2008-12-11 - Rider Down, High Street Kensington

On my way into work there was a guy on an awesome 531 Dawes bike slipstreaming me.

A white van (on hire by the royal mail) started to pull out from a side road, saw me and stopped, but he did not see the bike behind me and crashed straight into him.

I heard the dreaded thudunk of van and bike behind me and immediately knew what had happened.

Police were called, ambulance turned up (rider was dazed and bruised but ok) the bike which he had only bought last week will need new wheels, handle bars, forks and possibly frame as well.

I gave the rider my details, the mail man admitted responsibility so it should all be ok in the long run, but totally avoidable.

Sad to say, it was me. Hi James, there are nicer ways of names to faces than this morning eh? Thanks for your steadying influence, managed to keep me pretty calm.

So that's now two bikes in exactly a month. It was the 11th of November that my Raleigh was totaled by that scooter on the same stretch of road.

The police and ambulance were great this morning, really into helping and making sure I had everything I need. The ambulance guys gave me a lift up to cyclopedia where the dreaded words "write-off" were uttered. Well, it was nice riding 531 for a week.

I'm just a bit battered and bruised, the shoulder that hit the van first id the worst, so now after suffering the walk home dragging my bike behind me from the tube, I now have a date with Radox Muscle Soak.