A decent day weather wise in upstate NY today. Got up to about 60 though it didn’t seem that warm, I went on a nice ride @75 miles. Didn’t do it in a straight shot. Stopped to visit my mother for coffee, visit my brother for some general bsing, all in all a very pleasant fall ride. Got home and went with the family to the Boy Scout roast beef dinner. Left there just before 7, heading to the mall to buy the kids new winter coats. As I passed the fire hall, the siren began sounding. “Must be a fire†I said.
It wasn’t a fire, but instead it was an ambulance call. @ 45 seconds later I knew why. I got to the entrance to the thruway, and could see something was going on. I didn’t have the angle and several cars were blocking, but I could see that it looked like a bike down. I had to divert @ 50 yards up the road to U-turn back to the entrance and it appeared all clear then. A classic left turn incident with a bike.
I did the U-turn to get back to the thruway entrance and could see the bike down, headlight still on (stupid things you remember) pieces all over the place and several people kneeling with the rider. No police or ambulance there yet, as it just happened. Nothing I could do. I’m not a Doctor or Emt, so I just passed by. But there was enough acid and/or bile pouring into my gut to make me ready to puke, and I really felt like that for a moment. I’ve been through that intersection hundreds of times, it’s 2 miles from my house, and I’ve had a scare there more than once. For me, the main issue now, is that I just passed on by. If there was no one there yet I know I would have stopped, but just the same it is gnawing at me tonight. After I got back from the mall, I drove up to the gas station a quarter mile away, and found out the biker was mercy flighted.
Nothing shows up yet at any of the local news sites, but I would ask you all to say a prayer for an anonymous biker injured at the NYS thruway exit 43/route 21 intersection.
