Did you ever have a near-death experience? (or near-accident)

Lets see, got hit in the head by a rock in Poway Ca when I was about 4. Some older kids were off in the distance and one of them hurled a rock our way, it hit me very close to my left temple and staggered me. I remember walking home and my mom freaking out trying to stop the blood.

Fell thru the ice covering the Sauk River up in Minnesota during winter when I was in 3rd grade. I thru my arms out to the side to catch the ice before I went under and drowned as the current swept me away. I climbed up onto the ice and slithered to the shore and walked home drenching in freezing water.

Same place, St Cloud Minn playing softball with the class. I was catching and standing behind the plate about 25 ft. Older kid swung and missed and let the bat fly. It smacked me right in the forehead. I remember lying on my back as blood filled my eyes and the teacher with her hand on my head. As a result I dont respond well to people who throw stuff like bats and golf clubs.

San Francisco - this was when the Zodiac killer was running around. I was in my early teens and my buddies and I were playing at the the new HS at night. The adults and older kids were up stairs at the gym. When we crossed the football field walking toward the gym we heard what sounded like insects striking the ground at high speeds nearby. Maybe 3-4 times we heard it before realizing someone was shooting at us. We ran up the stairs and could hear the bullets ricocheting off the concrete. We still weren't sure what happened but later learned adults leaving the gym that night reported being shot at too. I'm convinced it was Zodiac shooting at us.

Still in the Bay Area, about 17-18. Buddies and me were drunk and driving on the freeway in the east bay in my Gran Torino. We left the freeway on an off ramp that joined an on ramp for the same freeway. A car was coming up that ramp and didn't see us, I swerved left and somehow threaded the needle between them and the concrete wall to my left. That was a close call, the beer made me loose enough to avoid a wreck.

Came close to getting hit by lightning on the golf course a couple times and a tornado went right over us before touching down 2-3 miles away. The updraft was amazing. Getting close to using up my 9 lives.
 
Not my worst accident but should have been.

Cycling down a steep hill 2003 on the way to work.

Generally you can break 50-70kmh on a push bike. Around 6:30 in the morning. I normally use a light but I that day I didn't.

Car pulls out in front of me I'm going full speed. I remember the bang if the impact,next thing I know I'm on the side of the road wondering what happened and a young lady is panicking yelling out an I ok.

Of thing was barely even hurt except a banged up leg after rear ending the car. Had helmet on.

Best part was the lady I hit was a nurse on the way to hospital which was about 2 block s away.

Rest of the day off work, pain hit next day. Rang boss " good news bad news. I'm in hospital had a crash. Good news I hit a nurse".

Car me $600 odd bucks for repairs to car, paid bill more or less immediately and her insurance company knocked about $100 off for prompt payment.

So basically walked away from high speed impact on a push bike hitting a car and landing on concrete.
 
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Car pulls out in front of me I'm going full speed.

Something similar was the end of my volleybal career.
I was driving (only 25 km/hr) back to home from the pub late night in a rather narrow street with parked cars to the right and tram rails to the left and a parked car in front of me (no lights on) suddenly opened his door. I hit the door while it was roughly 30 degrees opened with my right knee. My knee (cap) versus that immovable car and car-door.

Going downhill on a bike is fun that compensates all the sweat to get uphill first :)
I had so many accidents and near-accidents from my biking holidays that I decided never to buy or drive a motor-bike. Speed was a too thrilling experience for me, better not done at really high speeds. In a car you are at least protected to some degree.
 
Car pulls out in front of me
...
Cat me $600 odd bucks for repairs to car,
Am I reading this right, she in a car pulled out in front of you on a push bike, and you paid for the damage to her car?
 
Am I reading this right, she in a car pulled out in front of you on a push bike, and you paid for the damage to her car?

Yes I didn't have my light switched on. She couldn't see me when she checked.
 
Not my worst accident but should have been.

Cycling down a steep hill 2003 on the way to work.

Generally you can break 50-70kmh on a push bike. Around 6:30 in the morning. I normally use a light but I that day I didn't.

Car pulls out in front of me I'm going full speed. I remember the bang if the impact,next thing I know I'm on the side of the road wondering what happened and a young lady is panicking yelling out an I ok.

Of thing was barely even hurt except a banged up leg after rear ending the car. Had helmet on.

Best part was the lady I hit was a nurse on the way to hospital which was about 2 block s away.

Rest of the day off work, pain hit next day. Rang boss " good news bad news. I'm in hospital had a crash. Good news I hit a nurse".

Car me $600 odd bucks for repairs to car, paid bill more or less immediately and her insurance company knocked about $100 off for prompt payment.

So basically walked away from high speed impact on a push bike hitting a car and landing on concrete.

Sounds like you were going down NZ's steepest street.

The only near death experience I seem to recall is nearly drowning in a river at about age 11 or 12 trying to grab a tennis ball that went into the river. Nearly got carried away by the current.

I have got another but I am not sure if it counts: on holiday at age 15 I went kayaking in the ocean with my brother off an island. We were going to head back to the island. My brother was able to get back, but I wasn't making the progress because I was slowly being dragged out to sea on the kayak. I wasn't in an immediate danger or risk of death per se, but I had to be rescued by a boat.
 
Sounds like you were going down NZ's steepest street.

The only near death experience I seem to recall is nearly drowning in a river at about age 11 or 12 trying to grab a tennis ball that went into the river. Nearly got carried away by the current.

I have got another but I am not sure if it counts: on holiday at age 15 I went kayaking in the ocean with my brother off an island. We were going to head back to the island. My brother was able to get back, but I wasn't making the progress because I was slowly being dragged out to sea on the kayak. I wasn't in an immediate danger or risk of death per se, but I had to be rescued by a boat.

NZs steepest street is the world's steppest street and its in my city.

But yeah downhill used to be able to pass traffic at 50kmh and friend hit 78 kmh on his mountain bike on that steepest street.

5:39 part about halfway up hill. There's a street on the right. Car pulled out.


World's steepest street for comparison.


Same city
 
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NZs steepest street is the world's steppest street and its in my city.

But yeah downhill used to be able to pass traffic at 50kmh and friend hit 78 kmh on his mountain bike on that steepest street.

just add some 30 kilo weight on your bike and you go already much faster downhill.
 
how did y'all in NZ do with the magnitude 8.1 quake?

I didn't notice it and didn't find out until early afternoon.

I'm in the south though.

They had small tidal surges up north. As far as I can work out I'm in the safest part of the country. Far away from known faultlines, high enough up to dodge tsunamis and no volcanos.


https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national...mi-threats-in-new-zealand-how-friday-unfolded

I missed everything. Jacindas swore on TV when asked about evacuations during Covid lockdown.
 
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Maybe I'm confusing him with the villain in Dirty Harry. A friend got a bit part in the movie as one of the kids Scorpio kidnapped on the school bus. The movie was loosely based on Zodiac, he made a habit of making threats and killing schoolkids was one of them. But his MO was not set in stone, maybe he threatened sniper attacks. His last known victim was a cabbie in late '69, the movie came out in '71 and our brush with death was maybe '73. But he did seem to like being close to the victim so sniper attacks would be a departure. Could have been a different guy shooting at us, someone inspired by both Zodiac and Scorpio.

or maybe Zodiac was inspired by Scorpio ;)
 
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