The Cycling Accident

Driving towards Glencairn from Fish Hoek a little after two on this Sunday afternoon, I saw two cars parked on the hill side of the road. A cyclist was lying in the road, between the two cars. The man had the bicycle still trapped between his legs and was trying to lift himself up.
It is not my habit to stop at roadside incidents or accidents: When there are enough bystanders milling about already I do not want to become part of the traffic congestion problem. But this case was different. Although there were two guys standing around, no-one was actually assisting the cyclist to get up and out of the road. I pulled over and assisted another bystander to help the man and his bicycle to the curb. I realised that I recognized the cyclist from before: I have seen him on the road around Cape Point some weekends when I practiced for the Argus. It may even have been at one of the road events organised by the Pedal Power Organisation. He is one of those tough old septuagenarians that start each race slowly, grinning at the youth sprinting away from the start line, catching up with them and passing them gradually and steadily once they run out of steam past the halfway point.

I sat down on the curb next to him. He looked dizzy and shaken. His helmet was perched on the back of his head and his spectacles sat at a skew angle. His white hair was long and a tiny pony tail stuck out the back of the helmet.
Apart from the normal tar burns he seamed all right and in control. We decided to stick his bicycle in my car so that I can take him home. When he tried to stand up his right leg it just would not function; I realised that something more serious could be wrong and that I could not take him home and leave him by himself.
While the other bystander phoned for paramedics, I asked a few questions to find out if there were any relatives that we could contact. I learned that the cyclist’s name is Derrek, and that he cycled and lived alone in the valley. He was going to do the same Ride for Sight event as myself that morning, but when it was canceled due to the rain, he decided to do the route himself once the rain had stopped.
(He was only about 5km from home when the accident happened.) Derrek did not know how the accident happened – he just remembered hitting the tar. He had a theory that the problem was caused by the handlebars coming loose, but when I stuck the bike into my car I did not notice anything particularly wrong with the steering.
As is typical with cyclists, he was very concerned about the state of the bicycle. He told me that the bicycle was used by the British team in the Tour de France in the 1970’s and that his son, who lives in Hungary, bought it second-hand. The bike was old, with the gear shifters on the down pipe of the frame.

Once the paramedic arrived I waited in the background. The paramedic very efficiently completed his tests and decided that since Derrek could not stand on his right leg his hip would need to be x-rayed to determine the extend of any damage. An ambulance was summoned, which arrived promptly ten minutes later. They lifted Derrek onto the stretcher and stuck him in the back of the ambulance. Before they closed the doors Derrek still had a chance to enquire about his bike. I assured him that I would follow the ambulance to the hospital. They drove off in the direction of the Constantiaberg Medi-Clinic, following Main road through the congested traffic in Kalk Bay and St James.

I had mixed feelings to be back at the Constantiaberg Medi-Clinic. So many important events in my life played out at this venue. My daughter was born here, shortly before Christmas in 1997. We met many of our closest friends here, doing antenatal classes in the months before. My wife died here, before Christmas in 2004, after a two year-long battle with leukaemia, and the side-effects of a bone-marrow transplant.
Be that as it may, I could not leave Derrek on his own without knowing that some relative or friend would be by his side for what may follow after the radiologist had made a diagnosis.
While Derrek laid waiting in the Emergency Ward, I asked the staff if I could be by his side, seeing that there were no other relative or friends.
Up to now he had complained very little about pain – he must have a high pain threshold, because I have had my share of cycling accidents and I know how tar burns hurt – but now the initial numbness of the fall started wearing off and the pain were registering on his face.
To try and distract him, I asked him more about his cycling exploits. He told me about the Camino de Santiago that he did recently. He started from Paris and completed the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela. He had also taken part in the ride from George to Cape Town the previous year. I have been daydreaming about doing these rides, so he found in me an avid listener and admirer!

Eventually a porter arrived and Derrek was wheeled off to the radiology section. I tagged along, and just as well, because the diminutive radiologist was not strong enough to move his frail body from the bed to the x-ray table. At one point I even had to assist: I had to don a protective jacket and stood holding a reflective plate in the one hand with the other hand holding Derrek’s uninjured leg up the air, out of the way of the camera angle.
Derrek was still hoping that the damage was not too serious as he was able to move the leg a little now without all that pain. I had to break the news to him that that was probably due to the morphine starting to work, and that the radiologist had already spotted a hip fracture in the first few photographs.

Back at the emergency ward we exchanged more cycling stories until Derrek’s daughter arrived. She received the text message I sent while she was having coffee with friends in the Olympia Café in Kalk Bay. I wondered if she was already there when the ambulance drove by. Life is full of strange coincidences!
Quite naturally she was emotional, but fortunately she was assisted by a good friend from the UK. Derrek’s daughter told me that he was already seventy seven years old, and that he was busy practicing for his 11th Argus tour this year!

I can only pray that in the eve of my life, God would grant me the health and courage to be as active as you are, Derrek. I am sure that you will overcome this setback and that you will do that 11th Argus yet, if not this year, then maybe next year!