[rwoynaro]

Originally Posted by terryp

I'm not looking for symapathy here, but maybe reading about my recent accident can save someone else some pain.

On my way to pick up groceries on a beautiful Easter Sunday, I was gliding by the local skateboard park when a 10-12 year old appeared from behind the fence, entering the sidewalk without looking first. As soon as he saw me, he jumped off his board to avoid a collision, which propelled it right in front of my left wheel. The Seg and I went over the curb into the street. I'm not sure how either of us landed. It suffered only scratched fenders, but I have a shoulder with very limited motion, a badly twisted knee, swollen leg, a brightly-colored tailbone, and bruised elbows.

Despite my pain and having my vision impaired by dancing color patterns, I managed to find my infokey about 20 feet away, took a few seconds to catch my breath, assured the young man I'd be okay, and glided the few blocks back home.

Fortunately, no bones are broken, but I'll need MRIs once things stabilize a bit to determine if there's any soft tissue damage, torn ligaments, etc. I don't see any marks on my helmet, but the headlight that's mounted there is scratched and came loose, so I'm glad I was wearing it.

Skateboarders are everywhere, and love to show off and take chances. I'm way past the days when I was invincible, and consider myself pretty safety conscious. I try to slow down when nearing blind corners, not take other vehicles for granted, etc. But as soon as you think 'What are the chances...', fate is only too willing to show you.

As of this morning, I have gone 424 days without a Segway accident. After the previous one, I started putting a post-it note on my board at work every work day listing how many "days since my last Segway accident," similar to how the company posts "X days since an injury" on the walls in the breakroom to help remind the worker bees. When I see it, it reminds me to glide a bit slower, pay more attention, and watch out for others. That's in a high-density traffic area at work. Since that time, I have had no close encounters thankfully, so I think it helps me look out more. Out in the open gliding on my own with the sun shinning and the birds singing, i just enjoy the ride. But around others, you have to be careful. Even then, it may not be enough.