October 14, 200916 yr An ex-colleague of mine who now pilots an air-ambulance sent me this message. just got home 2015, three cancelled jobs and one very sad one - a girl in her twenties knocked off her bicycle by hit and run driver! Bike in two pieces one piece missing, remaining piece 50 mtrs from her. Serious pelvic and head injuries (helmet smashed to bits). We sweated and sprinted for her, flew like a madman spent 1.5 hours in hosp with her but it looks as though she either won't make it or will be seriously brain damaged. I'd like to get that driver in a quiet place with my shotgun and a bag full of shells!! Having read this, it makes me wonder if cycling on the roads is worth the risk. We have no cycle lanes where I live and my route to and from work is all on roads. You just don't know if the drivers passing you are drunk, on drugs or simply don't care abot you. All governments seem to do is tax you out of your car and into danger.
October 14, 200916 yr A sad tale for sure. In Cambridge we are better catered for. If I had to commute on a busy main road to work everyday via bike, quite frankly I wouldn't bother. My wife refuses to ride her bike on the road not that she ever rides it anywhere really. Regards Jerry
October 14, 200916 yr That is very sad and terrible for her relatives and friends too. However, we must see it in the context of the over a million people who ride a bike sometimes or regularly and the 30 million drivers out there in the UK. Then the low risk of that occurring to any individual is seen to be very low indeed. Of course in an ideal world it would never happen, but there will always be the odd few rogue elements who don't deserve a place in our society. Fortunately though, they are vastly outnumbered by the decent. .
October 14, 200916 yr I regularly see our local air ambulance crew, as we operate from the same airfield. We always give them a little time on their own when they come back from a flight because sometimes they just don't want to talk or deal with visitors. Both of the regular pilots are cyclists, and commute to work by bike. They wear helmets, but then they are used to wearing them when flying. One of them tells me that since taking up this job he would never go on a motorcycle. Nick
October 14, 200916 yr i wish i could be more forgiving,however,i have only just got back to work after being t boned by a mug in a van....4 breaks in the shoulder,titanium plate holding it all together,big scarring (chicks dig them!) and a year and a half off............red means STOP fool........
October 14, 200916 yr Lets hope with that with sufficent publicity this maniac is caught.If so i bet the punishment doesn't fit the crime,probably 12 months ban and small fine instead of lifetime ban,prison,large fine and car confiscated and sold and proceeds donated to victim/family. While out on sunday so idiot with his wife and 4 year old son found it amusing it drive up behind me and blow the horn which could have resulted in an accident...i should have got his number and reported him..but nothing would have happened anyway....
October 14, 200916 yr A young cretin found it immensely amusing to shout obscenities out of his car window at me last night. You should have seen the look on his face when I caught him at the lights. He was cr@pping himself. I didn't say a word...
October 14, 200916 yr While out on sunday so idiot with his wife and 4 year old son found it amusing it drive up behind me and blow the horn which could have resulted in an accident...i should have got his number and reported him..but nothing would have happened anyway.... Other than in 13 years time the son may probably do worse when he starts driving, and even then his family will stand by him A similar incident to what happened to the unfortunate young lady occured when I lived in Reading. Luckily(!) the lad involved got catapulted into a rubbish skip and survived with relatively minor injuries. The cops investigated, and found out in the end that the driver had deliberately sought him out to run him down due to a previous argument over money. He hadn't even used his own car but one he had borrowed from his ex-girlfriend claiming he was going to sell it! It took detectives a fair while to piece together the entire story but justice was done - the driver got a fairly substantial prison sentence for GBH as well as motoring offences. That said where I live far more young folk are killed in motor cars or on their motorcycles/mopeds. I have always gone by the maxim on the road (even as a pedestrian or passenger) that other road users are mentally subnormal/psychotic/want to kill you and take precautions accordingly.. Edited October 14, 200916 yr by Alex728
October 14, 200916 yr All governments seem to do is tax you out of your car and into danger. although some gets spent on rubbish millenium domes and ill-advised warfare in foreign lands, I do often wonder how much of our taxes are in fact used up clearing up after RTC's like the above and all the others involving every form of road user? I read somewhere (may even have been a motoring page in the paper) the cost of every RTC is tens of thousands to the public purse..
October 14, 200916 yr although some gets spent on rubbish millenium domes and ill-advised warfare in foreign lands, I do often wonder how much of our taxes are in fact used up clearing up after RTC's like the above and all the others involving every form of road user? I read somewhere (may even have been a motoring page in the paper) the cost of every RTC is tens of thousands to the public purse.. I saw an estimate of about £2m for every life lost, this was made up from huge assumptions with taxes from future earnings taken into account and loads of other stupid figures to exagerate the claim.
October 14, 200916 yr It is extremely sad and worrying when accidents happen and life is threatened. Usually there are two sides to take account of but there is no excuse when it is a hit and run. Some years ago a friend of mine on his racing bike had an accident when he accidentally ran into the back of a car which was stopped in the cycling lane. It was his fault for not paying sufficient attention and he couldn't argue because it was a police car!
