To the driver in Norwich...

karl j

...who knocked me off my bike outside the Boundary pub on Friday morning, after i'd got the train in (ok i was being a wimp in not cycling all the way but well, there you have it) about 7.30. You know, where the 2 lanes heading out from the city become 3 as the right hand filter lane starts.Think / wonder if it may have been you (?), then please read on...

I'm the one you were revving your engine up behind in frustration because you couldn't get past as a car was half in the outside lane and half in the RH filter lane and so, effectively, it was blocking both. And as i was 1.5 metres or so from the kerb you had no

room to get through when the lights changed from green to amber, although some might say you

could have waited(and even, dare i say it, put your bloody phone down too!?)instead of

blasting past, knocking me off as you did and then, if that wasn't enough, without stopping jumping through the red

lights the way you did. Quite how you got through there without causing major carnage ii'll never know. Now, i appreciate you may be very important but there is a line

that most reasonable people won't cross isn't there ? For me, and i firmly believe, for

*most* people that line is where you start to put other peoples lives in danger.You crossed

that by a good deal on Friday. Fortunately for you your recklessness in jumping the red

lights at speed meant there was no way for me, once i'd picked myself up to follow you to

get your reg. number or make / model of car. Subsequently the police could offer little

assurance that you will be caught, however i have a feeling that eventually you will be, and hopefully before you've killed siomeone. Now, as for me, yes i'm ok thanks, after being checked out at A&E (totally wasting their time and taxpayers money, as your actions were so totally unnecessary)just a minor gravel rash on my leg but fortunately no head injury which, for me, was particularly pleasing as i have only been back at work 3 weeks after having 14 months off sick due to a brain tumour and chemo / radiotherapy treatment.

If, although i'm not entirely convinced you would be reading a cycling forum in the first place, you recognise yourself and the incident, please feel free to present yourself to Norwich police station at Bethel Street, where i'm sure they'd be pleaased to speak you.

STEFANOS4784

What a bastard :shock: :evil: :evil: :twisted:
Glad you're ok though, hows the bike

downfader

I send letters like that to the local paper. http://m6live.dailyecho.co.uk/yoursay/d ... d_driving/

Cool that you arnt seriously hurt

phil_ss1

HAve you thought of visiting all the premises in the area to ask igf they have CCTV covering the area? Even if they have not got the incident they may have the car on it.

Does the driver use that road every day to work? May be worth camping out +/-1/2 hour each side the time it happened with camera ready.

Plod reallly ought to do more! :roll:

Glad to hear you are ok.

Phil

KitsuneAndy

Git

I would have thought there must be some CCTV in one of the business around there though, isn't Enterprise Rent-A-Car facing that junction? Or the pub might have CCTV?

That junction is always a nightmare, I'm just glad I'm usually turning left there so avoid the carnage of getting across boundary road.

karl j

having made a minor error in another thread re. Norwichwhere i brought this subject up i thought it reasonable to update this one. Bike damage = 2 twisted round bar-ends (fixed, minor paint scuffing on 1 pedal (easily fixed), My damage = minimal, fortunately, thankfully,after the paramedic's initial fears i'd had a stroke as i couldn't move my left arm or leg. Police action so far =minimal, unfortunately, i am awareone of only onenewspaper reoprt to date, though they have taken my bike awaytocheck forfor possible evidence / paint etc. Allegedly no cctv in the area! Cheers Phil,i do agree ! Plus 6 days lost wages. 5 days 7 hours in hospital inc. CT&M\rI scans, nurses pay etc. not a cheap deal really....

downfader

Did you get in the paper? :shock: We've had so many people knocked off (not seriously thank god) lately that I think they're getting sick of printing it.

You're quite right about the costs. And people dont realise how much it costs the emergency services when they prat about like that. I'd bet they're the first to complain about their taxes (starting with their fuel costs, etc)

world is full of w***ers sometimes

The Chingford Skinhead

downfader wrote:

Did you get in the paper? :shock: We've had so many people knocked off (not seriously thank god) lately that I think they're getting sick of printing it.

You're quite right about the costs. And people dont realise how much it costs the emergency services when they prat about like that. I'd bet they're the first to complain about their taxes (starting with their fuel costs, etc)

world is full of w***ers sometimes

Glad you are OK Karl.

