Got knocked off my bike...

[dmtevo]

Finish a local club ride and heading back home when a lovely lady turned right across my path. I was doing about 20mph at the time, managed to brake to around 14 mph but ended up hitting the side of her car..

Picked myself up, brushed myself off and proceeded to say “what the **** where you thinking”.. She said “She didn’t see me”..

What could I say to that.. “Well maybe you weren’t looking hard enough”..

After the red mist had faded and I realised I’d not broken anything, me or the bike, I took a photo of her car reg, checked to see if she was ok then left..

To be honest, I didn’t really know what else to do. I don’t have any bike insurance, my bike wasn’t really damaged apart from a scratched rear mech. Her car had a broken wing mirrror and a nice scratch down the side.

What should I have done?

Thankfully it wasn’t too serious, my shoulder is a little sore but I think it was fade in a few days.

Upon reflection, I’m thinking how I can avoid the situation, the winter Sun was a little low behind me which I’m guessing is the reason she didn’t see me.. I wasn’t running a flashing front light, maybe this would have helped.. (11:30am).

Maybe I’m overthinking it.. I do around 3-4K miles per year and this is my first and hopefully last incident .
Strangely enough I was suprised how little the onlookers gave to my welfare.. one guy helped pick my bike up, everyone else just looked then moved on. Maybe us cyclists really are hated

[wheelbuilder]

Oh man! Glad you are ok and your bike wasn't damaged badly.... You probably handled it the best way you could at the time. Perhaps actually exchange information next time, in case you find damage to bike which wasn't apparent at the scene, and most importantly if any injuries pop up overnight. Not to be litigious just to get something for nothing, cause I hate that, but in case their ends up being real damage later! Glad you seem ok, and good on you for not going off on her in the heat of the moment.

[AJS914]

I'm glad you are ok!

>>>Upon reflection, I’m thinking how I can avoid the situation

Keep an eye out for cars that might not see you. We can all zone out at times and not pay attention to things we shouldn't have to but it's best to keep an eye out for a car that might run a red light or stop sign.

After getting t-boned in my car by a red light runner, I now look both ways as I go through intersections with green lights. I'm not stopping or slowing just making sure cars are coming to a stop or already stopped on the red.

[dmtevo]

Cheers guys,
To be honest I usually try to get eye contact with drivers when passing junctions as I'm half expecting them to pull out. In this case the driver was coming in the opposite direction and turned across in front of me. I'd just didn't expect this.... obviously I will now.
My only hope is that the driver will never do this again, I think she also learnt big lesson...

[mdeth1313]

I've been riding (as an adult) for about 21 years now - had a few close calls, but never hit by a car. I think part of the reason is I assume anyone in a car is going to do the wrong thing and I anticipate the worst. Leaving work I have to ride through a roundabout (to exit the parking lot onto a main route) and a few times I've had to hop up on the bricks in the middle to avoid the idiots who didn't see me in my fluorescent yellow clothing, 2200 lumen headlight, flashing taillight, etc.

fun times!

[liam7020]

Claim. I got knocked off and badly injured in 2014 and the old guy who did, a religious preacher no less, denied all knowledge for nearly 2 years. I had a hairy arsed brief who pursued him relentlessly and I eventually got compensation just short of court proceedings. If someone came up to you in the street and punched you in the mouth you wouldn't let them away with it. Drivers need to know this type of careless driving cannot go unpunished and to a certain extent you have a duty to other bikers to seek some justice, even though your injuries may appear light. I'm assuming you're an adult - if this idiot woman had hit a child the outcome may have been considerably more serious. Do not blame yourself - 11.30 in the morning driving into a low sun she should have been much more careful. Wonder was she on her phone - the police can check.

If it were me I would report it to the police, get yourself fully checked out by your doctor and speak to a solicitor/lawyer whatever. Do not let it go. Good luck.

[prendrefeu]

Aside from the advise from others, I'm glad to know that you are alive, healthy, and unharmed from this incident.

[dmtevo]

Drivers need to know this type of careless driving cannot go unpunished and to a certain extent you have a duty to other bikers to seek some justice, even though your injuries may appear light. I'm assuming you're an adult - if this idiot woman had hit a child the outcome may have been considerably more serious. Do not blame yourself - 11.30 in the morning driving into a low sun she should have been much more careful. Wonder was she on her phone - the police can check.

If it were me I would report it to the police, get yourself fully checked out by your doctor and speak to a solicitor/lawyer whatever. Do not let it go. Good luck.

I hear what you're saying.. Another lady at the scene did say "it was one of those things". And in not so nice language, I replied with "It wouldn't have been one of those things if it were a 6 year old child".. And as a parent to a 6 & 8 year old it has to be my worst nightmare!

