Posted by Suzi on Friday, 12. February 1999 at 22:37 Bali Time:
In Reply to: motobycicle & helmets posted by Luc on Thursday, 11. February 1999 at 03:47 Bali Time:
My first day in Bali I saw a very nasty accident which involved a fast motorbike colliding with a slow motorbike. The guy who got hit lay by the side of the road screaming with what looked like a broken leg plus all his toesnails had come off because he was wearing sandals. The fast guy ended up in a ditch about 20 meters further on. Of course we stopped. The fast guy had very nasty cuts to his head and face (no helmet) plus it looked like he'd broken all the fingers on one hand which were bent backwards 90 degrees. He was very, very quiet which made me think he must be badly injured. My Balinese friend gave him some money and tried to persuade him to see a doctor. When he went back later to check he didn't think either of them had been seen by a doctor. The whole thing was horrific and I almost fainted. The most important thing is that however safe you are on a bike you can still be seriously injured by someone riding into the back of you. There are loads of 'obstacles' in the road and several of my Balinese friends had taken nasty falls on piles of gravel which leap out of nowhere.... If you do have an accident, even as a foreigner, don't expect a swish ambulance to appear out of nowhere to pick up the pieces.
What about renting a car?