I hit a car today.

stuff happens. i have "hit" a car (not uniing) and the person flipped
out and threw the door open just missing my friend who was flying past
on the other side. nothing was damaged so when he turned around to get
a peice of papaer i left.

--
torkerdx

gordito8me said:

it's like running across the highway at rush hour. Dangerous, stupid,
but not really that fun.

skianduniaddict said:

never give 4 teenagers a camera... they go crazy

johnfoss said:

Yes, being old makes you stupid.

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I don't think I would feel the same way if I was riding and a car pulled
out in front of me at a blind intersection. Were you riding on the
road, or a path to the side? If you were on a path, was there a
crosswalk? I think I would be a little angry at the driver.

--
siafirede

James = my name
'This' (http://www.myspace.com/clawsout) = my myspace

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I see your point and you are right. He was moving and stopped very
abruptly, but if I was paying better attention I KNOW I could have
stopped in time. I know what my limits are riding uni. I know how
fast I can go and still safely stop and how much distance it takes me
to stop.

So yes, I probably should be angry (somewhat) at the driver. My point
was I am disappointed with myself for not paying better attention.

-Joe

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It's a tough situation we have most of the time with drivers.
Unicyclists should, of course, always be extra careful, particularly
because drivers are NOT careful most of the time (not sure if this is
the case this time).

Sometimes I get so mad at them that I almost want them to hit me so I
can play the role of the pedestrian and get my own revenge just for
spite; but that wouldn't really accomplish anything in the end.

But hey, compliments on your handling of the situation. Could have
been easy for both parties to fly off the handle, but it sounds like
everyone went home happy.

--
Joseppi

'Team Freestyle' (http://silentaftermath.com/)

'Team Roadshow' (http://teamroadshow.com/)
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Well thank you for the compliment. I try to keep my cool and put myself
in the other guy's shoes for a second before I react or open my mouth.
I don't want to be a total jerkoff.

In this case I'd say we were both at fault and since there was indeed
some damage to his wheel, I had better offer to make things right.
That's why I offered to pay for it.

You're right it is a common problem. Motorcycles, bicycles and
unicycles are totally ignored by most drivers. I have had close calls
in the past, but nothing before that was my fault.

-Joe

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Joe_sixpack
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Regardless to who is at fault...

You got up and where ok.

Thats the only important thing to think about.

Ride safely and enjoy your uni.

Best regards

--
legtod2
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You survived unhurt, which is great.

You can see the other guy's point of view, which is unusual.

You accept responsibility for your own actions, which these days puts
you in a tiny minority.

You learn from your mistakes, which is almost unique.

Were you unhurt because you are in fact a saint?🙂

--
Mikefule

Everyone seeks the illusion of purpose.
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I'm an extremely competant rider when is comes to biking. I've ridden on
roads every day from the age of 7, although drivers complain a lot
about riders for the most part it's the driver who's in the wrong.

I've been hit by cars far to many times when riding, I think I'm nearly
at 10. *All* of the accidents were the drivers' fault and *always* at
junctions.

I've has the experience of slamming into the side of a car because the
driver didn't check properly quite a few times and it's hard to avoid
even when using brakes. Luckily for me, in all the drivers were quite
sound with it and realised that it was their fault.

The one occasion that -really- [censored] me off was riding around a
roundabout. Naturally I have right of way going around, as I was riding
round I kept in line with a car also going the same way as me just so
that drivers could see me better because they'd see the car.
Unfortunately, this driver was going too fast for me to keep up and he
pulled away a bit. Going past the 2nd exit some to**er came flying out,
luckily I spotted him and realised that I needed to speed up or I'd go
through his windshield. He did however hit my rear wheel..hard...I went
skidding across the floor...into the road and that fu**wit drove off!
I'm just glad I didn't suffer anything worse than bad grazes and
bruises.

We can't always avoid these things, we've just got to keep alert and
try to read what drivers could do.

--
yatsey

where the speechless unite in a silent in a silent accord
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Oh dear, least it turned out okay,

Some [censored] once pulled up so close to me so that his kid could have a
close-up view that my rotating pedals scrached his car 🙄 He
gave me a mean stare (I returned one) and drove off.

--
thejdw

I didn't spell it wrong, you just read it wrong!

kington99 said:

A hobnob is an oaty biscuit, the fact that they don't exist in america
just goes to show that you have no culinary heritage 🙂

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

don't follow Jesus, follow me!<<

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Most of the times cars have almost hit me the driver has been mad at me
and yelled at me or honked, even though he/she was clearly the one at
fault. I am definitely a defensive rider and I know the areas on my
commute where people are idiots. Someone once drove by me and flipped
me off and tried to force me off the road and then when he stopped at a
light up a head I got off my bike and looked at him through his open
window and asked what the problem was. It was at that point where 2
people got out of his car and started to threaten me. This may only
happen in Northern Virginia...but people hate cyclists here. The
department of transportation hates cyclists, the Virginia government
hates cyclists, and so do the rich idiots driving huge SUVs everywhere.

