Arizona needs to stiffen the penalties for hitting bikes. This is getting out of hand.
I was hurt in a Bike Vs. Car Wednesday night on the way home from
work. While I was traveling south, in the bike lane, on Kyrene
about a quarter mile north of Elliot, a young woman decided to turn
in front of me at a range of about five feet.
I was doing 20-21 mph and couldn't avoid hitting the side of her
car, in fact I couldn't hit the brakes at all an my hands were on
the levers. I went up and over, did a 270 forward with a 60 twist
and landed on my left side on the pavement, half in the bike lane
half in the right lane of traffic.
After landing I was stunned but someone started honking a horn and
it was enough to bring me around, and I stumbled dragging my bike
onto the grass. The young woman comes out of her car, runs up to me
and says, I'm not making this up, "I don't know where my head was
at". There were several witnesses, and they called the police and
paramedics. The paramedics examined me and the police wrote her one,
and I think multiple tickets.
My K2 Mod3 is nearly totaled. The front wheel is good but just
about everything else is damaged. The handlebars are scratched up
and bent, the shifter pods, pedals, computer are all gouged. The
rear wheel has something wrong with the hub, sounds like the bearing
race in the hub is dented. Seat is torn and the CF seat post is
gouged.
I have a separated shoulder, brusing and road rash on my shoulder,
hip, and elbow on the left side. My right wrist is mildly
sprained. My helmet, camelback, jersey and shorts are all damaged.
Speaking of helmets, my helmet took one hell of a beating and my
head took none.
I can't ride, at all, for at least two weeks. It will probably be
four weeks before I can take long easy rides and about six before I
can ride the rough stuff. Right now I'm on major painkillers and
can barely stand without help.
It really tweaks me that I can be on the street, in a bike lane, following the law, with two extremely bright blinkies, and I still get hit by someone who just plain isn't paying attention.
Sleeping it off,
Mike
I was hurt in a Bike Vs. Car Wednesday night on the way home from
work. While I was traveling south, in the bike lane, on Kyrene
about a quarter mile north of Elliot, a young woman decided to turn
in front of me at a range of about five feet.
I was doing 20-21 mph and couldn't avoid hitting the side of her
car, in fact I couldn't hit the brakes at all an my hands were on
the levers. I went up and over, did a 270 forward with a 60 twist
and landed on my left side on the pavement, half in the bike lane
half in the right lane of traffic.
After landing I was stunned but someone started honking a horn and
it was enough to bring me around, and I stumbled dragging my bike
onto the grass. The young woman comes out of her car, runs up to me
and says, I'm not making this up, "I don't know where my head was
at". There were several witnesses, and they called the police and
paramedics. The paramedics examined me and the police wrote her one,
and I think multiple tickets.
My K2 Mod3 is nearly totaled. The front wheel is good but just
about everything else is damaged. The handlebars are scratched up
and bent, the shifter pods, pedals, computer are all gouged. The
rear wheel has something wrong with the hub, sounds like the bearing
race in the hub is dented. Seat is torn and the CF seat post is
gouged.
I have a separated shoulder, brusing and road rash on my shoulder,
hip, and elbow on the left side. My right wrist is mildly
sprained. My helmet, camelback, jersey and shorts are all damaged.
Speaking of helmets, my helmet took one hell of a beating and my
head took none.
I can't ride, at all, for at least two weeks. It will probably be
four weeks before I can take long easy rides and about six before I
can ride the rough stuff. Right now I'm on major painkillers and
can barely stand without help.
It really tweaks me that I can be on the street, in a bike lane, following the law, with two extremely bright blinkies, and I still get hit by someone who just plain isn't paying attention.
Sleeping it off,
Mike