Litho, 1. I am SO glad to hear your surgery was more than successful. An answer to my prayer for sure. Go impress your physical therapist now!
2. Your assault story is darker than I had imagined. Your attacker was going to further assault you after you got up and yelled at him?! I can’t even get my head around teenagers acting this way. To vulnerable populations (pregnant women, mothers, elderly adults) and to those with equal or greater strength (you, a grown man) than theirs. On drugs? Gang initiation? I just don’t know how normal teenage minds would come up with and then be horrible enough to execute such a plan. This story should be on your local evening news! I’m relieved that they caught the kids, and kudos to those who came forward with the info that allowed the long arm of the law to snatch your attackers off the street. I hope the judge throws the book at them. So sorry, Leah Sent from my iPad > On Feb 3, 2021, at 9:57 AM, Litho <densiflo...@gmail.com> wrote: > > Hello All. Surgery went really well, better than anticipated! They were > able to stabilize and align the fracture without a plate, just pins that will > be removed in a couple of weeks. The results in the joint look good, too. > All of this bodes for a better recovery and less stiffness in the future. > Great doc and amazing nurses. I'm a little woozy today. I've been sober for > many, many years, so having all of this stuff in my system is odd, but the > pain is manageable. Thank you everyone for the well-wishes. > > TL:DR - I'm a middle age guy who had a run-in with BMX punks. I've accepted > the mantle of being an old guy and have installed a "get off my lawn" sign. > > On the assault / crash: I saw some of it coming but wasn't prepared for the > speed and dynamics of what happened. The group was riding toward me on a > 10-foot wide multi-use trail at a spot where it runs in between a highway and > a frontage road. It's a straight stretch. I saw them from some way off and > watched them crowd a jogger off the path. They were riding three abreast and > two /three deep. BMX and freestyle bikes. 15-16 year olds. Riding wheelies, > bunny hopping, etc. At about 100 feet out I moved a bit toward the middle > of the trail so they would clearly see me. The kid furthest to my right > locked eyes with me and was clearly intent on not moving out of the way, so I > moved right hoping I could either squeeze by on a 1-foot wide gravel strip > just off the trail or hop the curb down onto the road. He maintained eye > contact the whole time. When I tried to get by on the right, he veered to my > left and reached up to hit me when I came parallel. I moved my face out of > the way but he hit my shoulder. The rider directly behind him swerved toward > me and clipped my left handlebar, making full impact with my left hand ( I > was riding the hoods and braking hard) and then my frame on the left > chain/seat stay. The impact sent me flying left and forward off the bike. > The first impact with the ground was my right side, upper back and then > helmet. From there I don't know what happened until I stopped rolling / > sliding and was on the road next to the path. My jersey (brand new wool > Kucharik on it's maiden voyage!) was ripped from the shoulder across my back. > I got up and started yelling some regrettably choice things at the kids who > had stopped. I had no idea I was hurt at that point. It took some time to > register. The kid who hit me initially came storming back toward me. It was > about that time I really saw and felt my hand through the glove and realized > I was hurt and about to get my ass kicked. So I got REALLY aggressive > verbally at that point hoping they would leave me alone. Thank God, two > wonderful men in a work truck who had already stopped to check on me got out > and in between me and the kids and told them they saw the whole thing. > > The kids took off. I called 911. The police sent one car to find the kids > and one car to help me. Unfortunately the mean who helped me took off and I > had no witness with me when the police arrived, so the kids were not detained > at that point. I made a post on a local FB group trying to find witnesses. > Several people came forward to share that they had the same run-in with this > group of kids that same afternoon. They all filed police reports. This > included a pregnant woman who was kocked off the trail a few minutes after my > run-in. A mom pushing a stroller. An elderly gentlemen walking a dog. > Finally a woman reached out to me via FB to let me know who a couple of the > kids were. She overheard them talking about it to her child. I brought all > of this to the attention of some higher-ups in PD and city government. They > are now taking substantive action. If it took my broken hand for something > to be done, its worth it. > > And yes I'm using dictation. :) I talk a lot. I'm a teacher, so I come by > it naturally. > >> On Wednesday, February 3, 2021 at 8:42:03 AM UTC-8 Mark Roland wrote: >> While it doesn't hurt to be attentive to what is happening around you (ear >> buds, anyone?) there is not much most of us would be willing or able to do >> other than what we end up doing in the case that something were to happen. >> In other words, unless you go to extremes--take a kung fu class, apply for a >> weapon permit--you'll have to trust your instincts, and perhaps the kindness >> of passersby. In any case, constant conjecture of this magnitude will not >> be rewarded. >> >>> On Wednesday, February 3, 2021 at 10:07:35 AM UTC-5 Bicycle Belle Ding >>> Ding! wrote: >>> I have thought about this thread all week on every