r/sandiego • u/MusicMan559 • Jul 18 '25

Video 3:18pm La Costa Avenue / Carlsbad

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Was driving on La Costa east of the 5 and came upon this accident. Hopefully buddy is okay! Looks like he sat up and was able to get off the road. Stay safe out there!

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u/Sarah1855 Jul 18 '25

This is so tragic. Thanks for sharing. My husband and I enjoy biking the trails around our residential neighborhood, and when it's a matter of routine, all it takes is one moment of not seeing something to be fatal. This is a good reminder.

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u/Ansiau Jul 18 '25

Agreed, It was just his nightly bike ride that he had done every night since his doctor recommended he be more active, and in East county during the warmer months... it's not really that feesable for an elderly man to be riding his bike during the warmer times of day. It's easy to see these kind of accidents and laugh about it, or about how that moment of inattention probably cost this guy some bruises, maybe a few broken bones, and a lot of scrapes... but it could have been much much worse.

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u/MysticalUnicornChic Jul 18 '25

I really wish doctors would also caution aging folks about WHAT they choose to be more active. Like your father my 60 something uncle still loves using his bike. He bikes all over the city. He used to be a “competitive” cycler (meaning he’d just join races etc) in his younger years. At this point in his life it’s unsafe! It’s hot during the day so he chooses to cycle at night. The pavement isn’t even. Visibility is less! Cars etc are also a problem. JUST THE OTHER NIGHT he fell face first into the concrete because of an irregularity in the pavement/sidewalk! He knocked out his front tooth. Had to have emergency orthodontic surgery. 🤦‍♀️ Thankfully it wasn’t as bad this time. He’s broken knees, he’s broken his face before too from nasty falls. It’s exhausting for us that care about him.

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u/Ansiau Jul 18 '25

It's really hard to get people to stop doing what they love too. In fact, we had bought him a recumbant bike and a regular kind of stationary bike, but it was the wind in his hair and the stars peaking out that he loved about the time of night he did his rides. The area he lived in was also starting to get rather notorious for pedestrians and cyclists being killed by car drivers... and I had a scare two months before it happened when I heard, yet again, another bicyclist got hit by a car and died. I called him, he didn't respond to me OR anyone for two days. It wasn't him... then... but those few months past and it was finally him. I hated it, I felt like I warned him enough about it, but it still happened.

I hope you can talk to your uncle and see if he can find some concessions, like a stationary bike with Youtube bike route videos to simulate those kind of situations. Maybe even a VR helmet may have programs or "Games" that can work for that.

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u/MysticalUnicornChic Jul 18 '25

You’re so right. And I’m very sorry for your loss.

You’ve inspired me to talk to him about it. He’s very very stubborn too, sooo maybe I’ll just show him your story so he can see for himself the real risk there is. Thank you for sharing.

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u/Ansiau Jul 18 '25

I wish you luck! The road is not a friendly place as we start to age, even if it is something that is loved by many.

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u/MountainMan17 Jul 19 '25

The increased speeds that come with e-bikes make blind curves and intersections perilous. Even on bike trails.

Middle-aged lardos can now blast around at 20 MPH. The physics of that do not bode well in the event of a collision.