Cycling close shaves

Spacedog

One time when cycling to work, I was comming downhill towads a set of red lights, there were parked cars on the kerb and a line of traffic at the lights, I fit in the middle most of the way, but my handlebars clipped the back of a trailer of a large truck. whatever way I fell, I ended up face down strewn across the rear tyre of the truck! under the mudflap, feed tangled in the frame of my bike. I managed to wriggle myself free seconds before the light turned green and the truck moved on. I would have been completly steamrolled had the light changed a few seconds earlier.

What was the closest you came to being killed while cycling on the streets?

Civilian_Target

Not that close!

I've only been knocked off the bike twice, once at the damastown roundabout, by a white van, cut inside me but clipped me into the center of the roundabout. Cars stopped, my bike even survived undented.
Second occasion, something clipped me coming out of the blanchardstown roundabout and I was pushed into the kerb - managed to bail over the handlebars into the grass verge, rather than sideways into the railings (or possibly over them into the M3).

Nearest I've come to death on the road was neither of them though - I was coming down Collins avenue in Whitehall by the bingo club, and a HGV pulled into the left hand lane without noticing that I was already in it, between him and the kerb. I actually grabbed the siderail of his truck with 1 hand and held on to the bike with the other as my tyres make a loud screeching noise as they dragged against the kerb. Fortunately, after about half a second (or a short eternity in my mind), the driver must have noticed. He braked and because I was holding the truck, I stopped fairly quickly too and was able to dismount safely...

Borderfox

Knocked down twice, first time in Phoenix Park in hit and run and second time by a guy running the red light in Kilbarrack. In the Phoenix Park one I had only gotten a 12 sprocket and a 54 front ring so I was fairly pelting along that one hurt but no bones broken just quarter of my skin on the road!!!! owwwww( just remembering now) In Kilbarrack he said he didn't see me or the lights on my bike or the fluorescent jacket or the red light

Saruman

I have to say as a motorist and cyclist that im not sure i feel much sympathy!! Seriously if you tell me you guys who get hit STOP at red lights, and obey the same rules of the road that cars are expected to then i might have some.. But EVERY SINGLE CYCLIST i ever see does NOT stop for red lights, hell they barely slow down most of the time.

Also they tend to be oblivious to motorists too!! I was driving the other day and came up behind a cyclist who decided to swerve 4 feet to the right, which is right into my path. Luckily i was far enough back to break and the over take him but he did not even look or notice me or how close he came to being hit!

jman0

Saruman wrote:

I have to say as a motorist and cyclist that im not sure i feel much sympathy!! Seriously if you tell me you guys who get hit STOP at red lights, and obey the same rules of the road that cars are expected to then i might have some.. But EVERY SINGLE CYCLIST i ever see does NOT stop for red lights, hell they barely slow down most of the time.

Also they tend to be oblivious to motorists too!! I was driving the other day and came up behind a cyclist who decided to swerve 4 feet to the right, which is right into my path. Luckily i was far enough back to break and the over take him but he did not even look or notice me or how close he came to being hit!

Well you obviously haven't driven behind me on the roads because i do stop at RED, it'd be nice if those motorists would do the same.

Your serving cyclist may have been avoiding a pothole or broken glass, you'd be in the wrong if you struck him because the Rules of the Road specifically state that motorists should be alert for swerving cyclists, who may be avoiding pot holes and being blown off course by wind. That is part of the responsibilty you undertake as you commandeer that very heavy chunk of metal at speed in the vicinity of the general public.

daymobrew

Saruman wrote:

But EVERY SINGLE CYCLIST i ever see does NOT stop for red lights, hell they barely slow down most of the time.

Nor have you cycled behind me with my red helmet, Sam Browne belt and lights. I stop at all lights, even when there isn't a soul in sight. I agree that I often feel like I'm in the minority. I do it because it's the law, to be safe and so I cannot be called a hypocrite when I complain about those who don't stop.

Borderfox wrote:

Knocked down twice

I hope the second guy was charged by the Gardai and you were compensated.

Civilian_Target

Saruman wrote:

I have to say as a motorist and cyclist that im not sure i feel much sympathy!! Seriously if you tell me you guys who get hit STOP at red lights, and obey the same rules of the road that cars are expected to then i might have some.. But EVERY SINGLE CYCLIST i ever see does NOT stop for red lights, hell they barely slow down most of the time.

