I crashed...

SO SORRY TO HEAR ABOUT YOUR CRASH. REST. I hope you feel better soon!!

Quoted post said:

Originally posted by bikeguy
Training on these narrow bike paths it can get hairy.. anyway I was coming around a bend and this guy was on the wrong side of the path with his buddy, riding side by side. I'm coming along, figure the guy will go in line, he doesn't, steers right in front of me.. I slam my brakes on and my back wheel lifts up.. and I find myself lying on the ground.. knocked out for maybe a few seconds to a minute. The guys stopped and called an ambulance.. I was bleeding from my left ear and I had definitely hit my head on the ground (I don't wear a helmet on the bike paths) and my left shoulder hurt big time. Ambulance comes+ police, and the police have my bike now. X-rays + tomography don't show brain damage or broken bones but I won't be riding for a few days at least, perhaps a week, my shoulder hurts a lot.

Probably going to get fined now by the police because I don't have a bell, I had just installed aero bars and was having a great time before my crash. Perhaps the new equipment contributed somehow to my accident. This is the worst crash I've had so far, hopefully my last.

Anyway, just wanted to say always wear a helmet when riding, you never know what might happen and take it easy when you have made modifications to your bike. I wish I had taken this advice on Thursday.

What city do you ride in? I'm curious because the bell requirement is a new one by me. I've seen people with these many times, but I didn't think any localities had made them legal requirements.

Lately, I haven't had much luck on the windy, tree lined bike paths myself either. I've had a couple of crashes, and many close calls. Of anywhere, I fear the bike path the most for getting into a crash. In addition, it seems that the runners often decide to stop and turn around unexpectedly and without looking to see if a bicycle is coming. Many of them wear earphones with music piped into their ears. They wouldn't hear a bell. Sometimes the earphones are kind of hard to see until you get very close.

Didn't the other guy get ticketed--the one that was on the wrong side of the bike path?

Quoted post said:

Originally posted by bikeguy
Training on these narrow bike paths it can get hairy.. anyway I was coming around a bend and this guy was on the wrong side of the path with his buddy, riding side by side. I'm coming along, figure the guy will go in line, he doesn't, steers right in front of me.. I slam my brakes on and my back wheel lifts up.. and I find myself lying on the ground.. knocked out for maybe a few seconds to a minute. The guys stopped and called an ambulance.. I was bleeding from my left ear and I had definitely hit my head on the ground (I don't wear a helmet on the bike paths) and my left shoulder hurt big time. Ambulance comes+ police, and the police have my bike now. X-rays + tomography don't show brain damage or broken bones but I won't be riding for a few days at least, perhaps a week, my shoulder hurts a lot.

Probably going to get fined now by the police because I don't have a bell, I had just installed aero bars and was having a great time before my crash. Perhaps the new equipment contributed somehow to my accident. This is the worst crash I've had so far, hopefully my last.

Anyway, just wanted to say always wear a helmet when riding, you never know what might happen and take it easy when you have made modifications to your bike. I wish I had taken this advice on Thursday.

I hope you get better soon, today i had a slight scratch, no where near as disasterous as yours....i came up to a kind'a isolated round-a-bout and BMW was there signaling wrong way so i didn't press the brakes and went round the corner and went through a small puddle and i guess you can kinda guess what happened next 🙁 i got two fair size cuts on my left elbow and my new aero bars have a large scratch on them on the front 🙁 (wasn't the first time i've used them 🙂 ) i managed to tuck my head in and rolled, could have bin worse...wasn't wearing a helmet 🙁 going to buy a new one soon, sooner the better.

Getting knocked out like that is serious -- at the least you have a concussion. This is familar stuff to me as I got a nasty one about 2 weeks ago when I crashed at a criterium (pedal hit ground, then I did). See your doctor if you get dizzy (like I am) and/or have trouble with memory, math, etc.

I hate the bike path for the same reasons. My wife, who is just starting out with clipless pedals, has it in her head that she should be riding on the path to get familiar. No!

