A sobering lesson from my Raid Pyrennean ride this time …
One of the 4 of us who had entered the Raid together, was hit by a car. Apparently, the driver did not see Mike and drove into the back of him. Mike was flipped backwards into the bonnet of the car with his back and head shattering the windscreen.
We found out when our tour guide drove past us to go and assist. He was clear: “I have this under control and know what to do – you continue with your ride and your goal”. It was about the same time that we saw a WhatsApp from Mike whose immediate reaction after finding his phone was to take a picture of the car and send it to us – he also tried to call us. Mike was adamant that we continue without him as in his words: “I wasn’t riding anytime soon”.
It was a tough few hours for us (worse for Mike of course!) as we considered if we should have ignored Mike and Scott’s advise. Was he okay?
However, our brilliant guides already knew what to do in a situation like this. Scot stayed with Mike while the emergency services were at the scene, came to update Em, our other Marmot guide, before he went to be with Mike at hospital. Mike was checked out and luckily, he was able to leave hospital that evening and join us all for dinner; he was pretty beaten up though.
It was clear that plans were instantly put into place by our tour guides that had already been carefully thought through. These provided the right resource to ensure that Mike had the support he needed but also allowed the overall goal of the rest of the group to remain on track. Great work!
And a bonus lesson, without a helmet, Mike’s accident would have been live changing at best … always wear your helmet.
