Got ran over by a car today...

So im fairly new to Endless Sphere and I wanted to thank all you for all the detail you put in your posts. Ive learned the trade alot from endless sphere. Ive had 2 ebikes previously and just finished my KMX Typhoon 2012 in October. I live in Grand Forks ND and use my trike to still have ebike fun in the winter. I rode it to class and rode it around campus for fun.

Tonight unfortunately something bad happened. I was triking to the hockey arena we have here after the game and was on a sidewalk going about 15mph. I was approaching a crossing and slowed down to cross it. Remember trikes are fairly low to the ground. So I cant see over the tops of cars. The car to my left braked to let me have some room to get by. I was going around 5 mph at this point and I looked to my left briefly and bang. Car hit me at around 10-15 mph. Since im pretty low to the ground some of my trike went under the car.

My first reaction to this is "Damn, I just broke my expensive trike" some people from the sidewalk and people in the car came out and were like "Oh my god are you ok." Knowing that ive been hit harder than this I was pretty sure I was going to be fine. They asked if I wanted to call 911. And im like nah im fine. Then some girl from the sidewalk already on the phone with the police told them what happened and im like -_- ok... So 30 seconds later the PD came and asked what happened. PD called an ambulance and they asked me some questions to determine if I was out of it or not ("What day is it, where are you.") They told me to walk around the ambulance so I did and they asked me if I wanted to go to the hospital. I said I dont think I need to. They agreed I was going to be fine. (BTW I wear about 8 layers of clothing because of the 5 degree temperatures I ride in.)

The cop then started to ask about my trike. Asked me what it was, type model name. I said it was an Electric KMX Typoon 2012 and hes like "Alright, electric you said?" and im like "Yeah" he seemed confused at to what to do next, so I showed him the printed off laws of ebikes in ND and the USA (I always keep that in my battery case) and he then asked about my lights, and I said I had 2 headlights 4 side lights and 1 taillight and hes like ok. After that we were pretty much done. The entire time the driver of the car was sitting in the back of the cop car. I felt really bad for her, because I think it was more my fault than her fault. But since I was in a crosswalk, its illegal to hit a pedestrian.

The cop asked me about getting home, and I live just across the way so it wasn't that far. He said ok and left me with myself and my broken trike. Alone in the cold 0.5 miles away from home, with a hurt side, and a broken trike. Damn... I then called my friend who had a truck, threw it in the back and drove back. Its been about 1.5 hours since the accident that im writing this. The trike is pretty beat up, the right tire is pretty gone and the entire seat was moved to the left.

Il edit this later because im sure im missing a few details/grammar. If you have any questions about it please ask. Im doing fine, my right side in the middle hurts a dull pain, Ive broken bones before and I don't think I broke anything...

I just want everyone to learn from my mistake I guess. Light yourself up and make yourself visible to other people! Go slow at intersections and LOOK ALL WAYS. Im sure il learn from this and make sure it doesn't happen again. Here are some pictures.

Before the crash:

After:




-Ugrd

Wow - glad you are ok -and thanks for the warnings...

man, so glad you made it. i have been there too, legs under the car, shins numb and burning. road rash on your wrist. too bad they don't make the flag poles with the led string lights inside them.

i once saw a guy wearing a jacket with a buncha led strings sewn across the back of his arms and shoulders so his back was outlined. i always thought that was most probably the best way to get the driver's attention back to what they are looking at, or what they are looking beyond really.

Thank GOD you did not get hurt. I slammed my head once on the concrete after a crash and had vertigo for 2 weeks.
Another person I heard about in this area, hit his head and now is in a coma. He is still in a coma and now what to do with his business his homes his family. These things are serious and I for one forget how easy it is to lose it all in the blink of an eye.

Thanks for the Heads Up reminder.

Amendment: When I crashed a couple of years ago I did not have a helmet. Well you better believe I wear a helmet always now.

Good news if bike can be fixed and you're basically OK.

RE LED STRIP lights on Flags..... we have them here in Australia, very common on mine sites
or can make your own easily enough.

