A TAUNTON man has told how his cycle to work turned into a nightmare when his bike hit a pothole in Station Road.

Martin Salter was on his way to Musgrove Park Hospital where he works as a theatre assistant when he suddenly found himself flying over the handlebars at the junction with Priory Bridge Road.

He suffered various fractures and his £1,500 bike was a write-off.

Martin, 42, said: “I cycle that route every day without any problems but on this occasion I pulled out to overtake a car and hit this really bad pothole.

“All of a sudden the bike went down. I landed on the handlebars really hard and crashed onto the road.

“I found myself crawling around in the middle of the road unable to breath. It was so bad I though I had punctured my lung.

“I was also scared of getting run over because none of the cars were stopping but I managed to get to the side to the road where I collapsed in a lot of pain.

“I’m really grateful to the staff from the Royal Ashton and Ralph Colman cycles who looked after me until the ambulance came.”

Martin, who lives in Priorswood, fractured two ribs, a finger on his right hand and a bone in his left wrist. He will be off work for six weeks.

The pothole was filled in by Somerset County Council a couple of hours after the accident.