360 NB near Westbank, 10/25/2012

m1ek · 2012-10-26 08:26:22

Anybody know the details? Guy appeared to be loaded into ambulance; one or more other cyclists hanging out to give statements (was looking from 5th floor window in my office).

Had to be in a long discussion with people complaining about cyclists violating traffic laws; defended riding on 360 as mostly safe; etc. Theory by those watching is that this was another "people driving fast on the shoulder to eventually turn right" problem, but none of us saw the actual collision.

Comet · 2012-10-26 09:58:29

Yes, that was a friend and here is what she posted elsewhere:

Home and resting. I got hit by a car on 360 just before the Westbank light. I think the guy was frustrated with traffic and just pulled into the shoulder, or was trying to turn into a parking lot that would let him bypass traffic and the light, unfortunately it was right as I was riding past him. Screamed at him and tried to avoid him, but collided with his right front bumper and flew off my bike. Flipped over the handle bars and my right hip took most of the fall. [Medical stuff; she did go to the hospital.]

Had two cyclists close behind me who saw the whole thing, one was an off-duty APD officer and the other was _____. Thanks for helping me.

Feeling very lucky today as the last cyclist who got hit on that shoulder just a few hundred yards away died. I am just going to be sore for a few weeks. (I hope)

owlman · 2012-10-26 10:22:28

That's good to hear she's OK; thanks for that update Comet.

pwhallmark · 2012-10-26 13:12:01

Very glad the cyclist is OK. I've been commuting up and down 360 (and/or 620) for many years. When the guy got killed earlier this year near Westbank, it scared me off the bike for months. Seemed like he was doing everything right, and just got run over from behind on the shoulder. There are too many distracted drivers out there, and the cars are becoming even more loaded with dashboard distractions. Not to mention smart phone fiddling. It's amazing and infuriating how our society accepts the carnage as an acceptable cost for the ability to be entertained in our vehicles.

I'm bike commuting again, with more attention-grabbing paraphernalia. Picked up a tall flag from Mike Librick at EasyStreet, and spent $$$ on Dinotte lights which can be seen from very far away even in daylight. One problem on 360 is that when traffic is backed up, it is hard for a motorist to see the shoulder clearly beyond the cars in front of him. I am hoping the flag will help at least a little. Here's a photo:
https://picasaweb.google.com/1020112805 … agAndLight

Regards, and safe cycling,
Phil Hallmark

MichaelBluejay · 2012-10-26 14:11:31

pwhallmark, I'd like to see that picture but the link didn't work. Did the forum mangle it, or do you have another link you can share?

pwhallmark · 2012-10-26 15:49:19

Michael,

Odd, it works for me, in both the forum web view and the email digest. Try the link below. If there is a way to upload or attach photos I can do that too, but I could not find an obvious way to do that in the forum.
https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/sredir? … feat=email

MichaelBluejay · 2012-10-26 17:42:45

I'm afraid that new link doesn't work for me either, in either of two browsers. I suspect that it's working for you only because you're logged into picasaweb on your computer.

You can indeed embed images in posts, but if a login is required to view the image, then the link won't work. Use:

[ img]http://example.com/image.gif[ /img]

but take out the space after each bracket (which I had to include to get this example to print rather than trying to include an actual image).

pwhallmark · 2012-10-26 19:05:59

OK, I'll kill 2 birds with one stone. I've been meaning to post the web site I created regarding riding wide shoulders. I added the photo of the flag and Dinotte head light to the "Contact" tab on this web page. Note that it's not the intro photo, but rather the one on the "Contacts" tab:
http://www.ridetheshoulders.com

Bicycle Austin forum

#1 2012-10-26 08:26:22

360 NB near Westbank, 10/25/2012

#2 2012-10-26 09:58:29

Re: 360 NB near Westbank, 10/25/2012

#3 2012-10-26 10:22:28

Re: 360 NB near Westbank, 10/25/2012

#4 2012-10-26 13:12:01

Re: 360 NB near Westbank, 10/25/2012

#5 2012-10-26 14:11:31

Re: 360 NB near Westbank, 10/25/2012

#6 2012-10-26 15:49:19

Re: 360 NB near Westbank, 10/25/2012

#7 2012-10-26 17:42:45

Re: 360 NB near Westbank, 10/25/2012

#8 2012-10-26 19:05:59

Re: 360 NB near Westbank, 10/25/2012

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