A Near Miss

I almost ran over a man yesterday. It would have been an accident and totally not my fault; he was rolling towards my moving car.

My normal route home from the studio last night could have turned into a nightmare. At the crossroads from Taman Tun towards the LDP heading to Ikea, I almost ran a guy over. I was on the fast lane. Immediately after turning a diagonal right onto the LDP, a motorcyclist cut in front of me to head left into Damansara Jaya. I only remember registering there was a spark when the motorcyclist hit the car in the lane on the left of me (or was it the car that hit him?). It happened so fast it was surreal. I'm supremely thankful that my reflexes were fast and that I was not driving at breakneck speed.

There was a spark as the front or side of the motorcycle hit the car in front of me in the left lane. The next thing I knew, the man was off his bike, the vehicle thrown to the right of my lane and almost to the curb from the impact of the encounter. The man was on the ground, rolling in the opposite direction, coming towards me. I remember these thoughts flashing in my head, "Oh shit, oh shit!! He's rolling this waaaay!! Hit the brakes, hit the brakes! Damn I hope my brakes are working. I hope the cars at the back of me aren't following too closely. I hope they don't kiss my bumper."

And the man was still rolling. After two or three rolls, he stopped. And my car stopped almost right in front of him. My heart was in my mouth, it was thudding at full volume in my ears. The car that hit the motorcyclist sped off and didn't even bother a hoot or glance as to what was enfolding. The driver in the car behind the culprit honked the the asshole hit-and-run, then was thoughtful enough to turn into the fast lane and stop about 10' in front of my car with the motorcyclist in between. By now, the motorcyclist had gotten up and was patting himself to see if he was hurt and started limping to his bike.

I was in my car saying to myself, "Where are my hazard lights?! How do I turn the bloody hazard lights on?". I didn't want the rest of the cars behind me to give me a dented butt. I found the darned hazard light switch after a few confused moments. By then the driver in front had already gotten out of his car and was talking to the motorcyclist and checking if he was hurt. I got out and stepped a little away from my car to see if he was OK. I yelled to the other driver, "Where is the guy?! Did he drive off?!" The driver nodded. "Idiot!!" I said. I asked the motorcyclist again if he was OK. He looked extremely shaken but at least he was up and he could wheel himself and his bike away to safety.

The driver got back into his car and so did I. He drove off first; I stayed stationery until the motorcyclist could cut a clean path into Damansara Jaya. I didn't want the cars behind me to finish him off when I couldn't.

I was so shaken by the encounter that when I got home, I couldn't stand or walk straight because my legs were still shaking and almost jellylike.

This is only the second time in my life that I've seen a motorcyclist knocked off his bike right in front of my very eyes. The first was when I was less than 10 years old and in the car with my parents heading back home to Cheras. It was also night. I've never forgotten the scene and the terror that froze me.

That same terror gripped me last night. And I still think I was so damn lucky not to have been driving too fast and that my reflexes were lightning quick. And that the brakes held.

That is one miss that was too near and one I wouldn't want to have happen to me ever again. Life being as it is, however, will ensure that even though you are minding your own business, will throw you a curve ball once in a while.