66 Year Old Chicago Bicyclist Doored, But Undaunted

Getting doored by a careless driver did not slow her down for good.  A 66 year old bicyclist, struck by a car door in June, suffered serious injuries, but just a few months after the crash she was back on a bicycle doing what she loved.  Now she will also receive monetary compensation, my law firm successfully resolving her case for the full amount of the driver's auto insurance policy.

The incident occurred on a pleasant summer day just after 11:00 a.m.  The female cyclist was riding her mountain bike eastbound near 1437 West Argyle in Uptown on her way to the dentist.  Suddenly the driver of a 2001 Toyota threw his door open, striking the right side of the bike.  The impact threw it and its rider across the narrow street and into another parked car.  The heavy crash knocked the woman unconscious and snapped her right arm.  She was rushed via ambulance to Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center, a level I trauma center.

A hospital stay was followed by months of painful rehabilitation and a long, hot summer in a confining and uncomfortable cast and arm sling.  Independent and athletic, she could not wait to get back in the saddle, even facing the risk of another crash.  She told me that she always felt that the risk to her health from a sedentary lifestyle was far greater than the potential harm from another crash.  When the cast came off and she regained some range of motion in her limb, she was riding again.  She has not completely healed and it is unclear now for how long the effects of her injuries will burden her.  However, she has no plans to stop riding.

66 Year Old Female Bicyclist Doored, Injured In Uptown Neighborhood

When her eyes finally opened she saw a bald man she didn't know standing over her, his cell phone to his ear.  He witnessed what happened to her and was calling for help.

On the morning of June 19th, a 66 year old Chicago woman riding her bicycle eastbound from her home to a nearby CTA station was doored and seriously injured by a driver.  The crash occurred near 1437 West Argyle Street.  The bicyclist was on her way to a dental appointment. She was riding to the nearby Red Line stop where she planned to lock up then take the train to her appointment.  But before reaching her destination the driver's door of a 2001 Toyota swung open in front of her on the quiet residential stretch of West Argyle.  An experienced cyclist, the woman tried to swerve away from the metal obstacle, but her handlebar clipped it and she was send tumbling across the street where she struck a parked car.  The second impact fractured her right arm and knocked her unconscious.  When she came to, a bald man she didn't know was calling 911.

The woman will likely remain in treatment for her injuries for quite some time.  My law firm is representing her.