Brace For Impact

3, 2, 1...

Last night I was "in charge" of the swim/bike workout on the west side for CTC. Managed to get there on time despite being incredibly swamped at work and we were all in the water and waves by a little after 6.

The lake was choppy, nothing we couldn't handle, but it made it incredibly difficult to spot people and I ended up cutting my swim short to make sure everyone was out of the water. So about 20 minutes and 1200 yards in the lake. I wasn't too worried about it because it would give me more time to try and squeeze in 40 miles instead of just 20 on the bike.

I told everyone to take off on the bikes while I waited for IronJohnny to finish his 1800 yards. MW waited for me and after a pic from B2 MW and I headed out into the night.















MW, Me, and Fiona

It was probably one of the best rides I have ever had. We were cruising easily at 19 mph with the wind at our back and the heat didn't feel too bad. I was riding aero and was pretty comfortable. I thought to myself if Steelhead is more like this and less like the hills of GCT then 6 hours might still be in the cards. And then, about 19 miles into our ride, we literally ran into trouble.

We were headed East away from the sun and into the wind and a Ford Explorer was heading west into the sun and made a left hand turn into an intersection as we were crossing.

MW was leading and unfortunately couldn't avoid the car. I saw her hit the front of the car and roll over the hood. I don't know what I did to avoid the car and her but somehow I did and cruised over the curb and had a bumpy ride in the grass narrowly avoiding a sign and fire hydrant before getting tossed from the bike.

Everything is kind of missing from the point when I saw her hit to the point where I ran to her to find out if she was okay. It is driving me batty that I cannot remember what happened. All I know is somehow I got out of my shoes and ran to her and was so relieved that she was talking and seemed to be able to move despite her head feeling a bit heavy. The cops and paramedics came very quickly. The guy that hit us was very nice, no hit and run or anything. He stuck around and got us his insurance coverage information. The cops charged him with failure to yield. As I was filling out the police report my right hand wasn't quite gripping right and my shoulder was very tight and sore. I remembered after the crash that I had moved my neck and it had popped (like when you crack your back) and I told that to the paramedics and quicker than you could blink they had a neck brace on me and were hauling me off in an ambulance.

I had them take me to the same hospital as MW and we were next to each other while we waited for a doc and x rays. Luckily both of our x rays were good, no broken bones! And we are both okay. MW is pretty beat up and sore and probably had a concussion. I came away with a grass stained shirt and a little abrasion on my elbow. My shoulder is a bit sore today and it is painful to turn my head to the left, but I should recover fine. The doc said to limit lots of arm motion. But he said to go with how I feel. Not training at this stage in the game is a little scary to think about but I will get by with whatever I have done so far if that's what is needed.

Tonight I need to take Fiona (My Giant OCR 2) to get an estimate on the damage done. Hopefully they will fix her up before Sunday so A and I can get in our last long brick before taper.

Huge thanks to everyone in CTC who has already sent out their support to me and MW. What a great team I am involved with! I even got a personal call from the prez checking in on me and making sure that I get Fiona in for a diagnosis. I couldn't ask for more supportive friends and triathletes to be associated with.

I will end this post on a public service announcement.

Wear your helmet and gloves at all times folks! If MW didn't have that helmet on last night things would have been very bad. That helmet probably saved her life. And her hands would have been shredded if she hadn't had on those gloves. Her pinky had a pretty deep abrasion so I can't imagine what the rest of her hands would have looked like if she hadn't worn the gloves.

27 comments:

Jodi said...

Sooo glad to hear that you are both OK. What a scary night! If there's anything I can do for either of you to help out just let me know.

Trisaratops said...

OMG OMG OMG!!!! I am soooo glad you guys are relatively OK, but how scary! I didn't hear about this yet! Will call you both to check on you tonight.....

Trifrog said...

Thank God you're both going to be all right.

It will change the way you ride from now on. You will suspect that every car is about to hit you which is a good thing - it will make you fully present at all times and learning to anticipate things.

Michele said...

OMG!!!
That is so scary.
Glad that you both got away with no broken bones.
Hope you have a speedy recovery

BTW, those are some awesome legs!!!!

Anonymous said...

yikes, liz...so sorry. i'm glad you're alright, and i'm hoping that your bike is too...

Pharmie said...

Holy Cow I'mm so glad that you're OK! I second the bike helmet comment. No matter how good of a rider you are, there are plenty of crazies out there ready to take you out, even if it's not on purpose!

Backofpack said...

Thank goodness you are both all right! You lived through every runner and riders nightmare. I hope all those sore spots feel better soon, and send my well wishes to MW. Hope your bike gets fixed up soon too. Does the guy's insurance cover that?

Wes said...

Oh my freakin God! So glad you are OK. I'm glad the paramedics whisked you away while you weren't in the mood to argue! This is a good lesson for everyone, especially us new guys, and I'm glad it wasn't an "expensive one". Best wishes to the both of you.

Anonymous said...

Elizabeth! Stay safe!!!!
I'm glad you're ok, hon! ER trips are never any fun, but I'm glad that everyone responded quickly and handled it so well. *big hugs*

RunBubbaRun said...

Wow, I'm glad you and MW are okay.. Just take it easy and make sure everything is okay. Hey, now you can get that custom painted bike helmet you wanted.

EostreEgg said...

Glad you're alright! {{{HUG}}} And on behalf of David [and many others], take care of yourself and don't scare us like that! What would we do without our Speedy E? {{{MORE HUGS}}}

Meredith said...

Holy crapoly! I'm glad you're both okay.

Papa Louie said...

We are all glad you and MW are doing well. You are such a great sport! Hope you recovery well from the trauma.

Rae said...

OMG!!! That is so scary. I'm glad you're both OK and no one was seriously hurt. What a scare.

Chad said...

Glad to hear you're both okay.

And thanks for another reason to stick with running!

John said...

Glad you’re both doing well and there were no serious injuries… Take care out there!

Cliff said...

Glad both of u gals are ok. Yes helmet is important. I have to ewear my gloves as well. I often don't wear them during my rides.

A. M. Mericsko said...

Thank goodness you guys are alive!

Anonymous said...

Oh my god!!!!!!! that's so scary, I'm so glad that you guys are alive and well.

Mojo said...

That is very scary. It's great you were able to remain calm and help your teamie. I'm glad you both are okay!

Lora said...

Holy Crap!! Sooo glad to hear you're both ok. And AMEN to wearing helmets and gloves!! Hope you got some to listen!
Heal fast and get back on the horse!!

Fe-lady said...

Wow glad everyone is OK and you had a consciencious driver to at least stop and help and assess any damage. It's crazy out there...I guess it's why I mtn. bike mostly anymore!

Scott said...

I'm late reading this post but I echo everyone else... I'm so glad you're all ok.

Janet Edwards said...

OMIGoodness...just got back into town and starting to catch up. I am so sorry to hear that happened to you guys, but glad to hear you are all doig OK. Wishing you both a speedy recovery!

Vickie said...

Glad to hear you are okay! That's scary, no doubt. You guys were lucky. And its so sad to think you can't enjoy yourself out there without worrying about stuff like this. Hope the bike is okay too. Just pay attention to what the body tells you after this so you don't do any more damage.

BuckeyeRunner said...

Good Lord! How scary. Something I dread for all cyclists that I know, or cyclists that I see on the road. I am so glad that you and MW are all right. Your guardian angels were watching over you both. I hope that you are healing up all right. Take good care.

Unknown said...

I hope you're recovered by now. Scary stuff, but definitely glad to hear that it ended with minor injuries.