The Dundee victim of a hit and run accident has appealed to members of the public to come forward and help police to trace the driver who struck him.
Philip Gibson was knocked from his bike at a busy city junction last Wednesday evening.
Mr Gibson (64), a keen cyclist who regularly enters organised events, was making his way home from the gym when he was struck by a vehicle at the Strathmartine Road roundabout on the Kingsway at around 7.30pm.
The plant operator was thrown from his bike, falling unconscious temporarily, with the driver of the vehicle said to have left the scene.
Although lucky to have avoided serious injury, Mr Gibson is keen for the person driving the car to be traced, with the police also hunting the culprit.
At his home yesterday he told The Courier: ”I was cycling back from the gym where I had been at a spinning class. As I approached the roundabout I checked the road and it was clear.
“As I continued across I noticed a car and he must have hit the back of me as the bike spun round. I hit my head and I was knocked out, just for a few seconds though.”
A passing motorist called the police to pass on details of the car, which is said to have been grey.
It is understood that the vehicle stopped for just a few seconds at the opposite side of the roundabout from where Mr Gibson was lying before driving off.
By chance an ambulance was passing the scene and the crew stopped to provide treatment before taking him to the accident and emergency unit at Ninewells Hospital.
X-rays determined that Mr Gibson’s injuries were restricted to scratches and bruising, although his bike is said to be beyond repair.
His crash helmet will also need to be replaced, with large scratches marking where Mr Gibson’s head hit the asphalt and the foam compound having ruptured, such was the force of the impact.
Without it, however, Mr Gibson would surely have sustained serious, if not life-threatening injuries.
Although determined to get back on two wheels as soon as possible, Mr Gibson has appealed to anyone with information about the incident to come forward to prevent a similar ordeal from happening to anyone else.
He also paid tribute to the people who had helped him in the aftermath of the incident, praising them for their generosity and assistance.
”The bike I was on was the one I used to get to work and back,” he added. ”If it had been my other bike, my racing bike, then it would have been a lot worse.
”I did feel angry afterwards. Somebody must have seen the point of impact and it’s against the law to leave the scene of a crime.
”I would also really like to say thank you to the people who stopped and waited with me.”
Police confirmed that a full investigation into the collision is under way.