Anyone ever hit by car while biking with LO?

[GoJoJo]

We got nailed yesterday a.m. by a distracted driver. DD is 100% fine. I have a hurt leg but no broken bones. My question to biking mamas and daddies : is biking with a baby ever safe?

We looked into getting a replacement bike through the driver's insurance (it was totaled) but I'm wondering if it's really okay to be so vulnerable on the road. Maybe we should just get the cash instead. How can I responsibly expose my DD to that kind of risk again, right? We were riding on the right shoulder and hit by an oncoming truck that turned into the driveway we were passing. Very quiet 25 mph residential streets in my n'hood. We got so much joy from biking daily (weather and health permitting) to grocery, parks, drug store...Really lucky we weren't killed but bummed that this might be ruined for us.

[butterfly_mommy]

Wow so sorry mama. So scary. There is risk in everything we do. You and DD could have been hit the same way if you had been walking pushing a stroller. I do not cycle with a trailer and I really want to but I am afraid,well actually DH is more afraid. However I think that your DD being %100 fine is a good testament to the safety of the trailer. I have heard of another trailer being hit with 2 girls inside and they were also perfectly fine.

I hope your leg feels better and I think you should get another bike. Good luck.

[Theia]

I can't imagine. You must be so scared. I don't bike with DD cuz I don't think I am a confident cyclist and we live in a high traffic area. I'm thinking of getting a trailer or bike seat for my DD (she's a toddler) to take her on bike/walk only trails in our area, but then we'd have to drive to get there.

I don't really have any suggestions... I'm just glad you and your DD are safe. Maybe take some time before you decide if you want to continue bicycling or to cash out.

[nolonger]

s: That must be so scary.

There are places I don't go any more (like the highway or roads with narrow shoulders) and other places where I'll break the law and ride on the sidewalk, but I can't keep ds in a bubble.

Children die every day in automobile accidents even when they are in correctly installed car seats. I'd be curious what the actual statistics are as far as safety per mile travelled by bicycle as opposed to by automobile. I know that riding in an airplane is actually safer than travelling the same distance by automobile,. but people are more inclined to be afraid of flying because we just accept a certain amount of traffic fatalaties to be inevitable.

[Everrgreen]

I'm sorry you and your daughter had to experience that, how scary!

I bike with my 15 month old in a front bike seat (weeride). I am confident on the bike, but I also stick to the sidewalk most of the time or trails. There is a risk of accidents in just about everything you do and I don't think that is a reason to not experience things. I try and make things as safe as possible (helmets, safe speed, sticking to sidewalks/trails), I know I can't always prevent an accident, but that doesn't mean I won't enjoy the experience.

[Geist]

My DS and I bike around a lot and this is one of my big concerns, but I figure the odds are low enough it's safe to risk it. I've been biking for years for transportation, in the US and abroad, and have never been hit by car. Driving, on the other hand, I've been in several wrecks. So, I think you're fine to try it again, as long as you both can handle it. If it were me or my son it'd be a while before either of us could stomache it! I'm so glad you both escaped serious injury.

[GoJoJo]

Thanks for the encouraging, sympathetic words! I still kinda can't believe it happened.

I think that your DD being %100 fine is a good testament to the safety of the trailer

Very true! I'm going to write the manufacturers of the bike seat and helmet to let them know they did their jobs. She really didn't have a scratch or bruise on her and shows no signs of pain. Pretty amazing considering the force of the impact. And the number/ severity of bruises I have!

Children die every day in automobile accidents even when they are in correctly installed car seats.

Yeah. I've been thinking a lot about how we are at risk every time we get in the car. And that fear shouldn't be the sole driver of decisions concerning DD.

I've been looking at sites linked from my city's bike co-op and I've decided I need to beef up our visibility if I'm EVER going to be mentally ready to get 'back on the horse' with DD. I confirmed that I was doing the legal and right, 'safe', thing, but it didn't matter. The driver who hit us was just staring in the opposite direction of where he was turning when he hit us. I know b/c I was trying to make eye contact while he came barreling at us. Bike flag on bendy pole? I don't think I've ever seen one on a bike around here, but they must help? Or put a strobe light on my helmet...and blast ice-cream-truck-music from a boom box...and pull over any time a car gets within 50 yds...jk

RE: sidewalk, riding on the sidewalk is not necessarily illegal in my state, but a couple of sites say it is at least 2x as dangerous as riding on the road, (I guess depending on the number of driveways and intersections you are crossing while on the sidewalk?). Also, although the law states that bikes are supposed to ride close to the right side of road in the absence of a bike lane, a 'how to not get hit' site says to ride in the middle of the right lane to improve visibility. That puts you more at risk of being hit from behind, though.

If/when we try again, (I have decided a hiatus is a good idea), rides are going to be less fun/ more hyper-vigilant. As one of the sites said, "Ride as though you are invisible."

[tankgirl73]

Can I do a slight thread-jack (still related) for a quick PSA?

So often, SO SO SO often, I see parents out bike-riding with their kids... either in trailers or bike seats or with older kids on separate bikes. The kids are all wearing helmets (often incorrectly, which is another PSA!!) -- but SO SO SO SO often, the parents are NOT.

I can only guess that the argument is "I'm an adult, I am a skilled cyclist, therefore I am not going to get into an accident."

