one of those things we all hear too often

[bufli]

ok well im pretty pissed off right now given on what i just found out.
as some of u know there was an accident yesterday in Burnaby, hit and run
i wont comment much on it as i know some people involved and its not my business to make details public,

again 3 years ago a friend of mine's sister run over near como lake crossing @ crosswalk im sure some of u heard about that one too
the guy who hit her i believe his dad was a cop so he got a slap on the wrist
again im in no position to discuss the details as for respect for the families involved
but i will say this

WTF IS WRONG WITH THESE PEOPLE? ... its like hit and runs are becoming so fucking common...
holy shit I mean Richmond happened how long ago? And im sure theirs many more I cant think of right now

I will comment on 2events I was in tho?

Monday noon ish, i was walking from temp blot to wards apl sci building, i go to cross walk, look both ways, i see 2 cars going down hill
first car is relatively close to crosswalk so i let it pass, second was really far so i start crossing, im about 2/3(3lanes i crossed 2) of the way across and i realize the guy behind the wheel of the car coming down the hill isnt even looking forward, in fact he was like bent over to passenger seat... i stop, i tell my friend to stop. we both stop in mid of road knowing the guy wont even see us and hell drive right past... when the car is about 5-9m away the guy looks up.. what does he do? panic swerve towards us (mid of road) then @ about 2m he swerves away back to his own lane barely missing us, as he passes us hes got some kind of smirk/smile on his face... doesn?t stop keeps going...
this tho doesn?t phase me...

ive been hit by cars 2 times now both while on a mountain bike(which i guess is why i didn?t get f-ed up too bad), the most recent of which is worth mentioning happened just down my street,? truck was leaving ford dealership and saw that hastings/lougheed signal light was green, knowing this light doesn?t change very often the driver decided he wouldn?t stop to look before crossing the sidewalk as he exited the dealer instead he was going to gun it for the light (mind u this guy was there for service most likely which is @ back of lot long straight).. now here i was on the sidewalk biking along when my pedal bearings made a funny crack noise. so i happened to look down for a fraction of a second, by the time i look up im about 2m from the ford lot entrance and in the corner of my eye i see the truck, i instantly realized he was going way too fast and he was going to go for the light, i put on both front and back breaks in a panic, this all happened in fractions of seconds... next memory i have is im in front of truck looking @ driver right as his truck is hitting me, i then blank out and wake up on the other side of road... i flew across both lanes + sidewalk/grass so about 2.5lanes worth(luckily no traffic).. i instantly get up check myself, the driver stopped got out ran over in a panic screaming if im ok..
i check myself again, not bleeding, nothing seemed broken so i tell him im ok..
he wanted to call an ambulance but i felt i was ok.. and i felt like it was partially my fault, but i knew it was his since he didn?t check b4 driving out to make a light without looking @ sidewalk
keep in mind i was in a state of shock so i wasn?t thinking too clearly... i told him im fine and not to worrie about it, after all my clothes were still intact no road rash no nothing... so we both go on our way..
i was actually biking to go to play some soccer with a friend (whos also on this forum)
basicly by the time i made it there, i couldn?t even stand nemore, i looked @ my leg and left arm i had the imprint of the guys bumper on me stil... look on the inside of my left leg i had the imprint of my bike (mind u ever lil bolt and shit like that on the bike stabbed thru).. right shoulder road rash now bleeding and i just felt exhausted, couldn?t really walk either so i just sat for awhile.. im sure i had more injuries then that but thats all i remember now

i dont want this to be a "im sorry" or "holy shit!" thread and i dont want u to feel sorry for me or tell me what i should of done... this is all in the past,
what i do want tho is u to all be careful, im sure uve heard this a million times, heck most of u on here are older then me, some of u are parents and are saying that to ur kids, but really it ceases to amaze me how much shit happens every day and how it just keeps getting worse... my parents tell me to be careful every time i walk out the door, and most of the time i am, ive had my hiccups, everyone has, but really we all need to be much more attentive and careful for ourselves and others
for those who speed, please slow down we all think it cant happen to us, we all make ourselves believe that and all it takes is a fraction of a second to be distracted and a tragedy can occur.
think not only of yourselves but of those who might be affected
please take care,
I hope I haven?t offended anyone with my comments, because that is not my intent, nor do I wish to point any fingers, no one is perfect but we can all do a lil to make it safer for everyone else. Please drive responsibly and be very attentive while on foot.
thanks for listening if u read this far

[dmogx]

what a long thread lol

[niteron]

People are getting way too careless these day's. I've seen it too much myself. I'll even be one of the few to admit that I've caught myself getting careless behind the wheel.

