Keep riding

Hooch73

bought a 2012 spec tarmac sl3 two weeks ago, and after years of riding an mtb with no issue have now been hit by cars
no less that twice in that periol.
Latest was yesterday when going through a roundabout a car didn't stop and collided with me. now sitting at home off work with suspected ligament damage to my right knee.
wondering if its natures way of saying stick with the mtb lol

cougie

Assume all motorists are morons and are out to kill you - and you wont go too far wrong.

Hope the knee is OK - FWIW most of my injuries cycling have been off road.

BrandonA

I agree with what the other two posters have said.

Even if you have right of way at a junction or roundabout assume that motor vehicles have not seen you, judged your speed correctly or simply don't care about you and be ready for the to take evasive action should they pull out on you.

markhewitt1978

BrandonA wrote:

I agree with what the other two posters have said.

Even if you have right of way at a junction or roundabout assume that motor vehicles have not seen you, judged your speed correctly or simply don't care about you and be ready for the to take evasive action should they pull out on you.

Or pedestrians, as happened at the weekend, woman looked right at me then stepped out into the road!

Hooch73

thanks for the replies.
knee isn't so good at the moment. can't bend it at all and in so much pain that the doc gave me panadiene forte
as well as anti inflamitories. No broken bones thank god, so potentially a torn ligament/tendon or a strain from the
speed at which I unclipped and the angle i alighted the bike from causing the rotational injury.

DavidJB

No offence but unless you're super unlucky you're doing something wrong!

My 'top tips' for any new road rider are:

At roundabouts make eye contact with drivers coming up. Its obvious from their eyes when they are 'looking through you'.

Ride 1m from the kerb, at things like traffic islands don't be afraid to take the middle of the road so no one can get past but don't swerve randomly out and be prepared to slow down if someone is accelerating to get past you at all cost...you can tell this by the sound of the engine.

Use your ears. You'd be surprised how much you can tell from the sound of an engine. You can tell if some one is going to race past you, trying to get round you at all costs and even going to close pass you. It amazes me when people ride with earphones in...sound is almost just as important as sight and has saved me more times than I can remember.

Traffic islands are dangerous (see prev comment).

Always be prepared.

Get out of towns as soon as possible.

Be assertive but not aggressive or a general arse. My mantra is simple, follow the rules of the road and treat drivers with as much respect as you'd expect to be treated. Yes you'll get the odd twonk but overall you'll be fine!

ai_1

DavidJB wrote:

No offence but unless you're super unlucky you're doing something wrong!

My 'top tips' for any new road rider are:

At roundabouts make eye contact with drivers coming up. Its obvious from their eyes when they are 'looking through you'.

Ride 1m from the kerb, at things like traffic islands don't be afraid to take the middle of the road so no one can get past but don't swerve randomly out and be prepared to slow down if someone is accelerating to get past you at all cost...you can tell this by the sound of the engine.

Use your ears. You'd be surprised how much you can tell from the sound of an engine. You can tell if some one is going to race past you, trying to get round you at all costs and even going to close pass you. It amazes me when people ride with earphones in...sound is almost just as important as sight and has saved me more times than I can remember.

Traffic islands are dangerous (see prev comment).

Always be prepared.

Get out of towns as soon as possible.

Be assertive but not aggressive or a general ars*. My mantra is simple, follow the rules of the road and treat drivers with as much respect as you'd expect to be treated. Yes you'll get the odd twonk but overall you'll be fine!

Yes I agreed with all of this!

One other thing. Make it clear what you intend to do and move confidently and purposefully while still maintaining the option to stop if you have to. Very often problems on the road (for both cyclists and motorists) are due to poor communication. For example, if you hang around the kerb on the left waiting for a gap to move out onto the road and turn right no-one knows what you're trying to do. However, if you position yourself in the middle of the lane and stick your hand out then they do. Yes you're in the path of traffic when you place yourself in the middle of the lane but you are visible and everyone can see what you're planning to do. Cyclists can be very bad at indicating their intent, either via hand signals or road position. Motorists can be bad at this too but they're less vulnerable and less easily overlooked so they can get away with it most of the time. I think hiding in the gutter is a bad tactic for cyclists, especially in urban areas. Much better to take ownership of your spot on the road. Just don't be an ass about it.

Schoie81

Totally agree with all DavidJB and Ai_1 have said - although I am guilty of doing what Ai_1 describes and need to get more confident myself. As David said, I think getting actually hit by two cars in the two weeks of riding is certainly not 'the norm'. I've had a fair few drivers pass me with barely an inch to spare and other pass me when it isn't really safe to do so, but on the whole, most drivers do give you some space. David is 100% right about your ears too - you should be able to get a good idea of what kind of vehicle is behind you, how close it is and whether its accelerating or slowing down before you look over your shoulder to confirm it. I often wear earphones when on my MTB, but never on my road bike.

If you're new to riding on the road it might be a good idea to avoid busy roads/junctions or ride at quiet times until you're more confident with interacting with traffic.

Hope you recover quickly and don't give up on the bike!!