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ALPINE — A 21-year-old cyclist from Alpine said it was a miracle he wasn't crushed after a truck pulled out in front of him while he was riding his bicycle.
Every cyclist knows that feeling — that moment when you're zipping along on a road and you don't even realize you're pedaling. "Honestly, I love it," said Ethan Lynch. "I love being outdoors. It's just exhilarating to be able to ride."
Lynch does it as often as possible, even when driving somewhere would be easier. "But you don't get a workout when you're in the car," he said with a laugh.
All those cars, though, could ruin even the best bike ride. Lynch knows that firsthand. "They just came straight across the whole road, across both lanes, and at that point, it's too late to stop on a road bike," said Lynch.
He was biking on Alpine Boulevard near 200 North Thursday morning when a truck came out of a driveway. The driver never saw him coming.
"I basically slammed on the brakes and slid on the right side of my body and slid under the truck and then the back tires came over me," he said.
Lynch suffered road rash and bruises, but he knows he should've been crushed. "I actually vividly remember sliding on the ground and watching the tires coming up over me," said Lynch. "I thought, in that moment, I actually jumped up and I thought, 'Wow, I'm not dead? I'm good? I'm standing on two feet. How is this even possible?'"
Ethan Lynch knows he should've been crushed. A truck pulled out in front of him while riding his bicycle in Alpine. He slid under the truck and the tires rolled over him. Lynch only suffered road rash and bruises. How did he walk away from it? He tells his story on @KSL5TV at 10. pic.twitter.com/XDxcMLROS7
— Alex Cabrero (@KSL_AlexCabrero) June 23, 2021
It seems his carbon fiber bike, which shattered in several places on impact, was between his body and those tires, acting as sort of a protective ramp for the truck. "The tire came up my leg and over my hip and I walked away from it," said Lynch.
The medical staff at the hospital where he went saw his bruises and couldn't believe that was it. "All the doctors and people in the ER were shocked that I just walked in and told them I got run over by a truck," said Lynch with a smile.
In fact, Lynch has already returned to work. He will need a new bike, though.
I actually vividly remember sliding on the ground and watching the tires coming up over me.
–Ethan Lynch
Lynch also said he's not upset at the driver because he believes accidents happen. "I honestly think they were in worse condition than I was," said Lynch. "You know? Getting out of that car and you just hit somebody?"
Lynch also said it's important that bikers do everything they can to be seen. Even though it was daylight, he said his front light on his bike wasn't on that day. At the same time, he asked drivers to be on the lookout for cyclists.
According to the Utah Department of Public Safety crash data, 468 cyclists were involved in crashes in Utah in 2020 with 8 deaths. So far in 2021, two cyclists have died on Utah roads. Lynch said he's thankful he wasn't the third.
"It was a total miracle that I didn't get more injuries than I did," he said. "I was fine."
