The mechanism of injury I described in my previous post: the fall on outstretched hand, is classic for hand injuries. If the stars had aligned differently, such an occurence could have proved disastrous for me.
And so it got me to thinking.
I had a chance to speak to a lawyer recently, about civil suits where plaintiffs seek damages. I was arguing that it seemed unfair to make companies pay large sums of money for the inappropriate actions of a small number of their employees. Shouldn't the employees in question be held responsible more directly? It seemed like the company was being held responsible simply because it had the money.
I'll admit though, had I suffered a potentially career threatening injury, I'd be suing the city, not the random workman who had left this unfortunate stub of concrete on the road.
I have noticed that I am more cautious going downhill now. I used to just fly down city streets. Now I'm riding the brakes like some old codger. Ah well.
And so it got me to thinking.
I had a chance to speak to a lawyer recently, about civil suits where plaintiffs seek damages. I was arguing that it seemed unfair to make companies pay large sums of money for the inappropriate actions of a small number of their employees. Shouldn't the employees in question be held responsible more directly? It seemed like the company was being held responsible simply because it had the money.
I'll admit though, had I suffered a potentially career threatening injury, I'd be suing the city, not the random workman who had left this unfortunate stub of concrete on the road.
I have noticed that I am more cautious going downhill now. I used to just fly down city streets. Now I'm riding the brakes like some old codger. Ah well.
At the intersection of Burrard and Melville, there exists a small bump of asphalt in the bike lane. As fate would have it, at precisely 14:12 on Sept 13th, the front tire of bicycle would meet this bump of asphalt while travelling downhill at high velocity and stop dead in its tracks.
Nimble as I am, the hand of physics proved unavoidable, and before I could even process my misfortune, momentum had picked me up and threw over the top of my handlebars.
I was scarcely airborne before I found myself hurtling towards an alarmingly abrupt meeting with the road. I think I managed to throw my hands in front of me, and although I was helmeted, I can still report with grateful certainty that my noggin escaped impact entirely.
There was little time to ruminate however. Conscious of both a sharp pain in my right hand and the fact that cars were soon to be rolling up behind me, I scrambled to my feet, went back to retrieve my bicycle, and hobbled to the sidewalk and the concerned pedestrians standing there in wait.
After assuring the good Samaritans that I had escaped life threatening injury, I took the time to review my injuries. I had scraped (to varying degrees) my left knee, my left elbow, the back of my left wrist, my right elbow and my right palm.
I was fortunate to have one of my nurse friends patch me up before my friends and I hit the town yesterday. I'm feeling alright about the whole thing. I have a volleyball game tonite, and I suspect that I'll have to bandage my right palm a little more securely for that. Otherwise, it's business as usual!
Nimble as I am, the hand of physics proved unavoidable, and before I could even process my misfortune, momentum had picked me up and threw over the top of my handlebars.
I was scarcely airborne before I found myself hurtling towards an alarmingly abrupt meeting with the road. I think I managed to throw my hands in front of me, and although I was helmeted, I can still report with grateful certainty that my noggin escaped impact entirely.
There was little time to ruminate however. Conscious of both a sharp pain in my right hand and the fact that cars were soon to be rolling up behind me, I scrambled to my feet, went back to retrieve my bicycle, and hobbled to the sidewalk and the concerned pedestrians standing there in wait.
After assuring the good Samaritans that I had escaped life threatening injury, I took the time to review my injuries. I had scraped (to varying degrees) my left knee, my left elbow, the back of my left wrist, my right elbow and my right palm.
I was fortunate to have one of my nurse friends patch me up before my friends and I hit the town yesterday. I'm feeling alright about the whole thing. I have a volleyball game tonite, and I suspect that I'll have to bandage my right palm a little more securely for that. Otherwise, it's business as usual!