Was going straight at around 25 mph and a car from the opposite lane decided to do a right turn and pulled out right in front of me, i was only a meter away from the car and had no time to brake. hit the car went flying over it and hit head first on the opposite side. it was a women driver and she claimed she never seen me.

left hand fractured, ligament damage on my right thumb

Now i don't know if i should carry on riding. that accident really shook me up. what do you guys think? should i carry on riding or not??

Cant get a car as insurance is to high and i cant afford it.

Need some advice please!!

Thanks

 

Firstly, I'm glad you are not too injured. Heal quickly man!

You sound pretty shaken up (as well as physically injured) and it has caused you to rethink some things.

Now, should you ride again is only a question you can answer.

What do you truly feel deep inside. Is the risk of riding worth the anxiety you may feel? Could it be that this is a question of time - that as your body heals the answer (whichever it is) will become obvious to you? This is a trauma and takes time.

I would give the answer time to develop. Think about what you have got from riding before and weigh it up against the perceived risks.

Take it easy on yourself.

Cheers, SB

 

I can't answer that question for you, however I can give you my insight on a few accidents that I have been in. The first one was when I was a bike messenger in San Francisco, it was a similar situation, I was pedaling my heart out to make a delivery in time when a car decided to make a right turn into my front wheel. I have no memory of the incident at all; what I remember felt more like an out of body dream than an actual event. Anywho I had no broken bones but a severe concussion, road rash on 60% of my back and my entire left side, and my chin was all black and blue. The doctor said that my helmet was ripped off my head and the only thing that saved my life was the messenger bag on my back full of soft packages. I couldn't get on a road bike for six months without shaking. To this day I still get nervous when I ride.

Maybe two years ago I got ran off the road on my motorcycle, I was fine and there was a bit of damage to the bike but I fixed it and tried to get back on; now I was nervous around corners, lol. next within a month I was riding a friends bike and was being foolish, stupid and young; I came into, way too fast for streets, a right hand corner (prob above my skill level as well) hit a sand pile and the front end washed out on me. I slid into oncoming traffic. I definitely used one of the 9 lives and the bike speared a cars radiator. It was about $2k to fix his bike and I did it willingly because I did it.

I'm still having trouble getting back into the saddle and that's why I'm moving more towards the track because its a safe and controlled environment for me to do my best to get those jitters and doubts sorted out; yo this day I still get all squeamish on tight off-ramps. I would highly recommend getting on a bike at least one more time before you make your decision because I feel it will help more than just being afraid of it. Plus if you do get back on the bike and don't like it you wont have that voice in the back of your head doubting every decision you make and you will regret not knowing. Know that you aren't the only one who has had to fight through that and every body has to make their decision for them selves and we will be there to help in any way we can.

 

Yes. You should ride again, even if its just once. Borrow one if you have to. You don't want the last time you rode to be a crash. You can go on after that knowing that the bike didn't beat you, and you've done it successfully. If you do choose to go on riding from there, take your time learning again. The memories will fade and the skills will come back. Its amazing how you can spend years developing good reactionary habits, then you're back to square one with one "oh s##t" moment.

I've crashed twice now. I ended up with the same type of injuries you have, broken hand requiring surgery. Get back on the bike. It takes more than that to get it out of my blood.

 

sorry for you accident and hope you heal soon. sure, ride again to see if its still fun for you. first i'd sue the pants off this person and their insurance to cover hospital fees and make sure you get enough for a brand new bike!.. cha-ching

 

Give yourself some time. Gradual reintroduction and confidence building will get you back where you were. Time usually heals.

 

don't ride again.




i'd never give up riding. but i wouldn't ever think of it, let alone ask the opinions of others on an internet forum. something that can potentially end your life should never be left up to the majority of opinions by others. i am a motorcyclist through and through. it will never be a question to me. if it's a question to you, my thought's are you shouldn't ride. those thoughts cloud your judgement while on a motorcycle



id hate to lose another rider to fear, but you shouldn't ride if you're not comfortable.



i've had a couple of offs. some serious and some others that hurt my ego more than me or the bike. but i've never questioned whether or not i'd ride again.

cheap transportation, cheaper gas, insurance, etc. - should NEVER be the main reason you ride a bike. those are just added benefits.



just my .02

 

Thanks for your advice.. Looks like its one of those things which can take time to make a decision.. Loads of people around the community saying don't ride again! Haha but if i don't i wont have any sort of transport.

 

Yeah, you are the only one who can answer your question. I had similar accident ended up with bad compound fracture on one wrist and fracture on two places on one leg. Now I have damaged ligament on that knee and not 100% back to normal wrist. I didn't ride for 6 months but I am back on my bike now. I am more cautious about certain things. I do get nervous on certain thing. I still enjoy riding. But that is something you have to decide.

 

I've had a couple of spills on my bikes over the last 50 years and never once thought not to ride again. It's in your blood, although I can understand your doubts about getting back on a bike, especially if it frightened you! If you do decide (and it has to be your choice!) try to read the road ahead, behind you and to either side of you, to hopefully avoid a similar situation. It's the only way to survive on a bike, to always assume the other guy isn't concentrating and may have you off! If necessary, take a defensive riding course which will help you immensely to stay alive. Hope you heal up quickly and carry on riding!