BANFF – A Banff cyclist who ended up in emergency surgery in a Calgary hospital in April after being knocked off his bike by an off-leash dog is asking locals to keep their pets on leash.
Bob Krysak also hopes to share the story of his experience last month with the community in hopes that more adults will also choose to wear a helmet when taking to two-wheels.
"I really think it is important that people in the Bow Valley and everywhere put their dogs on a leash," Krysak said. "But I also think it is really important for people to wear a helmet.
"My helmet was broken in eight places and I ended getting a compound fracture in my arm and it all could have been prevented if people had not had their dog walking free."
Krysak is an avid cyclist. He has travelled on his bike long distances including from Banff to Vancouver, and regularly between the mountain town and Calgary.
He was on the closed portion of Tunnel Mountain Road on April 21 around 5 p.m. when he noticed a family also walking along the roadway. The man, woman and two children, one in a stroller, also had a medium-sized black dog with them. They were on one side of the roadway as Krysak approached on the other.
"As I approached them, and I was going about 45 km an hour, their dog bolted from behind the carriage, ran right at me and we collided," he said.
"From what I could tell, it was probably a year old, full of energy and excitable. I love dogs, but at that age they are also harder to control."
Krysak said luckily he did not crash off the edge of the road, however he was left with a mild concussion, bruised ribs and a fracture to his right distal humerus. He waited 40 minutes lying on the roadway until an ambulance came. He ended up in Calgary that night for a five-hour emergency surgery and returned home to Banff two days later.
"I have been on bikes a lot and it is always interesting, the things that can happen and that is why you have to be careful and smart," he said.
"I guess what is frustrating for me is that so many people go walking with dogs off-leash and do not think about the consequences."
With the COVID-19 pandemic affecting everyone in the community, Krysak said it is important for people to get outside and exercise. However, he said there is a responsibility for everyone recreating outdoors to do so in a way that does not harm others.
"For our sanity, we need to get outside and we are lucky to live in the mountains," he said. "But again, there is a responsibility to that.
"We have to all be aware of what we are doing and how we are doing it."
Having witnessed numerous Banff residents going out on bike rides recently without wearing a bike helmet, Krysak said he hopes his story will also convince more people to wear them.
"I truly feel that if I was not wearing my helmet, I would be dead right now," he said.
A visual artist, Krysak is now learning to paint with his left hand.
While he did not file a complaint with the Town of Banff bylaw services, or Parks Canada, with respect to the incident, both government agencies actively enforce leash regulations inside the municipality and the national park.
- RELATED: Off-leash dogs attack deer
According to Parks Canada's website, dogs should be leashed and under control at all times while within the national park, including the Banff townsite.
Off-leash dogs don't just pose a risk to others recreating outdoors, but they can also put wildlife at risk. Disturbing wildlife in a national park is an offence under the Canada National Parks Act with a maximum fine amount of $25,000.
Off-leash dogs can be reported to Parks Canada Banff dispatch at 403-762-1470.
