OUCH!!

My friend In Limine has gone down - ouch!  And what the hell is with the SF bike community, not rendering aid to a fallen and bleeding cyclist!?!?  That's outrageous.  I can well understand ILs frustration and disillusion.  You're always supposed to ask a downed cyclist if they need help - unless they're obviously already receiving it and nobody is trying to flag you over.  Certainly if someone is injured, or possibly injured, you stop if they're not obviously already receiving some kind of aid. 

A few days ago, on the trail, I came across a woman on her back surrounded by police and EMTs.  They had a neck brace on her and several cyclists were stopped nearby.  I think it wasn't a collision, but a bad fall (this was near a covered and zig-zag cement bridge).  Even though the situation was obviously well in hand and I was late for work, I still felt a twinge of guilt at just riding by.  I can't imagine a dozen cyclists failing to stop  for IL.  Assholes.

However, when IL writes he’d expect this sort of thing in LA, but not in SF, I can only say that when I was struck by a car in LA (again, no helmet – the last time I rode without one as routine matter, I think) I was immediately surrounded by a crowd of people, including the driver, who was arguably more upset than I was, with his apologetic sobbing and trembling hands.  (I went over the hood, the bike, alas, went under the car.  When I got up I may have been a bit frosty and angry, considering this guy made a thoughtless right hand turn into my lane wherein I had the completely clear right of way.  We worked it out though - easy to do when everyone essentially gets lucky compared to what might have happened.)

**

I fell once pretty badly in High School - I was zipping down (way too fast, no helmet) a dappled sunlight street near the landfill when a truck thoughtlessly or deliberately squeezed me off the roadway onto the sandy shoulder where I had my bike (Hush) ripped out from under me by a bail of rusty diamond link fencing someone had discarded on the side of the road.  I'm certain I hit it at well over 15mph, possibly at or over 20mph.  I was pretty badly banged up - nothing broken, but I couldn't walk without a limp and lost skin on my elbows, knees, hips, ribs and palms - my gloves were ripped apart.  A nearby fire truck from a different district in the town refused to render any kind of aid to me (pre cell phone days) because they were "outside their district" and only happened to be parked there because they were dropping something off at the landfill.  Whatever "legal reasons" there may have been, they certainly wouldn't have precluded a simple radio call to the police (since this was a traffic accident) or to the other more competent fire department.  To this day, whenever I ride or drive by their station house, I spit on the sidewalk.

**

Last night we had a huge rain/windstorm.  This made for a great commute because, for the first time in a long time, I had a legitimate gusty tail-wind.  Parts of the trail were under 4-5 inches of water from the swollen Potomac.  There were a few trees down and listing which required some swerving and ducking, but nothing severe.  Despite this and the fact I was on Lumina, I made sick, sick time into work, via a mostly deserted trail.  After just a week on Lumina, I can already feel my body re-adjusting to the fixed.  She makes you work for every single foot.

Comments

[blm]

To be fair, some folks (tourists) did help remove Levy from the bike path while I was too stunned to act. Then they said I should seek medical attention. Heh.

I'm curious about your L.A. incident: the last time I got hit in L.A., the driver would've run if not for a kind witness in the car behind him who came to referee. The driver who hit me had no insurance, was not a US citizen, had no picture ID, no drivers' license, and was not the registered owner of the car. He volunteered to take me back to his house and give me his "insurance information" there. I opted for a wee call to the police. Oddly enough, they actually responded. L.A. is a strange place.

Watch those tailwinds, my friend. Methinks we sometimes use them to augment our perception of our fortitude as well as our speed. (Or maybe I'm just saying that because one bit me on the rear).