The Chainlink

How many of us have been hit by a car in Chicago?

I haven't but my wife was. Door opened in the parking lane on Belmont near Racine. Knocked her off her bike and into traffic, a car slammed its brakes an stopped just short of her (helmetted) head. She has a deep scar on her shoulder. E.T. said she was lucky, they've seen bikers go through the window of an opened car door before. I've always been most nervous when riding on Wells in the loop because of the big El supports.

Any stories? What % of us have actually been hit or injured?

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Permalink Reply by root on September 11, 2008 at 9:32am
ouch. hope things turn around for you soon gabe
Permalink Reply by Anton on September 11, 2008 at 10:13am
Wow. Sorry that happened. Glad you're alive and walking.

Gabe said:
To resurrect an old topic I was hit by a car on the way home tonight at 1135 p.m. (wed 10th to thurs 11th). Corners of Sheffield, Wrightwood, and Lincoln. The wonderful Hit-and-Run driver clipped my back tire and sent me flying as he kept going northbound on Lincoln...
Permalink Reply by Ammo on September 11, 2008 at 10:45am
that makes me so sick that someone would say that while you were hurt. People are f*cking animals. And what are we doing? taking over less then 3 feet on thier precious "road"
Permalink Reply by Vilda on September 11, 2008 at 12:59pm
Thanks Ammo, Anton, Root and Natalee...Final assesment of the situation is my rear tire needs to get fixed as it is no longer true but it's still workable cause i need the bike for commuting and the chain needed to be tightened. My day job was nice enough to give me the day off since I have obviously bruised ribs (purple in one day) so that was a bright side (the day off not the ribs). ;-)
Permalink Reply by Anton on September 12, 2008 at 1:34pm
I came SO close to being bisected by the edge of a car door last night flying down the bike lane on Halsted on my way to hidden shamrock. I don't really don't know how i came out of it. Nothing will make your day like cheating death. But I've got to be running out of passes by now.
Permalink Reply by Vilda on September 12, 2008 at 5:07pm
I ride a Red Haro BMX - But I'm looking for a single-speed hybrid for winter.
Permalink Reply by Vilda on September 12, 2008 at 5:08pm
My reply was for Video Drome - since it's rolled over to a new page.
Permalink Reply by Ammo on September 12, 2008 at 5:23pm
It keeps you on your toes. I always get a slight foot numbness accompanied with a racing heart when that happens.

Anton said:
I came SO close to being bisected by the edge of a car door last night flying down the bike lane on Halsted on my way to hidden shamrock. I don't really don't know how i came out of it. Nothing will make your day like cheating death. But I've got to be running out of passes by now.
Permalink Reply by Tommie on September 12, 2008 at 5:45pm
Bike Accidents Decline As Ridership Rises
By Dave Demerjian Email
http://blog.wired.com/cars/2008/09/for-bikers-ther.html

More bicycles on the road means more chances for drivers yakking on cell phones or gorging on McFood to hit one, right? Wrong.

According to a study by researchers at the University of New South Wales (http://www.science.unsw.edu.au/news/a-virtuous-cycle-safety-in-numb...), the number of collisions decreases as the number of bicycles in traffic increases. It sounds like a paradox, they say, but motorists are more likely to drive carefully and respectfully when there are more cyclists on the road.

"It's a virtuous cycle," says Dr Julie Hatfield. "The likelihood that an individual cyclist will be struck by a motorist falls with increasing rate of bicycling in a community. And the safer cycling is perceived to be, the more people are prepared to cycle."

The researchers say studies in several countries have shown the incidence of motorists colliding with cyclists or pedestrians actually declines as more people ride or walk. The reason, they say, is simple -- the more cyclists motorists see, the more aware they are of cyclists in general and more safely they drive.

"It's a positive effect but some people are surprised that injury rates don't go up at the same rate of increases in cycling," he says. "It appears that motorists adjust their behavior in the presence of increasing numbers of people bicycling because they expect or experience more people cycling. Also, rising cycling rates mean motorists are more likely to be cyclists, and therefore be more conscious of, and sympathetic towards, cyclists."

The findings run counter to conventional thinking, which holds that more cyclists means more chances for collisions. While the numbers do increase in absolute terms, a city that doubles its cycling numbers can expect a one-third drop in the per-cyclist frequency of a crash.

When that news gets out, it could create a long-term cyclist friendly cycle: If people perceive biking to be safe, more of them will do it. More cyclists means better motorist behavior and greater likelihood of communities passing bike friendly laws, further proving H.G. Wells was right when he said cycle tracks will abound in Utopia.
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What have I done today?
Scanned 15 8x10 negatives, printed a stooooopid amount of color swatches in order to test new color management software/hardware and read this stuff.
Permalink Reply by Ammo on September 13, 2008 at 12:10pm
I got hit by a car today. I was riding the bike lane ( as usual ). There was a line of traffic up to the stoplight. An idiot driver attempts to squeeze in between two cars to make a left turn, hitting me. I had lights blinking on me all over the place, as it was POURING this morning. He then looked at me like a I was nuts and drove off.

Assholes.

I'm not hurt, but my left pedal is busted.
Permalink Reply by drew larsen on September 13, 2008 at 12:14pm
Ammo said:
...He then looked at me like a I was nuts and drove off.

It is unbelievable to me that drivers don't stop when they hit someone. Inconsiderate, dangerous, and obviously illegal too
Permalink Reply by Tommie on September 13, 2008 at 5:20pm
I have absolutely no tolerance for those who hit people and drive off. Regardless of whether or not whomever is hurt it is absolutely unacceptable. I urge everyone to make a police report when something like this happens. If motorists cannot get away with stuff like this then they will be forced to be more careful.

If you remember their license plate I urge you to file a report.

I'm quite glad you escaped unscathed!

Ammo said:
I got hit by a car today. I was riding the bike lane ( as usual ). There was a line of traffic up to the stoplight. An idiot driver attempts to squeeze in between two cars to make a left turn, hitting me. I had lights blinking on me all over the place, as it was POURING this morning. He then looked at me like a I was nuts and drove off.

Assholes.

I'm not hurt, but my left pedal is busted.

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