The Chainlink

How many of us have been hit by a car in Chicago?

I haven't but my wife was. Door opened in the parking lane on Belmont near Racine. Knocked her off her bike and into traffic, a car slammed its brakes an stopped just short of her (helmetted) head. She has a deep scar on her shoulder. E.T. said she was lucky, they've seen bikers go through the window of an opened car door before. I've always been most nervous when riding on Wells in the loop because of the big El supports.

Any stories? What % of us have actually been hit or injured?

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Permalink Reply by Ammo on October 7, 2008 at 6:28pm
I almost got doored by a cop car on saturday on grand. I wanted to yell out, saw the lights and kept riding.
Permalink Reply by Danielle on October 7, 2008 at 7:01pm
Ooh, me me! I've been doored twice, and hit front on once, by a very old man who cut over into the wrong side of traffic. Been to the ER twice. Once on St. Patty's day weekend... which means that my concussed self had to wait forever to be seen because of all the alcohol poisoning and drunken stupidity. Yay!
Permalink Reply by Ammo on October 8, 2008 at 12:42am
dang, I've gotten hit on addison and halsted just outside the cop shop. A car was trying to squeeze through a line of cars, leaving me in a blind spot. He hits me, and then when I look at him, he looks at me like I am crazy. Wrecked my pedal, luckily I lifted my leg fast enough.
Permalink Reply by Lee on October 8, 2008 at 6:33am
A guy rammed me on purpose a few years ago. Bent up my bike but not me.
Permalink Reply by Jeff Koss on October 9, 2008 at 2:46am
I've been hit 4 times. Three were right-hooks, with no turn signal used, with the car speeding past me to turn right as I was going through the intersection. The forth was an SUV that blatantly ran a red light as I was starting up my bike through the green. Only injury I've ever gotten was a very banged up left wrist, which wasn't broken but took about a month to be 100% again. My bike has needed repairs from 3 of the accidents though.

Oh, all 4 times the driver of the vehicle was talking on a cell phone, and each time, said that they did not see me at all. I'm not sure how you don't see a bicycle, in broad daylight, when you JUST passed them but three seconds ago. The drivers always seemed to think that somehow it was my fault...but at least they didn't hit me and drive away, right? :/
Permalink Reply by austin on October 13, 2008 at 9:27pm
Count me in. Happened Thursday, elderly man didn't see me at all and left-turned right into me. Bike destroyed, I just have a little road rash, not too bad for going airborne over the cab.
Permalink Reply by Ammo on October 13, 2008 at 9:42pm
jeesuz that sucks, I'm sorry.
austin said:
Count me in. Happened Thursday, elderly man didn't see me at all and left-turned right into me. Bike destroyed, I just have a little road rash, not too bad for going airborne over the cab.
Permalink Reply by austin on October 13, 2008 at 9:44pm
no worries! it's in the past, i just want to get the compensation for the bike. as for me, i worked the next day with little to no problem. lotsa neosporin though.
Permalink Reply by annie_wu on October 13, 2008 at 9:52pm
I was hit about 12 years ago by a woman pulling out of a parking lot (ended up in the ER with a fucked up knee and road rash) and was doored last winter on Kedzie. WEAR YOUR HELMET PEOPLE. THEY'RE CUTER THAN A COMA.
Permalink Reply by Benny D on October 17, 2008 at 8:45pm
Got hit a few weeks back crossing an intersection at Bryn Mawr and Winthrop. It was around sundown and rush hour. Guy was impatient and drove around the first car in line at the light clipping my front end. I luckily went of unscathed, but my bike's front wheel took a pretty serious blow. The guy asked me if i was ok and took off. I'm a college student so my bike is all i got to get around and replacing that wheel was a real pain. But, i am 100x safer now when i ride. I guess we sometimes have to learn the hard way.
Permalink Reply by Bud Mundy on December 18, 2008 at 1:30pm
well i have been thrown off my bike a bunch of times trying to avoid being hit. but i have been hit by a car once. well i am pretty sure i have been. it was a night where i was ridding home black out drunk. woke up with the biggest bruise on my leg, ribs, arm. i was all scrapped up. i went to my bike, the handle bars were bent on one side, one of the pedals was falling off, and the crank arm was bent to hell. i was lucky that i wasnt hurt worse, and it was easy to fix my bike back.
Permalink Reply by Reddog (Cliff) on December 18, 2008 at 4:34pm
I have been very lucky. I have had numerous close calls, (who hasnt?) I almost got squished into jelly by a cab on Halsted swerving over into the bike lane to pick up some people. When it happened I suddently found myself in between the cab and the parked cars. I kicked the cab and glared at the Cabbie, who looked at me like I was insane.
But the only time I was actually hit was about three years ago. I was downtown, I was heading south on Franklin and crossing Ontario. It was shortly after the afternoon rush hour was over. it was September so it was still light out. As I cross the intersection, I notice a car coming toward me from the South. Stupid me, I figured that the driver would come to a complete stop at the stop sighn. And since the driver did not have a turn signal on, I figured they were going to continue on straight. But halfway through the intersection I was proven very wrong in my assumptions.
One moment I am peadling along, happy as a clam, (how happy are clams anyway?) the next moment I am trying to figure out just why the world is suddenly all sideways and I am sprawled all over the hood and windsheild of this beige car. As it turned out, the woman driving the car made a sudden left turn to get to the Ontario street feeder ramp. She was a determined soul, since she obviously was not going to be detered by some goofy bald Hoosier on a bike in front of her.
I crawled off of her hood while the woman hurled all kinds of verbal abuse at me. It all kind of washed over me since my main concern at the moment was trying to sort out basic concepts like, up and down, and just what is this thing called reality? I suddelnly remembered everything in a rush. I grab my bike and pull it up onto the sidewalk. I remember some choice insults from my army days and let the woman have it. Her eyes get buggy as I question her parentage and her personal behavior and I offer some sugestions of my own. She steps on the gas, and speeds away.

Like I said at the begining of this long rambling post. I was VERY lucky. I only received a few bruises, nothing more. My bike was slightly damaged, but repairable. what sucked is that a few days after I fixed it, it was stolen. Oh well, I know how lucky I am. I have seen people not be so lucky

Since then I pay much more attention to cars, and assume that they are all trying to kill me.
I play it safe and just let them go.

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