Father-of-four Denis Shields - being placed onto the stretcher, above - has said he feels lucky to be alive after he was hit from behind by a car while on a training ride with four others in Donegal on Saturday. His recollection of events is quite shocking.
By Brian Canty
The man who took the full force of the vehicle that hit a group of club riders from behind while they were out training in Co Donegal on Saturday has spoken about the horror that unfolded.
Father of four Denis Shields (46) was hit by a car on the N56 road at Kilmecreddan at 9.05am and he believes he’s lucky not to be paralysed, or worse.
- Photos show scene of carnage after car hit club training ride
- Two cyclists in hospital after car crashes into club training ride
“We just got cleaned from behind,” was his blunt assessment of how his group of four training partners and himself were hit hard by a car travelling in the same direction.
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“We left Letterkenny at 8am and it was five past nine when the incident happened.
“I was at the back and I remember it like a dream. I remember being up in the air and then hearing skidmarks and going ‘what the fuck’… I remember nothing after that.
“I came down and shattered the windscreen of the car and I was then stretchered to hospital when the ambulance crews arrived.
“I was unconscious for 10 minutes so I don’t recall what happened here, though my bike was shattered.
Denis Shields in IronMan mode. His recall of Saturday's crash is frightening but hopefully we will see him back on the road when he recovers. We wish him and his family well, especially considering his wife came upon the scene ferrying their children to sports events on Saturday morning.
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“I didn’t break anything but I’m sore all over today,” the Donegal man continued.
“I remember waking up after the accident and Sean (McFadden) holding me telling me not to move.
“My first reaction as ‘I’m not fucking paralysed here’ but I couldn’t breathe; it was like someone had their foot on my chest.
“I couldn’t feel anything; I had pain between my shoulder blades. I remember thinking ‘No, I’m not in a wheelchair’.”
Publisher's note: The photos used by stickybottle of Saturday’s crash have been sourced from the riders involved and are published here with permission.
Shields has kids aged 11, 9, 7 and 3 and his wife got the shock of her life when she came on the scene as she was taking one of their children to GAA training.
“It was scary thinking I was paralysed,” said Shields.
“I thought ‘I’ve 4 kids and I’m in a wheelchair’… that’s the first thing I thought about.
“My wife is a GP and she came on the scene then but by then I was coming around, thankfully.”
The scene of the incident is one he reckons will stay with him for a while.
“I remember turning my head to the side and seeing all the guys scattered on the road, bodies everywhere.
“I’ve to go to Dublin now for an MRI, my rotator cuff could be shattered; I can’t lift my left arm, my neck’s sore, my shoulder blades are sore. It took me a while to get up out of bed today.
“The thing about it all is, I wouldn’t be that good (at cycling) but the guys I was with are and we were lined out like we should be, 2-2-1,” he said in reference how they rode two abreast.
“Whenever any car came we singled out and I remember before the accident there were cars passing and they were all beeping at us to say thanks.
“That was about 20 minutes before the accident happened.”
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