Posted on 01/16/2006 3:27:57 AM PST by beaversmom
ROGERSVILLE - The mother of a Rogersville boy who was injured in an accident last year on a new bicycle has filed a $900,000 lawsuit against the bike manufacturer and Wal-Mart, where the bike was purchased.
Elizabeth Burton, 625 S. Armstrong St., Rogersville, is the mother of Eric Burton, who was injured in an accident on Jan. 9, 2005. The boy's sister had received the Roadmaster Mountain Sport bicycle as a Christmas present from their father.
According to the lawsuit filed on behalf of the Burtons by Morristown attorney Gary E. Brewer, on Jan. 9 of last year Eric Burton was riding his sister's new bike on South Armstrong Street, but as he approached the Broadway Street intersection the brakes failed.
The bike didn't stop and continued onto Broadway Street into the path of an oncoming vehicle which had the right of way, the lawsuit alleges. The lawsuit further contends that as a result of the accident Eric Burton was severely injured, was hospitalized and will undergo continuing medical treatment.
Aside from Wal-Mart, the other defendants in the lawsuit include Pacific Cycle, Inc., based in Wilmington, Del., as well as its parent company Dorel Juvenile Group, Inc., which is to be served with the lawsuit in Columbus, Ind.
The lawsuit alleges that Pacific Cycle manufactured the bicycle in a defective condition, making it unsafe. The lawsuit also alleges that Wal-Mart assembled the bicycle.
"The defendant (Wal-Mart) assembled and sold the bicycle in an unsafe condition and design when they knew or should have known by the exercise of ordinary care that the bicycle would be subject to failure," the lawsuit alleges.
The lawsuit seeks $750,000 for injuries and damages and another $150,000 for medical expenses. The defendants have 30 days from the Jan. 6 filing date of the lawsuit to either file a response or seek a time extension.
As a bicyclist, I won't shed a tear if Pacific cycles goes belly up. The stuff they sell is crap. They even bought Schwinn, a formerlly great American bike and started badging ever more crap with the Schwinn name. It's not criminal, but it should be.
Pacific is the manufacturer. The factory itself might happen to be in China, but it's owned by Pacific.
Exactly. The pedals and shoes for any of my bicyles costs more than a Wal-Mart special, and the difference is that I can count on my bikes to not fail me in an intersection.
You have got to be kidding. I can't imagine that providing much stopping power. My full-suspension mountain bike has hydrolic disc-brakes with 6" rotors. Even GOOD v-brakes that cost more than any Wal-Mart bicycle by themselves aren't sufficient for some applications.
That was worth repeating in bold. Truer words were never spoken.
It would be doing the country a favor if Wal-Mart quit selling the crap they sell as bicycles.
Most parents don't have a clue as to how to inspect a bicycle. Most cyclists aren't particularly good at it either. That's how bicycle shops get away with charging $100 for tune ups.
I plan on riding the Hotter 'N Hell 100 this year. While I'm first and foremost a mountain biker, I've made it a goal to ride a century this year.
You know, I've often wondered why bike shops don't attack the "one size fits all" department/toy store philosophy. Most people don't even know that real bicycles come in different sizes.
If you love your grandaughter at all, you won't let her actually mountain bike on a cheapie bike. They're suitable (barely) for slow neighborhood crawls, but off-road they're accidents waiting to happen, and mountain bike accidents can be painful and crippling.
You're correct. Schwinn is now just a badge to slap on complete junk.
Exactly. I have a 49cm Lemond Reno, a 13" Gary Fisher Hoo Koo E Koo and a 13" Gary Fisher Cake. Each bike fits me like an absolute glove.
That was my thought, too. I don't know the particulars, but if I'm buying a bicycle for my kid, I'm going to check it thoroughly before I let my kid ride it. Especially if it was assembled by someone at a discount store.
There was nothing decent about those bikes for $75. $300 minimum for the most rudimentary, entry level, hard tail mountain bike. That's the absolute minimum for any off-road use. Anything less and your risk of bodily injury goes through the roof. My tires alone cost more than those bikes.
I don't want to pay $400 for the same bicycle from some little bike shop
And you won't. Even the cheapest bikes in the bike shop have vastly superior components and frames than the department/toy store bikes.
What really torques me off are the mountain (looking) bikes sold in department/toy stores with tiny print stickers that read, "Not for off-road use". You have no idea how many idiots we see every month that have hurt themselves seriously on these bicycles attempting to navigate off-road trails.
If you're going to crawl around the block at 6mph, then maybe a department store bike will be ok, but that's about the absolutely limit of usage.
If I could figure out how to true rims with straight pull spokes, I'd save myself enough cash every year to take a cruise. That or I need to ditch the XC wheels and just buy a set of Rhyno-Lites and be done with it.
If they're that sensitive, I'm willing to bet that you have mechanical disc brakes. I just upgraded to Hayes Hyrdolics and man, the difference is amazing. You can really modulate the hydrolics without any fear of over braking...unless you really want to over brake, then the power is definately there.
That's the beauty of quality. The better the bike, more likely it will survive a crash. Get a kid something like a Specialized P3 or a Fisher Mullet and you have a bike that will survive the wrecks your kids don't.
Well said. The best part about my new bike is the sticker that says "HAND BUILT IN THE USA".
The coaster brake is the worst invention ever. V-Brakes and disc brakes (both hand brakes as you call them) are superior in every way imaginable.
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