Driver Saw Me, Then Hit Me

I was in Tulsa, OK for a MTB race last Sunday, March 30, 08.
Basically I was going south, driver was going north.. driver wanted to turn onto a side street which would make him cross my path.. I tapped my brakes and tried to make eye contact, there was a glare on the windshield so I didnt see his face.. but he stopped his car.. no blinker.. so I proceed.. then there he comes at me. I thought .. wow.. what is he doing?? As slow as we were going, I thought.. I'll just plop over onto his hood when we hit... no way... I flew straight up into the air and came down head first into his windshield.

He got a ticket. I got 122 stiches to my head.

I want to know what he was thinking.. but it really doesnt matter because nothing would be acceptable ya know?

http://jrmints.com/blog/?p=1
That link will take you to my memory of the incident... the photos are linked in from there... they are gory gory gory... so don't look if you can't handle blood.

The good news is nothing was broken.. but his windshield and my bike.

Paula

Whoa, that's some owie! I hope it was an expensive ticket for the bxstard that hit you. Glad you're ok!

Take care & heal up,
~BikeMomma

I read your blog. What DID the driver say??

Oh that's so scary. Feel Better!

I shouldn't have looked at the pics. You poor thing.

Maybe it was the glare. I have to hope there was some bit of humanity in this person, and it was an accident. No one would do that to you on purpose (right?).

Oh, I just read that he saw you, so I'm a little depressed now. What was he thinking?!

When I was 14 years old, I was hit by a car door while riding. The person stopped for a minute, but left before the ambulance came. Fortunately, she had a vanity plate, which I easily remembered. I sued and won enough to pay my medical bills.

Very happy to hear you're alive and have no broken bones (although your skull does look interesting). Your attitude is great! :)

Annoying to read over and over about drivers underestimating cyclists' speed and overestimating cyclists' ability to stop. Probably he saw you and "thought" you'd stop for some stupid reason. Or just wasn't thinking.

Like you, I don't trust drivers to make the right decisions. My husband sometimes gets embarrassed riding with me because I'm a very assertive rider. I'm my own traffic cop: I motion cars coming from behind me when and when NOT to pass me, and cars coming from the opposite direction when to stop. I also send friendly waves, smile a lot and thank-you signs, and I hope that redeems me for bossing them around. I'm surprised most people "listen". But this is Vancouver, BC, where drivers are relatively accustomed to being around bicycles, and generally very "polite" (meaning: unassertive and hesitant). I think that wouldn't work as well in other cities... And who knows, one day maybe I'll be smashed into by a frustrated driver who decided he would not STOP when I motioned him to. Life is short. I'll start with my dessert tonight at dinner. :D

! :-o

Today I got my stitches removed. I'm having a lot of dizziness and the headaches are starting to be pretty intense... but overall, I feel pretty good.
The doctor thinks I dislocated my shoulder and popped it back in during the accident. Check out the bruises on my left arm. Yuck. I can't use that arm very much yet.
Today's progress: http://jrmints.com/blog/?p=16


A dad of one of the racers took photos at the scene. (The car, the driver, me all bleeding.. )
You can see them here:
http://jrmints.com/blog/?p=17


I have hired a lawyer. I explained that I don't want to bleed anyone dry, I just want my bills covered and my equipment replaced... The plastic surgeon doesn't want to see me for six months... so we'll need to estimate that in as well... assuming the insurance company wants to settle before then.

That's all for now I think.

Thanks again for all your well wishes!!!

Paula

How scary . . . glad you're "okay" and hope you continue to heal. Hope the headaches & dizziness go away soon, and you start to feel like your old self!

(((((Paula)))))

Hope you're feeling better. Makes my minor post-ride discomfort look like nothing. Impressive sums it up. And you're poor bike. Hope the driver, or his insurance, coughs up the money so you can get a new one (+ your medical expenses). Maybe he ought to trade in his car for a bike.

Take care and hope you feel better soon!

I hope your concussion will subside; please watch out for lingering symptoms.

I do not usually like the american judicial systems (trigger happy ambulance chasers) but in this case:
sue his a$$.

