Will Kelsay hit by truck
Will Kelsay, an 11-year XTERRA veteran competitor, was injured when hit by a pickup truck with an attached trailer Wednesday morning in Boulder, Colorado. Kelsay, 32, was riding his road bike eastbound on Juniper Ave. at 26th Street about 7:50 AM when he encountered the pickup heading westbound on Juniper.
"He made a left hand turn right in front of me and I went flying," Kelsay wrote in a Facebook post.
In a telephone interview today, Kelsay elaborated: "I hit the brakes, slowed down and missed the truck but ran into the trailer. I was traveling about 10 to 15 mph when I hit and upon impact immediately went up in the air and backwards and hit the ground hard."
Kelsay said that he remained fully conscious but stunned. "I remember with crystal clarity everything leading up to the incident," he said. "But once I hit the ground I was in a shaken state."
Kelsay was taken by ambulance to Boulder Community Hospital with extensive road rash and multiple bruises. Kelsay said that doctors took CT scans but have not immediately determined if there are more injuries.
Later that morning, he was released from the hospital and is recuperating at home.
Kelsay said that he has received a police accident information statement. "The police have contacted the driver and have all the information," he said. "Beyond that I don’t know."
Boulder Police have not yet responded to an inquiry to determine if an accident report has been filed and if charges are being considered against the pickup truck driver.
Kelsay said a friend retrieved his Orbea Opal road bike and he now has it at home – in six pieces. "The bike is completely destroyed," he said. "I feel very lucky a low speed crash, even though I was in a lot of pain could have been much worse. By worse I could be dead. I feel very lucky I was wearing my helmet."
Kelsay, who joins a long list of Boulder triathlon notables who have been hit by four wheel vehicles while riding, said that rider vulnerability troubles him. "I always ride defensively," he said. "But even riding defensively and doing everything I could to avoid this situation, if a car comes right at you, you are going to lose all the time. If the four wheel vehicle isn’t careful first, the cyclist always loses."
This incident comes nine days after a semi-trailer truck turned in front of a cyclist on Valmont Road in Boulder, killing 62-year-old Randy Herndon. Investigators ruled that the truck driver 'failed to yield' to the cyclist, who was struck by the rear wheels of the truck.
The next race on Kelsay’s schedule is the XTERRA USA National Championships in September. "At this point I am unsure if I will be able to compete," he said.
