Oh no poor little guy! I hope he has a speedy recovery!

Some people are arseholes.

I hope they catch that bastard!!!

Those people do suck!

Oh yeah, when I got hit by a car a couple years ago I was also badly bruised--a coworker brought me arnica gel and caplets. No idea if they helped, but the gel felt nice going on and the caplets tasted like sugar. So maybe worth getting? I'm sure you're taking good care of him and pampering him like crazy, which is really all I wanted when it happened to me.

That is terrifying. Poor kid, and poor both of you! You must be freaked as hell. So glad he's okay.

My nightmare is hitting someone on a bike. I get incredibly anxious when passing a rider and try to give as much room as the lane allows.

I hope he heals soon.

Just happened last week to a friend of mine who ended up with a broken clavicle for his troubles. The ass hat who hit him tried to drive off but the car behind him turned out to be an undercover cop car. So, busted.

But my friend is forty and can take care of himself, hitting a ten year old and driving off is despicable. How do people live with themselves?

That's awful, rhapsodie. Hope he heals up soon. Those bastards.

I hate that we're on the other side of the country from him, we can't do much to help but call and worry. What can we send him to let him know we care and help his recovery be, if not quicker, then more fun?

:(

Riding on the side of the road is one of the most dangerous ways to ride, because it basically invites a car to pass in the same lane. If you're going to ride in the road, it's usually better to ride all the way out in the lane so any motorist that wants to pass you knows that a full lane change is required. When they try to squeeze by in the same lane, there is very little room for error.

That said, it doesn't excuse ANY motorist who hits a bicycle; it is incumbent on the overtaking vehicle to do so safely.

I'm so sorry, rhapsodie.

Argh, that's awful. I am sorry to hear it. Anybody who hits a KID and flees the scene deserves punishment too dire to detail in public. Is there any evidence of paint scraped from the car? People have tracked down and prosecuted hit & run bicycle accidents based on nothing more than "silver, maybe BMW" and then calling every bodyshop in a 50 mile radius to ask about silver cars with minor front-end damage. Any chance there were security cameras in nearby buildings?

When the time is right - perhaps a new bicycle and snazzy helmet might be appropriate? (a reminder about the helmet I hope he was wearing - helmets are single-use. replace it, even if it "looks fine" (which I'm guessing it doesn't.)) Even if his last bike is salvageable, it may have bad memories tied to it. And it would certainly be a shame for a kid to give up cycling over something like this... although it would be understandable.

Tangentially - I know it's a non-starter for a 10 year old, but as a middle-age adult I've become quite fond of my hi-viz safety jacket. I bought it 9 months ago for commuting when the days were short, but I now feel naked riding without it. It may be in my head, but I feel like cars give me more leeway, and I figure if nothing else, the cops & paramedics who cut it off of me will know that I wasn't one of those reckless scofflaws, and might actually investigate the accident.

that is the worst thing I've heard today. I'm so sorry rhapsodie, and I am so glad he'll be okay.

A day-glo jacket isn't a bad idea, they can look quite cool with the cuts and grey stripes. Seconding snazzy new helmet.

Triode, you're so on the money - hitting a kid who falls into a ditch and passes out is GRAR/&!%&%/&# awful. Police should look for that idiot-driver. What if he had needed (immediate) help? Awful! I'm so sorry. Hope they track this &%€€%#€-ER down!

Or, what Triode said.

God, I'm glad he's okay!

I know it's not much of a consolation, but that karma right there were boomerang on the driver something fierce, I promise.

Damn. Best of luck to him. Worst of luck to the driver.

Wow. Just WOW. Seriously, what is wrong with people? Ugh.

I hope he heals quickly and that this accident quickly leaves his mind and doesn't start him on a path of not wanting to go for bike rides and/or a path towards hating people. (Even though, yes, people clearly suck.)

Hugs to all involved because that is just craptacular.