So glad you didn't go to hospital.

One thing I found, the crosswalk is just about the most dangerous place you can ride or walk. Hard to say who was really to blame here, but it's pretty clear the driver never saw you. Improving visibility will help, despite your lights, I doubt the other driver could see you behind that car. However, people will look right at you, and never see you. It's just how the brain works, if looking only for car, they won't see bike even looking right at it.

Don't take this wrong, but there are things you can do to change how you ride, so this never happens again, or at least is less likely. I don't know how busy this road was, but if less busy, I'll choose to pass behind cars rather than in front every time. People want to wave you through, but letting them go and crossing behind them is far safer. You can't take this approach on a really busy street. But if there are few cars, wait and let them go, then cross.

If waiting to cross won't work, then you need to be in the lane on the street, turning left just like the cars. This approach of course, brings with it another different set of hazards. But it's what I do now, rather that ride a sidewalk or bike path and cross on a crosswalk in front of cars. Generally you can get off the sidewalk and in the left turn lane with a little patience. Wait, then go when you have a healthy gap in the traffic to get out into the street.

I some places, the best approach is to get in the left lane, make your left turn into a parking lot or driveway crossing the street. This is done someplace in the middle of the block, preferably using a semi protected turn lane. The idea is to make your turn in a little used spot safely, then continue through a parking lot or behind a store or something. I don't know if that made sense the way I wrote it. Its sort of a legal jaywalk, taking a route a car might not think of. Once at that intersection, the crosswalk comes with huge hazards. Do they see you, or not? Too often, not.

Glad your ok, I have almost every electric transportation covered except for a unicycle, car and trike. Was so tempted to get one when I saw recompense build, but don't cared for being so low to the ground and not seeing traffic was the main reason I never got one. Intersections are to me one of the most dangerous places to cross.

Her insurance company isn't involved?

Unless she's uninsured, lawyer up and get money for sure. Don't settle for what they offer. Get enough to replace the bike completely after the lawyers cut.

Glad you survived. Helmets don't prevent bonks to the head, they mainly prevent abrasion. Beware of brain swelling and other bonk-related issues.

I'm glad you're able to learn from this event and tell your story.

Ugrd said:

The car to my left braked to let me have some room to get by.

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This caught my attention and while I'm not fully understanding the exact events of your incident I would like mention how often these "polite" gestures contribute to crashes.

In other words, a driver sees a bike, pedstrian or another MV (motor vehicle) and decides "let them go ahead of me" while another driver isn't so aware or doesn't understand and commits to an action that brings about a collision because somebody was trying to "be nice".

In the real world of vehicular traffic being nice doesn't automatically make somebody a traffic cop. I've seen time and time again and again how this situation can bring about bad results. Because while meaning well, they fail to fully understand the ramifications of granting a right of way when maybe there shouldn't be one?

Anyway, that's my Soapbox for the day - all of us here glad you're still with us.

But please do yourself a favor and investigate MSF (motorcycle safety foundation) website:

http://online2.msf-usa.org/msf/Default.aspx#&panel1-2

Excellent resources that don't even require physically attending a class.

dogman said:

Unless she's uninsured, lawyer up and get money for sure. Don't settle for what they offer. Get enough to replace the bike completely after the lawyers cut.

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What he said!

Tom

dogman said:

lawyer up and get money for sure.

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A clear example of what has gone wrong with America.

And......http://www.ebay.com/bhp/atv-lighted-whips

Be seen and live!

Absolutely get checked out by your family physician. This is imperative as you may have unknown injuries. This has noting to do with a lawsuit, but everything to do with your health!
otherDoc

First - very sorry about your accident and very glad you're okay.

An observation: in my state ebikes (motor-driven cycles) are illegal unless they have a seat height of at least 26 inches - but they also cannot ride on sidewalks (and so must always deal with motor vehicles even if it's from the shoulder). Terrain and general road construction differ all over the States, but there's arguably an element of safety in that statute.

