More Broken Forks

Quoted message said:

http://velonews.com/galleries/contest15a/Uh-oh%20this%20is%20gonna%20hurt%20by%20Becky%20Brandt.html

Chain break, flat front and broken headset all at the same time!

--
E. Dronkert

Ewoud Dronkert said:

Quoted message said:

http://velonews.com/galleries/contest15a/Uh-oh%20this%20is%20gonna%20hurt%20by%20Becky%20Brandt.html

Chain break, flat front and broken headset all at the same time!

Hm...is the saddle mount also broken? Or did this rider have the nose
pointing that far upwards on purpose?

--
I do not accept unsolicited commercial e-mail. Remove NO_UCE for
legitimate replies.

Ewoud Dronkert said:

Quoted message said:

http://velonews.com/galleries/contest15a/Uh-oh%20this%20is%20gonna%20hurt%20by%20Becky%20Brandt.html

Chain break, flat front and broken headset all at the same time!

But the fork looks pretty solid - at least at that moment...

The tire may just possibly be in a small rut and only look flat. In
any event, I'm guessing he isn't really thinking about that at this
moment in time.

Kind of a waste to use up three reasons to finish last all at once. I
tried to spread them around so they covered all the races I was in,
more or less.

Curtis L. Russell
Odenton, MD (USA)
Just someone on two wheels...

email hidden said:

http://velonews.com/galleries/contest15a/Uh-oh%20this%20is%20gonna%20hurt%20by%20Becky%20Brandt.html

Not

Quoted message said:

sure that's a broken fork. That's an old quill-style stem... quite
possible that the stem just broke.

Somethings a bit strange in that the headset came along for the ride...
possible the stem pried it out.

The headset is mounted on the steering tube and not the stem. This used
to happen enough that older riders know what it is - the guy pulled the
stem up too high and then tightened the expander too tightly. This
fractured the threaded portion of the steering tube and the whole top
of the steering head came off headet and all.

Bill Lloyd said:

Quoted message said:

quill style stem

Tom Kunich said:

The headset is mounted on the steering tube and not the stem. This used
to happen enough that older riders know what it is - the guy pulled the
stem up too high and then tightened the expander too tightly. This
fractured the threaded portion of the steering tube and the whole top
of the steering head came off headet and all.

Oh [censored], I agree with Kunich. But "older riders"? The bike is
probably
early-mid 90s, the shoes suggest mid 90s or later (no dayglo, anyway).
Is that antique already?

The quill stem looks like a steel stem, and it's probably intact. As
the stem and steerer came out, the rider pitched forward. All his
weight is on the front tire, briefly, which is why it looks squished
and the rear wheel is off the ground. The chain's not broken - the hit
of the weight transfer threw chain and bounced the rear derailleur out
of position.

It's a pretty amazing picture. You can even see the cables stretched
tight from the bars to the frame. I hope the guy wasn't too badly
hurt,
or I'll have to feel guilty for a moment for gawking.

Quoted message said:

Oh [censored], I agree with Kunich. But "older riders"? The bike is
probably
early-mid 90s, the shoes suggest mid 90s or later (no dayglo, anyway).
Is that antique already?

The quill stem looks like a steel stem, and it's probably intact. As
the stem and steerer came out, the rider pitched forward. All his
weight is on the front tire, briefly, which is why it looks squished
and the rear wheel is off the ground. The chain's not broken - the hit
of the weight transfer threw chain and bounced the rear derailleur out
of position.

It's a pretty amazing picture. You can even see the cables stretched
tight from the bars to the frame. I hope the guy wasn't too badly
hurt,
or I'll have to feel guilty for a moment for gawking.

The rear derailleur looks like it does from the pulling on the cables
when the stem snapped. That in turn gave the chain quite a bit of
slack to make it look like it does. I'm also guessing that in addition
to his weight and momentum already being too far forward, the pulling
on the cables caused by the stem breaking also caused the brake
calipers to engage, thus slowing the bike's momentum and further
ensuring carnage in an already perilous dismount attempt.

In article
<[email hidden]>,

Tom Kunich said:

The headset is mounted on the steering tube and not the stem. This used
to happen enough that older riders know what it is - the guy pulled the
stem up too high and then tightened the expander too tightly. This
fractured the threaded portion of the steering tube and the whole top
of the steering head came off headet and all.

Cannnot rule out chain break first, then the rider
pitching forward and downward onto the bars, breaking the
steering tube as you describe. Or can you?

--
Michael Press

On 10/18/05 10:57 AM, in article [email hidden],

Curtis L. Russell said:

Ewoud Dronkert said:

Quoted message said:

http://velonews.com/galleries/contest15a/Uh-oh%20this%20is%20gonna%20hurt%20
by%20Becky%20Brandt.html

Chain break, flat front and broken headset all at the same time!

But the fork looks pretty solid - at least at that moment...

