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Rachel Atherton hit by a truck training

kidwithbike

Monkey
Apr 16, 2007
466
0
Hoboken, NJ
yikes, that looks pretty harsh. she looks like she just got hit by a truck! Dislocated shoulder, some cuts to her face/knees? hope she heals up alright!

at least Gee is looking stylish in the Lime Green Oakley and his GBR spandex
 

Kntr

Turbo Monkey
Jan 25, 2003
7,526
21
Montana
Did her brothers pull the guy out of the truck and kick his butt? :)

Healing vibes to Rach.
 

RUFUS

e-douche of the year
Dec 1, 2006
3,480
1
Denver, CO
I bet that if she had that light up bike lane thing on her bike she wouldn't have gotten hit by the truck.
 

Acadian

Born Again Newbie
Sep 5, 2001
714
2
Blah Blah and Blah
That's horrible - hope her injuries aren't serious and that she can fully recover.

road cycling on California roads is like playing Russian roulette.
 
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Transcend

My Nuts Are Flat
Apr 18, 2002
18,040
3
Towing the party line.
Acadian - it sure is. Road riding in general is dangerous. I had a friend out for a road ride in Phoenix ages ago (General Lee's roommate actually) and the entire peloton got railed from behind. He ended up with a broken neck and in a halo for ages. Luckily, he is fully recovered and riding again. Lucky +1.

On that note, a commenter on the article on Transcend mentioned that he thought the photo was tasteless. It is being distributed by Animal / Commencal. I think it is news worthy. Comments?
 

sanjuro

Tube Smuggler
Sep 13, 2004
17,373
0
SF
That's horrible. I hope a speedy recovery to Rachel!

BTW, I deleted the picture link. I don't think it is tasteless or cruel, and it reminds all of us what happens when you get jacked up.

I have even more sympathy for Rachel now that I saw the picture.
 
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drkenan

anti-dentite
Oct 1, 2006
3,441
1
west asheville
On that note, a commenter on the article on Transcend mentioned that he thought the photo was tasteless. It is being distributed by Animal / Commencal. I think it is news worthy. Comments?

If it's in their official press release then it's not tasteless at all. I don't like to see pics of anyone hurt but there's no reason to purposefully leave it out.
 

RUFUS

e-douche of the year
Dec 1, 2006
3,480
1
Denver, CO
Acadian - it sure is. Road riding in general is dangerous. I had a friend out for a road ride in Phoenix ages ago (General Lee's roommate actually) and the entire peloton got railed from behind. He ended up with a broken neck and in a halo for ages. Luckily, he is fully recovered and riding again. Lucky +1.

On that note, a commenter on the article on Transcend mentioned that he thought the photo was tasteless. It is being distributed by Animal / Commencal. I think it is news worthy. Comments?
I wouldn't use the word tasteless but it is a bummer to see. I always hate seeing thos types of shots taken but I have personally had to take those kind of shots if not worse, so I understand it. Plus it gives you an actual description of the types of injuries from getting hit by the car. It does show that she is doing good, (besides the shoulder and lacerations) but that the is not on a stretcher, knocked out or worse.
She is hardcore so she will be back on the bike next week knowing her.
 

boogenman

Turbo Monkey
Nov 3, 2004
4,290
973
BUFFALO
I don't see anything worng with the pic.

A buddy of mine is a hardcore roadie homo, a year ago a drunk lady hit him from behind doing about 45. He went flying like superman for 30 feet and slid/rolled another 30. He was on a overpass, his bike went over the guardrail onto the highway below and was run over by a tractor trailer.

He was in a wheel chair for 3 months, I don't know the injuries but he was busted up really bad. Hospital stay was 10 days.

I will stick to riding trails, I don't trust others on the road, even when I'm driving my 3000lb steel box.
 

Akula_7

Monkey
Nov 15, 2004
917
0
Acadian - it sure is. Road riding in general is dangerous. I had a friend out for a road ride in Phoenix ages ago (General Lee's roommate actually) and the entire peloton got railed from behind. He ended up with a broken neck and in a halo for ages. Luckily, he is fully recovered and riding again. Lucky +1.