KarlJ said:

RE LED STRIP lights on Flags..... we have them here in Australia, very common on mine sites

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What he said!

litespeed said:

And......http://www.ebay.com/bhp/atv-lighted-whips
Be seen and live!

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Even better!

i know everybody feels the need to lecture him but there is no way to stop an accident from happening. that is why they are called accidents.

the lady who pulled out in front of me was looking right at me all the way down the hill. i had eye contact with her and she was looking right at me, and then pulled right out in front of me when i was 20 feet away from the intersection. it is as though she was waiting for me to go by but for some reason her mind said to go and she did. of course she stopped when i plowed into her door.

she never even got out of the car. huge dent in her door, me underneath the car. dragged myself out, stood up and was looking at the bike and she just drove off. i limped for 2 months.

the other guy who knocked me down was actually attempting to push me into a line of parked cars on the left side of the lane, on a one way street, 3 lanes wide. i was beating on his window with my fist and he still kept squeezing me into the cars until i hooked my handlebars and did an endo right out into the traffic lane. that guy never even slowed down. i was fortunate the lady behind stopped and stayed there to keep the traffic from running over me too.

so when you propose that there is some way safe to ride with cars, that if you ride out in the middle of the lane, you are running the risk that the driver you expect to see you is instead reading their text message and had no idea a bicycle would be out in the middle of the street where they only ever see is cars going the same speed as them.

the drunks never even see you because they have lost any ability to discern the surroundings from inside their little box of fumes. they never stop because they don't even know they ran over you.

and yes, there are alotta drunks on the road. a lot.

Praying that you'll be ok and that you can get your tryke fixed. Nothing like a brush with death to make a ride memorable.

dnmun said:

the lady who pulled out in front of me was looking right at me all the way down the hill. i had eye contact with her and she was looking right at me, and then pulled right out in front of me when i was 20 feet away from the intersection. it is as though she was waiting for me to go by but for some reason her mind said to go and she did. of course she stopped when i plowed into her door.

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After more than forty years on motorcycles there's one lesson I have thoroughly learned and that is eye contact is ~deadly~, people will look straight at you and pull out in front of you anyway.

DO NOT TRUST EYE CONTACT!

I've seen people pull out in front of concrete trucks, 18 wheelers, Hummers and every type of large road going vehicle known to man, they will not hesitate to pull out in front of a motorcycle, bicycle or ebike.

Thanks for all the replies guys I really appreciate it. I just woke up like 30 minutes ago and found all these replies My back still hurts but it doesnt hurt as much as it did yesterday. I may fear that I might have broken a rib. I was googling last night symptoms of a broken rib and I have all of them pretty much. It hurts when I breathe deeply, when I bend downward it hurts more, the area is swelled up, and I can feel crepitus which is the bone ends scraping up against eachother. So Il call the health services in a minute to see what they can do. If they find I do have a broken rib then all they can do is give me some pain medication for it, there isnt much they can do about it.

As far as the trike goes. The right wheel axle is bent. Not sure what I can do about this, but I think I can bend it back or completely replace the metal (Il take pictures later to see what you guys say about going about fixing it) The seat was moved off its hinge (Its on a hinge so you can adjust the seat angle of it) and broke one of the supporting rod things in the back connecting to the rear tire.

I was just called by the PD to make sure I was ok, and I said I was just pain. He then told me that the driver might have been impaired. So yeah I dont know what to make of that. This might end badly for her if she gets charged with a DUI or DWI... The officer told me that she was cited with hitting a pedestrian in a marked crosswalk. He then asked me if id like to press charges against her. Not wanting to be a dick or anything I said im not sure yet. He said that was fine and to give him a call back if needed. So yeah I guess im asking you guys. Do you think I need a lawyer? Or should I press charges? I mean she did break my $1000 KMX :/ Im not so sure what to do about the legal things...

I drew up some bad pictures to help you guys visualize what happened. I think it was both our faults, but because of that car to my right neither of us could see each other.









Also I was wearing a helmet, a motorcycle helmet at that, and my head when into the grill of the car when it hit, breaking the visor off. If I wasn't wearing one, I would probably have a concussion or something.



