My Heart goes out to him and his family. Good video as well. I'll keep him in my prayers for a full recovery.

An update. Robert still remains unconscious. Still hopeful he’ll become responsive.

The suspect has been identified but still on the run.

This is so sad. I hope he pulls through this OK. :(

I hope they catch the guy that hit him then ran off. Most of all that Robert recovers.

Sad news. Real sad. I hope when he wakes, he recovers quickly. :(

The guy on the run needs to go to prison. :mad:

Emergency Services should have a "safe haven" phone number where accidents can be reported without the incoming phone number being seen or recorded, as well as no identifying info being collected during the call. This way these a-hole drivers can report the hit without fear of incriminating themselves. Pay-phones used to be a way to do this.

sad story
 

We. Had an incident like that here in Fresno (CA) a few years back, hit and run. The guy died and the person eventually turned himself in if I remember right.

*sign* hang in there

Any news? Did they catch the perp yet?

I don't know if this can help at all for you, jppe. But since that workplace I went through, Machka has done an incredible looking up of stuff about brain injury. She found this person's story in particular which illustrate that, as a cyclist who suffers brain injury, there is long-term recovery possible:

https://www.brainline.org/blog/getting-back-bike

Also, there was recent news that a woman in the United Arabs Emirates woke after 27-plus years in a coma which resulted from a vehicle accident.

people. it only takes a few to mess everything up

Thanks! Robert seems to be coming around. He actually responded to his sister telling him goodbye for the night.

The suspect is supposed to make a court appearance in a nearby county for a previous charge early this week. We’ll see if he shows up.

I can't comment on the suspect, but the other news there is wonderful in its own way.

Machka can tell how bad I was and how long it took for me to respond to her and the staff in the hospital.

And in its own fortunate way, I don't have a single memory of what happened, the emergency helicopter to hospital and the treatment for 5-1/2 weeks with post-traumatic amnesia.

I am hoping a fellow cyclist can make the recovery needed to get back on the bike and join the life of family and others again.

Not that I'd wish jail on anyone.. County is HARD time.. but I'm glad the f*stick didn't get away with a fine and community service..

I've been putting off cameras for a long time, but stories like this.. wow. Makes me think.
At least if I'm taken out, my wife and family would have know what happened.

But I wouldn't have much hope the authorities will go after the driver. Too often there is a misconception among the public - including authorities - that roads are only for cars and cyclists have it coming. I was passing an intersection a few years back were firemen were collecting donations for some cause. One looks at me & my buddy and says "Nice day to die". Really.

I used to get that sort of comment from people when I rode street motorcycles.

It's possible he was trying to make you think about how dangerous it is out there, so that you might be careful?

Not a big fan of firemen out in the street, panhandling. Wish they'd quit doing that, it really ties up traffic.

"Nice day to die." Really? Not even homeless mentally-ill alcoholic beggars in the midst of heroin and crack withdrawals are quite that aggressive when they panhandle, someone ought to teach that guy some manners. After all, he's on the govt payroll. What's next, cops and judges out begging in the streets? I'd have told him to go save a cat or something. :rolleyes:

I don't think the words "Nice Day to Die" imply a caring attitude. When I heard comments like that from cops or firemen, they basically meant they expected to scrape and hose your remains off the street when someone called 911 on your behalf.

Yes, in a self-righteous disdain sort of way. Which bring up a 2nd misconception that cyclist are not being careful. Example: I'm on the computer this very moment - a sunny afternoon, because this time of day the traffic IS too dangerous. Otherwise I would be riding. I never ride in weekend evenings due to the drunk drives. I limit my riding time to off-peak hours, stick to the quiet roads, etc. I go out of my way to be out of the way, always.
The fact is - bicycles are not dangerous. I've never known anyone killed by a bicycle. It's the automobiles that are dangerous.
I've know many friends how have been hit (one killed). In every case but one it was the motorist fault. The sole exception was when my buddy had a blow-out on a twisty descent & unavoidably crossed into oncoming traffic - fortunately he survived.

Any updates? How's he doing? I would assume a pretty severe brain injury given the time he has been out. How's his family doing? Did they find the driver? If so, what's the story?

Robert is showing progress but in very, very small steps. He’s alive and sometimes conscious. It’s obvious that he will require a lot of time for continued recovery with no one knowing how well he will be eventually.

They have an arrest warrant out for the suspect. I did a search on the N.C. database but there aren’t any recent records listed for his actual arrest. I also asked my sister if they’d heard any more about his arrest and they haven’t heard anything.

He should talk. We actually HAD a fireman hit and killed a few years ago, while collecting at a busy intersection. Totally bad idea.

Progress will be slow. I am not trying to dictate anything here, but I have found out that I was in a coma for three weeks after my head injury, and my memory for every day in hospital was pretty well non-existent for 5-1/2 weeks -- know as Post Traumatic Amnesia.

I know this has been a quite long time now since his accident, but I have found it vitally important to have to the medical staff capable and encouraging, and equal patience and understanding from close family ( in my case, Machka) that things will be slow in the recovery process.

The important thing for everyone to realise is that the brain injury is permanent, and recovery process relies largely on the ability to make use of undamaged parts of the brain for the new memory processes.

Be aware also that the doses of medical intake can be considerably more than what many people think to ensure control over a lot of things, including blood pressure to avoid bleeding in the brain.

The heartening read for me here has been his seemingly small but extremely significant amount of awareness.

It’s difficult to imagine what goes through the mind of a driver who leaves someone injured by the roadside. I wonder if that’s ever been studied

Not like I was ever qualified in any way or did any form of "study but I've talked to many people who did just that, Fail to Remain after a collision. Usually they were a) drunk b) unlicenced/suspended licence/prohibited from operation of a motor vehicle for criminal convictions, c) uninsured d) car was stolen e) knew some serious charged were coming f) all or some of these mixed together. I even met a few, very few who just said they didn't care (not their problem).

So why run? To escape liability for what ever their issue was. Most (in my experience) blamed the victim. Some cried and said they regretted their action but that might just have been because they were caught.