Charity bike rider involved in an accident

by | Sep 27, 2013 | Truck Accidents |

A 24-year old bike rider was hit by a semi truck in the middle of a fundraising tour to visit 30 Major League Baseball ballparks. The man had been riding to the different parks to raise money for children with hearing loss. The man himself had gone deaf by the age of 10 but had received a special implant that restored his hearing; the money he raised was intended to go towards the purchase of these special implants for underprivileged youth.

The man began his fundraising ride on April 3; his goal was to raise $1 million over the course of the summer. On the night of Sept. 21, the rider was hit by the mirror of a tractor trailer attached to a semi truck. The rider had already visited 29 of the 30 ballparks on his list and was less than four miles from his hotel when he was hit.

He does not remember what happened before waking up inside of the hospital. The man’s injuries were not life threatening, but he suffered a severe concussion, a broken nose, two small cheekbone fractures and a chipped tooth. He was taken to the hospital with his cousin in tow. At the time of the accident, the rider still had plans to attend his last scheduled baseball game on Sept. 24 between the Phillies and the Marlins; he is still collecting donations for his charity.

A witness reported seeing the semi truck accident, but it is unclear whether the driver has been located. Investigators are of the opinion that the driver was unaware of the accident. When a driver’s negligence results in an accident, the victim of the car, bike or pedestrian accident may hire a lawyer and file a civil lawsuit against the driver to recover damages such as medical expenses associated with the injuries.

Source: CBS Sports, “Man cycling to all 30 ballparks for charity hit by tractor trailer”, Mike Axisa, September 23, 2013

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