--
siafirede

James = my name
'This' (http://www.myspace.com/clawsout) = my myspace

Pump Air Not Gas
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Joe_sixpack: That's a pretty unusual reaction - I think most of us would
blame the driver, and some will do so even if it's their own fault.
Myself, I often first get confused and apologize, but later realize
that I've done nothing wrong (from my point of view, of course 😉. Heh,
that's when I start blaming others.)

Well, I'm glad that you're safe and the driver seemed very nice -
trying to learn from one's mistake is something everyone should learn
to do.

Now it's time to share my own experiences. I'm a relative new rider,
bought my first uni more than a month ago. I know my own limits (and
sometimes test them when there's no one around), but riding "normally"
isn't any problem for me.

Some weeks ago, when I was riding to the right on a small path, I heard
someone shouting "OooOOooOWooaaah!" behind me. Thinking it must be
someone trying to scare me, I just ignored it. But suddenly, a postman
on a bicycle appeared right beside me, riding pretty fast (much faster
than me on my uni). When he'd pasted me, he turned around and yelled
"Watch out!". I was perplexed. Today, I still haven't figured out what
he meant.

This evening another strange thing happened. Here, unicycling is
considered as walking - the cars should stop when you're crossing a
road (when there's a crosswalk). Even if I know that, most of the
drivers obviously don't - and that's why I often jump off the uni
before crossing a road. But there are drivers that are nice and stop.

Today when I was going to cross the road the car on the left side
slowed down. I took the opportunity to cross the road, but then the car
(which hadn't completely stopped) suddenly honked. To me it didn't seem
like a nice honk nor an attempt to scare me - it was more like "Hey
stupid guy on stupid bike, what the **** are you doing making me
stop?!"

It seems some people get angry just because I ride a uni. A bicyclist a
while ago muttered something about "Well, can't you _at_least_ ride on
the right side?". Yeah right, says the person who forced me to give way
and rode where bicycles aren't recommended...

Conclusion: Even if you know you're right, you can't be sure how others
think. Be on guard when riding in traffic and always put your safety
first.

--
hansc
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I'm still trying to figure out what Joe was going to do if he'd gotten
hold of his brake in time... 😕

Glad nobody was hurt, especially in the case of a polite cyclist
colliding with a polite driver.

--
johnfoss

John Foss
Email: "jfoss" at "unicycling.com" -- www.unicycling.com
-----------------------------------------------

Man with broken collar bone say: "Have you checked your shoelaces
lately?"
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hubcap? i thought plymouths were GOOD cars.

--
gabetheunicycleman

Quotes from ACA
"two out of three of our children are directly involved with selling
drugs..."
"50% of all reproductive problems are because of the man..."😄 and
from my mum "is titanium strong?"
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Well, as far as fault goes, it breaks down like this:

Were you riding in the street or on the sidewalk?

If on the sidewalk then it's your fault. Street then it's the car's
fault. He could have just as easilly pulled out in front of a car or a
semi as he did you. Who pulls blindly out onto a road without
looking? He's lucky it was you and not some soccer mom with 20 kids in
her van.

Unless you were on the sidewalk - and if that's the case stop riding on
the sidewalk, it causes accidents. 🙂 Or, I suppose, if you were riding
on the wrong side of the street. That would also be silly, and would
also cause accidents.

--
Seager

'Team RoadShow' (http://www.teamroadshow.com) | 'Unexpected Failure
Productions' (http://www.unexpectedfailure.com) | 'Moab'
(http://tinyurl.com/9fxuv)
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gabetheunicycleman said:

hubcap? i thought plymouths were GOOD cars.

Joe dossen't know that there actualy spinners

--
thejdw

I didn't spell it wrong, you just read it wrong!

kington99 said:

A hobnob is an oaty biscuit, the fact that they don't exist in america
just goes to show that you have no culinary heritage 🙂

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

don't follow Jesus, follow me!<<

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gabetheunicycleman said:

hubcap? i thought plymouths were GOOD cars.

Joe dossen't know that there actualy spinners

--
thejdw

I didn't spell it wrong, you just read it wrong!

kington99 said:

A hobnob is an oaty biscuit, the fact that they don't exist in america
just goes to show that you have no culinary heritage 🙂

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

don't follow Jesus, follow me!<<

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I'm glad everyone has been talking about this so much. I hate to sound
like a tool , but safety is a real concern for all of us.

Thanks to everyone for your compliments on how I handled the situation.
I try my best to keep cool. To answer the big question: Yes, I was
indeed on the road when this happened. By law, all bikes are supposed
to be on the road in this area.

Lastly, yes plymouths are good cars. You just don't always have a good
driver. Not to mention the highway/road system could use some serious
work (I live in Pennsylvania, some of the least maintained roads in
America).

-Joe

--
Joe_sixpack
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