Rear-ended by a woman
White Line
Posts: 887
Go on. Make your sexual jokes. 
Waiting at around-a-bout, with a constant stream of traffic from my right, I see a space about to open up. Just a couple of seconds before I am about to be on my way I'm on the ground thinking I was about to get run over. Seeing the bumper I just accept that I'll have a broken leg.
Thankfully, all I got was a scrap on my elbow and one on my shoulder.
I got up, expecting some WVM who had gotten sick of waiting and decided to blame me (and punish me). :roll: Before I know it I've opened some woman's car door and am yelling at her; explaining how round-a-bouts work. :oops:
Apparently she didn't see me. God knows how! I was right in front of her. According to her I wasn't there two seconds before she drove into me. Obviously I got the usual "You were in the middle of the road! Bikes should be hugging the gutter" bollocks. I just had to explain, again, that I was taking the third exit; therefore I had taken primary in the right hand lane. Then went on the explain the benefits of taking primary anyway.
Silly me forgot to get her licence number. I know! What a fool. Although, we exchanged phone numbers - she was very apologetic by this point (luckily my stepdad drove past a minute after I got hit and stopped to take my side)!
She phoned me later on at around 2300 hrs, but I couldn't answer because I was in work.
Trip to bike shop tomorrow to get them to "confirm" that the rear wheel is knackered and needs replaced.
Damages: scrapped elbow and shoulder, bent rear wheel, new bar tape ripped, and a bit of shame for shouting the way I did. Thank God my new four day old helmet didn't come into action today - I would have been royally pi$$ed!
Awesome diagram of event!
Blue line = me
Dotted blue line = my intended route
Red X = where I got rear-ended
Yellow line = suggested route from the woman ... and my stepdad. :shock:
Plan of action now? Trip to LBS to get a wee note saying how it is beyond repair. Awkward phone call to woman requesting insurance details? Join BC and get some insurance as there seems to be a lot of window lickers on the roads these days.
I'm sure maybe one or two people might recognise this round-a-bout. On Aikenhead Road - commonly known as the Cuddy Killer apparently. :P
They say near death experiences always come in threes, right? One more left ...
Waiting at around-a-bout, with a constant stream of traffic from my right, I see a space about to open up. Just a couple of seconds before I am about to be on my way I'm on the ground thinking I was about to get run over. Seeing the bumper I just accept that I'll have a broken leg.
Thankfully, all I got was a scrap on my elbow and one on my shoulder.
I got up, expecting some WVM who had gotten sick of waiting and decided to blame me (and punish me). :roll: Before I know it I've opened some woman's car door and am yelling at her; explaining how round-a-bouts work. :oops:
Apparently she didn't see me. God knows how! I was right in front of her. According to her I wasn't there two seconds before she drove into me. Obviously I got the usual "You were in the middle of the road! Bikes should be hugging the gutter" bollocks. I just had to explain, again, that I was taking the third exit; therefore I had taken primary in the right hand lane. Then went on the explain the benefits of taking primary anyway.
Silly me forgot to get her licence number. I know! What a fool. Although, we exchanged phone numbers - she was very apologetic by this point (luckily my stepdad drove past a minute after I got hit and stopped to take my side)!
She phoned me later on at around 2300 hrs, but I couldn't answer because I was in work.
Trip to bike shop tomorrow to get them to "confirm" that the rear wheel is knackered and needs replaced.
Damages: scrapped elbow and shoulder, bent rear wheel, new bar tape ripped, and a bit of shame for shouting the way I did. Thank God my new four day old helmet didn't come into action today - I would have been royally pi$$ed!
Awesome diagram of event!
Blue line = me
Dotted blue line = my intended route
Red X = where I got rear-ended
Yellow line = suggested route from the woman ... and my stepdad. :shock:
Plan of action now? Trip to LBS to get a wee note saying how it is beyond repair. Awkward phone call to woman requesting insurance details? Join BC and get some insurance as there seems to be a lot of window lickers on the roads these days.
I'm sure maybe one or two people might recognise this round-a-bout. On Aikenhead Road - commonly known as the Cuddy Killer apparently. :P
They say near death experiences always come in threes, right? One more left ...
0
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FCN3
http://img87.yfrog.com/img87/336/mycubeb.jpg
http://lonelymiddlesomethingguy.blogspot.com/
Not saing it's your fault, from your account (and her admission) you did everything right. I'm just saying that sometimes people need that extra bit of help.
PS> Glad it wasn't serious, sounds like it could have been.
Joelle (Focus Expert SRAM)
Glad to hear you're okay (and that you weren't rear ended by a WVM.
Mike
Singlecross(FCN7)
Cervelo
Roberts(stored)
Mercian(stored)
You're absolutely right.
I use a similar roundabout and the yellow line is good for the second exit (ie "straight over")
I would probably use the blue line for third exit
The problem with using the same route as a car is that you have to be moving at the same speed as a car. So it depends on traffic speed.
follow on
Sounds like she was doing the old cruise in to the roundabout with a little bit of speed watching for cars coming from the right and not looking ahead at all. My mate had the same once. SMIDSY from driver - strange as my mate is 6'3 and was wearing a bright orange jacket.
Felt F55 - 2007
Specialized Singlecross - 2008
Marin Rift Zone - 1998
Peugeot Tourmalet - 1983 - taken more hits than Mohammed Ali
It was only about twenty to five / quarter to five, so by no means it was dark. The sun was beginning to go down a little, but only enough to make shadows nice and long. I don't wear hi-vis, but at the time I was rocking a lot of lime green and had a yellow t-shirt on. And my bike was just cleaned, so it should have been very white!
I do agree though that the yellow line is pretty much suicide route - especially when it is busy like it was yesterday. Maybe that method should be posted in Will's "best way to off yourself" thread.
It does seem as though that's what she was doing - looking to the right that is. Although, I would have though a que would have formed behind me by then. :?
Aye, I think I will have to take a trip down to the police station at one point soon. When I got to work a driver told me to report it too (I work in a pizza delivery shop). I didn't get any witnesses as I forgot, but everybody who was about just drove past anyway. At least the woman isn't trying to ignore it and hoping it goes away, as she phoned me. I'll need to phone her back after I go the the LBS tomorrow.
I do. Often faster than cars when it comes to round-a-bouts as they have to slow down a lot more to go round corners.
Definitely report it to the police, sooner rather than later.
Viner Maxima, Tifosi CK7, Giant Bowery, Old commuter.
It is insane not to. In a car or even a moped it would be the expected route.
Too many of these threads today
I'm digging out the high vis as off tomorrow.
Oh and I think your line is correct. Take the same as you would in a car and occupy the middle of the lane. Going round the outside may just invite left hooks by some other SMIDSY
Had my lights on now for some time - just 'alerts' folk.
Glad you are OK - if they cause problems, drop a cycle specific lawyer on them from a great height.
There was definitely something weird about Monday. Three posts of offs on here and two on Cycle Chat? I think there might be a day coming up soon where a lot of folk get a D-lock through their windows. :twisted:
That is if they have they eyes open as I have had a few close ones when I had my Hi-viz and lights on, one guy said he didn't see me. :roll: