dougmc

I suspect that this is true, though I also suspect that this has less to do with what part of the car hits you/you hit but instead more with the speeds involved.

If you hit a car, your speed is probably between 5 and 25 mph.
If the car hits you, it's speed is probably between 5 and 80 mph.

(And whichever vehicle is moving faster is the one that's most likely to be deemed to have hit the other one. The only likely exception to that is probably when hit at close to a 90 degree angle.)

Lower speeds tend to result in injuries, but anything over 40 mph is quite likely to result in death.

Also, if the car hits you, there's the chance of it running *over* you, but if you hit it it probably won't, especially if it wasn't moving at all.

wphamilton

I didn't say anything about the un-named thing. I said "head injuries" and "skill".

italktocats

oh hell i do


as a motor- and pedal cyclist i KNOW every cager is out to kill me, and if i didnt ride how i do, i would die every single day!


ride that way or die, and i aint planning on getting killed by a coffin on wheels

Chitown_Mike

I'd be scared to ride behind someone that slowed at every intersection, it would be one thing to stop pedaling and cover the brake and another to slow EVERY TIME they thought that there is a slight possibility of being in an accident. Perhaps Dunbar, you live in a more rural area, but where I commute and ride I'd be stopping/slowing every few feet and the point of riding a bike would lose it's purpose, I might as well walk or wait for public transportation.

Unless you are working on sprintervals....then stop and go all day.

Otherwise I'd imagine vehicle drivers would gladly take advantage of a cyclist riding in a beyond defensive pattern. I know if I rode that way I might as well put tassels on my bars and take it to the sidewalk, at least I'd be respected for knowing "my place" in traffic. I am not saying to ride belligerently, but ride with some cojones​.

noisebeam

Good thing he was wearing shoes.

Dunbar

I ride 9-10k miles per year in coastal Los Angeles county. Not a commuter though so coasting for 5-10 seconds every few minutes isn't a big deal. I pick my route(s) carefully to minimize risks like that. You don't always need to slow either to avoid a left hook. If you can swerve to the right while braking that works too (remember you're at an intersection.) However, the guy in the video was clearly going too fast to do any of that.

Chitown_Mike

I will also pick and choose my route based on both my personal experience, and those of other cyclists. Plus time of day is huge, I'll ride just about any street pre-6:30 AM because traffic is light and most of the drunks have gone home. When I fun ride I am a little more "loose" in the saddle since I am not hauling anything other than my chunky butt and some food, but I do enjoy a fast ride so I can relate to the gent in the OP video.

However, 22 mph in the rain in a road environment like that could have been too fast for conditions, I'll concede that to the critics of the accident. Still, glad he was still alive and (from what the video stated) was compensated.

Dunbar

Yes, I'm not picking on the rider in the video since I see plenty of cyclists riding like that. He doesn't even pause for one pedal stroke in the beginning of the video when that car is poking its hood out blocking the entire bike lane and 1/3 of the traffic lane. I used to take plenty of chances like that but would have close calls on a fairly regular basis. Once I started slowing down a bit in certain situations the frequency of those close calls went way down. And man, if that short video clip is any indication that road looks like a nightmare for cyclists.