My own stupidity

[SouthernBelle]

1. Charge the guy.

2. Did you get his insurance information?

3. Contact your own lawyer.

4. Go to the doctor.

[rij73]

You are being WAY too hard on yourself! Even the thread title is unnecessarily self-deprecating. Just take it easy, and you'll be back into riding in no time. The guy was a total ***. You didn't do anything wrong at all. You were shaken up as you should have been, and were disgusted with him as you should have been, and that's that. Now that he's been such a jerk, he deserves charges brought against him. You should absolutely pursue it. I'm sure it's not too late. Teach him a lesson!

And, again, don't be mean to yourself. You rock!

[missymaya]

As what everyone else has said, it's good that you're ok but you need to make sure your knee is ok and call the officer. The guy was being a jerk and HE was in the wrong, NOT you. That being said, don't be hard on yourself, you were being a good person and taking his word for it, not knowing he wasn't gonna keep his end of the deal. You're not stupid, he is. And, it's ok to be apprehensive about riding after the accident, that's normal. Just don't let it run your life. If you love to ride, start back easy, on MUTs and in the early am or late pm. Hope everything works out.

[mimitabby]

reminds me of the time I was 21 years old driving a beater vw bug and got rear ended by a businessman in a new car. He gave me $5.00!!! to repair my rear light and drove away. Granted, things didn't cost as much then as they do now (my bill was more like $40 ) but I was intimidated and young and... i still get mad today when I think about it.

[Geonz]

He's *counting* on you being bully-able. He probably lives like that: rolls over people and then just rolls *back* over 'em so they do what he wants until he goes away. I know it's hard... but for the next person this guy hurts (in whatever assorted ways he hurts 'em), contact the officer and see if just maybe there's a chance he'll not have such an easy time stomping all over people. At least make him have to *think* a little...

[cosc]

Sorry you have to deal with this selfish driver. You are fortunate not to be hurt too bad, but mentally you do need much healing. Don't force yourself to ride till you feel stronger, and yes you will soon will be back a-pedlin. I could easily made the same decisions given the circumstances. You just want to get all the nasties over and forget it. The guy needs a good gouge though to remember he's not the only important person on the road. I hope this soon will be a past bad memory.

[pooks]

I'd bet money that this guy was all nice and willing to pay for things while the cop was there, while witnesses were there, with no intention of following through.

Go after him. Press charges. And get that knee checked out.

Don't feel foolish. He's counting on that.

You were struck by a car while on a bike. YOU'RE not the one who is supposed to feel foolish, guilty, or even on top of your game. You were shaken up and took the guy at his word. His word wasn't good.

Now you go press charges. I can't imagine that it's too late.

[northstar]

Madscot...

So this guy ran a stop sign and hit you? Did he get a ticket? If not, something's wrong here! Was there a police report?

Also, this might be something his car insurance would cover (property damage). Then again, if it's only a $60 tire, he might just have to pay out of pocket...

Stop beating yourself up! Get on the phone and make this jerk pay!

[Eden]

This is a familiar sounding story. I know other people who've had the same experience - mainly because non-cyclists often have *no idea* how much cycling gear costs. The last person I remember was hit on his carbon fiber Look. The guy who hit him thought it was going to cost him $300 or something like that to replace it, so he agreed to go to the shop and buy a new frame and the cyclist didn't call the cops. The driver skipped when he found out just how much it was going to cost him...
Its good you talked to the police in the first place. Hopefully they'll be able to help you track the guy down. He should pay for all the repairs to your bike and any medical bills you might have. He hit you in a crosswalk! It's hard to get much more wrong than that..

[rapid cycler]

In the heat of the moment, I think a lot of us go to the self-blaming zone, probably because it's easier on the psyche than admitting to ourselves that we share the planet with such asshats. You are not the one who behaved badly here; to the contrary, you were very human and forgiving in a stressful situation. But now you need to nail that sucker!

I've been struggling with some rage issues lately. You want I should rough him up for you? Please forward his contact info.

[madscot13]

Alright I called the Officer and left her a message. She immediately called back and said that it sounds like this guy gave you some trouble then. Well he did, and now he is going to get some trouble. The Officer stopped by my house after work and yep I actually have 10 days to file a claim. She more than understands the situation and how we let him off so easy and how he did not fulfill our agreement. The Officer agrees that this guy made a bad choice and will be sorely regretting it and is completely on my side. Things will now be in the hands of the insurance and the law. I am sorry to see things come to this but he has shown himself to be a dishonest man and other things. Cooperation is in his best interests but not in his track record. The Officer listed how this will be financially be hurting him: his tabs that don't match up, his refusal to give me his information, insurance, tickets, and even possibly misdemeanor charges. He did not bargain with this but he thought he was bargaining with someone much weaker. He was wrong, I have the law, I have the support of my family, and friends like you guys. Without your push I don't know what I would have done. A lot of sleepless nights. A lot less biking.

So once again I have to thank you all for your support. I will be biking soon on the love of my life. The fact that I am not completely screwed over has taken some of the bitter taste out of my mouth. Thanks.

[Eden]

Way to go!

[lph]

WOOHOO!

good cyclist - bad driver 1-0.