Scarey Semi Experience

[likinbikin]

Hello

I have been visiting this site for some time now and have never had anything to write about until today.

I started cycling in August and immediately became hooked. I used to be a runner but I prefer this MUCH MUCH more!We get alot of cross country cyclists coming through my town in North Dakota and seeing them made my hubby and I decide to see if we liked cycling. We like to ride 20 miles a day but since my DH hasn't had much time I have been going out alone. I ride along a 4 lane highway with a nice wide breakdown lane. Sometimes I get a bit nervous being out there alone but love riding too much to let it make me stop.

Today I had a scary experience with a semi truck. Most often then not trucks pull over to the passing lanes for me unless there happens to be a car passing them. Unfortunately today I created a most undesirable situation when I pulled over to the highway's right lane line edge to avoid glass all over the breakdown lane. After pedaling along for a few feet, a semi truck all of a sudden appeared behind me and wasn't pulling over! So... I had it whiz past me as I felt it vibrating in my chest and blowing me around. I could have easily touched that truck if I extended my hand out! All I could think of was that I had to keep control of my bike because I wasn't ready to die yet . The truck could not pull over since a car was passing it at that same moment.It was the scariest thing I have ever been through and I was shaking for the rest of my ride. In fact I am still shaking! I don't know how all of the cross country cyclists cope with semis on all the roads without nice breakdown lanes!

Really makes a person think how fast something bad could happen while on a bike. I don't know why I didn't notice that truck barreling down the highway before I pulled over to avoid the glass. You can be sure that I am going to be EXTRA cautious from now on. I have 5 children who need me!

Do any of you have scary stories like this we could all learn from? I would rather learn them on here then out on the road again!

Nice to still be here to finally meet you all
Michelle

[CyclChyk]

No scary tales for me to tell but yours definately got me scared! Glad you made it thru without incident.

[Bikingmomof3]

Welcome Michelle. No scary stories to share, just wanted to welcome you.

[SouthernBelle]

When riding out in the country, I've learned to watch out for trucks hauling hay, those giant round bales. I was riding down a narrow road once, and a truck with a long trailer full of round bales passed. Although he moved over, those bales were so wide they whizzed right by my ear. Creepy. Don't need an earful of hay!

[Xrayted]

First, welcome Michelle.
I live in an area where they don't respect biking very much, even though we have a Tour de France winner from here. **yelling** FLOYYYYD!!!!!
We have either major highway here or thin, windy country roads. There are only a few in between types with pull offs. I don't go anywhere near the highways. Too dangerous.
I get whizzed almost everytime I go out for a ride. I've found that if I take the lane more, I'm given safer margins overall. I do get a lot more horn blowing though and I don't think it's from checking out my azz. Now, I've already been hit by a car as many here know. It took years for me to even semi-recover so, I'm an extra careful rider out there.
The closest lately was just a few weeks ago when it was cold out and I had on a jacket that was a bit baggy. I got whizzed so close that the mirror on the vehicle actually tapped the elbow of my jacket and it felt like it was gonna suck my bike under. I was in the right half of the pulloff area when it happened so they must have been way across the white line. I had to stop and sit by the side of the road for about 20 minutes to get myself composed again. It took everything I had to not puke.
It gave me a real attitude adjustment for these last few weeks. Grass seems greener, life is funnier, people more interesting. Not the way you wanna get reminded of the value of those things though.
I guess I fear how I'm gonna die but not death itself because after all, it's not like you gotta live with that. (it's actually rather peaceful) I fear lifelong, debilitating injury much more. The kind of things that stick with you and get worse as the years progress. The kind that keep you from doing the things you enjoy and being with the ones you love. I've had enough of that already, and emotionally, I really don't think I'm strong enough to take another major hit in this lifetime. But, here I am, riding around with a foolish grin on my face. I don't know, maybe I'm just too dense to know when to stop.

I understand your anxiety, dear. I'm so glad you're alright. Biking is a wonderful sport but it is a dangerous one from the perspective of the added automobile element. We all take that chance everytime we go out. We have a right to be on the road too. But not all motorists see it that way.
I hope you find a safer place to 'get your fix' on the bike. Thanks for sharing. I'm looking forward to more posts from you. There is a Getting To Know You thread where you can go introduce yourself. We'd love to get to know you better. (Gotta warn you now, these TE ladies love pics! )

X.

[DebW]

That's scary, likinbikin. Glad you could keep the bike under control. I think that alot of truckers need physics lessons on bow shocks and fluid dynamics. They don't always realize how the airflow around their trucks impacts the space beyond the vehicle, and how that space increases with speed. I've had buses pass me at 40 mph within touching distance. Semis at 60 are much worse. I have written to our local bus authority when I felt a driver was operating dangerously by passing too close, and the bus authority has responded. If you know the trucking company name, you could write to them and suggest they provide more training for drivers around cyclists. If a driver can't pull over to give you adequate space, he should be SLOWING DOWN.

You might consider tires like Gatorskins that could run over broken glass without too much danger of a puncture. Those roads you ride on sound dangerous when you can't use the shoulder.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

You also might want to consider getting a rearview mirror. I check my little helmet mirror like second nature to me now, and so at any given moment I know what the traffic situation is behind me. It really contributes to my sense of knowing what's coming and avoiding/preventing dangerous traffic situations BEFORE they happen.

