WHEN IT HAPPENS TO YOU

LAST ISSUE, I DEVOTED this page to a heartfelt plea to both cyclists and motorists, imploring everyone to share the road with more grace and respect.

- Jon Minster

Just days later, I was hit by a car.

It happened without warning. We were on our usual 5am Friday mountain-bike loop, heading up to the trails on Table Mountain through the fancy suburbs on its eastern flank. We were on a quiet road, in the dark - all of us with lights on our bikes - when we heard the car.

As usual, we fell into single file to allow it to pass safely. I was at the back... and it didn’t pass safely. The driver drove straight into the back of me, without deviating a millimetre.

It was all caught on CCTV - the resident of the house where it happened came out to share the video. The driver was a 21-year-old university student in a wonky Polo. We were all in shock, and so was he. He stood there in the road, unable to explain what had happened.