General Cycling Discussion - The cycle path that nearly killed me.

I was cruising down my local high street toady, at around 20mph, surrounded by traffic. Now this street is the main road through town, so I decided to take advantage of the cycle path the good people at the Town Council decided to put a on the sidewalk to keep us bikers out of the way. I saw a side road ahead, with a good place to hop onto the path. What I didn't see was the tiny (like, 1 inch) curb between the main road and the side road. I didn't even make it onto the sidewalk, well not on my wheels anyway. Luckily the bike was pretty much undamaged, just minor scratches on a (hastily repositioned) lever, and a scratch on the back rim, which hopefully won't require a replacement.

My hands weren't so lucky. I now have two quarter-sized holes on my palms, not to mention a big chunk of road rash on my shin. However my head escaped unscathed, despite the lack of a helmet. I'm just glad I'd set the springs on my pedals at their loosest setting this morning.

Lessons learnt:

1. Wear gloves at all times.
2. Helmets aren't always neccessary, but you never know when they will be.
3. Always have as much float in your pedals as you can stand.
4. LOOK WHERE YOU'RE GOING!!!

i missed a 4" curb yesterday.. or rather i missed -seeing- it. i was going about 12-15.. and watching for the deadly traffic in the backwater town.

i have never been so glad for the rock shox on my bike. in fact i've always sort of thought they were useless, except for keeping me from getting a reasonably priced front rack.

i rolled right over it. or rather i bounced right over it. i -was- wearing a helmet. for the first time in 3 years i could fit my head into one. (having shaved my dreadlocks off the night before).

i stayed on the bike, and continued on at a slightly slower speed, paying very close attention.

no visible damage to the rims.

i have sympathy for your hands.. i once broke too hard to avoid clotheslining myself, and ended up with particularly painful palms, after a bit of acrobatics. aloe vera.

Originally posted by Jonny B
1. Wear gloves at all times.

I learned that lessen a few years ago. The good news is that (from my experience) the palm of your hands heal with no real scarring.

Sorry to hear about your accident. It looks as if you are learning from it though!

We have many so called "Bike path", and they are nice but those are not for bicycles. Those are for baby strollers and dog owners. If I want to ride a bike, I go on the street.

Originally posted by allgoo19
We have many so called "Bike path", and they are nice but those are not for bicycles. Those are for baby strollers and dog owners. If I want to ride the bike, I go on the street.

I totally agree! Unfortunately, in some places the law requires you to use a path if one is present, plus I can't tell you how many times I have been told to get on the sidewalk/path/etc. by ignorant drivers.

Originally posted by allgoo19
We have many so called "Bike path", and they are nice but those are not for bicycles. Those are for baby strollers and dog owners. If I want to ride a bike, I go on the street.

So do I. I think that's by far the most important lesson in this thread.

We have many so called "Bike path", and they are nice but those are not for bicycles. Those are for baby strollers and dog owners. If I want to ride a bike, I go on the street.

I third the motion. I have yet to bike few miles on the path without having to take an evasive action due to unpredictable people or animals. The other areas I try to avoid are near schools on school days.

Originally posted by Jonny B


Lessons learnt:

1. Wear gloves at all times.

DON'T stick your hands out to try and break your fall. Roll baby, roll.


Originally posted by Jonny B
2. Helmets aren't always neccessary, but you never know when they will be.

Yes. They are excellent at keeping the sun off your head and can keep bandaid costs down.


Originally posted by Jonny B
3. Always have as much float in your pedals as you can stand.

I'm not sure you're using the term float quite correctly there. Float is the amount of lateral movement in your cleats. You don't want too much float as in a crash your feet won't unclip and you could end up between a rock and a hard, pointy place. I think you mean spring tension.


Originally posted by Jonny B
4. LOOK WHERE YOU'RE GOING!!!

That one should have been the number one lesson, and possibly the only lesson.

I hope you heal soon. I know I'd be lost without the use of my palms, or at least the right one.

We have BIKE PATHS with divided lanes and the signs say bike paths,not skateboards,running,rollerblades,jogging or anything else,just bike path but everybody else uses them and acts like we shouldnt be there.Latly there have been high school track teams running on them across both lanes and as i come up to them thinking they will move,i stop and they dont move and i tell them,gee,is it ok if the bicyclist ride up here?I wont repeat the comments.I'll be calling the schools to see what they say.

Originally posted by Allister
I hope you heal soon. I know I'd be lost without the use of my palms, or at least the right one.

I don't know if you mean what I think you mean there, but :roflmao: in anycase.

Today I stuck to the path, which wasn't very crowded, but being sunday, lots of kids. I can't tell you how many times I saw kids ride their bikes right out onto the path without even looking, or stop and suddenly decide to turn around without even looking. And this was on a day which was overcast and the path wasn't even crowded! On nice days in the summer it's a zoo, you take your life in your hands! I usually take the road. Paths are dangerous.