October 14, 200916 yr The estimates I've seen of RTC costs have been much less than £2m per life but still not insignificant. A significant proportion of the younger folks at work and who I go partying with have lost friends in RTCs, ironically none of them were on bicycles! Nearly all were young folks in high powered vehicles they obtained very soon after getting their licenses. this was also why I ride an e-bike in preference to a moped or motorbike - there seem to be more opportunities for evasive action and sometimes to avoid being broadsided it makes more sense to wait and see what the other vehicle is doing and not trust red lights or anything else. I fear that even if we put a copper on every road junction, CCTV in every corner of the roads and patrolled the air with helicopters you couldn't stop many incidents like this as they are much more to do as much with a complete lack of empathy for others than driving skills, and its impossible to effectively judge this in something like driving tests.
October 14, 200916 yr ran into the back of a car which was stopped in the cycling lane. it was a police car! i hope he has learnt his lesson.....parking in a cycle lane
October 14, 200916 yr this was also why I ride an e-bike in preference to a moped or motorbike - And we still regularly get the claim from people that "...they don't have the power to accelerate out of danger...." when all the evidence is that its the power that gets them into danger. Nick PS. Smoking is good for people and seat belts kill.
October 14, 200916 yr I actually feel reasonably safe on my bike. The roads I use are OK and 99.x% of drivers give me plenty of space and drive perfectly safely. Also I feel much more aware of my surrounding when I cycle. Much more so than when I used to ride with dropped handlebars. Inappropriate speed and lack of attention seem to be responsible for most accidents and you can be hit by a vehicle just about anywhere - even walking along the pavement or sitting at home watching the telly. Amazes me that cycling on the pavement causes such a fuss.
October 14, 200916 yr we must see it in the context of the over a million people who ride a bike sometimes or regularly and the 30 million drivers out there in the UK. Then the low risk of that occurring to any individual is seen to be very low indeed. Of course in an ideal world it would never happen, but there will always be the odd few rogue elements who don't deserve a place in our society. Fortunately though, they are vastly outnumbered by the decent. . My thoughts exactly. We have some pretty nasty roads around here, narrow lanes and blind corners (dense fluffy hedges). I'm one of those ultra-visible cyclists (yellow jacket, blinking LED lights, reflective white bands), but it would only take one stupid/lazy/distracted/tired driver to send me to hospital. I know someone who was seriously injured, so I appreciate the risks. That being said, thanks to the e-bike assistance I can now afford to avoid the main road traffic at peak time: I choose safer routes, usually longer, twistier and often with more up-and-down hills (nearly always much more pleasant: country-side smells, fresh air, landscape, etc.). Cheers, Dan EDIT: to be honest, I am more worried about hitting potholes at speed than about traffic (my small 16" wheels don't like holes)
October 14, 200916 yr Yes, like Daniel and Barnowl the traffic doesn't put me off cycling, even in the very congested parts of London Boroughs and also on high speed trunk roads. My belief in the relative safety of two wheels is supported by my 63 years of cycling with not a single scratch to show for it. Despite the comment from Nick's air ambulance man, motorcycles can also be very safe as my 53 years of riding them shows. Although I'd been off many times in competition, I never came off on the road once in all those years. . Edited October 14, 200916 yr by flecc
October 14, 200916 yr as flecc says, if you are going to continue cycling, then ghastly events such as this, must be taken in context.... however, as a keen cyclist, and also as a Senior Observer for the Institute od Advanced Motorists (the IAM), I have to say that any one of us is quite capable of not "seeing" a cyclist....after a long day at the wheel, or any number of possible distractions ( including not feeling well), then the incidences of "Look but did Not See" rises dramatically.. I have actually been giving instruction to a candidate about to take his advanced test (with a Grade One traffic cop as the Tester), when we entered a roundabout with a cyclist also entering from the right...my trainee, looked but did not see, and how we avoided him I still dont know... however 2 things come to mind....firstly the cyclist was riding much too defensively close to the kerb, and not taking his due place in the centre of the one entry lane into the roundabout, so his visiblity was lowered dramatically.. secondly, he was wearing brown or black clothing, and nothing that pro-actively "grabbed" the eye, and said 'I'm here'! hi-viz clothing is a MUST, if you want to be seen against the suburban back drop, as even a dozy driver may then pick up information (of your presence) early enough to plan a change of speed and/position... the vogue nowadays for matt balck crash helmets, and black cycling kit leaves me in dispair, as we dont live in Holland or Denmark, where the first onus is on the car driver to allow for any cyclist....somehow hi-viz is not seen a 'cool', but ultimately cyclists have to take some responsiblity for alerting motorists to their presence, as the alternative could be A&E.. all the emergency services are painted in hi-viz colours basically to be seen and lastly, I definitely will avoid cycling on any national speed limit 2 lane country road...the closing speed of 2 approaching cars could be 120 mph, and being the cycling meat in the sandwich does not appeal!!
