Good Day Turned Bad

Having been made redundant at the beginning of October I have found myself with more time to ride, so I joined the club’s Wednesday ride for a change. At the beginning of December, in a town called Fleet in Hampshire, England, I was hit by a Mercedes 4 x 4 turning right at a crossroad whose driver I heard later saying she didn’t see me.

The collision slammed me onto the tarmac as the car drove over the rear wheel, causing it to explode loudly, the sound brought workers from a nearby office running out to help.

Becoming aware of people trying to help me, asking name, where do I hurt but the impact onto the road surface had winded me and breathing was difficult. As soon as I felt able I asked to be moved from the road and was helped to a chair and covered with blankets.

I handed my phone to someone who called my home for me. Police arrived along with a Paramedic shortly followed by an Ambulance. The police were informed of the Fly6 which was still running and that it had captured all that had happened. The officer was quite impressed at the size of the unit.

The medics asked all the usual questions and I was eventually transferred to the local hospital where severe bruising to the upper right leg, right shoulder, and left ribs. Some hours later I got to go home loaded with drugs and instructions to take it easy.

Several days later I had a call from the driver’s insurance company and during the conversation I said that the incident was captured on video showing the car driving in the wrong lane. At this point they changed attitude, and became much more friendly. When asked if the driver intended to argue fault they then said they accepted liability, although I’m still awaiting an offer.

About 3 weeks later I heard back from the police who had been given a copy of the footage of the accident, they found it showed exactly what had happened clearly and that it corroborated my memory of what had occurred at the time. They also had no problem in confirming the driver was completely in the wrong place. They also confirmed the driver had been given the option to attend a driver awareness course at their own expense, failure to comply would involve automatic conviction of ‘Due Care’ along with 3 points. Any accident in the next two years would also bring about the same penalty.

Opting for private physio treatment has meant I could start the recovery quickly, massage and acupuncture has made a huge difference even from the first session. Seven weeks after the accident I was back on the bike, some what nervously at first but I’ve now racked up almost 600 miles in seven weeks. Full return to fitness will take a few more weeks, but summers coming too so the miles will soon rack up.

About the author:

Martin Blyth 62 years old cycling for the last 14 years. Originally rode many Sportives and Time trials, lately more leisure rides. Suffered Hit&Run accident October 2014 which prompted the purchase of the Fly6. Currently have 7 bikes, but room for more!