Hello everyone, I’m the one who crashed the bike. Who would have known that bumping into a random dude in a pub would lead to the mayhem that followed?
I want to say first of all that breaking my collar-bone was not pendragon8000’s fault in any way. I take full responsibility for what happened and I should have behaved more safely.
It all started when I was sitting outside the pub having a drink. It was crowded and there were a limited number of tables so pendragon8000 approached me and asked if he could sit at mine. We got chatting and discovered that we have similar interests in music. I was also very impressed with his bike as well because I’d studied a bit of electronic engineering. We then proceeded to get our way through a lot of beer. He bought me a jug and then I reciprocated by buying him a jug.
We didn’t get the chance to exchange numbers because my phone had run out of power and pendragon8000’s phone was also running low as well. For this reason we started looking for a power-point. He had the idea of buying another 6-pack of beer and going down to the park where we could chill, plug our electronics into an outdoor one, and listen to some music.
When we arrived at the park, we then took the eBike for a spin. Pendragon8000 was speeding around the park, getting air as he flew over the little hills. He lost his glove in the darkness, so I got on the bike and carefully cruised around and found it again for him. I then took another faster ride and it was INCREDIBLY fun and REALLY addictive. After cruising around, we parked the bike near the pond. We just chilled, plugged in the phones and the laptop, and listened to some tracks like we had planned. Oh, and we drank some more. I was about to go and took the fateful decision to go for one last ride.
I am a living example that it is not a good idea to drink-cycle. I didn’t have any inhibitions and I really twisted the throttle. The bike is almost silent so I felt like I was flying. It was incredibly fun. There are a lot of little hills in the parklands and I pulled up to one and stopped. I didn’t know how much power I would need to make it to the top. I just went too hard on the throttle and overestimated the amount of power I would need to make it up the slope. I twisted the throttle and then it happened. I think the grass was slippery with dew and it all just happened so quickly. The bike was instantly whipped from underneath me and I was ploughed into the side of the hill. The good thing is that I crashed only a second after I had opened up the throttle rather than falling off at full speed.
I was in complete shock. I struggled to my feet in a daze. I stumbled in a circle, hoping that I could just walk it off. It was then that I realised that my left arm was floppy and the collar bone was clunking and crunching.
“pendragon8000!!!!!!!!!!!!,” I yelled.
“Whaaaat!”
“I think I broke my collar-bone!”
Once I realised what had happened, the pain really kicked in hard so I lay down on the side of the hill. By this stage, it was really starting to hurt.
Luckily a good Samaritan came over and called an ambulance. Even though the hospital was close by I knew that I was in no state to walk there. I appreciated the random dude and pendragon8000 talking to keep my mind off the pain.
We had to wait for quite a while. I later learned that the ambulance was late because it had been circling the park trying to find us.
In the meantime, pendragon8000 and the random dude kept me occupied with conversation and some beatboxing. The random dude asked me whether I like The Wire and the Walking Dead.
“I like the comics but not the tv series,” I said feebly. I don’t really watch tv so I couldn’t say much.
“Would it help if I beatboxed?” asked pendragon8000.
I thought for a moment and then thought “f... it, why not.”
“Okay.” I said.
When pendragon8000 started beat-boxing, I realised that the rhythm was playing in time with the intense throbbing pain in my shoulder. I thought, “F..., I think I need something a little bit more relaxing.” I didn’t stop him though because the random dude was so impressed.
Then paramedics finally arrived. They gave me this thing that looked like a big e-cigarette. They told me to drag on it like a cigarette. I took as many drags as possible but it didn’t really ease the pain, it just made me high. They then asked whether I could sit up. It was very difficult because it engages all the muscles in the neck and they pulled on the collar bone. I was clenching my teeth and crying out in pain.
I was then put on a stretcher and taken to hospital. They gave me a stronger painkiller which was a derivative of morphine. When I was lying in my bed waiting to be x-rayed, a police officer came over with a note-pad and introduced himself.
“You have the right to remain silent but anything you do say can be used as evidence,” he said.
He then proceeded to ask me a number of questions. He asked me about the bike but he was particularly interested to know how much I had been drinking.
“How many drinks have you had tonight?”
I thought about it and realised that I had lost count.
“Um... about 8 standard drinks,” I replied.
“Have you been drinking the beer that we found in pendragon8000 bag?”.
“Yes, I have.”
After the questioning, I was breath-tested and I blew 0.075.
I stayed in hospital in the early hours of April Fool’s Day. They took x-rays and made me a sling before discharging me at about 4:00 AM. I couldn’t roll any cigarettes so I bought a pack to calm my nerves. I didn’t want to spend money on a taxi so I decided to wait in the city for the first bus.
I then spent the next five days at my parent’s home and they helped me prepare meals until I got a bit better.
A couple of days late, I saw my mates at a BBQ. I was irritable because I was doped up on painkillers and I felt ashamed that I could do something so stupid. I explained the situation to my mates. They gave me advice that was a lot more pessimistic than things turned out to be.
“You were riding in the park, so technically you’re out of the jurisdiction of the traffic police,” my mate said. “The guy should really try to get his bike back as soon as possible. The cops are corrupt as f... It’ll end up in the evidence locker and just disappear.”
I didn’t know the full situation and this brought about quite a bit of stress. I thought that pendragon8000’s bike might be permanently confiscated and I thought that I might get a court appearance or a large fine.
When I returned home, the cops had dropped by and left a calling card under my door. I reckon my neighbours now think I’m a criminal
I spent a lot of time stressing about pendragon8000’s bike. I remember him telling me that it was about $2000 and I knew that it was his pride and joy. When we were at the pub, he was supervising it like it was his own child. I had forgotten his surname so I couldn’t look him up on Facebook either.
This story actually worked out okay in the end. The Chief Constable of the Traffic Police called me back and was totally cool about it. He seemed more concerned about making sure that I hadn’t sustained any other injuries apart from the collar bone. He said he knew that I had drunk in his words “a couple of beers”. He said that there would be no charges laid and that K’s bike was legal and had been returned to him. This was a huge relief. He also said that pendragon8000 had given them permission to give me his number so I wrote that down as well. I have far greater respect for the cops after this experience.
Far from putting me off eBikes (in more ways than one) this experience has actually inspired an interest in them and I would love to build one in the future. I would also like to get further involved in this forum and gain more knowledge.
The way that pendragon8000 treated me on the night was a perfect example of how to treat another human being. He stayed by my side and did his best to keep me calm. I apologised to him and told him that it was not his fault, it was mine. He said “Don’t worry man. I’ll do whatever I can for you.” pendragon8000 is a great bloke and the way he handled the situation was exemplary. He gave permission to the cops for them to give me his number which I greatly appreciated. He expressed genuine concern for me, and was more far more worried about my well-being than the fact that I had damaged his bike and led to it being confiscated. Even though I only met him on that night, I now consider him a good mate because of how he acted towards me.
