Archive-URL: http://search.bikelist.org/getmsg.asp?Filename=internet-bob.10705.1961.eml
Date: Sat, 19 May 2007 08:29:34 -0700 (PDT)
From: alex wetmore <alex(AT)phred.org>
Subject: My car/bike collision (was RE: [BOB] And how was YOUR bicycle to

On Sat, 19 May 2007, Addison Wilhite wrote:
> My bike to work day felt like almost any other.  Especially since
> I'm on the road at 6 am, too early for the BTW gatherings, free
> coffee, etc.  that were offered at various businesses.  Did see
> quite a few riders out in the morning though.  More than usual but I
> didn't count.

My bike to work day didn't happen.

On Thursday night I was hit by a car on my way home in the evening.  I
was going north on a bike lane on a 5 lane road (2 N, 2 S, one turn). 
Traffic was really bad and I was slowing passing cars from the bike
lane.  A car coming south was trying to turn left into a driveway. 
They saw a gap in the cars (without looking carefully, an eyewitness
said that the driver didn't even stop) and ran into me.

I think I was very lucky.  I think he hit my front wheel...a fraction
of a second later he would have hit my leg.  I think I then went over
the bars and landed on his bumper or hood with my left upper arm, then
hit the ground with my shoulder.  I'm pretty bruised and have some
scrapes, but it could have been a lot worse.

So I spent Thursday night in the ER getting X-Rays to make sure that
nothing was broken.  Friday was consumed filing the police report,
talking to his insurance company, going to my doctor, and taking my
bike in for a repair estimate.

I was riding my new custom bike, but with a temporary fork off of one
of my Trek's.  The fork is pretty well out of alignment and a local
shop recommended just replacing it.  The wheel is extremely taco'd. 
My frame was knocked slightly out of alignment but can be saved. 
There is a medium/large paint chip on the left seatstay which is kind
of a bummer since this bike is brand new.  The shifter needs to be
replaced too.  My first rack was bent out of shape too.

My damage:
http://alexandchristine.smugmug.com/gallery/2866995#153830567

Notice the swelling on my upper arm.  That was much worse right after
the accident (this photo was taken after hours of ice and 6 hours
after the accident).  The road rash there isn't too bad.

This is my front wheel:
http://alexandchristine.smugmug.com/gallery/2866995#153830469

Other photos link off of the same point.  I also have a shot of the
road in question (Eastlake for those in Seattle).  Traffic was much
worse than when this photo was taken.

Lessons learned:

1) Really do call the cops at the scene of the accident.  I waited
until the next day to file a report.  The officer told me that at the
accident that he'd be able to cite the driver directly.  That may have
made dealing with insurance easier.  However I have a reliable
eyewitness (a bus driver who saw the whole thing from about 10' away).

This is hard.  Right after the accident my body was pumped with adreline
and I just wanted to not be there anymore.

I guess that is the main one.

So I missed Bike to Work day, my Thursday ride with Mark, and my weekend
s24o with Rory.  The doctor wants me to wait a couple of weeks before 
biking again, but I'll probably try an easy ride through the parks a 
little sooner.

alex
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