OFF!

shoulder_of_orion

Going quickly (too quickly for the wet) round the corner from Warwick Road into West Cromwell road (form Earl's Court), hit a slippery patch of tarmac and the back wheel slid away from me.

I hit the deck with force, ripped a massive hole in my Nalini Lycra, banged my head on the ground (forgot helmet today!) and I have a large graze the size of my hand on my hip and what will probably turn into a behemoth of a bruise on hip, side and shoulder.

Ouch!

Luckily the berk in the bimmer who had been tailgating me (and had caused me to go more quickly than I should round the corner in the wet) stopped at the lights that were amber when I went through). Not that it was his fault, I should have just cycled slower and incurred his wrath.

Thanks to the lady who came over and made sure I was all right, I know you won't be reading this but thanks anyway. No thanks to the cyclists who RLJed and just kind of circled round me.

I am very happy with the Continental GP4000S tire that I fitted to the rear, it's performance in the dry and according to many it's puncture resistance is great. But I have noticed a few times in the past that when cornering in the wet to take extra care. Has anyone else noticed this?

Luckily the bike was fine apart from the shifters being almost perpendiucular to the bars. But I have sorted that out.

4 paracetamol later and the headache has subsided, but the hip still hurts a lot. Hopefully it won't prevent me from cycling home.

Note to self: be more careful in the wet!

Aguila

Ouch!!

Glad yr ok. I must say my conti gatorskins are a bit twitchy in the wet so I do go steady. I think that's going to be the case with pretty much all tyres to be fair though.

King Donut

Ouch. Glad it's nothing too serious. Can't believe some cyclists rolled on by. If you feel any after affects during the day make sure you look after yourself.

I've no experience with the conti's but summer rain can throw up some tricky decisions regarding tyre choice.

lost_in_thought

Ouf, that's a bummer. Glad to hear you and bike are relatively OK.

However, I'd get home ASAP - if you've got even a mild concussion you'll rapidly start feeling bloomin' awful and that will prevent you cycling home. I'm sure work will understand.

roger_merriman

ouch, i'd echo LIT better safe than sorry, if you have taken a knock to the head.

summer rain tends to make roads greasy, the conti's seem to get good reviews for grip though. i'm not sure any tire will grip that well on that horrible shinny slimy roads....

shoulder_of_orion

Thanks for the kind words.

lost_in_thought wrote:

Ouf, that's a bummer. Glad to hear you and bike are relatively OK.

However, I'd get home ASAP - if you've got even a mild concussion you'll rapidly start feeling bloomin' awful and that will prevent you cycling home. I'm sure work will understand.

Not a lot of sympathy actually. I got a bit of a rollicking this morning for some work I did yesterday and am now under the gun big time to get it done by 1pm.

Have the headphones on and am going to have to close my browser now and get this done. Hopefully I'll feel better later....

Deadeye Duck

Sorry to hear it mate, I had the same thing happen a week ago today. It was the front wheel that went for me though, so my arm and thigh took the brunt and I managed to keep my head off the ground. Sadly that meant the jolt of hitting the floor and holding my head up gave me whiplash.

Hope you're ok. I've been paying more attention to that roundabout now and it's got very greasy tarmac even in the dry. I just take my time round it every time now.

Anyway, hope the injuries aren't too bad. Here's to a speedy recovery.

Headhuunter

I'd probably get the head checked out, any crack to the skull needs checking out, esp if accompanied by a headache!

Roastie

Ouch. Sorry dude.

Get better soon. Also, concur with the suggestions to go home and get checked out. I've had a very bad concussion once. Shock helps you feel OK for a little while after, but it may get much worse.

lost_in_thought

Shoulder of Lamb wrote:

Thanks for the kind words.

lost_in_thought wrote:

Ouf, that's a bummer. Glad to hear you and bike are relatively OK.

However, I'd get home ASAP - if you've got even a mild concussion you'll rapidly start feeling bloomin' awful and that will prevent you cycling home. I'm sure work will understand.

Not a lot of sympathy actually. I got a bit of a rollicking this morning for some work I did yesterday and am now under the gun big time to get it done by 1pm.

Have the headphones on and am going to have to close my browser now and get this done. Hopefully I'll feel better later....

Jeez, that's dreadful! I'd have gone home by now.

I have to say, having faceplanted the road on more than one occasion, you're very unlikely to start feeling better. Quite the opposite, in fact. Get thee to a doctor.

As someone said above, I do recall from previous concussions that having a headache is not allowed. Seriously, to a doctor. Sooner rather than later.

il_principe

I suspect the tires aren't really at fault here, more likely some diesel etc on the tarmac. I noticed a fair few slicks today, mostly around bus stops. These are lethal in the wet, I had a bit of a smash in France last year thanks to diesel, it caught a few people out and can be very very hard to spot.

PinkPedal

Ouch!

Hope the headache is subsiding. I've had a non-cycling fall and it tok until the next day for the concussion to hit (after I'd walked out of A&E saying that I was fine!) so keep an eye on yourself.

Get Well wishes to you!

jedster

Just another voice saying get your head looked at. Please.

BTW - I'd get some ibuprofen for the bruises/uscle soreness that will be coming on...

J

The Rookie

Il Principe wrote:

I suspect the tires aren't really at fault here, more likely some diesel etc on the tarmac. I noticed a fair few slicks today, mostly around bus stops. These are lethal in the wet, I had a bit of a smash in France last year thanks to diesel, it caught a few people out and can be very very hard to spot.

