Chris0516

When I came across this story today. It reminded me of several scenes' from the movie 'Backdraft'. Where two firefighters(Scott Glenn, Kurt Russell) die in the course of their duty. The scene of two pumper trucks carrying the coffins really got to me. Except the lieutenant died riding his bike.

https://www.dnainfo.com/chicago/2016...bike-collision

Leisesturm

Chris... I'm not sure there is any way to say this kindly... you have an unhealthy obsession with the suffering and death of others. Why do we need to know about every cycling tragedy you manage to dredge up?

indyfabz

+1.

Maelochs

Being a firefighter is a dangerous job. We all knew that.

howsteepisit

Sounds like the good fireman did a header into a car due to a quick stop. Condolences to family and station mates.

JoeyBike

Apparently cycling in the street is even more of a challenge to staying alive than running around and inside of burning buildings. At least for this poor dude.

It's a shame that for many, many years of bicycle commuting that I never failed to think, at least for the moment I mount up, that this might be my last 15 minutes on Earth. Likely the same thing the deceased fireman in the story thought about every time he put on a fire suit during an alarm. Only firefighting is a bit more noble a task than commuting to work. Either might get you killed tho. Bet he never dreamed his time would come just riding his bike.

Sucks.

CliffordK

Nice eulogy, but there are no details.

For an analysis of what happened, one needs a few more details.

Chicago Fire Department lieutenant dies after bicycle crash | Chicago Sun-Times
https://www.dnainfo.com/chicago/2016...ike-collisionv

I have to say that my heart feels for the family, but everything I read indicates that Corbol ran a stop sign, and had to be going at speed to cause serious brain injury to himself, and while not confirmed, probably wasn't wearing a helmet (no explanation whether "huge head" is physical or mental, or perhaps both).

Looking at the map, it appears to be a pretty steady 0.1% decline. Enough to help a bit, but by no means a steep hill. It looks like a typical residential neighborhood with a clearly marked 4-way stop along the cyclist's regular route home.

JoeyBike

"...assume[d] the SUV would remain stopped"
.
.
.

79pmooney

Two thoughts. One is the Native American saying before going into battle. "Today is a good day to die." And the piece of paper I carry in my wallet for those who find me after that ride:

"Emergency Responders

If I should die as a result of this bicycle accident, however traumatic it may have been, I want you to know that I died doing what I love and that I died at peace. I have lived a good life. I would like to have lived longer, but I also knew for years that with the miles I ride every year, the odds were that my life would end on a ride. Those rides have been my love and spiritual focus for many years. This happened to be the ride I did not come home from. It is not a tragedy.

Please copy this and pass it on to all involved.


Thank you,


(my signature)"




I have worked with emergency crews and been there shortly after fatal incidents. This would be welcome reading. That saying above, just a good way to live.


Ben

jeichelberg87

Yeah, you cannot assume anything when it comes to another operator.

CliffordK

There are about 700 cycle fatalities a year.

Somehow a few are being missed.

I have no problem with a few "MMR (Morbidity and Mortality Review)" topics. But, they only make sense if there is adequate information to determine what happened. A simple obituary is inadequate.

I won't just blame the cyclist, or blame the car.

In this case, the cyclist blew through a stop sign at a high speed on a road that was probably familiar to him. And, he probably wasn't
wearing a helmet when he crashed into a car that was legally moving through the intersection.

Fire Fighting has odd shifts, so perhaps that was also related.

Moral:
SLOW DOWN for intersections, and never assume 5000+ pound vehicles will stop for you just because you're riding a 15 pound piece of steel.

Maelochs

I like your thinking 79pmooney.

jeichelberg87

I like this.

Chris0516

Dredge up, dredge up. I don't "dredge up".

As for your perception that I have an unhealthy obsession with death. Since I have three physical health issues(two of them I was born with, the third a result of the surgeries needed for the first two). Along with the fact that all three of them(brain aneurysm, hydrocephalus, epilepsy) can happen to anyone AT ANY TIME, AND none of them have a cure.

Why should I not, totally and/or unequivocally, think in those terms. I think in the terms of, not wishing my incurable health issues on my worst enemy. The second two I listed above, can happen in so many different ways, unfortunately.

Does that mean, we all should not 'live life', no. Just that I feel sad when I hear/read about something happening to someone else.

Now, Do you ever see me call a deceased or injured cyclist, a negative name or criticize them, for what happened to them? I sure don't do that. If anything, I criticize the constraints they were put under.

He didn't die on the job, he died while biking home from a shift at the station.

CliffordK

Fatigue is always possible as part of the accident.

prathmann

Unless you ride in a particularly dangerous fashion this seems unlikely. Although the published risk figures vary, the ones I've seen indicate than even if you were to spend every waking minute of your life riding your bike you would still be far more likely to die of natural causes than due to a cycling crash.

vol

Applies to bomber pilots and overeaters better.

One should not expect death from bike commuting. There is also no glory about that.

FBinNY 

+1

People are too focused on the exaggerated dangers of bicycling in traffic. The reality is that in the scheme of everyday dangers we all face, bicycling is relatively safe. Even highly active cyclists who ride daily are more likely to die from other causes while not on their bike. And that death is statistically likely to happen later than their non-cycling peers

However the sentiment that you've lived a good life and don't consider death a tragedy is a welcome attitude.

79pmooney

That piece of paper in my pocket only matters if I get killed or injured badly in a bike crash. In that case, it is not about expectations but a reflection on what is past. And it isn't for me or this forum. It is for those who have to deal with the body in front of them.

Ben

FBinNY 

The folks dealing with the immediate consequences of your death won't care. You're a dead body and they have jobs to do. But let your family and friends know how you feel, since they're the ones for whom it may make a difference.

79pmooney

FB, I have done trauma intervention. (Volunteers with training who are called in by the emergency crews when someone (usually) dies and someone else at the scene is affected.) We get briefed by the emergency responders when we arrive and are often in close proximity to them, often talking with them as they work. Believe me, while they are very professional and have to separate themselves from what they see and do, deaths of people prepared for it and at peace makes for a far better day than deaths that are senseless or of people with unresolved lives.

I have shown this to emergence responders and always been thanked.

Ben

FBinNY 

It's a fair point. I commented because they in all probability wouldn't see the note until later. However I wasn't saying your note is a waste, only reminding you that those close to you are more likely to be affected and are the ones who need to hear it.

CB HI

It is almost always a motorist rather than a car that is at fault. Maybe in a few years, it will be the car that is most often at fault.

What odd shifts? The fire departments I am familiar with do a 24 hour shift on, during which they often get 7 to 8 hours of sleep and then they get 2 to 3 days off. So the claim of fatigue is also less likely.

Dsprok

I like that.

vol

Thanks, Ben. OK, that may be a consolation to the loved ones... still, it is an undue sad reality that one has to compare bike riding to going to battle with the thought "today is a good day to die" (although there were times after a rush hour ride when I truly felt like being just back from the battleground ).