Here in Kansas City, there aren’t any real bicycle messengers. It would be impractical since it is just as fast to get around by car than by bicycle. Downtown is not crowded and congested, and there is no need to ride like you have no sense because the traffic is fine in even the worst of conditions. Since there are no Bike messengers that only leaves hipster teenagers who walk their fixed gears around Westport, and hang out near the art institute who spend their time pretending they are bike messengers. They have no good reason to complain about, “sharing the road” because traffic here is decent; that is of course as long as you don’t ride on the wrong side of the road and weave through cars and pedestrians.
It is a normal occurrence to see these members of the “counter culture” to be weaving through traffic, not wearing helmets, and provoking drivers. As we all know, the last Friday of the month these people have something they call “Critical Mass”. I don’t know about critical mass in other cities, but here in Kansas City, Critical mass is all about drinking. It is always a large group of people who are completely wasted, going out with the sole purpose of pissing off traffic, breaking laws, and “sticking it to the man.” The Ride always ends up at a bar.
Normally I wouldn’t have a problem with this, I am a good kid, I stay out of trouble and I just don’t associate with people of this caliber. It is really none of my business. In America we have every right to get wasted and piss off drivers, we have freedom of speech, and we have the freedom to ride out bikes.
It becomes my Business when I am out doing a training ride, for one of the most important races of my season and I get nailed by a car.
I am only 16 years old, and I am a category two racer. I have raced at nationals for 3 years and scored in the top 20% every time. I am not claiming to be a Lance Armstrong, but I have a decent amount of miles in my legs. I know how to safely ride a bicycle. I did nothing to provoke this driver; in fact I am always courteous to drivers because I realize that for the split second they pass me my life is in their hands. I made one almost deadly mistake the night I was hit, I decided to go for a bike ride the last Friday of the month, and I was hit by a angry driver.
The Driver purposely hit me; he meant to inflict bodily harm to me. He did it to me because he was angry with the critical mass riders that he encountered earlier in the night. I was alone, miles away from downtown Kansas City, I had a full team kit on, and I had more than sufficient lighting considering the time of day. He definitely wanted to hurt me.
I’ll spare the specific details of the crash, but I will tell you the results. My Giant TCR 0 is destroyed; the frame is broken in 3 places. My team kit is destroyed from my body dragging on the pavement. I have severe road rash on 85% of the right side of my body, including my leg, shoulder butt and face. I had 2 teeth knocked out, and the front of one chipped. I broke my collarbone, and separated my shoulder. I was knocked out for more than 30 minutes resulting in a type III concussion. I was diagnosed with severe PTSD, so if I didn’t have to wake up at night because of rolling over on my road rash I would be having horrible nightmares recreating my horrific crash.
If I had a bike to ride I would be off my bike for at least 8 months. (Not including any emotional problems associated with getting back on a bike) I will be missing out on my trip to seven springs Pennsylvania for nationals, and I am almost positive that I will not regain race form for several months after the point that I can ride again.
I am missing a lot of school, and I will probably have to repeat my sophomore year of high school.
I just want to let you know that even though you think critical mass is the “cool” thing to do, your actions affect more than just yourselves.
I don’t care if you want to argue with me about how critical mass dosent hurt anyone, and how it is perfectly fine. At the end of the day, I will still have a broken collarbone, separated shoulder, and bad memory loss. I truly have no respect for you cowards who think that using an angry mob to change people’s opinions about cycling will work.
I dont want to start a flame war, I just wanted to tell you my opinion of critical mass.
The BikeForums Team
-adv-
This is an archived thread, you can find the full version of this thread, with images, links and more content here.
WOW! That is quite a story!
I wish you a speedy recovery, and hope you regain racing form in short order.
GIFCo147
Godwin
I try to attend cm every month dispite having the same feelings as you, the idea is good but there's always people that want to cause trouble and I feel like attending and doing it right, if anything, will help a tiny bit.
I hope you do have a speedy recovery (remember you still have many years ahead of you), and I do know from prevoius accidents, it can be hard to get back on again, you once you force yourself to, you'll love it again.
