Cyclcist11023131

I've been hit and run twice on Pch. Once in HB and once in Sunset Beach. Both were from behind, one sent me onto my handle bars where I sat on them and tried to stop gracefully. Didn't. Watched the pickup driving away with the guys girlfriend hitting him from the side and screaming at him. I did not catch him. Second was in HB. Hit as I was slowing to a stoplight. I crossed over the right turn lane and was slowing into a group of riders when I was picked up from behind and speared into my helmut was the bolt holding a big mirror. I went a couple of feet haning on this until I dropped off and rolled. My bike kept going and I jumped up and chased it. Tough with clip ins. He might of stopped but in my addreniline rush caused me to jump on the bike and give chase. I only lasted about a hundred feet when I collapsed from loss of blood. Almost became a statistic. Some might wish I had. Still ride at least 150 miles a week. I try to stay with a group if I can but we know its dangerous out there. My worst accident though was on SART. Coming home in the late afternoon I was hit by a bicycle coming out of the blind turn at the end of the trail right before you go under the PCH bridge. That was July 3 2011. Head on, it was horrific. I am 6 foot and 215. The kid that hit me going the wrong way was all of 5 6' and 150 pounds. He want to the hospital. I got back on my bike and rode home. I couldn't get off my bike though so I dropped into the grass in front of my house. Two broken ankles, two broken wrists, and four broken ribs. His helmet outline was visible in the X-rays I later had. No insurance and four months of lost work. Hurt like hell. The worst was the road rash, like a blinding third degree burn. One year and three months later I still feel my ribs aching sometimes. Be careful out there. Sounds like I'm not but this is all that has ever happened to me in forty five years of riding.

TJClay

I was on Newport Coast Dr around that time yesterday and didn't see any police presence or sign of an accident. I may have just missed it. So sad.

Beachgrad05

The executive director at my intership's husband was a colleague of the older lady cyclist.

skidder

The 'Sarah' accident: Assuming she was heading southbound on PCH, she would ahve just crossed over the harbor bridge and going downgrade. PCH over the bridge and heading south is quite wide. There's a l-o-n-g and w-i-d-e dedicated right turn lane for cars that want to turn onto Bayside. I ride thru there alomost every weekend ( 7AM-ish) and haven't had any problems, just need to watch the traffic and negotiate it as you approach Bayside and cross over the right turn lane to go onward along southbound PCH. I always thought heading north and approaching that intersections was more dangerous on a bicycle, especially so on the other side of the bridge when you're northbound and get to the Dover/PCH intersection. I'm going south to do some repeat hillclimbs on Newport Coast Road . . .

The Newport Coast accident seems to be on the inland side, after you crest and start heading downhill towards the UCIrvine area (I turn around at the Pelican Hill/Ocean Vista light and head back down to PCH for uphill 'reps'). Not a lot of slope or intersecting streets there, so its a mystery what happened. That stretch of road is usually has light traffic, and its wide, too.

And going through CdM - just take it easy since its really tight on the street through that area.

Just be careful and watch the cars. Cheers

HBxRider

You are a warrior to continue on after those incidents. I havent been involved in an accident, but its probably only a matter of time. I hope that I can pick up the pieces, and get back on and ride again after taking a bad spill.

andyJC

Really tragic story. I won't ride PCH at all. I'm terrified of it, especially north of where I live in Redondo.

I put a lot of the blame for these accidents back onto fellow cyclists. On my Sunday ride through Manhattan Beach and up through PV I saw at least 50 or so other cyclists out and about. How many of them were actively obeying traffic laws? Maybe 5, including myself. Riding clear through stop signs and red lights these guys and gals showed no respect for the fact they are motor vehicles and have to yield right of way where appropriate. Behind these riders is a trail of unhappy motorists who are slamming on brakes as they are cut off... No one can wonder why they hate us. I have told many a rider... "you're going to get me killed..."