The tire may just possibly be in a small rut and only look flat. In
any event, I'm guessing he isn't really thinking about that at this
moment in time.

Kind of a waste to use up three reasons to finish last all at once. I
tried to spread them around so they covered all the races I was in,
more or less.

Curtis L. Russell
Odenton, MD (USA)
Just someone on two wheels...

Look close all!

That is an ancient GT bike!
It is a quill stem!

Can you say TIRED!!! & RUSTY!!!

In article <[email hidden]>,

Quoted post said:

http://velonews.com/galleries/contest15a/Uh-oh%20this%20is%20gonna%20hurt%20by%20Becky%20Brandt.html

Great jumping frijoles. For those keeping track, whatever happened next
probably wasn't funny.

I'm guessing from the compressed front tire and derailed chain that the
failure was a painful part of a hard landing.

--
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

Me said:

Look close all!

That is an ancient GT bike!
It is a quill stem!

Can you say TIRED!!! & RUSTY!!!

Steve-o,

Not everyone fatigues their stems quite like you.

But anyway, it's not a new picture. His collarbone has
long since healed. Today's MTB racers usually don't ride
ten year old kit, or rigid forks (unless they're making a
deliberate point, or singlespeeders). And look at the helmet.
I think I bought a lid like that in 1992.

Also, he's got the matching waterbottle, and it's clean.
You think he was saving that for ten years?

In article <[email hidden]>,

Quoted post said:

Me said:

Look close all!

That is an ancient GT bike!
It is a quill stem!

Can you say TIRED!!! & RUSTY!!!

Steve-o,

Not everyone fatigues their stems quite like you.

Well now, that's a new euphemism...

--
tanx,
Howard

The sheriff is near...

remove YOUR SHOES to reply, ok?

Howard Kveck said:

"[email hidden]" <[email hidden]> wrote:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Steve-o,

Not everyone fatigues their stems quite like you.

Well now, that's a new euphemism...

Wink wink, nudge nudge, say no more ...

I believe that is a titanium stem. They used to make them with really
short inserts because of the weight game everyone is playing.

I suppose you are correct that it is an early-90's frame. Note that it
is completely unsuspended and Brigestone who was a holdout started
selling front suspension circa '93.

And in case you forget - this is almost 2006 and Lance has won 7 Tours
de France. Anyone that remembers LeMond winning the World Championship
is an older rider.

I said:

Steve-o,

Not everyone fatigues their stems quite like you.

But anyway, it's not a new picture. His collarbone has
long since healed. Today's MTB racers usually don't ride
ten year old kit, or rigid forks (unless they're making a
deliberate point, or singlespeeders). And look at the helmet.
I think I bought a lid like that in 1992.

Also, he's got the matching waterbottle, and it's clean.
You think he was saving that for ten years?

Whaddaya know. I was wrong.

http://www.velonews.com/news/fea/9082.0.html

It's a picture from this year. The fork broke at the
threads, the guy was OK in the end, and apparently he _had_
been saving the matching GT waterbottle for ten years.

Ben
We can rebuild him - faster, stronger, better.

In article <[email hidden]>,

Quoted post said:

I said:

Steve-o,

Not everyone fatigues their stems quite like you.

But anyway, it's not a new picture. His collarbone has
long since healed. Today's MTB racers usually don't ride
ten year old kit, or rigid forks (unless they're making a
deliberate point, or singlespeeders). And look at the helmet.
I think I bought a lid like that in 1992.

Also, he's got the matching waterbottle, and it's clean.
You think he was saving that for ten years?

Whaddaya know. I was wrong.

http://www.velonews.com/news/fea/9082.0.html

It's a picture from this year. The fork broke at the
threads, the guy was OK in the end, and apparently he _had_
been saving the matching GT waterbottle for ten years.

That's taking the obsessive collector thing pretty far. Although I do know a
guy who saved some of his clothes from high school to wear at his reunions. 25
years later...

--
tanx,
Howard

The sheriff is near...

remove YOUR SHOES to reply, ok?

Howard Kveck said:

That's taking the obsessive collector thing pretty far. Although I do know a
guy who saved some of his clothes from high school to wear at his reunions. 25
years later...

Its not like the technology on water bottles has changed that much to
make the ones from ten ot twenty years ago obsolete, nor do they take
up much room. I still have a couple my son picked up that were tossed
to the side back when John Eustice used the unfair aerodynamic
advantage of white sun block to win the U.S.Pro in Baltimore. Think
that was either or both 1982 and 1983. Probably from 1983. I've even
used them on occasion.

I'm not like the tandem riders that match up costumes with each other
and the bike, but when I had too many bikes, I would grab some old
bottles to match to the frame. I'm sure I went out on a few rides with
both bike and bottles 20 plus years old.

Curtis L. Russell
Odenton, MD (USA)
Just someone on two wheels...