Cyclocross

http://www.flurl.com/featured/BIKE_CRASH_347.html

another view.....

Yeah, there's nothing funnier than someone getting hurt.

Tom Kunich said:

Yeah, there's nothing funnier than someone getting hurt.

That is correct. Just watch 'La guerre du feu'.

--
E. Dronkert

Ewoud Dronkert says...

Quoted message said:

Tom Kunich wrote:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Yeah, there's nothing funnier than someone getting hurt.

Quoted message said:

That is correct. Just watch 'La guerre du feu'.

You're both wrong. It's funnier when your rival gets hurt than when "someone"
does. As long as he/she doesn't get killed, that is...

In article <[email hidden]>,

Tom Kunich said:

Yeah, there's nothing funnier than someone getting hurt.

Well, as long as it's not me. Club-mate told this story after today's
race:

He and another rider were heading for the barriers side-by-side. My mate
rode hard to the barriers, and effectively sucked the other rider into
braking too late. The other rider fell down, and slid face-first into
the barriers.

Given that no ambulances were seen driving away from the park, we
laughed our asses off. Or as our club-mate put it, "hey, I guess that's
a tactic!"

"Tragedy is when I cut myself shaving. Comedy is when you fall down a
manhole and die."

Most cycling accidents, especially in cross, are walked-away episodes,
and those are funny. Here's a selection of recent accidents in local
racing. I'll explain which ones were funny. In all cases, at least some
pain was experienced.

-Club mate breaks his hip, a bit more than a year after having broken
the other hip. Not funny.

-Club mate busts up hand, plus numerous other injuries that effectively
end his season. Not funny.

-A coach riding a motorcycle in support of a race busts bloody
everything, putting him on crutches or worse for 6 months and counting.
Not funny.

-Club-mate in crash gets his frame trashed, but also somehow manages to
kick another rider's saddle off the bike. A bit funny.

-Club-mate wins prime, forgets to turn next corner, crashes into haybale
with no lingering injury. Damn funny, and he got a new nickname.

-During the local "Harris-Roubaix" race (early season roadrace with a
gravel section), I brainfade while the race is neutralized during a
crash on the course, and ride off the gravel and down a grass slope.
Really frigging funny.

-Same race, a rider hits a padded post after cooking a turn, and is
immortalized in epic photo:

http://descantes.com/2005/HarrisRoubaix/

Amusing, especially when you find out he was able to rejoin the race.

-Almost any clumsy barrier crossing at a cross race, at least where
nobody breaks anything: C'mon, you know you gotta laugh.

-Crashes caused by riders attempting crash-prone stunts (trials, BMX
dirt jump, freeriders, etc.) Funnier by implicit contract: a rider doing
this stuff has accepted the implicit high risk that they will berf.

So, in conclusion: minimal injury, goofy circumstances, and photo/video
evidence all contribute to funny. Serious injury, bike damage, and a
lack of witnesses (they usually tell the story better) all reduce funny.

Please save this guide for future reference, should you be confronted
with a bike crash and need to know if it's okay to laugh. As a rule of
thumb, use this phrase:

If they ride away, then laugh you may.

-RjC, winner, 2004 Escape Velocity Crash Award.

--
Ryan Cousineau [email hidden] http://www.wiredcola.com/
"I don't want kids who are thinking about going into mathematics
to think that they have to take drugs to succeed." -Paul Erdos

Ryan Cousineau said:

Most cycling accidents, especially in cross, are walked-away episodes,
and those are funny.

<snip>

I caught the last half of the UCI race at Alpenrose in Portland last weekend
and we were treated to great comedy at the end. Check out the course here:

http://www.crosscrusade.com/images/maps/2005/alpenrose.jpg

....and notice the configuration of the finish. Barriers in the infield and
then ~150 meters on the track to the finish. Well, the rain started when
everyone was on their last lap. Trebon and the 2nd and 3rd place guy had no
problem. Then Tim Johnson and McCormack entered the velodrome together and
we thought we might witness a nice sprint but as soon as Tim got on the
slightly-sloped pavement, his bike shot out from under him and he was
instantly on his ass. That was mildly amusing... for us anyway. But then, I
swear, each of the next 5 or 6 guys--finishing solo mind you--did the exact
same thing. The crowd's laughter grew with each successive biff. When a guy
finally made it through upright, he got a bigger cheer than the winner of
the race! Cross--your best entertainment value.

In article
<[email hidden]>,

Ryan Cousineau said:

-Club-mate wins prime, forgets to turn next corner, crashes into haybale
with no lingering injury. Damn funny, and he got a new nickname.

Ooohh, I'm keen to guess.
Gomer, Hayseed, Strawman, Weedwhacker, Whoa Horsey!
Got you're roughage today?

--
Michael Press

In article <[email hidden]>,

Michael Press said:

Got you're roughage today?

Oh dear, Grammar Police dude. We're going to have to tear off your shoulder
patches for that (heh).

--
tanx,
Howard

Butter is love.

remove YOUR SHOES to reply, ok?

In article
<[email hidden]

Quoted message said:

,

Howard Kveck said:

In article <[email hidden]>,

Michael Press said:

Got you're roughage today?

Oh dear, Grammar Police dude. We're going to have to tear off your shoulder
patches for that (heh).

Where's that context-sensitive, neural-net, spell-checker
when I need it? Out, drinking martinis with the net nanny.

--
Michael Press

In article <[email hidden]>,

Michael Press said:

In article
<[email hidden]>,

Ryan Cousineau said:

-Club-mate wins prime, forgets to turn next corner, crashes into haybale
with no lingering injury. Damn funny, and he got a new nickname.

Ooohh, I'm keen to guess.
Gomer, Hayseed, Strawman, Weedwhacker, Whoa Horsey!
Got you're roughage today?

Keep it simple: I call him Haybale. Holy moly does he hate it.

The bad part is he's faster than me.

--
Ryan Cousineau [email hidden] http://www.wiredcola.com/
"I don't want kids who are thinking about going into mathematics
to think that they have to take drugs to succeed." -Paul Erdos