came this () close to hitting a guy on a bike today

TXDani

Senior Community Member
Let me start by saying I have never had to hit my brakes like I hit them today!!!! Woozers!!!
My husband and I were going to pick up our dd from my mom's house around 6:30pm today. It was still very light out and a we had a nice clear sky and dry pavement. I was driving down a street I drive down numerous times a week doing about 35-40mph (speed limit is 35mph) when I see a man who is in his 50's (no helmet) coming down a hill off a side street (with a stop sign). I slow down just to be cautious and we made eye contact. As I approach the street/hill he does not stop and he does not turn to avoid me. He came straight out in front of my car!!! I stood on my brakes...something I have NEVER had to do before and watched in slow motion as the front of my car came within inches of his body. We had eye contact the whole time and my husband and I both had our mouths hanging open. I have no clue how I didn't hit him....absolutely no clue. After my car came to a stop he was on the side of the road catching his breath. So we stopped to make sure there was no damage to our car and to make sure he was okay. We made no contact with him or his bike and he was fine, just very shaken up. He said that he was planning on stopping but his brake cord snapped so he only had rear brakes...and apparently they couldn't stop him.
I am sure if my husband had been driving he would have been toast but since I am always fully aware of my surroundings this guy got dang lucky tonight!! In this case going a couple more MPH or a split second time difference in reaction time would really make a difference.
This really hit home how accidents can happen anywhere and at anytime!
 
ADS

An Aurora

Senior Community Member
Wow how scary for everybody involved! Good for you for being so safety conscious...alot of people aren't! A good friend of mine was hit by a car when she was 5 in a situation alot like that one, in which the driver was not nearly as aware as you.
 

snowbird25ca

Moderator - CPST Instructor
Oh my, how scary for everyone. :eek: Glad that you were able to stop in time.

(On a side note, I hope he goes and buys a bike helmet after his close call.)
 

mominabigtruck

New member
Nothing personal against people who do ride bikes, but around here people take that whole right of way thing way too far. Yes, I understand you're on a bike and you're smaller then me and have no turn signals or things of that nature, but you still have to follow the laws that everyone else has to!!! You see people swerving in and out of traffic, going on and off the sidewalk, ignoring the stop signs, it just drives me crazy!!
 

southpawboston

New member
Yes, I understand you're on a bike and you're smaller then me and have no turn signals or things of that nature, but you still have to follow the laws that everyone else has to!!! You see people swerving in and out of traffic, going on and off the sidewalk, ignoring the stop signs, it just drives me crazy!!

exactly!!! that's a big problem here in the boston area, with crowded streets and lots of blind spots. cyclists expect drivers to follow the rules of the road, but many cyclists are just as bad... especially the ones that don't stop at stop signs or the ones who weave through traffic.
 

Loves2sing

New member
Nothing personal against people who do ride bikes, but around here people take that whole right of way thing way too far. Yes, I understand you're on a bike and you're smaller then me and have no turn signals or things of that nature, but you still have to follow the laws that everyone else has to!!! You see people swerving in and out of traffic, going on and off the sidewalk, ignoring the stop signs, it just drives me crazy!!

The thing is, they *don't* have the right of way. If you are on wheels, well not rollerblades, but you know what I mean, then you are a vehicle, and are expected to follow the same rules as everyone else. That is why if you are riding as a "pedestrian" you are supossed to get off of your bike and walk it across the street. If you are riding, then you should be using your hand signals, wearing a helmet, and should always have a bell.

I hope that guys gets a hemet, and his bike fixed! If he had been following the rules, (by walking his bike across the street) this never would have happened!

I hope your heartrate has slowed down to normal again!
 
:eek: Guardian angels, indeed! :eek:

Ditto on hoping he gets a helmet. Have you had your brakes checked (or planning to)? Sometimes a major stop like that can weaken or damage them if they aren't brand-new to start with; I think you can find some places that will do a free check, but whether or not you can trust their findings is another story... :shrug-shoulders:
 

TXDani

Senior Community Member
I agree with everyone...I sure hope he gets a helmet today!!!!

About cyclists in general it is very bad here too, especially in the downtown and surrounding areas. We have a ton of bikers and I get so angry that they feel they are exempt from following the rules of the road. No hand signals, passing cars on the right and left, running stop signs, and going through red lights just because there are no cars coming. What gives with that? By not following the rules you are endangering yourself a lot more than you are dangering the people in cars since in a bike vs car scenario a car is going to win!! Seems like common sense to me!!!
I also hate it around here (where we live) when they ride on the two lane hilly, curvy roads so you get stuck behind them for 5 minutes until you can see around the hills and the curves to see if you have room to go around them. You know we pay for all these bike paths yet you never see bikers actually using them, they all have to ride out on the roads and congest traffic.

About my brakes...after my husband chilled out he was livid and said "he seriously just took months off your brakes!!!" Haha they aren't pulsating and I have only had this car since December so they are fairly new luckily.
 

southpawboston

New member
About my brakes...after my husband chilled out he was livid and said "he seriously just took months off your brakes!!!" Haha they aren't pulsating and I have only had this car since December so they are fairly new luckily.

nah... they should be fine. if anything, about a day's worth of friction material was shed... not months. a short sudden stop doesn't do much harm to brakes. what is worse is routine hilly braking, where you apply the brakes a lot over the course of several minutes going down a long, steep hill or mountain. that generates much more heat than a short panic stop, causes much more wear, and can also cause premature rotor warping (which makes the brakes feel like they are pulsing).
 

flipper68

Senior Community Member
Been there, done that! :eek:

I was in high school and we had just moved into a new house at the top of steep hill (I've made it up on the pedals of my bike exactly twice). I was running a errand and drove down the hill. It was 9ish on a summer evening so it was getting dark. There were lots of people out and there were cars parked on both sides of the street.

:eek: Suddenly a kid on a bike (6-8 ish) came from behind a parked pickup and was in front of me. I have never hit the breaks, put it in park, and gotten the seat belt and door open so fast. Twenty years later it still makes me panic a bit. I hit him. He went down.

Complete Grace: The "boat" I was driving had vertical metal pieces on the front bumper. This is what hit his chain guard - otherwise I'm sure there would have been injuries.

Lucky: There were lots of people who saw this happen and realized there was nothing I could have done. There was no room to swerve and no time to stop - as soon as he was visable, he was in front of my bumper.

Funny: One of the men checked the boy over for injuries - he had a scrape on his leg and arm. He very sternly said, "You were very lucky. Most kids who get hit by cars they have to go in the ambulance to the hospital."

To which the boy replied, "I've already done that."

What a way to meet the neighbors!
 

Loves2sing

New member
Funny: One of the men checked the boy over for injuries - he had a scrape on his leg and arm. He very sternly said, "You were very lucky. Most kids who get hit by cars they have to go in the ambulance to the hospital."

To which the boy replied, "I've already done that."

Umm, if this was my kid, I think someone wouldn't HAVE a bike anymore.
 

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