-Ugrd

it is her fault. drunk is her fault. you need a doctor to do the xray, you need a lawyer to speak for you. her insurance will pay for your lawyer.

you can negotiate with her about allowing the police to file charges. your lawyer can find the normal forms for people taking responsibility for their addiction and going into treatment. if she can get sober and stay sober and change then i would say use that to force her to act to control her addiction to alcohol.

i know there are a lotta alcoholics here because everyone seems to love it so much so they may think it best to not file but if she kills someone else later when she runs over them in a crosswalk you would always feel like you failed to stop her.

don't worry, her insurance company will have better lawyers and action stallers than you can hire. tell them straight off to pay for a new trike so you can get back on the road since your mobility is impaired. file for conpensation for loss of work or other things you needed to do but were blocked by your current broken rib.

in places like costa rica where the rule of law is different you might not need a lawyer since the justice system is different there but here in the US, you need someone who knows the ropes so you don't get run over again.

The police report identifies you as a pedestrian in a marked crosswalk, and it is not in any way your fault. What if you had been in a wheelchair?

If you know a lawyer, it'd probably at least be worth a conversation. What exact charge would you be pressing, and to what end? 'Hitting a pedestrian in a marked crosswalk' will definitely add to the shitstorm the woman who hit you is facing, but that's not necessarily a bad thing.

I've got all kinds of sympathy for all kinds of things, but drunk-driving is not one of them. Where I lived in eastern Europe, they had a rather elegant solution, especially for a place with such a high level of alcohol consumption: First offence, you lose your license on the spot for a year; second offence, you lose your license for life. No exceptions. And almost no drunk-driving either.

Police check-points are common, and you can be pulled over and inspected at any time without any cause. Driving without a license is not really possible.

If you press charges, you might be able to get compensation for your bike and/or injury. You should certainly have less hassle trying to make an insurance claim, if that's a possibility.

Please note: I am not a lawyer, nor do I play one on the internet. But it wouldn't hurt you to talk to one. If you talk to one who wants you to put you in a neck brace and run up medical expenses, punch him in the face and run like hell.

rip KMX Typoon. good to know your ok
this things happens so fast

OOOOOOO......Sorry you got hit bro! Hate these kind of stories. And glad you were not hurt worse ..... and were wearing what looks like a DOT helmet. Don't fool around with your health. Go to a doctor and make sure it is what you think it is. I broke a rib the first week I had my first e-bike. I crashed it on my own, but a broken rib is no fun for the full 6 weeks it takes to heal. You won't be able to do the things you want to do for a while. That, and your bike are worth something.

1st, Doctor...
2nd, legal council.

It may be enough that she wants to pay out of pocket to replace your bike, and maybe some more or your expenses. Don't sell yourself short.

I was just called by the PD to make sure I was ok, and I said I was just pain. He then told me that the driver might have been impaired. So yeah I dont know what to make of that. This might end badly for her if she gets charged with a DUI or DWI... The officer told me that she was cited with hitting a pedestrian in a marked crosswalk. He then asked me if id like to press charges against her. Not wanting to be a dick or anything I said im not sure yet. He said that was fine and to give him a call back if needed. So yeah I guess im asking you guys. Do you think I need a lawyer? Or should I press charges? I mean she did break my $1000 KMX :/ Im not so sure what to do about the legal things...

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I was hit by a lone car on a deserted two lane road out in the country. I was well to the right in the lane and they clipped me with the mirror. My mighty calf took that bastard's mirror right off the car. As I was lying next to the road, the driver came back, got out of the car and pushed me with their foot telling me to "get up, you're ok!" I DID go to the lawyer (a couple days after the emergency room visit) and the insurance company negotiated with the lawyer. My medical and damaged bike were covered, and my missed time from work was paid to me.

Please, absolutely, go see a doctor, then go see a lawyer. Get an explanation of the law and what is supposed to happen from here on out.

If you give a PASS to a drunk driver, you will sentence future innocents to death at the hands of this person. If this person drinks and drives, they have already become a mortal danger to others!