[melonvitara]

wow wut an experience u had!
careless drivers are everywhere nowadays...

[need4speed]

Its getting worse.

You just have to watch your ass is all.

[derrick]

Feels like I've been hit by an extra long thread...

[tonyzoomzoom]

People are getting careless behind the wheel.  I know that I've caught myself daydreaming or just very very tired while driving.

When you are on the road, just be careful and attentive, not just to your driving but to everything that is going on around you.

This is especially true even for pedestrians and bikers.  Being in downtown, I see a lot of near missed between cars and pedestrians.  Why pedestrains look down at their feet or stare straight ahead when crossing streets is totally beyond me.  It is never about who has the right of way.  When a car hits a pedestrian, it is pretty clear who the loser is...

Drive safe.

[kyoshi]

yeah i've been careless sometimes and have had a few close ones.

its pretty much up to everyone to becareful and watch out for themselves instead of assuming this and that.
My particular favorites are ppl darting across the street in rush hour from inbetween cars.
The latest is because of the weather; runners who are on the street instead of on the sidewalk

[niteron]

People running in the street are known as diehard tagets, meant to be run over by delivery vans. You would think that people who need to go out running no matter the weather would know better to stay off the road unless they want to get hit.

[Elder_MMHS]

Just want to give the flipside of things - I was traveling near BCIT today, mid-evening, on Willingdon - not many cars on the road.  Green light well in advance for me but I could see up ahead a huge pile of jay-walking students trying to catch a bus.  One by one, I see them darting across six lanes like rats in the moonlight (except they were people in my headlights) - I slow down because I very well know how mindless college/university students are at that time of night.  I am still travelling ~40km/h when the majority of the pack clears.  Crisis averted?  NO - I see a straggler girl still darting through opposing traffic.  Okay, this is insane - by now, I'm less than 20m away from her still coasting at 40km/h and yet she has the gull (or complete lack of awareness) to jump the center island and continue charging for the bus.  For anyone doing the math, that's less than 2 seconds before a collision.  Begin evasive maneuvers: honk wimpy horn, moderate application of the brakes, initiate turn away from her -- luckily the horn caught her attention.  She hopped, skipped, turned around and immediately ran back onto the center island and I didn't have to dart into the adjacent lane.

The Mazda3 horn might not scare off other cars but don't let that dissuade you from using it on crazy jay-walkers.

Please please watch the road if you cross it - even if you have the right of way and especially if you don't!

[kyoshi]

good stuff Victor, u dodge them students

[M Speed]

Well I have to say the penality for Hit and Run just doesn't stop people from trying.

Pestrians have to be smart too. Few times at those crosswalk with no lights, pedestrain in dark clothings crossing is extremely difficult to see. Even travelling at speed limit, it takes several car length to stop.

Cyclists have to follow the rules of the road. Sidewalk is for pedestrain. I have seen too many cyclists take the better of either side whenever benefit them the most. Lastly properly equip with safety as the number one concern (reflective clothings, lights, etc) will help drivers see you.

all in all I think it is the responsiblity for all parties. Drivers have to see other sharing the road; Pedestrains and cyclists have to be seen by drivers.

[bufli]

^ fully agree...far too many times have i seen people jwalk @ nite wearing mostly black clothing.. prety scary shit... worst case ive seen was 4-5 people jwalk across lougheed (around the icbc place) in thick fog... that just aint smart...

[IncredibleChulk]

i remember the como lake incident
she was actually a family friend's daughter...
i was unbelievably pissed about that
and more now that he just got a slap on the wrist......

brutal, just brutal