I'm sure everyone will want to know if you're pressing charges ect.
bassplayinbiker
They cant seemto find the guy who hit me. I blacked out, I couldent recongnize the if they were standing right in front of me. I did hear them yell, "F*** you, bikers suck" as they hit me. That is pretty much my last real memory of anything within 3 days of the crash.
dpr
I sympathise for your pain bassplayingbiker. Thats a gutting experience and I can't begin to understand the frustration and anger your feeling right now. May I enquire as to what happened with the driver who knocked you off? Did he / she run? Are you certain it was deliberate and related to the earlier rally?
I understand your perspective and respect it. I don't dispute that the drivers experience earlier in the day with the critical mass rally is a contributory factor towards said drivers decision to run you over. It is quite possible that had the driver been having a better day, he / she; no matter how cyclist hating generally, might have chosen to ignore you and drive on by.
However for some one to have taken the decision to harm you, all manner of pre-determinate influences and conditions of their personality must have been present that made them a likely threat to you regardless of the recent trigger. In short, it may well have happened anyway. Its terrible for sure, but it may never be possible to be sure that had the rally not taken place; you would be cycling still. I argue this point only for the sake of your emotional recovery in dealing with this. Apportioning blame to help explain the otherwise illogic actions of that driver is possibly an easier way of rationalising what unfortunately may never be understood. A bitter pill to swallow for sure.
Drivers ought to obey the law no matter how much they dislike other users of the roads and I would provisionally be against acknowledging aggravating factors such as the rally'go'ers as some how justifying dangerous / murderous driving. I am not naive and under any illusions that its that simple, but rather I believe we should hope that drivers act with the best, safest intentions.
The wider impact of Critical Mass rallies is undeniable and I deplore them, even in the least wildest of forms. I am unsure of the laws in the states, but I imagine that as is the case here, it is illegal to obstruct traffic without a damn good reason. Its not constructive or civil, which I believe does cyclists no favors even if the meaning and spirit of the events remains true and in good faith. If some Critical Mass type events and participants do not involve illegal forms of protesting, I apologise to those people.
dobber
That just plain sucks. And it's a double whammy, first and foremost to be taken out by some chicken-**** driver with an anger management issue, second to have the incident provoked in part by the antics of so called fellow cyclists.
Good luck and heal fast.
Zeuser
I hardly see this as a critical mass issue. More like an issue with some road rager. I mean really, people with 50ft leaches for their dogs on my favorite bike path drive me nuts. But it's not like I'm going to run over some innocent dog as an act of revenge.
You have an isolated case of a road rager turned assaulter. It has little to do with anything else than his mental issue. The critical mass issue is irrelevant and wouldn't even stand a chance in a court. That being said: sue his ass but leave "critical mass" out of it.
PS: I'm not a critical mass proponent or critice. I have no clue what it's all about at all. I do know that it's irrelevant to your case though.
bassplayinbiker
Thanks guys, I appreciate the support.
I guess it might be a *little much to blame just critical Mass riders for my incident, because if youre willing to hit someone with your car, you're already damaged goods.
But I think the Critical mass had something to do with my crash.
The driver who hit me ran. He will probbly get away scott free, I dont worry too much about him, he'll get whats comming to him sooner or later.
All of my numerous medical expenses are covered by insurance with the exception of the deductable. My face will be good as new in notime.
I just want everyone to know that if you're hit by a car that your bike may be covered in homeowners insurance. I got $1500 back from my TCR.
bassplayinbiker
I hardly see this as a critical mass issue. More like an issue with some road rager. I mean really, people with 50ft leaches for their dogs on my favorite bike path drive me nuts. But it's not like I'm going to run over some innocent dog as an act of revenge.
You have an isolated case of a road rager turned assaulter. It has little to do with anything else than his mental issue. The critical mass issue is irrelevant and wouldn't even stand a chance in a court. That being said: sue his ass but leave "critical mass" out of it.
PS: I'm not a critical mass proponent or critice. I have no clue what it's all about at all. I do know that it's irrelevant to your case though.
realavent or not, I still believe Critical Mass is wrong. I realize that my blaming them for my incident would not hold water in court.
jjvw
I can cerainly imagine a senario where someone in a car is corralled and harrassed by a group of young idoits at CM, who then escapes and takes out his anger and frustration on a lone cyclist. I have personally broken up several of these bullyings to let the car who was caught in the confusion get away only to be ridiculed by my "fellow" cyclists. I have terribly mixed feelings about critical mass. It is a huge amount of fun with many drivers in support of us. I get to see many parts of the city I normally would never think to ride though. But I also see so many angry motorists stuck at green lights with no shortage of passing riders looking for a fight, that I am reluctant to want to be a part of it.
