On October 16, dog Busta and I started a long planned bicycle ride on the Katy Trail. It was going to be a quiet retreat to reflect on where where are and what we can do. We didn’t make it. Here is the report.
We have a nice bicycle and trailer that we have ridden on the Katy Trail before, as well as at RAGBRAI this year. I wasn't worried about the miles or camping. The days in the 60's would be great for riding and running, and the nights would be cold, but not freezing. The worst part is the 10 miles in the city to get to the trail.
I looked forward to the trip, but still had some uneasy feelings. I attributed this to dread of the work and cold that I knew would be fine once we got going. On the day of the trip, I said that I wouldn't leave after 1 pm, but of course I ran late and we didn't set out until almost 3 pm. I told myself that all we had to do was get through those 10 miles plus a couple of more on the trail and I could set up our tarp tent at one of the benches along the trail. My lights were all charged. I could do it in the dark if necessary.
One thing about St Louis County is that there are only a few through roads, and there are a lot of cars on those roads. Bicycle routes are improving, yet still lacking. I was riding on sidewalks with the trailer. Getting to the Katy Trail is 10 miles of riding on sidewalks next to 40 mph roads with constant driveways and intersections where vehicles going 4 directions can go straight, left or right. It is a long test of focus and skill.
I did not get us to the Katy Trail. In the first mile, I carelessly let the trailer rub against a curb in a narrow accessible sidewalk cutout through an intersection. That took an hour, but it was fixed. Still, I told myself that we had four days and plenty of battery for lights today, so we could still make it to the trail.
After another 5-6 miles of sidewalks, driveways and intersections, we got to a stretch of no sidewalk, though there is a car width shoulder divided from traffic lanes by a solid white line. I knew that this stretch would be challenging, and I knew that we would have to cross the 40 mph busy street at some point to cross an upcoming bridge. I said out loud to Busta, we gotta cross the street soon.
Riding west on the south shoulder of Olive Blvd, we approached yet another intersection with vehicles waiting to turn out onto Olive. In other words, we came upon right turners from the right, a direction they may not look. We are slow, big, colorful, and hard to miss. I thought the driver of the vehicle in front had noticed us. There were still cars coming on the main road to keep them from turning, and we had space on the shoulder to reach the sidewalk on the other side of the side street. I could have stopped and waited for a minute, despite my right of way, to make sure the car drivers wouldn't hit us. I decided in that moment to maintain some of our momentum and ride on the shoulder between cars going 40 mph plus on one side and a line of a few cars waiting to enter on the other. It was dangerous, but I had the right to use the shoulder and the right of way to proceed.
Apparently, the driver had not noticed us, and space opened up, so they started turning. I don't know how they missed seeing us when we were that far into the intersection, but they did. The bicycle was past and they slammed their SUV into our trailer. It threw Busta through the cargo net gate into a traffic lane. I tried to hold on, flipped over the handle bars, landed on my head and rolled over to my back.
My helmet save me again. Without it, I would have likely suffered a fractured skull and possibly died there. Instead, I got up and started taking pictures, including the title image. Later I noted the damage to the top of my helmet where I landed.
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Scans at the ER came up clear. With some bruises and strains in my neck, shoulders and elbows, I'm feeling pretty good days after getting hit by a car. Busta came away physically fine. No cars ran over him in the traffic lane, and he is smart enough to get out of the street.
At this point, I want to ride again and am starting to think about the next trip next year. That will take long hours setting up the bicycle and trailer again first. If we do get that far, we still have to face traffic. We'll see how well we are emotionally when we try to ride again. Hopefully Busta will still enjoy the replacement trailer.
One thing that I am sure of is that my hometown is heavily skewed towards vehicle connectivity, and I will continue to advocate for more and safer alternatives, including walking, cycling, skating and scootering. This accident adds fuel to that fire, and I am still healthy enough to do it.
Here is a Love Brother Band song that I was very happy and fortunate to contribute to.