Yeah, well, as your example shows, you can be COMPLETELY doing the right thing and still get in an accident. You can't control the idiots on the road! Just because you don't cause an accident doesn't mean you won't be in one!

(Same is true for driving cars etc too -- eg, people who don't wear seatbelts).

Bike helmets do save lives!! We had a family friend a couple years ago -- my kids were friends with their kids, I was friends with the mum, had met the dad a couple times. He was killed on his bicycle, they were obviously devastated. Wasn't wearing a helmet.

To me, the logic of making your kids wear helmets but not wearing one yourself is like saying "okay kids, if we're in an accident, you guys will survive, but hey, you'll be orphans". It's really sending the wrong message in so many ways...

Okay, PSA over. So glad you guys are okay, and hope you can get back up onto that "horse" as soon as you're ready.

[moss]

you are sooo lucky mama

around here i see the occasional mama/bike trailer riding on the sidewalk. i think it's probably illegal, and then what do they do when they come upon a pedestrian?

"Ride as though you are invisible." this is such good advice. i also like to see anyone with a bike trailer using lots of flags on their trailer~~you know the kind that stick way up in the air. it makes them so much more visible. there's one guy around here who's always biking around with his kayak, and he's got several of those flags~~you can see him a mile away.

[Stitches]

Yikes, how scary! I'm glad you are okay. I ride with my daughter and I worry about cars too. I only ride on the road in residential streets (I would go on the sidewalk but the trailer is too wide), and then it's usually just to get to and from a bike path. I am very fortunate to live in an area that has a lot of bike paths, but if I want to get to one of the longer paths by the river etc we put the bike in the car and drive there. It defeats the purpose somewhat I suppose, but I'd rather feel safer and have a good time.

[YayJennie]

Wow mama, I'm so glad you're both OK! But like someone else said, you run the risk of getting hit no matter how you travel. I take my dog and my son in a jogging stroller every morning for a walk. The other morning, we almost got hit by a motorist who made a right hand turn onto a street (coming up behind us) that we were already crossing. Residential neighborhood, 30 mph speed limit. She was literally 2 feet in front of my dog when she turned. I was so pissed! How can motorist be so careless?

Obviously, biking is going to be different for you now. But if you'll still enjoy your morning rides, I would definitely buy a new bike.

[CheriK]

Wow, how scary. I'm glad no one was seriously hurt.

I don't drive. I've been biking with all of my children as soon as I could strap a seat into the bike trailer. Is there a risk? Of course! Could my child be hurt or even killed? Of course. Is it worth it? That's what you're going to have to decide. Your child could be seriously hurt or worse in a car accident, as well. For my family, the benefits of bicycling are so many that I don't consider changing the situation. It's the only way I get exercise. It costs so much less than having me drive both in money and in environmental impact. It's setting up good habits for my three children.

We've never been hit. I've been in two accidents myself (both hit by another bicycle that did something stupid). I've had several "near misses" both with and without the trailer.

I bike very very defensively. I expect that cars will not see me, will not stop if they do see me, and will not obey the rules of the road. I know I'm more vulnerable. We have flags, reflectors, and don't bike at dusk or night w/ the baby trailer. We stay on roads with bike paths for the most part, or on dedicated paths separated from the road. Residential streets actually seem the scariest to me - cars backing out of driveways, drivers thinking they're "home" so they don't pay attention any longer.

Wear a helmet. Put your child in a helmet. Pay attention to how cars drive in your community, and perhaps choose to avoid certain roads/parts of town that seem particularly unsafe. My 8-year old twins both ride their own bikes now, and THAT's scary

[kittywitty]

Originally Posted by Gillian28

I'm sorry you and your daughter had to experience that, how scary!

I bike with my 15 month old in a front bike seat (weeride). I am confident on the bike, but I also stick to the sidewalk most of the time or trails. There is a risk of accidents in just about everything you do and I don't think that is a reason to not experience things. I try and make things as safe as possible (helmets, safe speed, sticking to sidewalks/trails), I know I can't always prevent an accident, but that doesn't mean I won't enjoy the experience.

We have a bobike and this is what we do. My dh has the 5 yo in a bike trailer if we go together. I've been biking with kids for years and years and even took my brothers when they were little and I was a teen and have never been in an accident. I've never even gotten close. I'm pretty paranoid around cars, though, and watch out carefully and bike fairly slowly. I'm not worried about getting hit, though, honestly. Anymore than if I were out walking with the kids. We've gotten closer to being backed up on more than once that way by inattentive drivers.

[Italiamom]

Not in any way trying to stray off topic on your thread here, but it sounds like you got the insurance information from the driver, correct? Their insurance should cover both you and DD for medical. While your DD might seem 100% fine, I would strongly suggest having her doctor give her a once over. Spinal injuries can sometimes take a while to manifest themselves, or a while to cause pain. The driver's insurance may or may not cover your bike, but it WILL cover injuries. Get her checked out!

And also, BIG bummer, I'm so sorry that happened to you! DS and I bike every day, and it's my worst fear. I just break the law and ride on the sidewalk when I'm on a busy street :

[Tjej]

I know you may want to stay away from bikes for a long time, but really if you want to get over that pit of the stomach fear it is easier if you go right back to biking again right away. Maybe just short trips, but anyway, if you leave it for a while you may well not be able to bring yourself to come back to it.

Just my experience with tackling fear.

Tjej