As said previously, we can never be sure if CM was the cause of your incident. Although I am inclined to believe that CM often does more to aggravate those opposed to us than advocate for those who are with us.
supertj
Anyone participating in a Critical Mass ride is a moron.
EnigManiac
While I am truly and genuinely sorry you were hit and injured as well as your bike damaged beyond repair; it's a tragedy what you went through and I hope the motorist is apprehended and held accountable, I must question a few assumptions you offer: how do you KNOW the driver intended to hit you and cause grievous bodily harm? How do you KNOW the motorist was pissed off and how do you KNOW the motorist was upset because of CM specifically? Don't get me wrong, I'm not taking the side of the driver. Without knowing the specifics of the collision, I can surmise the motorist bears some or all of the responsibility and certainly must have known he/she was commiting hit and run, even if it was by accident.
But, you are associating two separate events that happened to occur on the same night. You offer no facts that would directly link the two. The police have not caught the culprit, according to your post, so there is no way of knowing for certain why the motorist hit you.
I appreciate that you are trying to rationalize and understand what happened and why it happened. Like any other trauma, there are stages we go through when we're dealing with it. But I might suggest it is unfair and unreasonable to project blame on to an event I get the feeling you have never participated in nor have much respect for.
I'm not a CM-er, but I am a serious and active advocate for cycling in my city. For the experience alone, I participated in only one CM ride and the participants I joined were not at all as you describe: they were not young and 'wasted,' nor couriers. They were of all ages with perhaps the only common denominators being their socially-relevant, leftist political values. Perhaps it is just different here, I don't know. I suspect, however, that you may be making uninformed presumptions about your local CM participants.
I hope everything works out for you and that you can return to competitive riding. Good luck.
Falkon
I'm really sorry that this happened to you, but in my honest opinion, the blame still falls 100% on the ******bag that decided to attempt murder and run away. Unfortunately, they will probably never find the guy, but there's a good chance if you ever hear his voice again, you'll pull a david banner and rip his arms off and beat him to death with them. Just warning you ahead of time.
bassplayinbiker
I'm really sorry that this happened to you, but in my honest opinion, the blame still falls 100% on the ******bag that decided to attempt murder and run away. Unfortunately, they will probably never find the guy, but there's a good chance if you ever hear his voice again, you'll pull a david banner and rip his arms off and beat him to death with them. Just warning you ahead of time.
If I did that, I dont think they would wanna send me to prision, they would put me on reality T.V.
skingry
I like how you got:
"He did it to me because he was angry with the critical mass riders that he encountered earlier in the night."
From:
"F*** you, bikers suck"
How do you even know the driver even saw CM anytime that evening? Way to obscure the issues and shout from your soap box kid.
I will say however that CM is dumb... as in pointless. CM has become this tool for people (recreational riders) to bully drivers. The whole 'strength in numbers' deal.
CM however is not obstructing traffic... except when they're corking intersections. Think about it... if you say I'm wrong and you call yourself a cyclist... then maybe you should stick to your driveway and MUP's.
Also, I totally agree on the pointlessness of any sort of traffic awareness in KC (Kansas.... not so much Missouri). I remember the six months I lived there and chuckling when I would listen to the evening traffic reports of 'bumper to bumper' traffic and it being like a Sunday morning here in Atlanta.
Get well soon and get back on your bike.
HoustonB
I hope you make a speedy recovery. Mental note to self : no biking 48 hours after last Friday of the month (make it 1 week if soccer mom makes the biased headlines).
Regarding opinions of Critical Mass (CM), I have considered riding with them, but have been put off by the counter culture crap, so to a large extent I agree with the majority of your opinions. I am with others that there is not necessarily a concrete link between CM and your altercation, but time of day does suggest the possibility of a link.
Something that is unusual is that you remember the driver shouting at you. This is odd because you say you lost consciousness for a protracted period, it is well documented that people who lose consciousness do not normally remember anything of either the event or those moments prior to the event - this is because it takes time for the transfer from short term memory to long term memory. Also, I assume you were wearing a helmet.