On that note, a commenter on the article on Transcend mentioned that he thought the photo was tasteless. It is being distributed by Animal / Commencal. I think it is news worthy. Comments?
The photo is fine Fraser, people have different levels of "taste".......and some people are just different! Dan Brown wouldn't have sent the pic if Rachel was worried people would be schemish or horny! Ha!
 

rockwool

Turbo Monkey
Apr 19, 2004
2,658
0
Filastin
Acadian - it sure is. Road riding in general is dangerous. I had a friend out for a road ride in Phoenix ages ago (General Lee's roommate actually) and the entire peloton got railed from behind. He ended up with a broken neck and in a halo for ages. Luckily, he is fully recovered and riding again. Lucky +1.

On that note, a commenter on the article on Transcend mentioned that he thought the photo was tasteless. It is being distributed by Animal / Commencal. I think it is news worthy. Comments?
Silly, if she was a guy nobody would have reacted. Accidents are sadly a part of our sport, it's not like you reported about it tabloidlike just because of the blood and that you've got no interest in the sport otherwise. We all live this, to us it's not a passive entertainment of other peoples realities.
 

Total Heckler

Beer and Bike Enthusiast
Apr 28, 2005
8,171
189
Santa Cruz, CA
Regardless it is a bad accident and car vs. bike stuff is never good.


I am still curious to hear the whole story.

Just putting it out there, they are British, so aren't they used to driving/riding on the left? It was a head on collision. Just something to think about.

And again, glad she is ok. It could have been A LOT worse. Hope she heals up quick.
 

Damo

Short One Marshmallow
Sep 7, 2006
4,603
27
French Alps
I hope she recovers quickly.
I can guess how the brothers were at the time too...

France is where its at for road cycling. It is a religion here. Traffic gives way to you and treats cyclists with the utmost courtesy.
 

ronan

Monkey
Dec 7, 2007
786
0
Toulouse, France
Just putting it out there, they are British, so aren't they used to driving/riding on the left? It was a head on collision. Just something to think about.
theyre british but i don't think theyre stupid

they've been to cali before and didnt get hit

hope she heals up for the 2009 season
 
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IH8Rice

I'm Mr. Negative! I Fail!
Aug 2, 2008
24,524
494
Im over here now
so you already know both sides of the story?
no, but there have been countless times where a vehicle doesn't see a motorcycle rider or biker, when the rider actually has the right of way.
its dangerous riding on the street because of all the people who pay zero attention to someone who's not in a car.

now if she doing something stupid in the street, then its obviously her fault...but something tells me playing chicken with a truck wasnt on her agenda


and i of course hope she gets more better soon
 
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LukeD

Monkey
Sep 9, 2001
751
2
Massachusetts
oh jeez that's no good. I can definitely see how that can happen out on those twisty roads out there in the santa cruz area. hope she gets well soon
 

Total Heckler

Beer and Bike Enthusiast
Apr 28, 2005
8,171
189
Santa Cruz, CA
ronan said:
theyre british but i don't think theyre stupid

they've been to cali before and didnt get hit
Don't think I am trying to pick a fight here man. I am just curious to hear the whole story. It's awful news that someone that popular in the bike world (or anyone for that matter) was in such a awful accident.

I myself was in a car vs. bike accident in November where a driver intentionally brake checked me (or slammed on his brakes for no reason in front of me) that almost killed me. I severed a femoral vein in my thigh with my brake lever and almost had me bleed out on the street. Thankfully a good samaritan ran up and bare handed put pressure on my wound until the EMT's arrived.

It could have been a blind corner and she was on the wrong side of the road, blah blah blah. There are a lot of different scenarios that could have happened. It could also just be a total ass driver who caused the accident by driving carelessly. Again, I am not trying to pick a fight. I just want to hear the whole story.

I am glad she wasn't more seriously hurt and has a speedy recovery.
 
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epic

Turbo Monkey
Sep 15, 2008
1,041
21
After looking at that photo, I hope that her teeth are OK! JK. Let's hope for a full recovery before the World Cup starts up.
 

ekozy39

Monkey
Apr 27, 2005
312
0
I don't think the photo is "tasteless".
Maybe the argument could be made that posting a pic of someone right after a crash while they are in their most vunerable state in an otherwise private event is iffy.
It's not like this was taking at a race. I guess the answer will vary for everyone, but would we all want a bunch a pics snapped after something as scary as a head-on crash then have them posted on the internet?
Wasn't everyone blasting and threatening to punch to some kid last week for shooting pics of a down rider at the US Open?

Hope everything is OK, and she has speedy recovery..
 

