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@dominiclincoln
1st big crash.
Last night I met punkpixel in hoxton square for a drink before heading home. Got on my way towards holborn when I felt the presence of another fixed rider behind me. Within a couple of minutes we were enjoying a perfectly healthy two-man alleycat race complete with banter and sporadic conversation. Everything was going just swell with the whole don't-stop-for-anything rules, when we were confronted by one of those westminster 7 1/2 tonne council-recycling lorries crossing across our side of the road. no problem, just go in front or behind it. Seeing as there was about a 10-12 ft gap between the lorry and the slow moving traffic moving toward us which it obviously wanted to join, and being slighty ahead, I decided to skim past the front of it. Except, as my crank was level with the nearside corner, I felt it move forward, clearly keen to take advantage of the newly formed gap in the traffic. WHACK!
Next thing I knew I as spinning around like a turtle on its back, sliding into the oncoming traffic. You know, lights everywhere and people gathering around. I looked for michael (the courier I was racing), expecting him to have long gone, and realised somehow we had both hit the deck.
Anyway, the two fellas in the lorry came over, dressed in their white plastic cleaning overalls to check we were still in one piece, apologising profusely. "man, you guys must have been going, like, 30 miles per hour or something" After checking our bikes over, and discovering that (amazingly) they were both fine, no buckles, cracks or punctures, we set off for the john snow to take the edge off.
So close, but very, very relieved to still be writing this and alive today, all the moreso considering we got hit by a lorry, and not a car. Shoulder feels broken, but it still moves, so is probably ok. Very sore today though. Maybe its time to get a helmet for when the next time the lorry hits me a foot higher...