Interesting crash

"Daniel Auger" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I've just had an interesting experience after my right handlebar grip came off in my hand and my
cycle "jack-knifed" quite spectacularly.

Such occurences are fortunately rare, but I imagine they will happen once in a while. How do more
experienced people than myself prepare for and deal with similar hazards? Obviously, having a
well-maintained bike helps, but are there any manouvres one should practice for when the
unexpected does occur?

Bicycle now repaired in such a maner as will prevent similar events in future. Perhaps elbow and
knee guards should be mandatory for cyclists? ;-)

--
Daniel Auger - [email hidden] (Please remove Granta to get a valid address.)

Nasty. Something like that happens in a split second so if you're going to fall you're
going to fall.

Grips should be pretty tight on your bars. I put mine on with hairspray which is nice and slippy
when wet but keeps those grips on tight (so tight that they're buggers to get off when you need to
remove them).

I've had a couple of nasty spills. You can't plan for them at all but you can prevent the odds of
them happening by observing some rules. When on the road your chances of being in an accident
increase several fold at roundabouts and junctions. I ride with an imaginary gauge in my head that
indicates accident probabiltiy as I go along. This helps you assess the risk as you ride.

Catastrophic mechanical failures you can help prevent by inspecting your bike before you ride.

"Daniel Auger" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I've just had an interesting experience after my right handlebar grip came off in my hand and my
cycle "jack-knifed" quite spectacularly.

I use bar ends - little cut down ones that stop my hands coming off the bars on fast and bumpy
downhill bits.

John

Here's a question about crashes: over the last three winters I've had several spills - ice patches,
wet leaves, etc. I've noticed that every single time I've fallen, I've falled to the left. That is,
my wheels have slipped out to the right and I've fallen on my left side. Is this just co- incidence
(a priori probability of 5 successive crashes in this direction is less than 1 in 30), or is there
something non-obvious about bikes that would make this direction of fall more likely to happen?

For the record, I don't have one buttock larger than the other or anything...

Ian

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Ian Walker Remove the yummy paste in my address to reply. Homepage: drianwalker.comdrianwalker.comOpen ↗

Ian Walker said:

Here's a question about crashes: over the last three winters I've had several spills - ice
patches, wet leaves, etc. I've noticed that every single time I've fallen, I've falled to the
left. That is, my wheels have slipped out to the right and I've fallen on my left side. Is this
just co- incidence (a priori probability of 5 successive crashes in this direction is less than 1
in 30), or is there something non-obvious about bikes that would make this direction of fall more
likely to happen?

It's probably often the safer side to fall to. Perhaps you do it instinctively? I normally dismount
my bicycle to the left, so I suppose it might be natural to fall that way?

--
Daniel Auger - [email hidden] (Please remove Granta to get a valid address.)

Colin Blackburn <[email hidden]> wrote: ( Finally, is your cycle computer magnet
mounted on the ) left or right?

Good grief! Are there people who mount their magnet on the wrong side?

Ian Walker <[email hidden]> wrote: ( For the record, I don't have one buttock larger
than the other or ) anything...

You do, you know.

There'll be nothing /that/ symmetrical about you, unless you're the only one.

In article <[email hidden]>,
[email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

Here's a question about crashes: over the last three winters I've had several spills - ice
patches, wet leaves, etc. I've noticed that every single time I've fallen, I've falled to the
left. That is, my wheels have slipped out to the right and I've fallen on my left side. Is this
just co- incidence (a priori probability of 5 successive crashes in this direction is less than 1
in 30), or is there something non-obvious about bikes that would make this direction of fall more
likely to happen?

It might be you rather than the bike. Falling to the left may be safer as you are falling way from a
potential traffic stream. Or, maybe your route just involves lots of left bends in the morning when
its more likely to be icy? Finally, is your cycle computer magnet mounted on the left or right? ;-)

Colin

In article <MPG.18f60be28842890e9898ab@localhost>, [email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

as you are falling way from a potential traffic stream. Or, maybe your route just involves lots of
left bends in the morning when its more likely to be icy?

I should also have added here that left bends are generally sharper than right bends so you may be
more likely to come off to the left.

Colin

Colin Blackburn said:

In article <[email hidden]>, [email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

Here's a question about crashes: over the last three winters I've had several spills - ice
patches, wet leaves, etc. I've noticed that every single time I've fallen, I've falled to the
left. That is, my wheels have slipped out to the right and I've fallen on my left side. Is this
just co-incidence (a priori probability of 5 successive crashes in this direction is less than 1
in 30), or is there something non-obvious about bikes that would make this direction of fall more
likely to happen?

It might be you rather than the bike. Falling to the left may be safer as you are falling way from
a potential traffic stream. Or, maybe your route just involves lots of left bends in the morning
when its more likely to be icy? Finally, is your cycle computer magnet mounted on the left or
right? ;-)

I'm not sure this is anything that I'm in control of! If there was any control then I'd try not to
fall in the first place (I've still got the scars on my hip from when a dog ran out in front of me
back in December).

I think it must be the magnet after all :o)

Ian

--
Ian Walker Remove the yummy paste in my address to reply. Homepage: drianwalker.comdrianwalker.comOpen ↗

Thus spake Daniel Auger <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

On Thu, 3 Apr 2003, Ian Walker wrote:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Here's a question about crashes: over the last three winters I've had several spills - ice
patches, wet leaves, etc. I've noticed that every single time I've fallen, I've falled to the
left. That is, my wheels have slipped out to the right and I've fallen on my left side. Is this
just co- incidence (a priori probability of 5 successive crashes in this direction is less than
1 in 30), or is there something non-obvious about bikes that would make this direction of fall
more likely to happen?

