Cycling is a tough sport. Really tough. It's physically hard,
it's mentally hard. Often the
person who wins the race is not the most talented, but the guy who is willing
to hurt the most, be that in the race or in training. But the great irony is that no matter how tough we are, no
matter how much training we put in, we are still incredibly fragile. No amount
of training will stop us getting hurt if we fall off our bikes. After all, we
are only skin and bone.
It was with great sadness that I heard about my club mate
Scott, who got knocked off his bike the day before yesterday. He is currently in
hospital with a broken neck and has had MRI scans. The car driver was done on
the spot for dangerous driving.
I always feel slightly sick when I hear about an accident on
the bike, especially when it's someone I know. I have ridden close on 2,000
miles since October, many of those miles are on busy roads. I daresay Scott was
just in the wrong place at the wrong time, just bad luck. It could have easily
have been me. I loose count of the number of times I have been cut up,
or shouted at by passengers, or almost knocked off by cars not paying enough
attention. It happens every time I am out for a ride.
I read that recent research shows that close on 90% of
accidents involving cyclists are caused by car drivers and perhaps more
worryingly, 83% of the time drivers are not aware that they have put a
cyclist in danger.
But even with all of that, cycling is incredibly safe. Safer
even than walking (http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/datablog/2012/sep/28/road-deaths-great-britain-data).
However, not as safe as driving. Although one suspects that if motorists were
more careful, both cycling and walking would be a whole lot safer.
So, if you are a car driver, go easy on us cyclists. We are
delicate and there is not much between your 1/2 tonne metal box travelling at
speed, and us. Some lycra and a wee bit of plastic on our heads afford little
protection. Look out for us and take care of us, please.
After all, we don’t need anyone else to make us suffer – we do enough
of that already.
Get better soon Scott, it sounds like it might be a long road, but I really look forward to seeing
you back down at the track.
From Glasgow,
n
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