I think I've probably done my duty to fellow cyclists by taking the hit from this lady so to speak. I can be fairly sure she'll "look" properly in the future! I think if I'd have suffered more, whether it had been a broken collar bone or and wrecked bike I'd have definitely pursued it. We've both learnt from it and thankfully the shoulder is easing up now!

Stay safe!

[TonyM]

I grew up in a big city and learned how to bike there. I survived and learned that you just cannot trust car drivers. They always have erratic behaviors. Later I drove a motorcycle a lot and the experience of cycling among car drivers definitely help me surviving again. Don‘t trust car drivers as their behavior is just erratic. Always have a plan B!!

And good that you are safe!!

[bilwit]

Here in Seattle (when I'm in the city) I just assume virtually every car at intersections either doesn't see me, doesn't care, won't yield to me, or WILL try to turn in before I pass. I'm usually right. This is especially the case OFF the bike when you're just walking around trying to cross the street at a crosswalk. Drivers are absolutely rabid here.

I find that a lot of other cyclists here assume the other way and will generally try to filter or cut through lanes or lights or whatever rather than slow down or brake. For me it's not worth it, especially in the city where it's stop and go street to street anyway. I know how fast I am so slowing down, stopping, or generally favoring the brakes isn't a big deal.

Claim. I got knocked off and badly injured in 2014 and the old guy who did, a religious preacher no less, denied all knowledge for nearly 2 years. I had a hairy arsed brief who pursued him relentlessly and I eventually got compensation just short of court proceedings. If someone came up to you in the street and punched you in the mouth you wouldn't let them away with it. Drivers need to know this type of careless driving cannot go unpunished and to a certain extent you have a duty to other bikers to seek some justice, even though your injuries may appear light. I'm assuming you're an adult - if this idiot woman had hit a child the outcome may have been considerably more serious. Do not blame yourself - 11.30 in the morning driving into a low sun she should have been much more careful. Wonder was she on her phone - the police can check.

If it were me I would report it to the police, get yourself fully checked out by your doctor and speak to a solicitor/lawyer whatever. Do not let it go. Good luck.

Do some research about it first.. in Seattle cops won't care at all after the fact. We've had someone with a GoPro record a driver cutting them off and verbally threaten/harass them afterward to "teach them a lesson" and when they reported it to the police it was dismissed because they were told that they can't do anything unless an officer was there to witness it. The guy put the footage on twitter afterward and a former mayor even commented how ridiculous it was for the police to dismiss it. Might be a little different since the OP was knocked off but since there was no damages (to the rider) I think it would be dismissed here too unfortunately.

[mike]

add in the constant cell phone use while driving, which I see every day, and it adds another layer of danger to you.

[themidge]

Glad to hear you're ok, doesn't sound like there was anything malicious going on, especially if it was nearly dark. FWIW I'm 16 in a few days and have been riding on the open roads (big and small) since I was about 12, have only had a couple of close calls, lucky so far! If anything, I feel like I'm more likely to hit someone or be hit on the shared old railway paths around here, got to watch out for dogs an old ladies

[Mr.Gib]

I had a hairy arsed brief...

A highlight of WW's is the expressions of those from other places. How does one determine if one's brief is hairy arsed? If I ever have need of a "brief" it might be useful to know to make sure I get the right type.

Seriously, in most cases there is no ill intent - motorists simply aren't looking for bikes, they are looking for other cars. Motorcyclist have the same problem but perhaps to a lesser extent. If you don't do it already, simply assume that you are never seen and act accordingly. Flashing lights make a huge difference. I have noticed a substantial change for the better in motorists actions when I have my lights flashing although it is far from a guarantee of safety. Now the one's that take a run at you intentionally - those are the real sickos.

[dmtevo]

I had a hairy arsed brief...

A highlight of WW's is the expressions of those from other places. How does one determine if one's brief is hairy arsed? If I ever have need of a "brief" it might be useful to know to make sure I get the right type.

I actually understand what he's referring too. I'd place good money on this guy being from Blighty...


*** Although we don't tend to use the term Brief ***

[AJS914]

I often have pedestrians just walk in front of me without looking. They think they are on a quiet street with no cars but here I am coming along. I think they are relying on hearing and they don't hear a bike coming.

I read a Malcolm Gladwell article on the anatomy of a car crash. One point was that our eyes/brains selectively see and filter information. It's possible for a driver not to see a bike in plain view because maybe they drove that road 5 million times and never had a bike cross their path or they were distracted by looking at other cars and pedestrians and didn't see the cyclist.

Some people don't see everything that is going on:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJG698U2Mvo