During my ride yesterday I was riding south on South Dakota State Highway 105 near North Sioux City. All along this 2 lane highway in the ditches on both sides is fairly tall grass. I was just before the turn that takes me into the McCook Lake part of North Sioux City, very strong head wind so I am not going that fast. I saw a lot of birds flying over head but not going to far away, they were staying in the general area. I soon found out why.
All of a sudden I heard the squak of a bird and felt one hit my helmet right on the top. It was over before I could react to it. The bird came from behind so I never saw it, but I knew what it was. Then I saw from it's shadow it was coming back around for another attack. This time I was ready, I stuck my hand up & started waiving my arm. I think that scared it off because it never made contact with me again.
Remember when I said there is tall grass in the ditches along this highway? Well my guess is the reason the bird attacked is it felt I was a threat to it's young that is hiding in the grass until it can fly. Some species of birds get too big for the nest but they are not able to fly yet. So they leave the nest, find a area to take cover in, like the tall grass in a ditch along a South Dakota highway, the parents continue to feed & care for them until they can fly away on their own.
This happens in my back yard to my dog all the time. We have day lily's around one of our trees, the birds use the tall flowers to hide & care for their young. Murphy, my dog, knows this & very often will "hunt" through the lily's to search for the young birds. When the adult birds dive bomb & attack her she simply "snatches" them out of the air with her mouth. The funny thing is she is not even a hunting dog of any kind. It is just her natural predatory instinct I guess.
There are no marks on the helmet from the bird attack. But this is another reason to wear one.
Anyone else have any stories to tell about how their helmet protected them from something other the impact resulting from a crash? If you do please share them.
Thank you.
John
pacman76
06-19-05, 08:33 PM
it protects me when i get really curious if helmets actually help and i put one on and go running into my brick fireplace.
yes, that heppened. and no, i hadn't been drinking. feel free to laugh at, not just with.
N_C
06-19-05, 08:41 PM
it protects me when i get really curious if helmets actually help and i put one on and go running into my brick fireplace.
yes, that heppened. and no, i hadn't been drinking. feel free to laugh at, not just with.
Did you do it on a bet or a game of truth or dare? Obviously the helmet worked well at protecting your head from serious injury. But what if any injuries did you have? I'm also sure you're aware that hitting your head on a flat surface is differant then hitting it on say a corner or other surface with a contour or shape to it in regards to the kind of injuries & damage to the helmet that might occur.
Cyclaholic
06-19-05, 09:11 PM
it protects me when i get really curious if helmets actually help and i put one on and go running into my brick fireplace.
yes, that heppened. and no, i hadn't been drinking. feel free to laugh at, not just with.
Sounds like it's too late to protect what it's supposed to, maybe it protected the fireplace at least :p
biodiesel
06-19-05, 09:42 PM
downhill on a country road at 35-40, Low branch hidden in shadows. It actually cracked the top of my helmet.
i heard it but didn't really feel anything.
would have hurt otherwise though.
duane041
06-19-05, 09:50 PM
After reading the bird story, I got to thinking that maybe a bike helmet is what Tippi Hedren should've been wearing in 'The Birds'.
My helmet has done a good job of keeping dragonflies off my head. (I have heard them hit with a 'crack' sound).
Roody
06-19-05, 11:31 PM
Did you do it on a bet or a game of truth or dare? Obviously the helmet worked well at protecting your head from serious injury. But what if any injuries did you have? I'm also sure you're aware that hitting your head on a flat surface is differant then hitting it on say a corner or other surface with a contour or shape to it in regards to the kind of injuries & damage to the helmet that might occur.
I'm hoping that pacman will test his helmet under a variety of conditions, then report back to us.
recursive
06-20-05, 09:40 AM
A couple of weeks ago, I had just gotten home from my ride. I don't know if I was feeling light headed or what, but I opened the solid-core door directly into my head. I would have felt that one for sure if it wasn't for the helmet.
cedo
06-20-05, 12:25 PM
The most protective bird that I have commonly experienced is the red-winged blackbird. They often live close the road in fields and are quite territorial. They have been know to draw blood by striking passing runners or cyclists. It also a bit frightening when you suddenly notice them at the last second diving-bombing you with the bright red flash on their wings. It can easily make you lose control of a bike.
sswartzl
06-23-05, 07:22 PM
About 2 weeks ago I was riding on a local trail I'd never tried before, and to my surprise part of it went right through the middle of a par 3 golf course. I remember thinking about flying golf balls and realizing I had a whole new reason to wear a helmet.
khuon
06-23-05, 07:28 PM
I'm waiting for the Aussies to notice this thread and start posting about their magpie attacks. I understand those birds are quite vicious.
DieselDan
06-23-05, 07:42 PM
I was hit square on the top of the head with a beer bottle. The bottle broke and never touched me. I stopped at the fire station and had an EMT check me for cuts on my back, and I was unharmed completly. I was never able to identify a vehicle or person from where the bottle was thrown from.
On the flip side, I had a low hanging tree branch catch on my helmet and almost pull me off the bike. All that can be said about that was, "Good catch."
madman91
06-23-05, 07:51 PM
i just feel the little branches that swoop down over the path
:D i should be a writer
closetbiker
06-23-05, 08:17 PM
Back about 19 years ago, in the winter, I was riding home when I was attacked (!) by a big bird that swooped down and tried to grab my head with its' feet but only managed to grab my touque (it was before I wore a helmet).
