But as you have probably guessed if you are a cyclist yourself, we had an incident today that may have brought an abrupt end to our adventure. We had reached Kingman and were looking for someplace to have lunch, when we were rear-ended by a fellow in an SUV, who just didn't see us.
Roger says that he knew we were hit. I don't remember anything about it. I was lying on the side of the road with my leg draped over the bicycle and he was lying there to the side of me and I thought, 'how the hell did this happen? What are we doing here?'
The guy that hit us stayed to help, and a number of other people appeared out of nowhere. It was just a moment or two before I heard sirens and ambulances came up. The guy driving the car was ticketed for failing to control his speed and hitting us, which I think is fair. I don't think he was going very fast. The police officer told me that he said he was lost and looking for a road, and he just didn't see us until it was too late to stop.
I have some bruises and some scratches and I had to get some stitches in my leg behind my right knee where I think I probably got caught up in the pack somehow. Roger has no apparent injuries but was woozy and had very low blood pressure when he got to the ER so they wanted to keep him overnight to observe him. He is there now, over his protestations. I am in the hotel across the street.
We don't know how the bike fared. The police took it and have stored it at the station along with most of our stuff. We'll take a look at that in the morning. I do know that our brand new back wheel is all bent up. And Roger's saddle is bent over like a taco. I cannot imagine how that happened.
We are bummed about the accident, but thankful that our injuries are minor. We had just sent a final dispatch to the Daily Facts inviting everyone to join us next Saturday for our final leg into town, so we'll have to update that story and think of some other way to celebrate.
And now to bed. We'll figure out what to do about all this tomorrow.
That wheel doesn't look so good
The beautiful road we took today
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ReplyDeleteSorry sis. And sorry Roger. I know this started as a crazy whim of an idea with a lot of how and when and what but then became a why the hell not. I grant your full credit for the trip.
ReplyDeleteAnd next year, suggest you head east on the southerly route taking advantage of the prevailing winds. Plus you need to go counterclockwise to unwind the karma.
Love, bro.
Can you do that? unwind the karma, that is. Powerful notion. Will have to give it some thought. It has been, all in all, an excellent adventure. For that we give blessings.
DeleteOh no! And when you are so close to home! Hope your injuries heal quickly, your bike is repaired and you can be back on the road soon. I too am wondering how the heck that saddle bent that way!
ReplyDeleteIt's a mystery. Thankfully, I do not remember the impact or crash. Thank you for your note - we'll be okay. We're very lucky.
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DeleteGlad to hear you are both OK. Excuse me, but sod the bike. Also glad to hear that with a saddle like that Roger isn't going to be permanently singing falsetto.
DeleteOh, my dear! And there in the home stretch - we've been cheering for you, and continue to root for you as you recover from this mishap. You are the champions.
ReplyDeleteLots of love to you both! Linda
Thanks! We are bummed but feeling grateful we had such a great trip, and were relatively lucky in the crash. We may come out here to finish up this portion later . . . we'll let you know!
DeleteWe are the Northern Tier couple you met at Glacier National Park and are sorry to read of your accident. We were lucky enough to finish our trek without incident (only 4230 miles) in Bar Harbor on August 18 and celebrated with a lengthy trip to Italy. We hope for the best for you and Roger in the aftermath of this incident. I know from keeping up with your blog that we went through a lot of the same places so if you are interested in our take on them you can catch up on our blog - www.bikewright.org. We live in Phoenix so if there's anything we can help with please let us know. Good luck to you both, it's an amazing achievement.
ReplyDeleteI've had a chance to see a bit of your blog since arriving home. Love the ending. So much truth. Thanks for staying in touch.
DeleteOh ... so thankful that you are okay. I guess fate really didn't want you to make that sprint across the Mojave desert. Here's hoping for a quick recovery.
ReplyDeleteWe hope to get back to Kingman and finish the ride . . . can't leave the gap in my map, you know!
DeleteOMG you guys! We are so very sorry that this happened--and so relieved that you are both OK and not very seriously injured. It's a road bicyclist's worst nightmare - and as we've been reading your blog all these months, we were so grateful that nothing worse than mechanical problems and sore bums had gone wrong on your excellent adventure...for over 9,000 miles! Until now... So best wishes for a quick and complete recovery, and fingers crossed that the driver's insurance gets the Silver Queen fixed and good as new very soon.
ReplyDeleteThanks. We are thinking it may be time for a new tandem, which is breaking my heart. I should not be, but am very attached to the Silver Queen. She has been a fine ride, and it hurts to think we may have to retire her.
DeleteWow. Glad you guys are okay. What an adventure!
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