TrojanHorse

I ride the part of PCH from Long Beach down to where SART starts in Costa Mesa. For most of it, the shoulder is huge and the traffic is fast, but aside from the dangers of riding near high speed cars (50+) I don't feel particularly worried. It gets worse in Sunset Beach because there is a lot of cross traffic and you don't have a big shoulder anymore, and in fact, a cyclist was killed in Sunset Beach earlier this year by a drunk driver leaving a bar in that area. All you need is one distracted driver to drift over into the shoulder area and who ever is riding a bike there is a goner.

That part in Newport where bayside drive turns off seems to generate WAY more than its fair share of bike car accidents. I don't know what it is about that little stretch of road, but I avoid it.

JetWave

exactly, all they need to do is to piss off one mad driver who will take his anger out on a solo cyclist the next time he sees one!!

Tank_67

My thoughts are with her family

Garfield Cat

there are times when a light turns red and I'm on the right behind a truck. The truck stops and then turns right. I have to watch out for that truck because I am coming from behind him and he won't see me hugging the right curb wanting to turn right too.

TrojanHorse

If you're riding along the curb and there are cars turning right you MUST either be ahead of them so they can see you or BEHIND them so it doesn't matter. Cars have blind spots & drivers don't check them anyway, so do yourself a favor and don't make things worse for yourself.

JSMaxwell

Never, never, never go to the right of a car turning right. They can't see you and most likely aren't looking because we pass on the left in America. If you are in a right hand turn lane to turn right, get in the lane behind/infront of the cars and turn right like a car. Get back to the right after the turn.

To go straight when a right hand turn lane is present, signal when approaching the internsection and move to the left of the right hand turn lane/right of the first straight through lane.

To go straight in a mixed right/straight lane, get in the lane in line with the cars and go straight.

For the love of god, so not squeeze into the curve to the right of right turning traffic. please!

cdp8

The anti-bike commentariat is outraged that cyclists don't follow the traffic laws. Well isn't that just the pot calling the kettle black? I bet everyone of those vitriolic blowhards never signals a lane change and rarely uses their blinkers to signal turns, let alone checking mirrors and blind spots before changing lanes or turning. And the number of cyclists I see running stop signs is darn near equalled by the number of cars I see making a "California stop." Hell, the next time I see a cop signal a turn or stop completely at a stop sign will be the first in years. About the only traffic law I see cyclists break more than motorists is red lights. (And that needs to change.)

Bottom line, this "cyclists don't obey traffic laws, so they don't belong on the road" meme is a red herring because most drivers don't obey the laws either.

cdp8

My wife gave me a Dinotte 300R as a gift. Sunday was my first ride with it installed. I did not get buzzed by a single vehicle on Hwy. 39. Everyone gave me plenty of room, which is unusual. With distracted driving on the rise, I think it is in our best interest to be as visible as possible. I know not everyone will want to spend $200 on a tailight, but I'm pretty sure no other light is this bright or visible as far as the Dinotte. I know that no cyclist is going to want to take my wheel because that thing is so freaking bright, but oh well.

A BRIGHT flashing tail light won't stop the few morons that want to buzz cyclists for the hell of it, but it sure seems to help the majority of drivers to know we are there. Read through the BikininLA blog entries; the number of times the car driver says they never saw the cyclist is shocking.

iareConfusE

RIP Sarah... What a beautiful woman too

TrojanHorse

Excellent strategy - I am waiting for my cygolight hot shot to show up - I wonder how much better that dinotte is?

I also have a neon yellow jerseys & my jackets are all neon yellow (one lights up like a billboard when headlights hit it, I like that one in the winter)

I've been hit in my CAR because the other driver said she didn't see my CAR! (she had a stop sign and was turning left, I didn't have a stop and was going straight. How do you miss an oncoming car? Turns out, she didn't. Ha ha)

Regardless of whether the cyclist was perfectly obeying the letter of the law and whether the driver was as well, killing somebody is a terrible thing and it's particularly poignant when it's so easily prevented with a little extra care.

