comfort rider

There's a lot you can do about it: DON'T RIDE IN TRAFFIC.

chas58

Honestly, every thing changed when cell phones became prevalent. Some distracted driver could take you out at any time these days. I've been bike commuting for 40+ decades, and these days I use my mirror all the time. I tell my kids - assume cars are trying to hit you - because with a distracted driver it doesn't matter if they are trying or not, the results are the same.

cbg3

What do you mean by "in traffic"?

cbg3

No, it doesn't. What difference does it make whether he was a block or 100 miles from his home? Did the a**hole that hit him know where he lived? Probably not.

For a little background on my personal story, more than a decade ago a driver right-turned right in front of me, and I ran into the a**hole's passenger-side door (wish there was a way to phrase this so that it didn't sound like I did something), getting a separated shoulder in the process. Then a couple years ago I was descending a hill on a narrow road while coming home from a ride and a few cars passed me, more or less in a group. The last one barely left any space between me and their vehicle when retaking the lane in front of me, basically forcing me off the road. I tumbled on the ground next to the road and got stable fractures in my pelvis and scapula, plus a scar on the bump from the separated shoulder from the first collision (which causes an itchy sensation in that scar about every day). In both cases I was back on the bike right after I healed, more determined than before to continue enjoying cycling on the same roads where I have a legal right to do so.

Yes, some a**holes are going to do stupid sh*t; yes, you need to be careful about your own safety, now more than ever with more distracted drivers on the road. But 42,060 people died in crashes on the highways last year. Does that make you nervous? Are you going to stop driving your car because of this?

indyfabz

^^You^^ must know the details of the incident since you called the driver a bad name. Please inform the rest of us.

Part of my personal story. I once blew a stop sign at speed at made a left turn. Got hit my a driver coming from the left. 100% my fault. I got lucky. Wasn’t injured, but the bike was toast. Driver was not a bad name. I was.

cbg3

Oh dear. You're right, I did jump to conclusions about the driver whose vehicle was involved in sending Mr. Bradley into a parked car, thus paralyzing him.

So after doing some due diligence, here is the clearest description I could find of the crash: https[DELETE ME]://www.deseret.com/utah/2021/3/22/22344834/collision-with-van-sent-shawn-bradley-bike-parked-car-paralyzed-mavericks-byu-basketball-st-george (Other articles directly quote from the official crash report, which contains sentences like, "The cyclist had impacted the driver side rear bumper of V2 after which the bicycle and cyclist traveled along the top of the trunk and the cyclist continued along the side of V1 causing scratches and several dents to V2") So according to this article, the driver of a van passing Bradley sent him into a parked Saturn, whose passenger-side wheels were “almost touching the curb and there appeared to be sufficient room for the bicyclist to travel between it and the fog line". The driver who passed him says that she could see Bradley as she approached, and that "she passed him going 10 mph and gave him 'plenty of room,' according to the report, and put her driver-side tire between the two sets of double yellow lines." The woman said as she passed the Saturn that she “saw the cyclist flipping forward through the air and landed on (his) back in the roadway”.

After getting out of her van while the guy who was in the parked Saturn calls 911, she leaves the scene of the crash [hmmmmmm.... I think that's illegal in some states] to pick up her kids at school, and then comes back and notices that there's a fresh scratch on the passenger side, which she and the cops think could be from when Bradley's bicycle was struck by her vehicle.

When the cops went back again to talk with Bradley after the first day when he was in the hospital (he didn't recall what happened the day of), he told them that he saw the Saturn parked along the side of the road and was in the process of passing it when the van “made contact with him and sent him into (the Saturn).” According to Bradley's Garmin, "he never went over 14 mph while riding his bicycle that day", and "the bicycle was indeed traveling at a low speed at the time of the collision."

So somehow there was impact between the driver's van, who says she was passing Bradley at 10mph (which is two times fast walking speed) while her driver-side wheels were on the yellow line, and Bradley's bicycle, which never went above 14mph during his entire ride, and the parked Saturn, which had its wheels almost against the curb, leaving "plenty of room" between it and the fog line for Bradley to pass.

