WEST TOWN — A fight between a cyclist and a motorist on Chicago Avenue in West Town turned ugly when the rider hurled a rock through the driver's window before speeding off, according to officials and the driver.
The clash unfolded around 7:40 p.m. July 6 in the 2300 block of West Chicago Avenue, according to a law enforcement source.
Kevin Wallace, 54, was driving his 2013 BMW westbound on Chicago Avenue when he stopped at a red light next to a CTA bus that was picking up passengers, according to Wallace and the source.
A cyclist then approached the intersection, weaving through traffic between the BMW and the bus before scraping the side of the BMW.
"Trying to squeeze between a bus and my car when there's two feet or less is not smart on a bike," said Wallace, who grew up in the city but now commutes from his Near West Suburban home to his job at a Downtown dental office.
Wallace rolled down his window to get the cyclist's information for insurance purposes, but the cyclist sped off while shouting obscenities, according to Wallace.
When the two reached the 3000 block of West Chicago Avenue, the cyclist "snuck up behind" the BMW and hurled a rock through the passenger side front window, breaking the glass, before speeding off again, according to Wallace and the source.
"I was amazed I was alive," said Wallace, who thought the rock was a gun at first.
"The glass shattered in my face. The rock just missed my head. Everything was in a whirl after that," he added.
Wallace called 911, but ended up waiting more than 30 minutes for police to arrive before giving up and heading directly to the Grand Central Police District station to file a report, he said.
Wallace said the cyclist caused about $1,500 in damage to his car.
Police have yet to make an arrest in the case, which it called an "ongoing investigation."
The cyclist is described as a white or Hispanic man with brown hair and brown eyes, between 20 and 30 years old, between 5-foot-10 and 6-feet-tall and weighing between 180 and 190 lbs. He was wearing a white T-shirt, blue jeans and a tan baseball hat.
Wallace said he doesn't plan on changing the way he navigates the city.
"I'm not going to be doing anything differently because I didn't do anything wrong," he said. "These guys that are on their bikes are taking up the road. I'm a biker myself. I ride in the city all the time. I'm sick and tired of these guys taking up the lanes when you're trying to get past them."