If you had a BELL helmet on you would have been covered...

I'm going to be nasty here.... 😎

They didn't find any brain damage because people who crash and don't have a helmet on don't have a brain to start with.

😄

Seems like the bump to the head has knocked some sense into you....

Sorry to hear about your crash.......

I dread my first big crash.... I've only had a few small ones.... due to going too slow and being off balance...

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Feel better soon!

Hello,

Japanic, I was expecting somebody to say something like that. What can I say?

As regards laws, I'm living in Jyvaskyla, Finland right now, but in Toronto, Canada I was flagged down by an officer who was obviously out making sure cyclists were obeying traffic laws. I was riding at dusk without a light and I didn't have a bell, he said he could give me 3 tickets 1) for not having a forward facing light while riding at dusk/night 2) for not having a bell 3) for not having reflective strips on the side of my bicycle. He let me go with a warning after I told him I'd get all that stuff. In Finland, wearing a helmet is the law, but the police can't fine you for it (interesting, huh?) and as far as I know having a bell is required. We'll see what happens.

As for the other rider, I don't know if he got ticketed, I was hurting so much I wasn't paying attention. The police gave both of us a breathalyzer test, I was at zero and I'm sure the other guy was too. If I hadn't slammed my brakes on so hard, I would have missed the other guy, who ditched off the bike path (to the wrong side :-( ) and I wouldn't have gone up and over. Quite honestly, I am at fault somewhat because I was going too fast for that area. I think he didn't notice me coming and then just panicked.

I am going to be looking for another route to train on, there are some good bike paths outside this town that have long straightaways. I have had many close calls already in 4 weeks here, I almost collided with a roller blader and another cyclist, both who were on the wrong side or changing to the wrong side and I almost hit a teenage cyclist who drifted about 3 meters off to the side just as I passed him. I also had two cars turn right and I stopped and they stopped , the visibility between bike path and road is poor in places. There a lot of bike paths here in Jyvaskyla, so I'm sure I'll find something suitable, or I may just go on the road.

Thanks for the nice replies.

Quoted post said:

Thanks for the nice replies.

You're welcome!

😄

Ouch! I hope you feel better soon!

I read a study somewhere that has shown that there are many more accidents on bike paths than on the roads. Figures huh? I stay away from them entirely.

I'd also stay out of the aero bars on those paths and use them on the roads where you can get up a decent clip. Going slow in them will make you a little more tipsy than if you are just on the tops or in your drops.

I have been in quite a few crashes, from sprints to just my own plain out stupid mistakes. Sorry to hear that you were not wearing a helmet, this is what we call "one trial learning" in the K9 world...simply put you should have learned your lesson after this one!!!

:p Yes. Where i live helmets are required by law. And the bike paths around here are full of little kids.....no way to get a good ride on them unless you are just doing a recovery easy ride day.

I just did an easy 30 minute ride in my neighborhood w/o a helmet. I considered it but opted no to. It was a pleasant evening and a nice ride. But reading this thread, reinforces the helmet on every ride.

Doug

Bike path=amateur hour... I ride a skateboard too, and the same is true of skate parks,
If there is a lousy place to stop- someone will...that little bit of Murphy cost me my tailbone last year, but by god I was wearing a helmet...just wish it had been strapped to my butt!

I hate bike paths. The ones here in Hobart are great at 6:30 in the morning, when you can hurtle along an 50Km/h, but if you did that on the weekend, you'd be picking two year olds out of your spokes for hours.

I had a bad crash on the bike track a few years ago. I brushed the fence with my handle bars and did, what one witness said, was the best flip he'd ever seen. Dislocated shoulders hurt.

Take it easy man.

I feel like anyone using a carriageway, be it a road or a path, should be aware that they need to stay on the left (or right or whatever) and keep their eyes open.
Maybe it is just because I don't have any 2 year olds, but I think they should potter around in circles IN THEIR BACKYARD and not an a path where people do 50kph.