October 14, 200916 yr When entering a roundabout I always expect anything on the left to just pull straight out (my hands are on the brakes ready and I'm watching the driver). I don't wear Hi-Viz but you're right I should.
October 14, 200916 yr I've always had a different opinion on "Hi-Viz" wear Barry, particularly in town, and as you see from the above, it's served me well. We live in a multi-coloured urban world where the multiple colours of much hi-viz can just merge with all the background, and I firmly believe that with a small target like a two wheeled user, a single colour over everything is best. Since nearly all tyres are black, having the entire outfit, bike and rider all over black, creates a maximum size of single area to be noticed. Even at night in urban conditions a larger black target can block the multiplicity of lighting and make the shape apparent, and of course the two wheelers lighting/reflectors being to a high standard is essential. If as I do, you follow Moto GP and Superbike on TV, you'll soon see that the rider easiest to identify in a bunch is the one with the maximum of bike and rider all one colour. Valentino Rossi's predominantly yellow attire and bike are usually by far the easiest to identify what position he's in after a start for example, but the occasional all black race outfit is also easy to identify. The worst to identify is one of the many with multi-coloured leathers and helmet, them being lost into their background. Accordingly I think the worst possible outfit is the multi coloured patchwork that so many motorcyclists wear, and the high incidence of drivers not seeing them doesn't surprise me. I do fully agree on road position dominance though and frequently control the following traffic on my e-bike where it's necessary for safety. Few drivers object to that when the purpose is clear by decisive action and accompanying equally clear hand signals when necessary. It's dithering and nervousness that drivers hate, leaving them not knowing what the cyclist is going to do next and sometimes impatient in consequence. I also cycle on two lane and completely unmarked national speed limit roads freely and always have done, and in my area if I didn't I wouldn't be able to cycle at all! . Edited October 14, 200916 yr by flecc
October 14, 200916 yr I've hardly had any problem with people not seeing me but sod's law it would happen this morning. It was before dawn and I have a very bright flashing light on the front that is obvious from a hundred yards away, I was dominating the single lane round a small roundabout and a woman pulled out right in front of me. It was close but we both stopped in time, she was apologetic and had just looked right through me. Apart from that my near misses involve people behind me who aren't paying attention at junctions, on the phone or chatting to passengers and fail to see something happen on the junction that forces me to stop. A brake light would be good.
October 14, 200916 yr somehow hi-viz is not seen a 'cool', but ultimately cyclists have to take some responsiblity for alerting motorists to their presence, as the alternative could be A&E.. There is a very dangerous long stretch of road just outside of our local village. Steep, narrow, twisty with blind corners. I often see a guy in his late 40's mid 50's struggling to cycle up, swerving painfully and dangerously. He wears no helmet, dark clothes and has no lights. Unbelievable ! Having little or no money is no excuse, as yellow fluorescent jackets are dead-cheap (so are high-visibility arm bands) and LED lights are affordable nowadays. I think he's just lazy and unaware of the consequences of his acts. He may well be endangering motorists too, who could drive off-lane just to spare his life, and as a result create an accident with the oncoming traffic. I don't mind looking un-cool with all my hi-viz gear. I value my life/health more than my sex-appeal I'd rather come-across as a responsible cyclist than oblivious to the sad reality of our poor-quality car-centric road network. Happy cycling ! Cheers, Dan
October 14, 200916 yr There is a very dangerous long stretch of road just outside of our local village. Steep, narrow, twisty with blind corners. I often see a guy in his late 40's mid 50's struggling to cycle up, swerving painfully and dangerously. He wears no helmet, dark clothes and has no lights. Unbelievable ! Have you suggested an e-bike to him?
October 14, 200916 yr It's very sad when a young life is lost through the actions of such a grossly incompetent driver. Personally I have no room for someone who acts in that way (hit and run) - that's the lowest of the low. Barrycoll .... I definitely will avoid cycling on any national speed limit 2 lane country road...the closing speed of 2 approaching cars could be 120 mph, and being the cycling meat in the sandwich does not appeal!! .... Unfortunately, those of us living in "narrow road" Cornwall don't have much choice at playing the part of potential cycle meat sandwich. Defensive riding (taking up correct position on road / taking charge of lanes) is a must in this part of the Country - there's no gutter’s on our roads only ditches I'm colour matched to the bike (red and black) and have flashing lights on all the time, so I present a big (in your face) picture. I may be soft (flesh and bone) but my chunky MTB ebike (35KG monster) will make a real mess of any fool who try’s to mess with me ----------------------------------------------- Cougar Mountain Electric Bike 36v 200w rear wheel Hub motor (Jul07) fitted with 10 Ah LiFePo4 battery (Apr08) Maximum range (road/hills - Cornwall) 18 miles Maximum range (on flat) 25 miles . Edited October 14, 200916 yr by Footie
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