xizangstan

What little black cloud lurks in the back of your brain - what are you most afraid of happening while out on your daily ride?

Me? I'm always apprehensive about crashing and getting hurt. I'm also afraid of a breakdown while alone, miles from home, of something I can't fix on the spot.

When I think about all the miles I've ridden and places I've been, and the few things that have happened to me, my conscious mind tells me I can handle it. Still, I'm getting older and worry that one day, something will happen.

What about you? What do you think about before you hop on and start cranking? How do you try to be prepared for it?

NOS88

My greatest fear is that I'll keep going and not come back. That is, that this will be the ride where I say, "Screw work. I don't mind being poor. I'm just gonna ride everyday, all day."

xizangstan

Don't forget to take your debit card with you. You might get hungry. And you'll eventually need new tires!

miss kenton

Lying crumpled in a ditch, vultures circling overhead, and then somebody arrives, surveys the situation and....steals my bike.

RonH

My biggest fear is getting run down or assaulted by one of the many undesirables around here.

jdon

No fears. What happens, happens.

BlazingPedals

Cars, flats, and dogs are never far from my conscious thought, but my biggest worry is the speedometer reading.

Louis

My biggest fear is getting run down by a motorist. I don't worry much about just plain crashing without help from a car or truck.

Being harassed by some nutcase is on my mind at times, as well.

I keep my bikes in tip-top condition so breaking down is not a concern (jinx).

trek330

Today what could happen happenned and i was prepared.I just bought that 18 piece multitool and brought it with me for the first time.So,During the beginning of the trip my clips got loose and ,voila,screwdriver and fixed.Later I took a bad spill,dirt path and spinned out,and my brakes needed adjustment.Voila,Pedal wrench on the new tool and brakes were perfect.yeah,I'm okay.Wiser now about dirt paths!

Shifty

I don't worry that much, I use to worry a bit about log trucks, but over the years that was basically unfounded, so now I just give them a wave and we both keep rolling. One ride I did last November was a solo ride in the coast mountains. It was so isolated, deep in the forest, no houses, cars, trucks....nothing. I thought that I had little margin for error, a fall, mechanical problem and I'd be very alone. I rode it fine, as usual, but it did make me think about the possibilities. I guess I could fear that all the blueberry pie will be gone when I get to the cafe ;-)

Worry is a misuse of the imagination.

Dchiefransom

Getting hit by a car. Not worried much about dogs while riding, those happen at work.

ChrisENC

there is this one rough section i have to ride through going to and from work. Bad neighborhood but the only alternatives are high speed, dangerous highways. Lots of broken glass on the ground a always teenagers hanging out on all the corners.

ro-monster

The only thing I really fear much is being hit by a car in some unpredictable manner. The everyday dumb stuff that people do while driving isn't so bothersome because I can anticipate and thus avoid it for the most part. But I fear things like drunk drivers, or the scenario that happened on my street a few weeks ago: someone was running from the cops, turned suddenly from the main street into the quiet side street, miscalculated the turn and took out about 30 feet of the neighbor's fence on the corner. They didn't stop.

ciocc_cat

Getting hit by an aggressive or "distracted motorist", but that is more of a "manageable concern" for me than a "fear".

cranky old dude

Being attacked by low lifes is at the top of my list, dogs are next.

Having been hit by a car once already I'm very cautious around traffic (though not really afraid), and whatever breaks on the bikes I can deal with.

zonatandem

Overcome your fears!
Most things you worry about never happen . . .

whitecat

The best words on the subject, ever. Yeah, sometimes we crash, sometimes we don't, but - such is life. There are no absolutes in this life, so you better enjoy and hammer it hard while you can. The only thing I fear the most, the thing that most of us fear the most, is living the this life to it's fullest extent. But everyday I try and let go of that fear, and I enjoy myself. Anything less is not enough. You have to enjoy life for every thing small and big that you get, to be able to say that you LIVE.

stapfam

I don't think I have a single fear when riding--And that is not due to being young and No-Brain to not worry.

I ride sensibly and keep a good eye open for traffic and I get the respect back--I hope. On top of that there is a decent driving standard over here where I ride. I think that the only worry I do have is with regard to offroad riding. If anything happens on the road- you can bet your life I would be found by another road used shortly. But Offroad and it could be Hours or days before enyone would find me on some of the trails I ride. For that reason- my offroad bike of choice is the Tandem. Unless I really upset my co-rider- I will always have someone around tp pick up the pieces.

Wildwood 

I do focus on being SAFE - whatever the situation may call for.
Always be prepared to change a flat and never use risky tactics around cars.

BluesDawg

Fear is the mind killer.

Jamesw2

I can't call it a fear but it is a in the back of my mind ( A ledgon in mine at least) while riding i am kidnaped and my wife would expect the kidnappers to pay her to take me back

sknhgy 

Now that the days are shorter most of my riding is in the pitch dark on country roads. My fear is that some immature cycle-hating drunk is going to toss a half-full beer bottle out of his truck window at me as we meet on the road.

DnvrFox

Having 3 or 4 goathead flats in a row with only two tubes - and yes, that has happened. I am absolutely lousy at patching tubes in the field, and, at times, it is almost impossible to find a goathead embedded in the tire to remove the cause of the flat. Also, often the hole in the tube is so small that, upon removing the tube, without inserting the tube in soap and water - even under pressure- one cannot find the leak.

How do I prepare?

Well, I carry two tubes, a variety of patching material including stick-ons, and mostly a good cell phone with the address book filled with a number of friends who would gladly pick me up. However, my wife and our "sagmobile" would be the first I would call.

retnav94

Yesterday I did my first road ride on my mountain bike, 25 miles. I want to do longer rides and am considering a road bike. It was a much tougher ride then I had anticipated, very hilly with a stiff headwind. I was taxed a bit but loved it. I did, however, not like the cars whizzing by all that much. Most of the roads are country roads with zero shoulder. Traffic was minimal until one stretch of about three miles that is a popular shortcut from the normal congested areas in town, so it was busy and they were flying by. Not sure I will get use to that. One young girl slammed on the brakes behind me which definately caught my attention. Might have to get a mirror. Oh and I heard one dog behind me but I never gave it a chance to catch up. Fear might not be the right word in my case, maybe a slight bit of anxiety.

xizangstan

I hear you all when you say you refuse to "fear" but might be "concerned" or simply think about safety. I agree. But many years ago when I first got out of the military, my first civilian job was in the line department of a large electric utility (power) company. I participated in their mandatory safety campaigns, and became a "safety officer". I believe they referred to "safety" as being fear, properly channeled. For example, the mindset on that job was constantly, "What can possibly go wrong if I do this..." and then adjusting. (You make a mistake around thousands of volts at incredible amperage, and you disappear in a flash of light and puff of smoke)

That's how I meant to use the "Fear" word. Something that goes through our heads, that causes us be safe. Expecting Murphy's Law, and preparing for it...