Anyway, glad to hear that you survived what is likely an attempted murder - keep photos of the bike and injuries for historical purposes?
Jolt
Wow bassplayinbiker, that's awful! I'll pray for a full and speedy recovery, and for the person who did this to you to be brought to justice. Critical Mass may or may not have contributed to this guy's choice to run you down, but that doesn't matter. There is no excuse for that type of action, EVER. As for what I think about Critical Mass, I've never seen one of their rides but from what I do know it's not something I would get involved in. There are some jerks in the group who like to cause trouble, and then it seems that mob mentality kicks in. Things like that don't do cyclists any favors--I think the best way to get people to respect cyclists is just to get out there and ride, follow the rules of the road, be courteous and look like you're having a good time.
Oden
Anyone participating in a Critical Mass ride is a moron.
Anyone who makes sweeping generalizations is a moron.
Wait...
Zeuser
Anyone who makes sweeping generalizations is a moron.
Wait...
+1
hotbike
I don't trust the Critical Massers. The CM group has some bad apples that go out of their way to block traffic.
That isn't an excuse for the driver who hit you. I hope the driver goes to jail.
"What came first, the chicken or the egg?' ... This driver that hit you was possibly hitting, or trying to hit, other bicycles before he hit yours. Which in turn angered the other bicyclists, and the Crit Massers are out looking for HIM, and not 99% of the other cars that may have been delayed.
Your story adds more fuel to the fire. Unfortunately, it's a viscious cycle.
You didn't say if you had a rear view mirror on your bike. I assume you got hit from behind.
As for myself, I don't try to set any speed records anymore. I work on going about twelve miles a day, but I go at a slow and steady pace.
I would say more, but I want to ride my bicycle now.
BikeNinjagirl
I like the Critical Mass idea....i'm not sure i understand the drinking part though. I thought the idea behind Crit Mass was to show bicyclists as responsible road sharing individuals. I think it's terrible that an event which could do so much good does so much harm to the biking community. I'm very sorry you were injured and hope you heal quickly.
NinjaGirl
donnamb
I thought the idea behind Crit Mass was to show bicyclists as responsible road sharing individuals.
I've never seen that on a Critical Mass ride, sad to say.
randya
The Driver purposely hit me; he meant to inflict bodily harm to me. He did it to me because he was angry with the critical mass riders that he encountered earlier in the night. I was alone, miles away from downtown Kansas City, I had a full team kit on, and I had more than sufficient lighting considering the time of day. He definitely wanted to hurt me.
How do you actually know this? Did the motorist explain it to you before or after he struck you? Or are you just guessing? Some suburban and rural motorists don't like roadies in kit, believe it or not. In my opinion it really has little to do with Critical Mass. Even if what you say is true, the motorist that hit you has some serious anger issues and shouldn't be trusted with a motor vehicle.
Zeuser
I've never seen that on a Critical Mass ride, sad to say.
From what I've read here and the videos of Crit Mass I've seen on youtube it reminds me of the anti-nuke protests back in the '80s.
I would tend to think of Critical Mass as Greenpeace for cyclists. Greenpeace broke many laws back then but the message did get across in the end.
Helmet Head
Here in Kansas City, there aren’t any real bicycle messengers. It would be impractical since it is just as fast to get around by car than by bicycle. Downtown is not crowded and congested, and there is no need to ride like you have no sense because the traffic is fine in even the worst of conditions. Since there are no Bike messengers that only leaves hipster teenagers who walk their fixed gears around Westport, and hang out near the art institute who spend their time pretending they are bike messengers. They have no good reason to complain about, “sharing the road” because traffic here is decent; that is of course as long as you don’t ride on the wrong side of the road and weave through cars and pedestrians.
It is a normal occurrence to see these members of the “counter culture” to be weaving through traffic, not wearing helmets, and provoking drivers. As we all know, the last Friday of the month these people have something they call “Critical Mass”. I don’t know about critical mass in other cities, but here in Kansas City, Critical mass is all about drinking. It is always a large group of people who are completely wasted, going out with the sole purpose of pissing off traffic, breaking laws, and “sticking it to the man.” The Ride always ends up at a bar.
