Sarah Davis was sitting at a kitchen table in her mother Judy Davis’ West Ocean City home Monday.
It had been almost a week since Davis, 29, was struck while riding her bicycle on 142nd Street by a vehicle, whose driver kept on driving.
Davis was left between the street and the sidewalk on the ground, a mild concussion, a knot in the back of her head, cuts and later bruises.
Her bike’s frame was damaged as well.
She managed to see that the black Nissan Altima had a Delaware tag and its driver female as it left the scene, but she could not see the tag number. Davis said she was lucky she saw even that, because she was so stunned she was on the ground to begin with.
Notably, no one, she said, came to her aid. She called her boyfriend and the Ocean City Police and Fire Department EMTs came to her aid and to collect information.
The driver remains unidentified as of Tuesday, according to Ocean City Police Dept. spokesperson Lindsay O’Neal.
So what is typically a routine police listing touched a nerve for me.
First, in recent memory Davis is the third person I know of who has been hit by a car while on a bike. A dear friend in Baltimore was hit so severely that he required months of physical therapy just to be in a position to walk again. Then two weeks ago, another acquaintance was hit so severely, he’s still in the hospital at the beginning of what is going to be a long recovery.
Recently I was attempting a right turn from a side street on to Coastal Highway. I waited for some time while northbound traffic finally cleared, and so I was naturally looking to my left. When the traffic cleared I quickly looked right only to have a dad with two children following him approaching the intersection on bike where I sat. He was driving against the flow of traffic. Certainly not a crime, but perhaps not the best idea.
First, Sarah is fortunate to some degree, because she wasn’t wearing a helmet at the time of the hit and run. She and her mother, a state delegate candidate in Maryland’s 38C District, agreed that her injuries could have been a great deal worse. Her helmet, her daughter said, was in disrepair and couldn’t be worn.
The car struck Davis’s bike’s back tire. She estimates the car was “probably going 30 (mph).”
“People need to pay attention when they are driving,” Davis said. “Yes I was lucky.”
Interestingly enough in checking with Ocean City’s Police Department, spokesperson O’Neal said, “There have been 16 bicycle collisions this year and in most cases the bicyclist is at fault. While we always encourage drivers to be aware of bicyclists, bicyclists must also be responsible for their own safety. Bicyclists should always ride as far to the right of the roadway as is safely possible and should always ride with the flow of traffic.
“Only those 16 years of age or younger are required by law to wear a helmet, but we strongly encourage all citizens who ride bikes to wear one. It could potentially save your life. One last safety tip for bicyclists is to follow the rules of the road. Always obey traffic signals and signs just as you would if you were driving a car. All too often we see bicyclists that think it’s okay to go through a red light on a bike without looking only to get hit by a car crossing the street.”
Important words from O’Neal. In the months since the season started, I think many of us have seen bike riders riding at-risk either without helmets or dodging motor vehicle traffic. During Senior Week, I saw a rider cut off a bus heading south on Coastal Highway.
Still, there’s something to be said on the motor vehicle side as well. Sarah Davis has a disability and must use either her bicycle or a bus for transportation. Clearly, many bicyclists are out there for the fresh air and the exercise. But there are also those who are using their bicycles, as a means of transportation, be it to work or to the store or any other reason.
Sarah, who received her pink 24-inch bike as a Christmas present from her parents, relied on it to get around.
“I was upset when it happened,” she said. “I just don’t think all drivers are aware of people on bikes or for that matter pedestrians.”
Certainly the driver of the black Nissan Altima should not have left the scene of the accident, turning this into a hit and run.
A week after the accident, Sarah is suffering from headaches and nose bleeds.
Whether you are riding a bike or driving a car in West Ocean City, Berlin, Ocean Pines or Ocean City, there has to be a greater awareness on the part of anyone sharing the road or the shoulders of the road.
Safety for sure is a two-way street.
It had been almost a week since Davis, 29, was struck while riding her bicycle on 142nd Street by a vehicle, whose driver kept on driving.
Davis was left between the street and the sidewalk on the ground, a mild concussion, a knot in the back of her head, cuts and later bruises.
Her bike’s frame was damaged as well.
She managed to see that the black Nissan Altima had a Delaware tag and its driver female as it left the scene, but she could not see the tag number. Davis said she was lucky she saw even that, because she was so stunned she was on the ground to begin with.
Notably, no one, she said, came to her aid. She called her boyfriend and the Ocean City Police and Fire Department EMTs came to her aid and to collect information.
The driver remains unidentified as of Tuesday, according to Ocean City Police Dept. spokesperson Lindsay O’Neal.
So what is typically a routine police listing touched a nerve for me.
First, in recent memory Davis is the third person I know of who has been hit by a car while on a bike. A dear friend in Baltimore was hit so severely that he required months of physical therapy just to be in a position to walk again. Then two weeks ago, another acquaintance was hit so severely, he’s still in the hospital at the beginning of what is going to be a long recovery.
Recently I was attempting a right turn from a side street on to Coastal Highway. I waited for some time while northbound traffic finally cleared, and so I was naturally looking to my left. When the traffic cleared I quickly looked right only to have a dad with two children following him approaching the intersection on bike where I sat. He was driving against the flow of traffic. Certainly not a crime, but perhaps not the best idea.
First, Sarah is fortunate to some degree, because she wasn’t wearing a helmet at the time of the hit and run. She and her mother, a state delegate candidate in Maryland’s 38C District, agreed that her injuries could have been a great deal worse. Her helmet, her daughter said, was in disrepair and couldn’t be worn.
The car struck Davis’s bike’s back tire. She estimates the car was “probably going 30 (mph).”
“People need to pay attention when they are driving,” Davis said. “Yes I was lucky.”
Interestingly enough in checking with Ocean City’s Police Department, spokesperson O’Neal said, “There have been 16 bicycle collisions this year and in most cases the bicyclist is at fault. While we always encourage drivers to be aware of bicyclists, bicyclists must also be responsible for their own safety. Bicyclists should always ride as far to the right of the roadway as is safely possible and should always ride with the flow of traffic.
“Only those 16 years of age or younger are required by law to wear a helmet, but we strongly encourage all citizens who ride bikes to wear one. It could potentially save your life. One last safety tip for bicyclists is to follow the rules of the road. Always obey traffic signals and signs just as you would if you were driving a car. All too often we see bicyclists that think it’s okay to go through a red light on a bike without looking only to get hit by a car crossing the street.”
Important words from O’Neal. In the months since the season started, I think many of us have seen bike riders riding at-risk either without helmets or dodging motor vehicle traffic. During Senior Week, I saw a rider cut off a bus heading south on Coastal Highway.
Still, there’s something to be said on the motor vehicle side as well. Sarah Davis has a disability and must use either her bicycle or a bus for transportation. Clearly, many bicyclists are out there for the fresh air and the exercise. But there are also those who are using their bicycles, as a means of transportation, be it to work or to the store or any other reason.
Sarah, who received her pink 24-inch bike as a Christmas present from her parents, relied on it to get around.
“I was upset when it happened,” she said. “I just don’t think all drivers are aware of people on bikes or for that matter pedestrians.”
Certainly the driver of the black Nissan Altima should not have left the scene of the accident, turning this into a hit and run.
A week after the accident, Sarah is suffering from headaches and nose bleeds.
Whether you are riding a bike or driving a car in West Ocean City, Berlin, Ocean Pines or Ocean City, there has to be a greater awareness on the part of anyone sharing the road or the shoulders of the road.
Safety for sure is a two-way street.