Hit by motor vehicle

Guest

I took OldTimers advise and beared the pain and whent for a training ride yesterday. 1 km from home my chain comes off. Stop fix and off we go. First traffic light I get to some bloke in a golf nearly squashes me agains the pavement.

I carry on and notice th cadence seonsor is not working, no problem, I'll check it when I'm finished riding.

about 7km from home, I'm doing about 40km/h passing a shopping complex on my left when this bakkie (pickup truck for non S'Africans) just turns left into the shopping complex. I hit the brakes, back wheel locks and front wheel hit the rear wheel of the bakkie. I manage to keep my balance and grab onto the back of the bakkie to pull my body in the direction the bike was going.

I then had to chase this guy to make him stop. And all he could say was sorry I did not see you. I was fuming, my heart rate was sky high and I was ready to kill. thinking about it afterwards I should have taken the company name and phone number as well as the drivers name.

I still consider myself very lucky, it could have been much worse. there is no damage to me or the bike (physical damage that is).

Guy (and gals ) keep a look out, motorists drive like they own the road. This is the first time I've collided with a motor vehicle and it'sjust brought that danger to the forefront of my attention.

Vo2

Glad to hear you're ok, ouzo.
Golden rule No1: ALWAYS assume that the driver is going to brake or turn infront of you.

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Pain is inevitable...suffering is optional

Guest

Glad to know you came out unschathed. As for the driver of the pick-up, I'd say that maybe you should let him off the hook this time. If I understood you correctly, the driver unknowingly cut you off. If he was ahead of you in the turning lane, then he was not at fault. But if cut you off coming from another lane...then he is at fault. Either way, he apologized, so I'm thinking he didn't see you. That's why I ride like I am invisible, because I know that motorists don't know that I am on the road.

Ride safely, hope nothing on your bike was damaged (that would suck!).

Guest

Thing is I wear a bright yellow cycling Jersey. Also, the lane goes straight, the entrance into the shopping complex was more like a drive way than anything else. Also he did not signal his intention as the traffic light 20m ahead had changed to red so he was going to take a short cut through the parking lot.

The thing that really p'd me off was that he did not stop, sure if he was alone he would not have know he hit me, but he had a passenger sitting on the back that saw everything.

Anyway, like you say, ride so that they can see you. Not always possible and not always easy, but bike vs car car always wins.

Guest

Over here if we get the reg number and go see the police they'll normally go have a chat with the scum bags. In your case where you've been hit, they get charged  ;D

I hate people who can't drive whether i'm on the bike or in the car.....they shit me  : its not like its hard to drive properly is it?

glad your ok mate, cause you post alot here.....we can't afford to lose members like you  

cheers!

Vo2

Then you should never come to SA. You'll be shocked by the driving here!

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Pain is inevitable...suffering is optional

Guest

I read an interesting report that said motorists don't see cyclists/motorbiks because subconciously they're looking for road users that match their own profile (cars, trucks etc). I had a similar situation to Ouzo - car overtook me and immediately turned in front of me (I did an 'Ouzo' and leaned up against the car for a really sharp left). This is in South Africa - we drive on the left. He would have had to be blind not to see me considering he overtook me.....

Guest

The classic one liner.  "I didn't see you".  Its that old its grown a beard.  We've all had similar situations.  For me on one occasion on the Gold Coast I had a motorist stop half way through a turn in front of me.

My snarl back at the driver brought a tidal wave of abuse.  Amazing that! ???

Vo2

Isn't it amazing how motorists that have bike racks or bike rack brackets attached to their cars leave you with more than enough space on the road when they pass you? It's usually motorists that have no sporting background, or no-one amongst their closest family or friends that participate in sports, that are the worst.

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Pain is inevitable...suffering is optional

Eldron

Agreed!

The amount of abuse hurled at you is directly proportional to the belt size of the driver.

Guest

Glad to hear you're ok ouzo !!

Unfortunatly cycling is a bit dangerous from that point of view and that's why a prefer to cycle early (just after 5) in the mornings on safe as possible route. Sometimes even that is not good enough ...

Something else that I've noted is that there are some cyclists that would, sometimes, on fairly busy roads, cycle next to one another, taking up half a lane and completely ignore motorists. I find that arrogant and feel that they give the rest of us a bad name.

Guest

So glad to hear you're ok. Ouzo.  I too had a skirmish with a car a while back, but was not so lucky as Ouzo.  Bike was written off completely, had to buy new gear from the helmet, eyewear and clothing.  Also someone who turned right in front of me.  Luckily I wasn't hurt that bad, just had a headache that lasted for 2 weeks.  Now when I go out cycling, I believe I'm the only person with my eyes open and try to think for everyone.

Guest

Ouzo. Glad you (and the bike!) are not damaged! ;D Always ride thinking someone, anyone, is going to do something stupid any moment now, and it won't be long before you're proved right! :

Vo2

So true! So true! ;D

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Pain is inevitable...suffering is optional