My boyfriend just said he feels there's a total disregard for anything that does not fit normality in this country, and that the attitude is what is not normal is free game. [Notable exceptions apply.]

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by alpinerabbit

sue his a$$.

---

what she said

I am glad you are okay. From the looks of the pictures, I feel someone was looking out for you that day.

I don't believe that you have to settle when the insurance company wants to when you weren't at fault. They have to wait for all of your medical issues before they can force you to do anything. Plus you might have things come up later, with back problems or something.


Anyway, I hope you continue to well and recover quickly.


Do you know if he said anything about not seeing you or what his excuse was to continue when you were coming? Did he think he could beat you, or just didn't care? I know it shouldn't matter, but I would want something from him that acknowledged what he did and how bad he screwed up and that he could have killed you!!!

I don't mean to sound harsh towards him. I'm sure he did not mean or want to hit you, but if he shows no remorse then he has learned nothing from his mistake or impatience or whatever it was.

Wow - this was like an accident my husband was in about 8 years ago in Watertown/Belmont, Ma. Left turning car - broken shoulder, hamburger-like flesh injuries, and lots of embedded glass. Thank GOD for helmets and witnesses.

The lawsuit took ages to sift out everything - and everything about it was sort of re-traumatizing. Don't be surprised at how strange you may feel about all of this in your life. It is a real shake-up. And you survived!

He received enough money from the settlement to pay the hospital bills. Which is no small thing. He did not have extra for a new bike or anything. His face was not cut, though. And he is a guy. YOU are a very beautiful young woman - this and the location of that head wound...well, I'll just say - I hope that you receive a generous settlement that covers all your medical needs here as well as replacement of your bike and any other help you need - it's not too much to ask, IMO.

Heal well, brave lassy!

Wow you are very brave! I hope everything works out in the end and you get compensated for not only you injuries and your bike stuff but for your time that you have had to put in to get better.
Lot's of healing thoughts coming your way! Keep up the positive work!

Hope the headaches and dizzyness are letting up and that your body continues to heal.

While I'm sure the driver who hit you feels bad, you do deserve to be compensated, not only for your medical & damaged property but also because this is a huge disruption to your life. The driver's insurance company might cover this -- glad to hear that you have a lawyer to help you with all of that stuff . . . I imagine his premiums will go up . . . or maybe his insurance will be suspended and he'll have to ride a bike to get around!

Keep taking good care of yourself!

Heya. Thank you everyone for your well wishes and advice. I'm still healing up.. it's going really well. My back pain is almost completely gone and the scar is weaving itself together. I have the dizziness still, but I think we found a possible cure for it. Evidently, when you get hit really hard in the head, it can knock some calcium crystals loose in your inner ear and those things float around and cause problems. There are non surgical ways to get them to quit doing that... so I'm hoping we take care of that soon.

I just posted an update to how the scar looks today. Take a peek.. I touched it up with some makeup for the first time.

http://jrmints.com/blog/?p=10

Thanks again!
Paula

Just read this thread...my heart goes out to you! I am in Mass temporarily and went to a bike shop meeting a week or so ago and met a woman there that was hit as well. She is dealing with the same issue with the crystals in her inner ear ( I Think? that's where they are?) and she is going to some type of therapy to help alleviate it. She said it's slow to progress but it helps. Keep getting well~!

you're still a very lovely looking young lady. And what a story goes with THAT scar. How's the legal battle going?

I'm too much of a wuss to look at the pictures of your accident, but I hope you are recovering well!

This is absolutely horrible, I hate how people are so inconsiderate to cyclists. We get it from cars, pedestrians, skateboarders...it drives me absolutely insane. Why can't they realize that we are clipped in, and that our range of motion is limited when it comes to avoiding things last minute? I've even encountered some fellow cyclists who are just plain rude (like going head-on into your side of the road in turns and curvy roads). :mad:

Your cut looks like it is healing quickly. I hope your dizziness and inner being heals as well.

That is very scary! So glad you are okay!!! Take care of yourself and glad you are doing better.

So glad you are healing as well as you are. From the looks of the pics, "you've come a long way, baby!".... cool that you have the progression photos to compare. It really is looking good. Here's to a speedy recovery the rest of the way.