[likinbikin]

Thanks everyone for the responses and thoughts. I do have a mirror on my bike but should get one for my helmet. That way I can have plenty of rear views. Just in case I miss a view like yesterday!

The only place to ride around here are on the main roadways. The towns around my area are spread 40 to 60 miles apart with only farmland between. My town has only 3000 people and is too small to bike around unless you are out for a casual ride with the family. My husband, one other guy and me are the only road cyclists in our whole community!

I can really relate to the the feeling of seeing things a whole lot different and appreciating things more. Last night I couldn't sleep, kept thinking about how fast life can go and thanking the Lord for keeping me around a bit longer! I have never had the earfull of hay yet but will watch out for that one! I am also going to get some of those gatorskins, they sound like good things.

Thanks again for the welcomes and thoughts. They are appreciated and is it nice to get my thoughts out to people who understand why I am out there biking on the highway! Most people think I am crazy around here.This situation may have proven their thoughts correct though

[Velobambina]

I'm glad you're OK. Agree w/Deb---your ability to keep your bike under control, in addition to keeping your cool, really says a lot about your bike handling skills.

X -- interesting you comment about the attitudes of some folks in your area. I rode in the Covered Bridge Metric up your way this summer and a guy I rode with for awhile was almost INTENTIONALLY run off the road by someone in a minivan. He was quite shaken up by the incident.

[momof4greatkids]

I can really relate to the the feeling of seeing things a whole lot different and appreciating things more. Last night I couldn't sleep, kept thinking about how fast life can go and thanking the Lord for keeping me around a bit longer! I have never had the earfull of hay yet but will watch out for that one! I am also going to get some of those gatorskins, they sound like good things.

:

I'm so happy to hear that you used your skill and kept your wits about you to survive a situation that could potentially have ended in catastrophe. I was frightened for you just reading your account.

It really only takes one brief moment of inattention on a bicycle to find yourself in a bad situation w/a motor vehicle. I don't think I will ever be brave enough to share a road that is frequented by semis, but OTOH, I'm blessed to have lots of options for riding on trails and wide-berm roads in the rural area where I live. If I didn't have those options, like you, I would have to get my nerve up sooner or later.

I know when I'm on the road I'm much more alert and tense than on the trail. That's why I prefer the trail, I feel so much safer and more relaxed. I hope you will always be able to maintain that high sense of alert when you are riding on the highway. I'm so glad you are safe, God bless you!

Colleen

[BeeLady]

I rode my bike often in heavy Houston traffic many years ago but have only been riding regularly for the last few months.

The following info helped me to better understand the risks of cycling.

http://www.kenkifer.com/bikepages/health/risks.htm

Now I feel like the aircraft pilot who has about 700 hours - which I believe is a very dangerous time for a pilot. Getting a little cocky, too sure of one's self, no longer as worried about the dangers. So, I'm back to concentrating on safety, but I don't want my perspective to become overly fearful either.

Glad you were able to hold your line when the truck went by.

[Duck on Wheels]

When I was learning to drive, my Mom warned me about hay trucks and log trucks. Some cousins of hers got sucked under one by the wind drag. They weren't on bikes even, they were in a sports car. If the aerodynamics of those things can suck a sports car in, imagine what they can do to a bike! Glad you managed to hold on there, Likinbikin!

[emily_in_nc]

The following info helped me to better understand the risks of cycling.
http://www.kenkifer.com/bikepages/health/risks.htm

I don't know if you are aware, but ironically, Ken Kifer, who wrote this page, was hit and killed by a motor vehicle a year or so (2 years?) ago. Very, very sad. Thankfully his informational web pages do remain behind. He was an incredibly safe and experienced cyclist. I believe he was hit from behind, which is statistically a rather rare way to be hit while riding a bike.

I had many thousands of miles of safe riding under my belt when I had my accident (dog-induced) in April of 2005 and fractured my pelvis in three places. Unfortunately, it's not really a matter of if you will crash, but when you will crash. Fortunately, some crashes are not serious, but some are obviously deadly. Close calls can be good if they teach us how to better handle a situation later. I definitely believe in rear view mirrors! Unfortunately, mine didn't help a bit with the two dogs who ran right out at me from the side -- nor could I even reach for my "Halt" pepper spray in time.

Emily

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

I don't know if you are aware, but ironically, Ken Kifer, who wrote this page, was hit and killed by a motor vehicle a year or so (2 years?) ago. Very, very sad. Thankfully his informational web pages do remain behind. He was an incredibly safe and experienced cyclist. I believe he was hit from behind, which is statistically a rather rare way to be hit while riding a bike.

Emily, it appears Ken was hit by a drunk driver going in the opposite direction:
http://www.kenkifer.com/death.htm
So so sad and so tragically needless. His friend is maintaining his website which is so full of wonderful information for cyclists.

Beelady, I was not aware of Ken's website, thank you for pointing it out- I will read every single article!

[BeeLady]

The driver who killed KenKifer was drunk and released from jail only four hours earlier for DWI.

Also, what I've been able to glean from his site is that Ken did not wear a helmet and felt quite strongly about his right and his reasons not to wear one. I don't know if that would have made a difference when the drunk hit him.