Well the good part is you are ok. Go through your insurance and make a claim. Hopefully it will all get repaired before the true riding season for you gets here.

 

You are sooooooooooooooooo right!

 

Fricking Roundabouts! They started building them in Indiana before I migrated south to New Mexico. I dont think ANYBODY understands how to drive thru them! I was riding thru a dual-lane roundabout when a school mom entered from my right just ahead of me. She pulled into the roundabout without even looking for oncoming traffice then STOPPED so she could move to inside lane! By that time it was to late for me to avoid collision or slide it. Next thing I know I am laying in the middle of this roundabout and my bike is laying on its side about 20 feet down the road. All I could think about was the two lanes of traffic BEHIND me. She never stopped. Dont think she even saw me or knew I went down trying to avoid hitting her. Broke my left ankle and about $1K damage to my bike. Worst thing was missing about 8 weeks of prime riding time (this was early May 2006). No, they DONT see us and I try my best to ride accordingly. Needless to say I approach roundabouts very cautiously now.

 

After checking yourself, underwear included. Did you punch her in the face? Sorry that wouldn't have been wright. But you would have felt better. ;o)

 

Take it the best shop repair that U trust it a start..

 

Glad to hear you are all good! Sucks about the new ride, but it can be fixed/replaced. Look for a good indie in your area to do the work.

 

Thanks for the comments, everyone.

@hoetree, I am sorry to hear you weren't as lucky.

To clarify a couple of things:
- Don't have a gremlin bell. Maybe I ought to get one, and
- I didn't hit the van. Thankfully. I'm guessing it was maybe 20' in front of me when she pulled into the circle. I'm guessing I would have hit the driver's door or just behind it. In any event, the van was taller than me and I wasn't going over the top of it. I was headed straight for a wall of metal and glass and did not want that to happen.

There are a lot of traffic circles around here now - the volume of them is kind of new to this area. I think they use them because they are small and cheaper than the cloverleaf exits. I don't like them, especially on a bike. You've got cars behind you, in front of you, coming from the sides, nobody is stopping and everyone is going a different direction. I watch my speed and really pay attention going thru them and believe this is why I am not in the hospital right now!

My wife was against me getting the bike because she was afraid something like this would happen. So, after I hit the pavement and realized I wasn't headed for intensive care, I remember thinking two things (1) I hope this doesn't destroy my ankle (lacrosse season starts in 2 weeks) and (2) if I do, I will NEVER hear the end of it!

So, maybe I wan't thinking to clearly and made a couple post-accident mistakes. Here's a few lessons learned that might help others ...

1) I felt bad for the lady as she was so shaken up and I wan't hurt, so I didn't think to call the police. A bunch of people stopped to see if I was OK and we picked up the bike and rolled it to the center to get it out of traffic. My brother, a State Trooper said BAD IDEA. Call the police and don't move the bike until they get there.

2) After we moved the bike, the people that stopped left. Guess nobody wanted to get involved. I didn't immediately think to get names or license plates. No 3rd party witnesses. BAD IDEA. At a minimum, quick pics of the cars would have gotten license plates for the police to look people up, if needed.

3) I took pictures of the scene w/ my phone. GOOD IDEA. Captured the marks on the road where the bike fell, where I was in the circle to show distance and right-of-way and weather conditions (dry and clear, she should have seen me)

4) Took pics of the damage to the bike right there. No questions on whether this happened as a result of the accident or not. GOOD IDEA.

 

Dude: You are your own worst enemy....you will learn the hard way when you get the bill from her insurance company for hitting her van. Drivers Ed. 101 says call the cops when you have a traffic accident. Now it's your word against hers. You have about a 40% chance she will sue you and all you have is pictures of a motorcycle sitting on the road after it slammed into her van while she was innocently driving by.

Don't ask how I know this...my 16 year old daughter got hit in a parking lot by an attorney and it did $1,000 damage to her bumper. He hit her. He convinced her not to call the police because he was "a lawyer" and would handle the whole thing and nobody would get a ticket. She doesn't call the cops. Two weeks later I get the bill for my deductable ($1000) and a bill from the car rental company (wasn't even his frickin car) for $2500 claiming my daughter hit him.

 

People who can not see should NOT HAVE A DRIVER"S LICENSE. There is no two ways about it. If they can't see , they should NOT be driving. How could they see a Bicycle if they can't see a motorcycle. Plain and simple.

 

Glad to hear your ok. As others have recommended get a good lawyer. Today going to work some goof ball lady changed lanes on me and I had to do a quick dash to the left. I was in my truck and she was on the F'n phone. Ride safe and keep your eye's open. Stupid people are every ware.