How often do you crash?

ASISLIFE

Hi
I have been lurking on the forum for a while (love following the SCR antics!), but events have encouraged me to come out into the open.

Just had a run of bad luck with hitting the tarmac!!

Got knocked off about 8 weeks ago when car pull in front of me (while I was in a cycle lane!)
Then last week hit the deck when cornering in the rain.
Overall have had 3 instances in last 5 years or so...other one was the classic of car driver opening door as I was going past

Be interested to hear..am I accident prone??...a crash is any unintended hitting of the tarmac whether other vehicle involved or not.

cheers

Hopefully there is a poll attached to this....hope not being too ambitious with technology on my first posting!

Agent57

Once, about 2 years ago. Entirely my own fault - I turned too tighly in the wet, and my front wheel slid out on some banding. First "off" for almost 20 years. Came off a lot more when I was younger and has less handling skills and road sense.

ASISLIFE

Yeah this last one was entirely my fault...so much more embarressing when you can't blame a car driver
My black eye caused some hilarity in work
:oops:

whyamihere

Had an interesting day in January when it was icy, nearly hit the deck three times.

First one, I lost the front wheel making a right turn from some lights. Just about managed to unclip and get my foot down.

Second one, Going downhill around 30mph, lights changed, both wheels locked up on some black ice. The bike fortunately slid sideways onto some non-icy tarmac and I just about managed to hold it together. I'd already shouted a warning to the ped who had made the lights change, and they came over to me to check I was ok (I'd been unable to stop in time for the lights due to the slide).

Last one was just brilliant. Took a right turn slowly, turned on the power coming out of the corner and the bike went fully sideways. Again, held it (mountain biking - good for bike handling).

Touch wood, I'm yet to have a spill where I actually come off the bike without a car helping me over...

ASISLIFE

respect for the bike handling 8)

better get out on my mountain bike to improve my handling...however its been many years since its seen a set of knobblies...reserved for family commutes

pastryboy

Only two recently - both on the same day when it was hammering it down, my chunky mtb front tyre went from under me on a wooden bridge then a cobbled uphill slope.

I also fell onto my potted goji berry plant this morning though I'm not counting that as it was my first ever go with cleats :oops:

prj45

pastryboy wrote:

I also fell onto my potted goji berry plant this morning

Now, I've never heard them called that before.

tailwindhome

pastryboy wrote:

I also fell onto my potted goji berry plant this morning

A&E doctors have heard all these excuses before.

prj45

In 20 years of cycling in London I've hit the deck twice.

Once when I clipped a ped with my handlebars: he was running across the road coming down into Whitehall from traf square (boy did I get some air). And once when I slipped on a little bit of ice while hardly moving at all (landed on gloveless freezing hands on a gritty road, and I'm man enough to admit my bottom lip quivered a bit).

Strangly I managed to commute 12 miles in the snow earlier this year (sometimes on solid ice) without coming off at all.

gb155

Twice, Both within the firsr few months and both my fault :oops:

EDIT: Pic ALERT

Dont grab a fist full of front brake on slippy crazy paving

always_tyred

Once - hit and run

Twice on ice within about a fortnight of that. I think my confidence was a bit low at the time. :?

Nothing for about 5 years before that. A freak blow out on a descent the only thing within the previous 3 or 4 years before that. So last year was exceptional.

Wallace1492

Had just voted "never" on this on Sunday afternoon, then the inevitable happens. out for a wee spin on the Kona through the local country park, lovely evening, a little cooling rain. Then just close to the end I punctured, luckily carrying spare tube, but pump packed in so had to use a mates, then off we went, last couple of hundred yards on single track, and I came off, not at great speed, but crash must have looked good as a woman came running from a nearby garden to help. Nothing too bad except really sore leg, and arm. just waiting for the bruises to come up.....

ASISLIFE

Wallace1492 wrote

then the inevitable happens

Sorry I jinxed you with my poll :oops:

Hope it all heals quickly!

daviesee

If this had been asked a fortnight ago I would have said none.
Just had my first off in 21 years so my answer is a bit skewed.
I just hope I have to wait another 21 years

Porgy

My record has been pretty good in the last 5 years - only 3 I think.

1. three years ago - first time out on the new bike - coming round a corner - with no traffic about - I managed to swerve off the road and hit a sign post - giving me quite bad shoulder and arm problems for about a year.

2. about four years ago someone car-doored me on my birthday - couldn;t walk properly for a month or so.

3. slipped into a tram line in Silvertown and did a fantastic somersault - was completely ok

gadgets

just got the bike two weeks ago and I had the classic rites of passage with a spd. turned slightly uphill to a car park and lost momentum... was not able to unclip, just had time to say to myself: uh oh, hope it does not hurt.