Thats bull! Unless I'm both familiar with the junction and absolutely sure that there's nothing coming, I'll always stop at red lights. Even if the above are true, I'll certainly do a lot of slowing down. And I've got a large reflector jacket, flashing lights and pedal/wheel reflectors, so you'd have to be a pretty imcompetent motorist not to see me.

Saruman wrote:

Also they tend to be oblivious to motorists too!! I was driving the other day and came up behind a cyclist who decided to swerve 4 feet to the right, which is right into my path. Luckily i was far enough back to break and the over take him but he did not even look or notice me or how close he came to being hit!

I would have said it was the other way around. I'm very concious of motorists, but would often put myself (deliberately, might I add) in a road position where I'm almost impossible to overtake. Why? Because overtaking motorists tend to completely ignore cyclists, or leave far too little space between them and the kerb. The solution therefore is to block them from passing. This isn't ignorance, its experience.

There's a much lower proportion of bad cyclists than there are of bad motorists out there - although possibly thats only because bad cyclists don't have the protection of a large metal box....

Alkers

Knocked down by parked car while cycling along cycle lane in Ranelagh! Early morning on way to school, passenger (car parked on footpath) opened the door just as I was passing, knocking me out into the traffic. Car coming behind drove straight over the rear of my bike mangling the rear of back of the frame and the rear wheel. Missed me by less than a foot!

Spacedog

Saruman wrote:

Also they tend to be oblivious to motorists too!! I was driving the other day and came up behind a cyclist who decided to swerve 4 feet to the right, which is right into my path. Luckily i was far enough back to break and the over take him but he did not even look or notice me or how close he came to being hit!

If that cyclist was another car, it would be your responsability to a) not be tail-gating and leave enough space for you to stop suddenly and safely and b) to check that it is safe to overtake. Cyclists don't usually run into the backs of cars (^^^^ of course me being the exception^^^^)

I admit I do run red lights occasionally, but only in certain circumstances, e.g. if a traffic lights sequence at a crossroads includes a pedrestrian only green parallel to my crossing path and nobody's there. Momentium is all important in cycling, stopping unnecessarily wastes energy.

Saruman

Jaysus people.. read the damn post!!!! Did you on purpose IGNORE where i said "Luckily i was far enough back to break and the over take him"????????????? In other words there was NO danger of me hitting him and i was not tailgating. Im simply pointing out that he was oblivious to a motorist behind him and swerved out into the middle of the road. Now its possible he did it to avoid a pothole or something.. thats fine.. my point is he was oblivious to the danger to him by swerving out like that.

And to the rest of you who stop at red lights.. fair play!! Like i said in my post.. I have sympathy if you obey the rules and get hit. Its other muppets that i cant feel sorry for.. The ones who plough through a red light assuming its fine because they think they are familiar with it and have never been hit before.. and then a car passing through the junction perfectly legal hits the cyclist, or even worse swerves to avoid and in doing so hits a pedestrian, maybe a kid!
@Civilian_Target your name is very fitting if thats how you feel. Why should a cyclist be able to ignore a red light when cars have to??? What makes it safer for you to do so? You say only if you are familiar with a junction or are sure there is no traffic.. thats beside the point and you know it.

Lads im a cyclist too and i obey the bloody rules and have never been hit. If there is a pot hole i look behind me and if its clear i avoid it.. otherwise i will slow down, stop if i have to.

Civilian_Target

Saruman wrote:

@Civilian_Target your name is very fitting if thats how you feel. Why should a cyclist be able to ignore a red light when cars have to??? What makes it safer for you to do so? You say only if you are familiar with a junction or are sure there is no traffic.. thats beside the point and you know it.

No - I said only if I'm familiar with a junciton *and* there's no traffic. Why do I do this? Well, because bicycles often take to the pavements and use pedestrian crossings, when the pedestrian crossing light for my direction goes green, I'll cross with the pedestrians and be on my way, rather than sitting at the red light with the cars.

Or, if theres absolutely nothing at the junction, and I have visibility in all directions, I'll just run the lights. When you create your own speed, you're loathe to lose it.