Bicycle Mechanics - Crash

So I crashed today and the bike seems OK but I have a quick ques. I have a carbon fork so should I be worried? Is it going to "Catastrphically Fail" on me at 40 mph on a descent or do they generally not take alot of stress. I actually ask this question more for future reference because I happen to know that the fork should be OK b/c the cyclometer sensor wasn't even off.

THanks,
jonny

If the crash was hard I'd be worried. Did you just lay it down at 40mph, or did you run into something?

If you know the fork should be OK, then you wouldn't need to ask the question. Carbon fiber, like any material, can be overstressed in the forces of a crash. A crack may not be apparent without close inspection of the fork and steerer tube. If you have any doubts as to the integrity of the fork, you should take it to a good LBS for inspection.

While you are at it, you probably should have the rest of the frame checked as well, regardless of the material.

OK thanks for the replies, I went down at about 20 mph kind of glancing of a motorbike. I'll take it in when I go to get a new helmet and jersey etc.

Thanks

People like to rely on the lore that some materials/constructions fail "catastrophically" without warning. This is certainly not the case in the majority of cases or these materials/constructions would be unusable in critical applications. Inspect very carefully...look for any apparent rumpling or cracking of the gelcoat. If the headset is suddenly loose, then something is wrong and you need a close inspection of the steerer. Even composites usually show some incipient delamination well before total failure. You probably won't be able to see it but if something feels squirrely...get very attentive! The forks are probably just fine, but seriously, if something feels funny, stop riding them!