I was hit by a bus once (it was ok, the last part of a long accordion-bus swerved due to a bump and hit my handle, I flew over my handles and landed on a parked porche, first thing I checked was "uh-oh, did I scratch it?" - no damage to me at all but the bike's front wheel turned into an eight). It wasn't until I got home that I started shaking and was suddenly really pale, mom had me sit down and interrogated me on what happened. She reported the bus driver etc. It was months until I dare ride again, and even still, I get skittish when I hear a bus approaching behind me. I hope your fiancé's son dares to bike again, it wasn't his fault, and I hope he heals well. I also hope that driver rams into a tree. It's like when you fall off a horse, he needs to get up on the bike again, so that he doesn't get permanently scared off. Don't fret when he does.

*hugs Valette and Robotkarateman*
I'm so sorry. That's just awful... :(

I'm glad he's OK, but I'm sure he's shaken up. My husband was hit by a car around that same age (walking, I think) and 30 years later he's still extra paranoid about crossing streets (he's not skittish in general).

I'm really sorry to hear about this.

Ugh, people DO suck.

A 10-year old kid? DRIVING AWAY AND LEAVING HIM IN A DITCH??? What the hell is wrong with people?

I am so sorry, I hope he's ok. That's gotta be so scary. I get shaken up just getting buzzed on my bike by cars that pass too close.

What kind of person doesn't pay attention, hits a little boy, and then drives off leaving him in the ditch for dead?

Generally, someone who expects to go to jail for it.

I am glad he's OK.

I was sort of rear-ended a couple months ago, completely my fault. Was listening to my ipod and drifted out a bit. . .the side mirror of a truck hooked me and doubled my speed. I was able to disengage and coast to a stop (and signal to the driver, "my bad").

It was not until it was over that I realized how injured I could have gotten.

I did not notice whether you said it was daylight or not, or whether he had a light on his helmet or his bike.

Oh, rhapsodie, what terrifying, enraging news --- I'm so sorry, and so relieved to hear he's okay. Still, it's scary and upsetting and...

I'm so glad to hear he's okay. When I was hit by a car, it took me a long time to find the emotional space to be angry about what had happened. Being angry turned out to be an important step in recovering. You might let him know it's okay to be angry, that he doesn't have to act on the feeling but that feeling it is not bad.

I hate that we're on the other side of the country from him, we can't do much to help but call and worry. What can we send him to let him know we care and help his recovery be, if not quicker, then more fun?

The bike-related things above are good, and he'll certainly need a new helmet. If you do give him reflective items, be sure he knows that no one thinks it's his fault he was in the accident, that they're just one more way to make him safer.

It might be good to send him stuff that is totally unrelated to the accident or biking, too, just little things that he can toy with during his recovery. Okay, just brainstorming here based on stuff my same-age nephews like; obviously you know his interests better:
- a book of (or even some links to) dollar bill origami instructions, and a stack of dollar bills
- a roll of duct tape and a tutorial for making a duct-tape wallet
- maybe a novel board game or two-player game he can use to entice friends over (if he's likely to be housebound or sedentary for a bit); bonus points if you think of one he can play on his own, too.
- a deck of cards, a wooden top, a yoyo --- anything he can play with on his own. Especially good would be one of these with a book teaching him how to master it, e.g., cards and a book on card tricks, a yoyo and a book on yoyo tricks.

And as someone who's been there:
- disposable ice packs for his bruises --- probably even better for a child than for an adult; at least I don't get in trouble when I lose a re-usable ice pack!

How awful. I am glad that the boy will be okay and hope they somehow catch that driver and throw him or her in jail for years on end.

What can we send him to let him know we care and help his recovery be, if not quicker, then more fun?

Comics. As he is a child of the digital age, this might be an opportunity to get him interested in printed media.

Oh, and I meant to add, I'm really sorry to hear about this, too. What a shitty thing for that driver to do. I can't imagine what kind of stone-hearted person could leave a child - or anyone for that matter - lying in a ditch, not knowing if they were alive or dead.

I'm glad he's going to be okay, rhapsodie. Big hugs to you and your fiancé.

I can't imagine how someone can just drive away. Fuckers!

Thanks for the great ideas and the group GRAR, it's all very helpful!

He went to the orthopedic today and his knee isn't broken, but his elbow might be. When we called he couldn't talk because he was outside playing basketball. Yeah, the boy will be alright.

because he was outside playing basketball.

rhapsodie, that's the best thing I've heard all day! Thanks for sharing it!

Belated GRAR! I do hope this scumbag gets caught. But, woohoo for basketball!