A female motorcyclist struck from behind by a motorist who then fled the scene has a broken back and will have to learn to walk again.
Michelle Zoril, 21, of Golden, was thrown from her bike at about 1 a.m. Sunday as she was stopped for a red light at the intersection of U.S. 40 and U.S. 6 in Jefferson County.
Zoril underwent surgery at St. Anthony Central Hospital to repair broken vertebrae in her lower back.
“This is really difficult,” Zoril said Tuesday during a news conference. “I have to learn how to walk again.”
Zoril, an emergency medical technician, said she can now relate to the pain some of her patients feel.
“I have more of an understanding when a patient says that it really hurts,” Zoril said.
Zoril said she saw the car barreling down on her, but it happened quickly and she couldn’t get out of the way.
“I could only think for a second – I tried to brace myself for impact,” she said. “I do remember flying forward and hitting helmet-first.”
Witnesses described the vehicle, a white 2004 Chrysler Sebring, to State Patrol investigators, and the car’s front license plate fell off at the scene.
Investigators were still trying to locate the suspected driver, said Trooper Ryan Sullivan, a patrol spokesman. The car had not been reported stolen.
“We do have some good leads in the case,” he said.
Zoril said she can’t understand how the driver left.
“I’m angry,” Zoril said. “I feel more hurt than anything else. I couldn’t even get up.”