I always use the costs bit when I get into discussions (bike related or not) with drivers about how their "Road tax" (sic) is a rip off. After explaining that it is vehicle excise duty not road tax and that it is not ringfenced so roads are paid for from general taxation - I then explain what the true costs of motoring are. Apart from the obvious - road design, layout, maintenance etc there is the cost to tax payers of the NHS, police and fire brigade to deal with road traffic collissions (note I don't use the misnomer or "accident") and that's before you get onto things like the cost to the environment etc etc

For some reason my attempts at education are rarely appreciated :twisted:

karl j

Well yes it was im the paper,though probably more due to the police press releasei believe than anything i done. As for the costs discussin - it does usually ends in stalemate at work etc but i dostillfeel it is true, God only knows how much an MRI etc must cost to run ! ...but i'm willing to bet it aint cheap !

anyhow cheers for the thoughts, feeling etc is slowly coming back today and i'm evenhoping to be able to get upstairs in my house again soon

karl j

Also DF, from some of the ping-pong typeLetters to the Editor in our local rag(eastern daily Press and eastern evenin news) there seems to be a reasonable sized section of oordinarily-sensible drivers who simply don't want to hearthe woes of a cyclist, and sees cyclists' problems as being entirely their own fault("get a proper job" etc , y'know?) Some regular contributors (i coul probablythink of a better word(!!!)have, in the past,bordered on outrightunpleasantness toward one or two individuals &their storiesrather than justaccept a driver may possibly have been at fault.andso in the end i guess if(???) your local had the same issues then it's little wonder they eventually stopped printing such things i guess, and tbh it's not the sort of debate i relish.. but maybe i will write in further one day.... dunno, we'll see....

Maybe its just easier to change my route at the Norwich end...

karl j

short update .....Wahey!!! cooking on gas now ! was given a wheelchair on my way out of hospital the other day but am having, er, issues. 10 mins til the first unsceduled decompression ! but as i actually made it walking upstairs indoors this morning i reckon things are headed in the right direction. Plod "may have " cctv... community physio visiting me tomorrow....


no evidence of the culprit having handed himself in just ywet, though. \Go on old boy be a sport !!!

downfader

Apparently there might have been cctv over where my "accident" occured. I'm loathe to use the word though as it was avoidable, as I'm sure yours was. Still, atleast mine stopped...

Chances are, if they catch the guy and he's not been a sport it will, could come down worse for him. Hope something happens.

The physio should be good. I have seen some of those physio girls at the local hospital - you'll enjoy their company. My mate had physio on his knee, and someone must have warned them that he's a bit of a letch. When he turned up he got the gay guy who kept saying "my god, you're really supple"

symo

Perhaps this is why we should all be sporting ATC2-k-3k-5k's ? Mind you some of the footage may require editing :oops:

Anonymous

do not worry karl as i am a strong believer in karma, what goes around comes around, the tosser will get his just desserts someday, just glad you are ok my dear freind!

sc999cs

You were given a wheel chair for road rash? It's all right for some - I bet this is just an excuse by some other lazy cyclist to not only steal the roads us motorists pay tax for, but now you're using our health service as well. Shouldn't be allowed... :?

Sorry, just been looking at the Daily Hate again - don't know what happened to me.

Glad you're okay and hopefully the CCTV will have some clear evidence to identify this knight of the road.

downfader

manwell wrote:

do not worry karl as i am a strong believer in karma, what goes around comes around, the tosser will get his just desserts someday, just glad you are ok my dear freind!

Karma or psychology? If you treat people like **** then they will treat you likewise. Sadly some of these people lack the intelligence to draw the link. :roll: Karma exists, but it isnt anything other than human brains responding to human brains and actions, and ourselves being stupid enough to do things that may somehow disadvantge us.

Anonymous

get a life

karl j

fascinating , what is karma ?truly a subject to stay the night with. Well, actually no, as sadly i have chocolate cake and ice cream to be eaten right now !!!!


atb

STEFANOS4784

Don't forget to call claims direct or some-one similar, you will still get a claim through the ccp (criminal compensation.................something(sorry forgot the last word))
Good to hear your negotiating stairs again, back on the bike soon then 8)