I commute to work on my bicycle. It's only about 10km each way so it's great for my fitness (as well as the environment and my hip pocket) but not too arduous.
On Thursday last week my worst riding nightmare came true. I was hit by a car. As I came down the left of banked up traffic, a car turned right in front of me leaving me with nowhere to go but straight into the side of him at about 35kph. Amazingly neither myself nor the bike are badly damaged. I got some scrapes and bruises, but nothing broken. My trusty bike barely registered a dent.
To be fair to the driver, neither of us could see each other until it was too late. I'm a stickler for rules, especially road rules (and resent fellow cyclists who flout the road rules and give the rest of us a bad reputation) and I know that it was his responsibility to ensure there was no oncoming traffic (including me) before conducting his manoeuvre, but unless he stopped mid-manoeuvre (and mid-rush hour traffic) to check, there was no way he could see me, despite me wearing high visibility clothes and flashing lights. And I know we're all guilty of rushing and not checking properly, especially in a stressful siuation like that.
Therefore I'd just like to caution everyone - drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians, to be extra careful, to remember to take that time to check your blind spots, your mirrors etc and watch out for each other. I may have been in the right, but that's not much use if I'd been killed.
Stay safe!
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