Here is the approximate location of the crash, from what I can surmise from the article: https[DELETE ME TOO]://www.google.com/maps/place/N+Country+Ln,+St.+George,+UT/@37.1117002,-113.6289522,166m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m8!1m2!2m1!1s%22north+country+lane%22+near+%22stonebridge+drive%22+ST.+GEORGE+!3m4!1s 0x80ca44660a377a05:0xe54bffe30f31e9f6!8m2!3d37.1155022!4d-113.6308245

veganbikes

Who is Shawn Bradley and why should his crash (not accident which I have gleaned from the comments was due to a motor vehicle hence not an accident) make us anxious to ride? I don't know the person in question so I don't know why it would make me nervous. Stuff happens everyday that is out of my control entirely, I can let it control me and live in fear or I can just live my life like a normal person. You can drown in a tablespoon of water but that doesn't mean I don't drink water or take showers or something like that. If a piano falls on someones head it doesn't mean I will stop listening to Beethoven even if that person where someone famous to some people.

indyfabz

7’6” former NBA player. Drafted No. 2 overall by the Sixers. Also played for the Nets and, I believe, the Bucks. At one point he rode a custom Trek that was stolen in 2011 but recovered quickly.

shelbyfv

Pop N Wood

A good man knows his limitations.

cbg3

Yeah, you were definitely a "bad name" in this crash which you caused.

Phil_gretz

DreamRider85

This is like Rodney Dangerfield asking how to get more respect. It's your schtick. Own it.

Speedway2

That's a long time.....(sorry I couldn't resist).

I feel bad for the young man(Shawn) and all cyclists who are involved in an accident regardless of fault especially when the results are life changing.
However, it won't make me more anxious to ride.....

Leinster

Wow, you want to make cars illegal? I mean, it’s a big call, but ok...

The 2nd G

Like a lot of my fellow riders, I was involved in an accident. Car's fault. I suffered some injuries, including a concussion. Yes, I got back on the bike as soon as I could. Yes, was a bit more fearful. I'd being lying if I said otherwise. I don't think the accident itself made me a better rider, but I did become a better rider with time, possibly because of the fear. Believe it or not, another thing that helped was watching YouTube videos involving bike accidents. I wasn't watching out of morbidity, I watched to see as many scenarios as I could and learn from them. Did people who came in the room and saw me watching the videos doubt my sanity? At first, but once they heard my explanation and watched through a few with me they got it.

If there are cars, we will always be vulnerable. We just have to be as good as we can be. My wife would add...and pray.

cbg3

Thought about this scenario some more this morning. Unless Bradley was unconscious at the time, of which there's no indication in the article, any humane person would have inquired about his physical condition and whether he could move his arms and legs after the crash. (Yeah, I know you shouldn't move your neck until the EMTs are there to help.) What kind of appalling human being is then more concerned about picking up her kids at school than staying with a person laying on the ground after she saw said person "flipping forward through the air and land[ing] on (his) back in the roadway"? So apparently the driver of the van basically said to the bystander in the Saturn Bradley bounced off of, "hey buddy, can you call 911 and stay here and watch this guy who is probably paralyzed from a crash I may have caused while I go off and pick up my kids"? Unbelievable.

Finally, here in Massachusetts at least we have some laws on the books specifying the legal way to pass a cyclist: "If it is not possible to overtake a bicycle or other vehicle at a safe distance in the same lane, the overtaking vehicle shall use all or part of an adjacent lane if it is safe to do so or wait for a safe opportunity to overtake." (Massachusetts General Laws, Part I, Title XIV, Chapter 89, Section 2: Passing vehicle traveling in same direction) "Driver-side tire between the two sets of double yellow lines" is often not enough room to safely pass a cyclist, and most likely in this case was not. And God forbid anyone in a motor vehicle should ever have to wait behind a cyclist "for a safe opportunity to overtake".

rosefarts

Last week I was driving in St. George. It's a friggin zoo. Many great trails and MUP's, all over. It would be kind of wonderful to have a bike there.

I commented to my wife that it would be terrifying to end up somewhere off the bike specific trails there. The next story I read was about Sean Bradley. Seeing the way people in that town drive, I'm not surprised.

This is really a southern Utah driving problem, I just spent a week there rock climbing and saw countless stupid stuff. And for the gravel bike crew (who I am part of), our nearest miss that week came on an isolated dirt road with a bunch of idiot motorheads who think they are the only ones there.