Diesel is lethal, but most 'spills' are engine oil, the diesel fuel system is (most of it anyway) under vacuum so leaks are rare, while old engines all leak oil!

Simon

rmhodv

SoL, Sorry to hear about your mishap. Hope you make a full recovery soon. Even if you are feeling ok, as you've banged your head, I'd see your doctor just to check everything is ok.

cjcp

Ouch! Another vote for getting the head checked out asap. Hope you get better soon, SoL.

It won't be down to the tyres, just cornering a bit quick in the wet on oily roads. Happened to me last year in similar conditions to this morning. Was late for work, too fast into a tight-ish roundabout, wet roads, back wheel slid out and CJ's flat on his side looking a prize wazzock. Superglue on the tyres wouldn't have kept me upright!

CiB

The Beginner wrote:

Diesel is lethal, but most 'spills' are engine oil, the diesel fuel system is (most of it anyway) under vacuum so leaks are rare, while old engines all leak oil!
Simon

I've seen enough examples of pikey Transit pick-ups spewing diesel out of the incorrectly fitted / missing-replaced-with-rag filler cap on roundabouts to be wary of shiny road surfaces.

Jay dubbleU

Sympathy - but of course if you'd been riding a hybryd with marathons.....

I'll get me coat.................

biondino

Jay dubbleU wrote:

Sympathy - but of course if you'd been riding a hybryd with marathons.....

.....you'd have quit riding long ago out of utter boredom and avoided this accident.

chubbydpm

owch indeed. just ordered some gator skins myself after having an accident myself and getting a new bike. the hazzards of the wet british weather and road surface conditions are things out of our control, but our safty is in our own hands, and do get the bang to ya head checked out by a doctor.
shame on you fellow cyclists passing by!
get well soon

cjcp

biondino wrote:

Jay dubbleU wrote:

Sympathy - but of course if you'd been riding a hybryd with marathons.....

.....you'd have quit riding long ago out of utter boredom and avoided this accident.

And also assumes that you'd be able to ride fast enough on a hybrid. Unless you hit ice of course.

secretsam

Get well soon, etc.

And get off to A&E and get your bonce checked out, pronto.

Jay dubbleU

cjcp wrote:

biondino wrote:

Jay dubbleU wrote:

Sympathy - but of course if you'd been riding a hybryd with marathons.....

.....you'd have quit riding long ago out of utter boredom and avoided this accident.

And also assumes that you'd be able to ride fast enough on a hybrid. Unless you hit ice of course.

Hmmmmmmm - harsh - but fair - possibly has something to do with why I've ordered an SS from Pearsons 8)

Uncle Bernie Love

Agreed, bang on head = removal to hospital.

Shame on the cyclists that passed you by without checking you were OK.

shoulder_of_orion

maybe I over egged the head banging. it was a knock rather than a bang. I have no side effects from the head apart from a small headache when I arrived at the office, long since gone. It's my side I'm a bit more worried about, big graze and sore, the left hip took the full impact. Should be alright though.

Feel better now that I am dosed up on ibuprofen. Hopefully the roads won't be so slick on my way home. I'm not sure about the oil slick theory as I have had issues with those tyres on other corners in the wet. Maybe it will just take a while to get used to them.

Thanks for all the messages of support. Been a hell day at work, not more than 2 mins to myself. The only time `I had a free moment, I switched the TDF on and at that very second saw Jens Voight go over in similar style (though he was going slightly faster) - hope he's OK.

Cheers...

NGale

I would also urge anyone who sustains a head or hip injury to please get it checked out at the nearest hospital even if you get youself there.

Head injuries are pretty self evident, but hip injuries can also be dangrous, so please get them checked out.

Get well soon though.

jimmypippa

Listen to NGale, she knows what she's talking about

It isn't worth the risk

The Chingford Skinhead

SoL - hope you're not too sore in the morning. Get well soon.

I found my Marathon + tyres are a bit skittish in the rain as well - maybe it's just the price you pay for the puncture protection

shoulder_of_orion

I'd like to believe the oil slick theory as that eliminates rider error and/or bike or tyre failure.

I looked closely at the patch of tarmac I went over on this morning and even in the dry it's very smooth, almost shiny. It's a dangerous bit of road in the wet.

Unfortunately for me I think this accident was mainly my fault for going too fast. The condition of the road did not help. The weather conditions did not help. The tyres are an open question - I just feel they seem more slippery than my previous bontrager select when cornering in the wet. The bonty's had a massive bald patch on them when replaced as well as other bald areas, I feel they put more rubber down onto the tarmac and therefore provide more grip. But the corollary to this is they have poor puncture resistance. I have had no problems with the Continetals in the dry and my commute today was fine - I paid particular attention to cornering and they were super-smooth and grippy around the bends.

I am fine. I did not go to hospital because I could not bear the hours sitting in casualty to be told I'm fine. I have a nasty graze on my hip, but that's it. It stings a bit, but I have treated it with wound wash and it has a large plaster over it. I'm going to be fine. Luckily it does not inhibit my cycling in any way. I set a PB on the way home last night (with tailwind and reduced traffic due to the hour).

Be careful out there...

rmhodv

Glad your back in the saddle, and feeling better.

cjcp

SoL - I know it's a reall balls-ache sitting in a hospital (I've done it in St George's), but it's worth getting checked out if you've knocked your noggin.

EDIT: Apologies for sounding like a parent. :oops:

Btw, +1 for 4000Ss. Excellent cornering with them.