I can only imagine that it probably thought I was some good looking food from it's view point and was probably disapointed to only get a stinky, wool hat.
PS - my head was fine.
iana
06-23-05, 08:42 PM
i have never been attacked by a bird but i once had one fly into the spokes of my front wheel, instant death for the poor critter.
pacman76
06-23-05, 09:11 PM
I'm hoping that pacman will test his helmet under a variety of conditions, then report back to us.
oh... it was just a moment of high foolery, and all i learned was "woah, that sucks." i was really excited to have a new helmet so i wanted to try rapping it against the bricks just because... well, because i could. so, there you have it. there's the report: it sucks bashing your head in, even when it is for laughs. i mean, it did make me laugh, but it also sucked. :D
cyclezealot
06-23-05, 09:24 PM
I have had small pebbles fly up and impact near by sunglasses. My glasses are fairly impact resistant. I think. Never ride without a helmet or protective glasses. No birds, but many times tree branches have smacked into my helmet. Felt that is what helmets are for.
N_C
06-23-05, 09:37 PM
I have had small pebbles fly up and impact near by sunglasses. My glasses are fairly impact resistant. I think. Never ride without a helmet or protective glasses. No birds, but many times tree branches have smacked into my helmet. Felt that is what helmets are for.
Where the pebbles come flying from? Are they from motor vehicles "peeling" out in a sandy/gravel area when they are stopped or from a gravel to a hard surface road?
cyclezealot
06-23-05, 10:12 PM
Mostly from vehicles, as I recall . However, even cycling picks up some small pebbles, that if not flies in your direction, flies towards your cycling partners.
khuon
06-23-05, 10:13 PM
I was once hit by a baseball from a nearby field as I was riding by.
slvoid
06-23-05, 10:23 PM
I was once hit by a baseball from a nearby field as I was riding by.
There's a road near my gf's house that's right next to 3 holes on a golf course. Imagine that lodged in your vent... "that's a hole in 1"!
khuon
06-23-05, 10:26 PM
There's a road near my gf's house that's right next to 3 holes on a golf course. Imagine that lodged in your vent... "that's a hole in 1"!
Erf! I wear a MTB helmet and it has larger vents so there's more a chance that thing will simply slip through. :eek: But wait... wasn't that scene played out in Happy Gilmour?
closetbiker
06-23-05, 11:09 PM
From http://www.golfplan.co.uk/golf_insurance.htm
GOLF SPORT INJURY
Over 12,000 golf accidents requiring hospitalisation occur in the UK every year, 3500 of which are head injuries.
an earlier version of this page stated, in 1998, 7,500 golfers sustained injuries to the head requiring hospitalization, 586 were rendered unconscious.
A friend is a semi-pro and he says you'd be suprised how many golfers get hit in the head by golf balls. Maybe helmets aren't such a bad idea on the course.
Berodesign
06-24-05, 03:11 AM
I was hit square on the top of the head with a beer bottle. The bottle broke and never touched me. I stopped at the fire station and had an EMT check me for cuts on my back, and I was unharmed completly. I was never able to identify a vehicle or person from where the bottle was thrown from.
On the flip side, I had a low hanging tree branch catch on my helmet and almost pull me off the bike. All that can be said about that was, "Good catch."
In the late 19:th century, the salvation army's hats, both for men and women, were reinforced on the inside with thick steel wires so they could wihtstand beer bottles etc. beeing thrown at them. :)
And yes, branches often hit my helmet, and yes, I have also a road that goes through a golf course, and no, I do not use the helmet in my sail boat where it probably is best used... (low boom u see) :D
Roughstuff
06-24-05, 07:53 AM
I have had small pebbles fly up and impact near by sunglasses. My glasses are fairly impact resistant. I think. Never ride without a helmet or protective glasses. No birds, but many times tree branches have smacked into my helmet. Felt that is what helmets are for.
I wear a helmet and would urge everyone to use protective eyewhere as well. I was coming down route 30 in Vermont many years ago against a fierce headwind when a Junebug smashed into my right lens, knocking it out completely. I can only imagine what it would have felt like had it strucky my eyeball.
roughstuff
closetbiker
06-24-05, 08:12 AM
...and then there is that pounding on the head you get when you're really putting in the effort to get up that steep grade...
Roughstuff
06-24-05, 08:14 AM
...and then there is that pounding on the head you get when you're really putting in the effort to get up that steep grade...
Talk about pounding on the head. I was hit by a massive hailstorm one time just as I was entering Banff in the canadian rockies. The stones were big enough and heavy enough that I got bloody knuckles. I was wearing my helmet and it sounded like I was inside of a popcorn popper.
roughstuff
Karldar
06-24-05, 10:57 PM
...and then there is that pounding on the head you get when you're really putting in the effort to get up that steep grade...
I was feeling that today on some climbs...ouch! My helmet helps protect me from low branches more than anything else. That's the main reason I wear it. No bird attacks yet. It is nice to duck through the spiderwebs on the trails. More often than not, the webbing still gets me in the face.:( I bonked my head on the inside of my cage the other day, but that was because I didn't have the clearance I thought I did while wearing my helmet.
BikeLady
06-28-05, 08:05 AM
I whacked my head on the tailgate of my car last fall while loading the bike after a ride. I knew I'd hit it hard, but not how hard until I got home and noticed the crack in my helmet.
That's one way to replace a helmet you don't like...;)