ride. >>> >>> Firstly, Litho, how did your surgery go? You’ll be typing to us with one >>> hand or dictating, I imagine. I hope we hear from you! >>> >>> Secondly, this thread has haunted me. All week it’s led me to think What >>> Would I Do.... I’ve never thought about being assaulted on a bike. What >>> would I do if I was Litho and found myself being pursued by a gang of >>> teenagers who were coming closer and closer to my rear wheel? What about >>> what Andy said - he perceived an attack and was able to mitigate it before >>> the worst happened. I don’t think my brain could have processed what was >>> happening and formulated a plan for self-preservation. My frame of mind is >>> just not there - I’m mostly riding a sweet, glittery raspberry mixte with a >>> matching polka dot helmet, sitting upright and carefree and often listening >>> to an engaging podcast or Apple Music. If I were riding a black and lime >>> green bike with Lycra and aero helmet I might be looking around like, “come >>> at me bro” - but as I am, I do not have an awareness of others’ mal-intent. >>> I pay attention to things that can cause accidents, but never think about >>> being intentionally attacked. But now I think maybe I should. I did get >>> chased by a dog for a mile and a half one time...that was terrifying, and I >>> did that all wrong, in retrospect... >>> >>> Andy, what was the outcome of the collision you had with that idiot? >>> >>> Leah >>> >>> Sent from my iPad >>> >>>>> On Feb 3, 2021, at 6:47 AM, ascpgh <asc...@gmail.com> wrote: >>>>> >>>> Glad you are significantly OK, that your bike is in experienced hands and >>>> the responsible have been identified and addressed. Nothing good ever >>>> comes from conflicts like that. >>> >>>> >>>> Remedy is mostly repair and only rarely involves taking you fully back to >>>> where you started on a bike. Before reaching that degree you find yourself >>>> accosted for not having covered your bike as a high value item on your own >>>> insurance since it is worth more than the $150 bike-shaped objects at the >>>> big box stores considered normal despite the intentional acts of the >>>> others. >>>> >>>> I haven't been deliberately targeted for purposeful injury or damage until >>>> last summer when I was by an individual who put his bag down, stepped off >>>> the curb into the trafficked avenue lane with his hands and arms up to >>>> grab me verbalizing his intent audibly to his friends. I was in traffic, >>>> moving around 15 mph with nowhere to move for safety. When he moved >>>> aggressively toward me I leaned toward him and let my helmet and his chin >>>> be the first contact. Do not attempt. In this case it was me leaning to >>>> prevent being knocked into the traffic next to and behind me. He put me >>>> into a situation fearing not being able to walk home if my bike was >>>> damaged by his actions and not more than a second to deliberate options. >>>> >>>> Andy Cheatham >>>> Pittsburgh >>>> >>>>>> On Monday, February 1, 2021 at 12:50:20 AM UTC-5 Litho wrote: >>>>>> **Cross-posted from FB Riv Page** >>>>>> >>>>>> Hello All. Looking for a little expertise / advice on my Riv. I was in a >>>>>> collision on my Appaloosa last week. A group of kids on bikes >>>>>> deliberately rammed into me on a multi-use trail here in Napa. My >>>>>> handlebars took the brunt of the initial impact, but me and the bike >>>>>> went tumbling across the pavement and into the road that parallels the >>>>>> trail. Unfortunately my hand was on the brake lever at the time and was >>>>>> crushed in between. I have surgery this week to repair the fractures and >>>>>> rebuild the joint on my knuckle. >>>>>> >>>>>> I'm trying to assess all of the damage for the police report. The front >>>>>> and rear derailers were bent and scraped, the rear derailer hanger is >>>>>> slightly bent, but should be easy to straighten. There are numerous >>>>>> scratches, chips, and a couple of small dents on the frame, but I don't >>>>>> see any visible cracks or deformations anywhere. The brake lever was >>>>>> rotated on the bars but doesn't seem to be broken. The stem and bars >>>>>> were knocked 90 degrees in the initial impact but don't have any visible >>>>>> damage. >>>>>> >>>>>> Anything you would recommend checking or inspecting? The damage may just >>>>>> be cosmetic, but I don't want to overlook anything. Hopefully, I'll just >>>>>> end up with some glorious beausage and a good story. >>>>> >>>> -- >>>> You received this message because you are subscribed to a topic in the >>>> Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. >>>> To unsubscribe from this topic, visit >>>> https://groups.google.com/d/topic/rbw-owners-bunch/hXKnSOlBJvY/unsubscribe. >>>> To unsubscribe from this group and all its topics, send an email to >>>> rbw-owners-bun...@googlegroups.com. >>>> To view this discussion on the web visit >>>> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/93ba2cc2-d6c2-462f-8bd5-78a5298a951an%40googlegroups.com. > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to a topic in the Google > Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > To unsubscribe from this topic, visit > https://groups.google.com/d/topic/rbw-owners-bunch/hXKnSOlBJvY/unsubscribe. > To unsubscribe from this group and all its topics, send an email to > rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. > To view this discussion on the web visit > https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/d68af5fe-35b6-4136-abef-fed53b66bb63n%40googlegroups.com. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. 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