Bicyclist survives collision with car.

Byline: The Register-Guard

A helmet helped saved the life of a Eugene bicyclist involved in a collision with a car Tuesday morning.

The cyclist, 49-year-old Mary Linda Unruh, was in fair condition with head and neck injuries at Sacred Heart Medical Center in Eugene. She was struck at 7:55 a.m. in the intersection of Hilyard Street and East 18th Avenue by a car making a left turn, Eugene police said.

The driver of the car, Karen Jo Schell, 60, of Eugene, was cited for failing to yield to a bicycle in a bicycle lane, police said. She was not injured.

The first officers to arrive at the crash scene were surprised that the bicyclist's injuries were not more severe, police said. Pieces of her helmet were found scattered across the intersection.

On Saturday, a Eugene cyclist was killed while riding downhill on Willow Creek Road without a helmet. Stephen James Furse, 57, missed a turn, struck a fence post and died at the scene.

And on June 27, Gene Wilkinson, 70, of Eugene, died from injuries he suffered a week earlier when a darting squirrel became tangled in his bicycle spokes and threw him from his bike. The helmet he wore could not protect him from the neck and spinal injuries that took his life.

Police urged all bike riders to wear helmets - not just children under 16 who are required to do so by law.