Kevin Meagher said he was cycling home from work along the American River Parkway bike trail Wednesday when he was attacked by another man on a bike.

“The guy was riding the opposite direction and when he was about five feet away from me I saw he was holding something and then he threw a rock side-arm at me,” Meagher said, just days after being released from the hospital.

Despite the painful blow to his side, Meagher said he kept riding as long as he could, worried he was being chased.

“I started having breathing problems so I had to stop on the side of the road and some people stopped to help me and stayed with me,” Meagher said.

He didn’t recognize the man, but believes he was homeless. The unprovoked attack left him in the hospital for two days, unable to go back to work.

“I had a collapsed lung so I had to have a tube put into my chest for a couple of days,” Meagher said.

The incident happened near Del Paso Boulevard, not far from Interstate 80. Meagher said the rock he was hit with was as large as the man’s hand.

“I couldn’t see his fingers underneath the rock,” Meagher said. “It’s shocking. I don’t know why anyone would ever do that.”

Other cyclists along the bike trail expressed concern, especially because park rangers said Meagher isn’t the only person to have rocks thrown at him while biking here.

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