Normally I wouldn’t have a problem with this, I am a good kid, I stay out of trouble and I just don’t associate with people of this caliber. It is really none of my business. In America we have every right to get wasted and piss off drivers, we have freedom of speech, and we have the freedom to ride out bikes.
It becomes my Business when I am out doing a training ride, for one of the most important races of my season and I get nailed by a car.
I am only 16 years old, and I am a category two racer. I have raced at nationals for 3 years and scored in the top 20% every time. I am not claiming to be a Lance Armstrong, but I have a decent amount of miles in my legs. I know how to safely ride a bicycle. I did nothing to provoke this driver; in fact I am always courteous to drivers because I realize that for the split second they pass me my life is in their hands. I made one almost deadly mistake the night I was hit, I decided to go for a bike ride the last Friday of the month, and I was hit by a angry driver.
The Driver purposely hit me; he meant to inflict bodily harm to me. He did it to me because he was angry with the critical mass riders that he encountered earlier in the night. I was alone, miles away from downtown Kansas City, I had a full team kit on, and I had more than sufficient lighting considering the time of day. He definitely wanted to hurt me.
I’ll spare the specific details of the crash, but I will tell you the results. My Giant TCR 0 is destroyed; the frame is broken in 3 places. My team kit is destroyed from my body dragging on the pavement. I have severe road rash on 85% of the right side of my body, including my leg, shoulder butt and face. I had 2 teeth knocked out, and the front of one chipped. I broke my collarbone, and separated my shoulder. I was knocked out for more than 30 minutes resulting in a type III concussion. I was diagnosed with severe PTSD, so if I didn’t have to wake up at night because of rolling over on my road rash I would be having horrible nightmares recreating my horrific crash.
If I had a bike to ride I would be off my bike for at least 8 months. (Not including any emotional problems associated with getting back on a bike) I will be missing out on my trip to seven springs Pennsylvania for nationals, and I am almost positive that I will not regain race form for several months after the point that I can ride again.
I am missing a lot of school, and I will probably have to repeat my sophomore year of high school.
I just want to let you know that even though you think critical mass is the “cool” thing to do, your actions affect more than just yourselves.
I don’t care if you want to argue with me about how critical mass dosent hurt anyone, and how it is perfectly fine. At the end of the day, I will still have a broken collarbone, separated shoulder, and bad memory loss. I truly have no respect for you cowards who think that using an angry mob to change people’s opinions about cycling will work.
I dont want to start a flame war, I just wanted to tell you my opinion of critical mass.
Dude! Do you have a website setup to collect donations via paypal? Get on it!
Dr. Phil was on Leno last night, defending what he said about violent video games and violence on Larry King. Apparently what he said was taken out of context. He said there are all kinds of factors involved in provoking violent acts, and one of the factors is violence in the media, including video games.
I think your point is similar. It is very possible that CM was a contributing factor to this, but there is no way to know for sure.
All I can suggest is to get a mirror, and learn to "read" traffic all around you, including behind you, and how your presence is affecting them. I'm way more assertive than other cyclists (though I try to avoid being rude and asserting my rights inappropriately), but when it comes to detecting someone who might actually intentually try to hurt me, I back off.
lima_bean
Blaming even 1% of this possible attempted murder (as you described) on Critical Mass is absolutely bizarre!?!?
I would *love* to hear your feelings on critical mass, but this story seems to be a weird non-sequitor.
Your hatred has blinded you and caused you to bring self-imposed ignorance upon yourself. What he did to you is horrible, now take control over your life and dont let him victimize you anymore.
goaliedad30
Anyone participating in a Critical Mass ride is a moron.
No ... some would have to get smarter to move up from "cretin" to "moron" ...
bassplayinbiker
Blaming even 1% of this possible attempted murder (as you described) on Critical Mass is absolutely bizarre!?!?
I would *love* to hear your feelings on critical mass, but this story seems to be a weird non-sequitor.
Your hatred has blinded you and caused you to bring self-imposed ignorance upon yourself. What he did to you is horrible, now take control over your life and dont let him victimize you anymore.
Youre absolutely right. I totally had it out for those CM riders all along!
jjvw
Welcome to Advocacy & Safety, bassplayinbiker.
randya
Honestly, I think this thread is just a troll.
skingry
He's 16 years old... can't really expect a youngster to bring vast amounts of experience to the table when making judgments.