Riding on this second-hand bike one day I smashed the brake - my speed was too high, or the corner was too sharp, whichever way tou want to look at it, but anyway, I went right through. That was the day I decided I'd rather mourn the loss of a $600 bike being stolen within two weeks, than being crippled for life by a bike-doesn't-squeeze-out-in-time-before-approaching-car accident.
I've been safer on the road since, much more comfortable, and my bike has survived two years without being stolen or smashed to pieces - quite lucky. No hurry to buy a car yet.
I'll be looking at a recumbent bike tomorrow.