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majormantra

gadgets wrote:

just got the bike two weeks ago and I had the classic rites of passage with a spd. turned slightly uphill to a car park and lost momentum... was not able to unclip, just had time to say to myself: uh oh, hope it does not hurt.

[/img]

I didn't count clipless moments - that would make 4 crashes in less than a year if I did. :oops:

The 2 real crashes were:

1. Comedy one - a huge gust of Edinburgh wind hit me and my less than perfect reflexes (this was in the first few weeks after I started cycling regularly) caused me to hit a parked car. In fact, I jumped before I hit the car and landed on my feet, smacking both hands against the rear window. I was completely unhurt.

2. Painful one - just a few weeks later, and on my shiny and fast hybrid (now sold) I came down hard on a roundabout on a patch of oil or diesel. My flatmate came off behind me but while he landed well and got slightly cut and bruised, I took the full force (about 20mph or so) on my chin and tore it open quite badly. I could barely move my jaw for at least a week after that and I still have an inch long scar.

Matthew

ASISLIFE

gadgets wrote:

I didn't count clipless moments

Sounds like many of us had "clipless moments"...maybe we should have an amnesty for any clipless accidents, but only within the first month of use!...

Aidy

Hmm, I'm not really sure.

If you're counting all times on a bike, then far, far too many - but nearly all of those are mountain biking incidents, where the odd crash here and there is pretty inevitable.

A few times on the road too, although I can't think how many would have fallen in the last 5 years. Only one which hospitalised me. Most of the time it's car drivers being idiots, I've had a few with the wheels just sliding out due to crap on the road/interesting cornering.

marchant

I've voted never (crosses fingers), but I nearly had a comedy off yesterday; my son was riding his battery powered trike outside our house, with me on the bike "racing" him, at his request :roll:. While cornering, I rolled over an almost perfectly round stone which made the front wheel step out about six inches and startled the c**p out of me and almost had me on my bum.

ride_whenever

Define crash? hitting the deck/some object or just putting a foot down! 8)


I crash pretty rarely commuting, had a couple of falls in the wet on flagstones, and one when i hit some ice i wasn't expecting. I've got to cycle for one of my job/hobbies (rowing coach) and I've fallen off/into the river a couple of times coaching .

DevUK

Not had too many, thankfully. My last was my own fault. Got to the end of my road when it was icy some months back and dabbed my front brake (hope mono m4 disc!) and the front wheel just went. I pancaked down on my side but I think the shock of it kept any pain away. Had a stiff elbow for a week after that though! (18+stone landing on tarmac more or less onto just my elbow!)

I had an off a few years back when at Coed y Brenan (spelling?). Comming down a track and hit a rocky hump and had my weight too far back. The front suspension rebounded back and I went of backwards. Left me dazed for 10 minutes and a bit shaken up. Had to sit down for 10 and get a sense of reality back!

biondino

I answered 1-3 yesterday, but I was out with friends who are interested in starting to ride to work and they asked me how many crashes I'd had, and I counted 6 offs of any kind. One was a clipless moment (which I do count as I damaged my knee and finger quite badly, falling into a wooden post), two left me completely uninjured if a little embarrassed, and only two were a result of the actions of a third party.

ASISLIFE

Thanks to all who voted and posted comments.
I am not feeling quite so jinxed now as when I started the thread....knowing I am in such good company, helps

Although it appears I do need to perfect my landings somewhat, as all of my accidents (3) have resulted in A&E trips...just have to take things that next stage I guess

Jay dubbleU

Once many years ago when I ran into a cow - once this year on ice but I managed to do a speedway impression and remain upright

Feltup

Just had an off in Italy when a dopey driver overtook me and then just as the back of his car was a couple of yards ahead decided to stop to turn left. We were both doing 50kph at the time so I had no chance of stopping in time and had to head for the little gap on the right of the car. Unfortunately there was a left hand corner which I couldn't set up for because I had a car forcing me right. I ended up in the gutter trying desperately not to hit the low jagged wall at the edge. I made it round most of the bend but then my front wheel clipped the road edge and I high sided off my bike and slid down the tarmac. I now have no forearm and lots of missing bits on my legs. Poor bike took a scuffing but nothing too major.

The driver did stop and his wife ran down the road to pick up my water bottles but there wasn't a lot else they could do so I limped back to base and patched myself up.

Apart from that I came off on some black ice last year, totally my fault.

secretsam

If you include clipless moments as I get used to this new-fangled technology, then I'm 7+

If it's just accidents/offs - fingers crossed just 3:
1) wet + drain cover + bend + just started cycling again = off
2) Snow + roundabout = off
3) Black ice + gravel + bend = off + lots of ouch + A&E + x-ray for suspected broken hip (actually only badly bruised)

Sigh :oops: