PHOENIX — Honking, obscene gestures, aggressive driving, and more can all be the result of road rage. In 2023 in Arizona, nearly 1,000 crashes were the result of road rage.
One Valley bicyclist says he was a victim of road rage, believing he was intentionally hit by a driver on Bell Road near 21st Street early into the new year.
Barry Hammond was riding his bike home from his job and ended up getting a ride to the hospital instead.
"I remember hearing my (ankle) bone break," Hammond said.
He says on January 2 as he was going by a QuikTrip gas station, a driver pulled out and almost hit him.
"I kind of stuck my hand out and slapped the trunk of his car to say, 'hey, I'm here,'" Hammond said.
He says after that interaction, the driver started following him down the road as he was riding on the sidewalk.
"He kept speeding up and slowing down. He wanted me to know he was following," Hammond said. "As soon as I entered 21st Street, that's when he gunned it and hit me."
According to the police report, officers saw a scuff mark on the curb where they say the driver had tried to run over Hammond, along with blood spatter from the injury to his ankle.
"All I saw is my daughter," Hammond said. "That's all I could think about after I was on the ground."
Further in the report, it says a witness saw the driver hit Barry and followed the car. The driver was arrested and indicted on charges of assault with a deadly weapon. He is pleading not guilty.
Hammond hasn't been home since the incident. He's been in and out of the hospital and rehab centers as the broken ankle is requiring two surgeries to fix. Hammond says while in the long term he is expected to recover, and can keep his job, the short-term bills are piling up.
"Rent gotta be paid, electric gotta be paid. There's things I have to do," Hammond said.
He also needs a new bike.
A friend started an online fundraiser for Hammond, who says many of the people who have donated are strangers.
It's a sign to him that despite what happened, there's more good than bad here in the Valley.
"It makes me appreciate these acts of kindness. When I see it happen to me like this in this a direct way, from complete strangers, it's reassuring," Hammond said. "Very reassuring."
To go to that fundraiser, click here.