General Lee

Turbo Monkey
Oct 16, 2003
2,860
0
The 802
Acadian - it sure is. Road riding in general is dangerous. I had a friend out for a road ride in Phoenix ages ago (General Lee's roommate actually) and the entire peloton got railed from behind. He ended up with a broken neck and in a halo for ages. Luckily, he is fully recovered and riding again. Lucky +1.
partially true. he was in AZ for spring break in '04 and got run over from behind my a woman in an SUV talking on the phone. he ended up with a broken back, several days in the hospital, and several days after that until he could fly home. ended up having to take an extra semester of school because of it. no halo, but he did have one of hose funky clam-shell braces and a neck brace for a month or so. he actually got to take it off early, which was a bummer because we had just gone out to get a beer bottle opener that we could screw onto the chest plate; if you have to wear it, might as well have a sense of humor about it. he was lucky for sure, but still has problems with his back. he moved back out to AZ this fall, so far so good.

there are tons of roadies up here between UVM and the rest of the Burlington community and unfortunately we hear about people getting hit by cars way too often. a girl on the uvm team had to have her face reconstructed this fall after getting taken out in an intersection when someone didn't look both ways. i'll take the risks of DH over road riding any day.

Best wishes to Rachel for a quick and full recovery
 

iRider

Turbo Monkey
Apr 5, 2008
5,648
3,089
Heal fast Rachel!

As for the pics: did you guys see that there is a bunch of Rachel's accident pics on the Animal Commencal webpage? So she must OK'd it.
BTW: interesting that you can't see a helmet on any of the pics. I am curious if she and her brothers were wearing some.
 

jking09

Chimp
Jan 2, 2009
68
0
Fayetteville
i don't really see how that could have happened without everyone being careless.. =/
sucks though.. hope that shoulder gets better soon
 

sanjuro

Tube Smuggler
Sep 13, 2004
17,373
0
SF
I looked at the truck, and my blood is boiling. Windshield is shattered in what looks like a head-shaped impact. What's worse is there is an Arai badge on the grille, so the driver is probably a motorcycle rider.
 

Total Heckler

Beer and Bike Enthusiast
Apr 28, 2005
8,171
189
Santa Cruz, CA
Looks like she hit the passenger side of the car so either that guy was totally on the wrong side of the road or maybe she was on the inside of the wrong lane?

Crazy, I had no idea it happened so local. Up in the mountains here.

(Not related) I KNEW I SAW DAN ATHERTON AT PETSMART A FEW WEEKS AGO!
 

Albion

Chimp
Sep 25, 2008
23
0
Looking were the truck is hit, it looks like she might have been on the wrong side. But ofcouse you cant tell if he swerved to avoid her or something. Lucky escape though!!
 

Total Heckler

Beer and Bike Enthusiast
Apr 28, 2005
8,171
189
Santa Cruz, CA
From the local paper:

Bicyclist injured in accident

A 21-year-old woman was flown to an out-of-county trauma center after being hit by a pickup while riding her bicycle around noon Sunday, according to the California Highway Patrol. She was not wearing a helmet.

The woman, visiting from Britain, was biking northbound in the southbound lanes of Amesti Road just south of Browns Valley Road. She was riding with friends when she was hit, CHP officer A. Voorhees said.

"The exact cause of the crash is under investigation but basically she was on the wrong side of the road," Voorhees said. "She was with a group of riders and was the first to leave the closure at Amesti, came around the curve and drifted into the opposing lane."

The woman crashed into the windshield on the passenger side and suffered a dislocated shoulder as well as some cuts to her face, according to CalFire Capt. Tony Arnold.

The woman was conscious and breathing when medics responded.

"She just wasn't paying attention," Arnold said.

Traffic in the area was blocked for about 20 minutes, the CHP reported.

Aptos
 
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sriracha

Monkey
Jun 9, 2006
496
0
805
jesus. no helmet and riding the wrong way in the lane, not paying attention on a blind corner?!?!

she is very lucky to be alive.
 

General Lee

Turbo Monkey
Oct 16, 2003
2,860
0
The 802
one of the animal/commencal podcasts from last season showed all of them road riding in so cal w/out helmets and i remember at the time thinking that was pretty stupid. i'm not a helmet nazi, as there are plenty of times i ride my bike w/out one (bike path, pump track, cruising around my quiet neighborhood, or riding the sidewalk to the coffee shop) but i would never consider going on a road ride w/out one. too many idiots out there even if you are paying attention and i know way too many people here who would be dead if not for their helmets, and VT traffic has nothing on CA. she's lucky.