The effects of a bicycle accident were immediate and lasting.

The bike ride was nothing out of the ordinary. It was a typical dusk on a typically wet January day in Oregon, with dark falling. But then, suddenly, the truck in front of me made a U-turn, causing me to swerve out of its way. The vehicle's lights blinded me. In the next moment my entire life changed.

I hit the aluminum road barricade, tumbling head- and face-first. My head snapped backward in contrecoup whiplash. I was lying on the ground in my own blood, with a badly lacerated nose, lip, and chin.