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@pajamas
well I don't know what's shaken me up more, wrapping it in camden or seeing a thread devoted to my wellbeing. Thanks guys, you really are very kind, I feel a little undeserving of it as I have manged to avoid breaking anything. In the end the verdict was basically "you'll live", which I'm very glad of, obviously.
I was indeed venturing North into Tynan territory (location undisclosed) when - cycling quite legally - a van seems to have seen a few cars stopping ahead, figured "I'll let this other guy in a van through" and waved him on - without checking his mirrors to see a rain-drenched figure hunched over the bizarre geometery of his Giant hybrid (a whopping 24 gears - count 'em) coming up on his left.
So when I passed the van stationery to my right I had another van kind of turn into my direct path - a quick rain-drenched skid and I hit the bonnet and sailed over.
The driver was quite decent about it, rather concerned ("Why aren't you wearing a helmet..?" "I want to be a hipster ...") and then I realised the two vans had stopped, drivers out, another woman driver was offering me water as I had gone pale and a guy was calling the ambulance - and I was being told to "stay down". It seems it looked pretty bad from the spectators' point of view. Poignant moment I remembered on the way back home: another cyclist rode past, making the sign of the cross. If you're on here dude, I'm okay. That gesture choked me on the way back home, sorry to have worried you.
So ambulance came, cops came, my knees, ankles were hurting (and still are), long story short I waited a while in a&E and got given the all clear, which I am massively relieved about - as asm pointed out, tonight is meant to be build night and a spanking new bike is hopefully going to be ridden very soon rather than in six weeks' time. I'm also aware that if this had happened on the new bike, it would have got bust up and I would probably have pinned some relevance on the fixed gear and might have been put off it.
I know there'll be more pain tomorrow but really hoping I can HTFU enough to ignore the doctor just a little bit and cycle down to Track Day Sunday. If I can't I'll still be there to join the other walking wounded...
Thanks for the concern guys, esp someone relatively fresh to the forum. Tynan, thanks for keeping track of things man. And thanks for the texts. It really is a community on here, I feel very good to have spent time with you.
Interesting thoughts on first-hand experience of police procedure but we'll leave that for conversations over drinks - but basically everything Roxy said is true, whether they are conscious of it or not. They would have driven off and "come to the hospital" if I hadn't asked the ambulance guys to get them to speak to me - and at that point I had no info on anything, and they had no info about me...so thanks Roxy...find that thread if you haven't read it dudes..
Okay, TTID!!!! Hooray!!! As you were!!!