I would not ride anywhere that motorized vehicles are allowed, anywhere in St. George/Hurricane/Zion area. Which is sad, in the past I've had some wonderful rides there.

LV2TNDM

The word "accident" is a horrible word to describe auto collisions. The San Francisco Police Department has stricken this misnomer from its vocabulary. Cyclists should as well. The word carries WAY too much bias and is used to immediately exonerate drivers, to excuse them from responsibility and imply that they were simply victims of circumstance.

How many times do we read news reports of drivers injuring or even killing someone, only to hear how the poor driver suffered some sort of trauma by just "witnessing" the event? I've seen this tone MANY times portrayed by our media.

When you use the term "accident," you're halfway to excusing irresponsible behavior. I think it's wrong and only adds to drivers' sense of entitlement. I was aghast at reading about a driver in Oakland, CA who doored a cyclist into a city bus, killing him. This driver was briefly questioned at the scene and was then allowed to leave for a hair appointment. A hair appointment? Who the hell KILLS someone and then goes and has their hair done? A sociopath, that's who! And why on earth doesn't LE detain any driver who kills someone? Aren't they "taken down to the station" to be drug tested? Aren't their driving records looked at, their insurance company contacted to confirm coverage and their registration confirmed? I mean what the hell? You KILL someone and then should expect no inconvenience whatsoever? I would expect killing someone in a car should "ruin" the rest of your day! Jesus!

I observe epidemic illegal cell phone use behind the wheel on a daily basis. These drivers are CHOOSING to break the law and endanger others as they drive. So if and when they hit, injure or kill someone, I refuse to let them off the hook by using the terrible term. Do you think a drunk driver killing someone is an "accident?"

Our law agrees with this in certain circumstances. Like if you're committing a felony with others and someone in your group kills someone, YOU get charged with murder. Even though you didn't commit the crime, didn't pull the trigger, had no intention of killing someone, and my not have even been present (you're the getaway driver, for example), YOU still get charged with murder! This is what drunk driving is. No "accidents" occur when a drunk plows through people, killing them.

So when the term "accident" is used, it only worsens the situation. Very, VERY few collisions should be described as such.

Troul 

I could see the situation being termed, "disregard for pedestrian safety with the attempt for vehicular manslaughter" .

vane171

You can only minimize your chances of getting hit, so the keyword is defensive riding. Never rely on 'right of way', always assume the car driver may not see you, like when he is making right turn at a stop sign (also left turn against you(), as pointed out already.

Also avoid biking on dangerous road sections if you can help it. There is one bad place in a small town near where I live, where a bicyclist was killed by a lorry making a left turn against him. It can by bypassed by a small loop of a road and now I always use that to avoid that intersection. It is a one-way road but I take it anyway in the wrong direction when returning that way anyway. Mostly there is no traffic on that side road and I ride it a bit, then ride the rest of it on the sidewalk if nobody walks on it. If police should sometimes catch me, I'd use that story of the guy getting killed to maybe get away with it. And if I would pay a fine, I'd still ride that way anyway, just maybe walk the bike some two hundred feet to be on the legal side.
It is not some piety or fear but that intersection is in the middle of a steep hill and really dangerous for a bike. The accident only made it more clear to me.

cbg3

Probably the same kind of person who paralyzes someone and then goes off to pick up her kids at school. (Well, she DID come back. Which makes me wonder what she told her kids who must have been sitting in her motor vehicle...)

veganbikes

Ah...cool. Basketballs a fun time.

Toespeas

you can start by not posting stupid stuff about getting run over , this is a bike forum not your shrink , jeeeeez !!!!

DreamRider85

Do you guys know if Sean can move his hands? I can't believe the car only went 10 mph and it paralyzed him. How did she only realize he flipped over after? She said she gave him plenty of room.

ADguy 

There is a paved bike trail network where I live, so I can stay off public roads. 95% of the time. Yeah, It’s inconvenient to put the bikes in the car and then drive to the trails, but it’s also much safer and a lot more relaxing. And no, I don’t trust anyone in a motorized vehicle not to take me down when I’m on my bike. Not everyone has access to good bike trails, so stay alert when you ride and be careful out there.