Beachgrad05

Precisely.

volosong

You will find that is not unusual at all for cars to give you plenty of room when you use the Dinotte. I have the same model, and it really does help with visibility. It is nice that it comes with so many mounts. I have a mount on all three of the bikes that I regularly use. I assume you use one of the strobe modes? Also, strongly consider a NiteRider MiNewt 600, in strobe mode, on the front. Approaching cars will be able to see you at least a quarter mile away, even in bright daylight. Prices are starting to come down and are approaching $110. I have not had even one car try to give me a "Left-hook" since starting using it. In fact, they will wait until I pass before completing their turn. The Dinotte and NiteRider are working so well that I rarely wear my chartreuse vest anymore.

Very sad about Sarah and Catherine. You "guys" have it tough down there. It's a war.

volosong

You, my cycling brother, should strongly consider a rear-ward facing GoPro, Contour, or other such recording device.

Your experience shows that no matter how safe one rides, it is not enough to arrive back at home in one piece.

cdp8

I use the five bright flash mode. I think it's good for 8-10 hours. Thanks for the tip on the NiteRider. I have a cheap bontrager flasher on front, but it doesn't have the necessary output to prevent the left cross. I wrote to Dinotte asking them to make a 300 for the front (I really don't want the hassle and weight of external batteries on my road bike for daylight riding). Here is what they replied:

We are looking at this in the near future, but haven't yet pulled the trigger. We are still of the mindset that it takes a very powerful light to see and be seen and most lights with built in batteries are not bright enough. I'd certainly be willing to give you a great deal on a headlight.
the color from the 300R isn't from the red cap, it's from the led inside. - so it's LED and electronics that make the color.

I'll have to check out that NiteRider, since it appears that Dinotte is not yet willing to make an internal battery daylight headlight.

Beachgrad05

Was just thinking this...that you can do everything "right" safety wise...following rules of road, using signals, wearing high visibility clothing, using lighting and something can still happen.

I won't give up riding as a result but I realize that the sport can prove risky because no matter what I do....I cannot control everything around me. I refuse to live my life in fear of "what might happen"....that is no way to live.

I wear a Road ID in case I am unconscious or my ID somehow gets separated from me (keep it in my seat bag typically as I am afraid it might fall out of my pocket when getting something out while riding). I read one of the articles about Sarah's accident and the police were asking for help in identifing her. I don't want my husband wondering for who knows how long where I am or if something has happened to me if I don't come home at a reasonable time.

Obviously other things can serve as well as the Road ID for less $ like dog tags that you can order or get a pet tag made and put it on a chain... I just liked the Road ID and got one.

Garfield Cat

Maybe add:

that some think riding in a group is better than riding alone as far as visibility with cars. Also the timing of a ride. On PCH there are busy times and not so busy times. Then there's the old standard "not too interesting" ride on the river MUP's.

cdp8

That is what is so disturbing about these two accidents. Sarah Leaf was killed on a Friday morning at 10:35 am, well after the morning commute. Dr. Catherine Campion was killed on a Saturday morning at 9:35 am, prime recreational riding time on a weekend. When is the "safe" time to ride?

Beachgrad05

Precisely and the death of the guy on PCH was during the day on June 22 say around 11 am or so by a drunk driver.

And not long after was a dude hit and killed in Sunset Beach in the early afternoon by a drunk driver.

As I said, you can do everything "right" but still get hit and killed.

Biker395 

In 2009, Rod Armas was killed by a drunk driver on PCH (on the Grand Tour), a lot of people opined that he was crazy to be out there at 2AM with all the drunks about. Not so much anymore, eh?

I was riding the White Mountain Double this weekend in a long paceline. You know how when the leader is ready to give up the lead, they are to drift left and allow the paceline to pass them on the right as they take their place at the back? How is it possible to accomplish that safely when you can't see behind you? And at night, with the headlights of a dozen cyclists blinding you?

I dunno. I'm not sure what's safe and what isn't anymore.