i got compensated by the council

inaperfectworld

i was out on a ride and came across a new road layout riding a new dawes audax(presta valves): a wide road seemed to have been broken into 2 lanes which formed after a widening of the preceding pavement; the widening had white stripes directing you into the left lane in preparation for a left turn, the right lane continuing straight on. as i was turning left and observing a car emerging from the left and a queue of cars turning across me into the left turn from the opposite side of the road i never noticed the road was narrowed again with kerbs sticking into the road for a pedestrian X. i came off on this kerb at speed. remarkably little damage, grazed arm, ripped jumper, wrecked front tube, split front tyre and a rear puncture. remarkably the wheel was undented although there seemed to be a groove in the kerb suggesting my wheel had gouged it. also forks were undamaged (it is a steel frame). replaced the front tube with a spare, and lined the split tube with a bit of cut toothpaste tube that i carry. came to change the rear tube with the second one i carry and found the valve had dropped out. so i repaired the rear puncture but did not get enough pressure in the tube and got a snakebite puncture. unfortunately this was right next to a patch and i could not get the tube patched again. so i unscrewed the valve from the punctured tube to put in the good tube which had lost the valve; but could not undo the thread in order to insert the good valve and ended asking some plumbers working nearby for a tool to undo it; turned out this valve stem was manufactured in one piece so did not unscrew. passing cyclist stopped and gave me a tube, a 26" and too wide but managed to stuff it in my 700 tyre with difficulty, how much i appreciated his help. managed to get home on this. wrote to council on the basis that
1) the white line hatching misleads into thinking there are 2 lanes
2) the kerb intruding into the highway has no post or other warning feature
3)the "left lane" shoukld have some "keepout" hatching or an arrow pointing out.
council settled up no quibble for new top tubes and tyre and i see there is now a warning post in situ
my worst cycling day ever, and i reckon to be prepared but fate stuffed me that day

thebikeliker

Wouldn't be in Cumbria would it?

That's the sort of dumbass thing councils do around here.

inaperfectworld

not cumbria, wetherby yorkshire. how do they get away with being so stupid they're paid to foresee this kind of thing?

dangerousjules

where abouts in wetherby as i know it well.