikes since my rear brake blew out

Lotsa road miles though...think the bike church will have a brake for me? Prolly no.

 

[Total Heckler]

Eh, give it a shot...

 

[Evil4bc]

OMG I just came across this thread and really feel for you .
Your leg looks very similar o what happened to me last time I was hit by a car on my DH bike .
I was sitting on the sidewalk on my yeti with the front wheel in the sidewalk roll in area and some rice-boy racer kid came around the corner too fast clipped my tire , got it stuck in his wheel well and started to pull me up the slight hill into my subdivision .
He didn't see me I guess until the passenger looked out his window to see me on-top of my bike getting pulled up the hill banging on his door !

Glad you made it out ok , try to get some cash from his insurance for your pain and loss of bike ect .

 

[Prettym1k3]

I just got a boner looking at those pictures.

How much longer until you can hit the trails again, Josh? And how much longer until the staples come out?