A motorcycle driver is recovering in hospital, days after he was struck by a vehicle at an intersection in downtown Williams Lake.
Ken Waslen was the motorcyclist involved and spoke to Black Press Media from his hospital bed, where he has been since the incident on Tuesday morning.
Waslen said from what he remembers he was heading down Oliver Street towards Mackenzie Avenue and recalls entering the intersection on a green light and as he did so, a truck turned left in front of his motorcycle and into him.
“I saw it and knew it was coming and I couldn’t do anything about it,” he said of the collision.
He came into contact with the front bumper of the truck, sustaining a broken leg, lacerations and contusions.
With two sets of stitches and a partial cast, Waslen has been undergoing treatment in Williams Lake at the Cariboo Memorial Hospital.
Waslen explained how an underlying medical condition which causes his muscles to swell is complicating the treatment of the injuries and making it difficult to cast the leg.
He hopes he can be home from the hospital on the weekend, though he may not be able to return to work for some time.
Waslen had just returned to work after four months without work since having to close his own business.
He said he has been riding motorcycles for 40 years now, and said he has had a few close calls over the years.
“The turning left is the bane of motorcyclists,” he said, noting he hopes during motorcycle season people will keep a look out for vulnerable road users and take precautions around them.
He recounted an incident recently when a driver passed him on a double solid line on the bottom of a hill on a blind corner, where he would have had nowhere to go if anything happened.
“You’re so vulnerable on a bike,” he said.
Despite the hazards, he still hopes to return to riding a motorcycle, though he expects it to take time to do so.
Waslen has been an active volunteer and served as president and vice president of Thunder Mountain Speedway.
Williams Lake RCMP said they responded to a motor vehicle collision at Oliver Street and Second Avenue on Sept. 19.
Police said impairment by drugs and alcohol is not believed to have been a factor in the incident and no one else was injured in the collision.
Anyone with information related to the incident can contact the Williams Lake RCMP at 250-392-6211.
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