See anything @ ~5pm last Saturday on/near the 4MR trail just east of 395?

[JustinW]

BikeFolk,

I had an accident last Saturday somewhere @ 5pm-ish on or near the Four Mile Run trail just east of the 395 underpass. This could have happened on the adjacent stretch of S. Four Mile Run Drive; I’m uncertain because I don’t remember anything about or surrounding the event, and I’m posting here to see if any of you might be able to fill in the gaps. I’m hoping one of you was a passer-by who may have inquired or even helped when I had this accident.

Details to share that may be familiar for anyone who passed by – I’m a white male @ 6 feet tall, slim / regular build. White t-shirt, grey riding shorts, orange gloves, blue & white helmet. I fell off of my bike (a silver/red/black Fuji) and sustained a broken elbow, a concussion (hence the lack of recall) and a dose of hurt pride (!). Not sure *what* caused the fall at this time, and that’s one reason for seeking witnesses.

From the Strava record it looks like I was not moving for about 20 minutes and I know from the flyby data that some other cyclists passed by. I don’t know when or how the ambulance factors into this, whether I was treated “on the road” or in the ambulance, etc. Eventually they packed me up and took me to GWU where I was able to sample some of the finer aspects of hospital cuisine. I’ve been focused on recovery from the concussion since then, which is why I’m posting this days afterwards.

The records that the hospital and the dispatch crew have are not too precise as to what happened (indeed, they conflict each other). For a number of reasons I don’t think I was hit – but I really don’t know. So, if you happened to cruise past last Saturday and either saw some guy take a tumble, or if you stopped to help some guy who wiped out and was not doing so well, please PM me with whatever you know.

TIA,

Justin

Topic

[rcannon100]

I stopped by and inspected where the event took place. Nothing spoke to me. No gashes or maybe bike parts or car dents. There are, in that area, two dangers. From the road to the 4MR are two steal bollards. Nasty. Again, on the 4MR is a transition from asphalt to the cement underpath. Basically the equivalent of a pothole for a road bike.

I talked to a neighbor who said they had seen EMS activity, and that the person that they were helping was over on the benches on the 4MR, right where the trail transitions from asphalt to cement. She said that the EMS trucks were on the road, that the personnel was helping someone on the trail at the benches, and she could not see what was going on.

You might post signs in the neighborhood asking people to contact you.

[Dickie]

@rcannon100 115382 wrote:

I stopped by and inspected where the event took place. Nothing spoke to me. No gashes or maybe bike parts or car dents. There are, in that area, two dangers. From the road to the 4MR are two steal bollards. Nasty. Again, on the 4MR is a transition from asphalt to the cement underpath. Basically the equivalent of a pothole for a road bike.

I talked to a neighbor who said they had seen EMS activity, and that the person that they were helping was over on the benches on the 4MR, right where the trail transitions from asphalt to cement. She said that the EMS trucks were on the road, that the personnel was helping someone on the trail at the benches, and she could not see what was going on.

You might post signs in the neighborhood asking people to contact you.

Nice work Bob.

[PotomacCyclist]

Can we get those dangerous spots fixed, so that there aren’t more of these types of crashes and accidents?

Until the problems get fixed, it might be helpful if the County installed a warning sign too.

[JustinW]

@rcannon100 115382 wrote:

I stopped by and inspected where the event took place….

You are a gentleman and a scholar. And a would-be forensics expert. Thanks for taking the time to check out the scene.

[Sunyata]

@rcannon100 115382 wrote:

I stopped by and inspected where the event took place. Nothing spoke to me. No gashes or maybe bike parts or car dents. There are, in that area, two dangers. From the road to the 4MR are two steal bollards. Nasty. Again, on the 4MR is a transition from asphalt to the cement underpath. Basically the equivalent of a pothole for a road bike.

I talked to a neighbor who said they had seen EMS activity, and that the person that they were helping was over on the benches on the 4MR, right where the trail transitions from asphalt to cement. She said that the EMS trucks were on the road, that the personnel was helping someone on the trail at the benches, and she could not see what was going on.

You might post signs in the neighborhood asking people to contact you.

After reading this, I do remember that we rode by there around 5:30 or so coming back from the Phoenix Derby. EMS was already on scene and (I am assuming) the OP was on the bench being assisted. His bike was on the trail beside the bench. The medics seemed to have everything under control, the OP was sitting up and interacting with the medics, and we had to hurry to get back and head to Douthat, so we did not stop. There was no indication of a crash, so I assumed it was a cardiac problem, but as I said, we were in a hurry and the medics on scene are incredibly good at their jobs, so I did not really slow down to analyse the scene.

Thinking about it now, it is possible that you could have hit the transition at an awkward angle and gone down. You may also want to consider the possibility that you had a medical issue (seizure, cardiac episode, blackout) that caused you to go down.

Either way, I am sorry that you went down and hope that you have a speedy recovery. Heal up quickly and I hope you get back on the bike soon!

[CaseyKane50]

@PotomacCyclist 115389 wrote:

Can we get those dangerous spots fixed, so that there aren’t more of these types of crashes and accidents?

Arlington County staff were out this morning working on the transition spots. I chatted with one of the employees who told me that he hoped to get both them fixed today.

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[KLizotte]

Justin, I wonder if you might have told the EMS folks what happened since you were obviously speaking with them (and now don’t remember). Perhaps you could contact them to see if they recall what you might have said at the time?

[KLizotte]

@CaseyKane50 115537 wrote:

Arlington County staff were out this morning working on the transition spots. I chatted with one of the employees who told me that he hoped to get both them fixed today.

I presume this is the work of Tim Kelly?! Thank you!!!

[Tim Kelley]

@KLizotte 115550 wrote:

I presume this is the work of Tim Kelly?! Thank you!!!

Not me. That’s the Arlington County process at work for you!

[PotomacCyclist]

So if I make a request on this forum, it will magically appear a few days later? In that case, I wish for a widened and repaved Mt. Vernon Trail, a reconfigured Columbia Island and Memorial Circle (where all the dangerous intersections are resolved) and an improved Rosslyn intersection (maybe with the proposed bike bridge from Rosslyn to the MVT).

(I know that the NPS is responsible for the MVT. But maybe this forum wish technique works on them too.)

[JustinW]

@KLizotte 115549 wrote:

Justin, I wonder if you might have told the EMS folks what happened since you were obviously speaking with them (and now don’t remember). Perhaps you could contact them to see if they recall what you might have said at the time?

Did that already. They did not have a lot to offer. I suspect their focus is more on fixing the silly human rather than determining exactly what caused the incident. The closest to a cause I could get was “curb”, which is kinda vague.

My wife blames the rock cairns seen on the nearby embankment. I’m sticking with my angry squirrels story. I assume I won’t find out anything definitive, and simply will need to be more careful in general in the future.

And again, thanks all for the time and inputs. Lovely having the support of this fine group. Good on y’all!

[KLizotte]

Perhaps the Roosevelt boardwalk troll was visiting his relatives at that bridge and decided to show them the “proper” way to take down cyclists. :rolleyes:

[Author]

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