Quoted message said:

It's probably often the safer side to fall to. Perhaps you do it instinctively? I normally
dismount my bicycle to the left, so I suppose it might be natural to fall that way?

The rays, buggrit!

--
Helen D. Vecht: [email hidden] Edgware.

Geraint Jones said:

Ian Walker <[email hidden]> wrote: ( For the record, I don't have one buttock larger
than the other or ) anything...

You do, you know.

There'll be nothing /that/ symmetrical about you, unless you're the only one.

He he. I originally typed 'grotesquely larger', but must have lost the key word during editing!

--
Ian Walker Remove the yummy paste in my address to reply. Homepage: drianwalker.comdrianwalker.comOpen ↗

In article <[email hidden]>, [email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

Colin Blackburn <[email hidden]> wrote: ( Finally, is your cycle computer magnet
mounted on the ) left or right?

Good grief! Are there people who mount their magnet on the wrong side?

Obviously. Tsk.

Colin

Geraint Jones said:

Colin Blackburn <[email hidden]> wrote: ( Finally, is your cycle computer magnet
mounted on the ) left or right?

Good grief! Are there people who mount their magnet on the wrong side?

Don't know. But by adding a second/third or more you can prove P*** S****'s assertion about there
being no correlation between speed and accidents.

Tim.

--
God said, "div D = rho, div B = 0, curl E = - @B/@t, curl H = J + @D/@t," and there was light.

tjw.hn.orgtjw.hn.orgOpen ↗ locofungus.btinternet.co.uklocofungus.btinternet.co.ukOpen ↗

Ian Walker <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

Here's a question about crashes: over the last three winters I've had several spills - ice
patches, wet leaves, etc. I've noticed that every single time I've fallen, I've falled to the
left. That is, my wheels have slipped out to the right and I've fallen on my left side. Is this
just co- incidence (a priori probability of 5 successive crashes in this direction is less than 1
in 30), or is there something non-obvious about bikes that would make this direction of fall more
likely to happen?

For the record, I don't have one buttock larger than the other or anything...

Ian

I'm not sure if this is related or not, but I've found that whenever I need to do a sharp u-turn, I
feel much more comfortable moving across to the other side of the road and turning to my left rather
than the more obvious turn to the right from my present position.

Is it just me? Do we have a natural bias in our balance like left/right handedness?

M

Ian Walker said:

Here's a question about crashes: over the last three winters I've had several spills - ice
patches, wet leaves, etc. I've noticed that every single time I've fallen, I've falled to the
left. That is, my wheels have slipped out to the right and I've fallen on my left side. Is this
just co- incidence (a priori probability of 5 successive crashes in this direction is less than 1
in 30), or is there something non-obvious about bikes that would make this direction of fall more
likely to happen?

For the record, I don't have one buttock larger than the other or anything...

Ian

--
Ian Walker Remove the yummy paste in my address to reply. Homepage: drianwalker.comdrianwalker.comOpen ↗

roads are crowned. But unless you ride on the wrong side of the road I would expect a UK cyclist to
fall on his right side. /Marten

Colin Blackburn said:

In article <[email hidden]>, [email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

Colin Blackburn <[email hidden]> wrote: ( Finally, is your cycle computer magnet
mounted on the ) left or right?

Good grief! Are there people who mount their magnet on the wrong side?

Obviously. Tsk.

Colin

If it's on the wrong side, is your speed negative ;-)
--
Mark

Murk said:

Ian Walker <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

Here's a question about crashes: over the last three winters I've had several spills - ice
patches, wet leaves, etc. I've noticed that every single time I've fallen, I've falled to the
left. That is, my wheels have slipped out to the right and I've fallen on my left side. Is this
just co- incidence (a priori probability of 5 successive crashes in this direction is less than 1
in 30), or is there something non-obvious about bikes that would make this direction of fall more
likely to happen?

For the record, I don't have one buttock larger than the other or anything...

Ian

I'm not sure if this is related or not, but I've found that whenever I need to do a sharp u-turn,
I feel much more comfortable moving across to the other side of the road and turning to my left
rather than the more obvious turn to the right from my present position.

Is it just me? Do we have a natural bias in our balance like left/right handedness?

M

The first time I cycled in France, when I came up to a small roundabout it felt really awkward going
round the "wrong" way.
--
Mark

Colin Blackburn said:

I should also have added here that left bends are generally sharper than right bends so you may be
more likely to come off to the left.

Most of my falls have occurred while turning left. Inevitably if I happen to be turning left then
that's the side I'll fall on. As well as the turns being sharper, I'm likely to be travelling
faster on a left hand turn than on a right hand turn simply because I don't have to wait for a gap
in the traffic.

--
Danny Colyer (remove safety to reply) ( juggler.netdannyOpen ↗ ) Recumbent cycle page:
speedy5.freeserve.co.ukrecumbentsOpen ↗ "He who dares not offend cannot be honest." -
Thomas Paine

Colin Blackburn said:

Quoted message said:

Good grief! Are there people who mount their magnet on the wrong side?

Obviously. Tsk.

Which _is_ the right side then? The side with the best path up the front brake cable, obviously. It
could be either left or right hand side.

--

-Alex

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