hobkirk

I read details about Bono's injuries. I came to this forum to see if anyone here had put together exactly what happened.

I've broken my hip, I witnessed the person directly in front of me in a paceline go over the handlebars, I've talked to lots of cyclists about accidents (I started riding in 2010), and I've read lots of posts here.

Bono's injuries seem worse than any injuries I remember (except for the friend who died when a woman ran over him in her car).
Before details of his injuries, the posts almost universally mocked him. His pasty skin color, his clothing, his bike. Mix in a little humor about Sonny Bono dying when he ran into a tree skiing. Really?

Then a few mentions of injuries, although they seemed somewhat dismissive.

He's a singer, not a pro cyclist. He's famous. We cyclists should rejoice when anyone uses a bike, especially famous people who are likely to have wide-spread influence.

I am absolutely sincere when I say that I wish none of us ever has to deal with injuries like those, even you snarks.

------
Sometimes I stir the pot. Collectively I think we should strive to be better, to better accommodate cyclists who aren't roadies.

BoSoxYacht

I still haven't seen an account of how he went down, but as a cyclist that has had more than his fair share of injuries, I have much empathy.

Simple wrecks can cause more damage than most realize.

cruiserhead

bt

x2

Jiggle

It really sucks to have those injuries, but bones shouldn't break that easily. He must have osteoporosis.

FBinNY 

Given that all the injuries are on the left side, I'll venture that he went down to that side. It could be that he tried to catch himself with his left arm ( dangerous no-no if there's any speed involved) and drove the arm up injuring the shoulder. Or he might have tried to keep the arm in and take the impact on the hip and shoulder, and gone down hard. The second scenario usually breaks collar bones, not shoulders, but a bit of twist or body angle can make a world of difference.

It's also possible that he had an endo with a 1/2 twist. This happens if you overuse or lock the front brake while trying to turn. It throws you over the bars but at an angle to the outside of the turn (aka high side dump), body slamming you to the pavement on a shoulder or the side of your head. Unlike a low side dump, there'll be very little road rash, but it's more likely to break stuff.

There's also the likelihood that his bones are weaker or more brittle than those of a younger man, which doesn't help.

Either way, I feel for him. I've had my share of crashes, but so far have been lucky and not broken anything, I just leave blood trails as I limp away.

BoSoxYacht

Maybe, but WTF actually happened?

CNC2204

Don't drink n drive ...

Between the bike thing and the hatch blowing off his Lear in midair he may want to reassess things in general like "retirement".

Removing himself from Richard Branson's spaceflight list is a good start.

bigdo13

he ****ed himself up real good...

respect to him... now make like a real cyclist and get back in the saddle the next week, if not sooner...

FLvector

ditto. The only account of what is now being called "a high energy bicycle accident" is the following. "The avid cyclist is said to have tried to avoid another rider while travelling through the park and subsequently being thrown off his bike to the ground." I doubt we'll hear more detail unless someone might have had a GoPro and captured the event. I wish him well.

CNC2204

RollCNY

Wait a second. The man is an entertainer, and his crash was entertaining. Seems like another career highlight.

And in all honesty, Bono is a smug, supercilious twit who has cultivated the image for which he received derision. This is no different than the cool kid spilling a milkshake on his crotch.

FBinNY 

Nice to see such compassion for your fellow man. I agree with you on some of this, and would possibly agree close to completely if it were just about some road rash.

But a broken clavicle and fractured humerus isn't funny, even if it happens to someone you don't like. He suffered a real injury in a bicycling accident, and deserves our compassion. You can go back to hating him after he recovers.

goenrdoug

So, he was waving while on a MUP? Very dangerous.

All kidding aside, the news I've seen on this, thus far, has focused very little on the actual incident and more on the "Famous person hurts themself on a bike contraption" angle. OP's injury details do, indeed, indicate that it's pretty serious.

I wish Bono well in his recovery.

Now then.. Is the bike okay?

RISKDR1

good post and I totally agree with you. Those who are incapable of empathy towards the pain of others haven't yet had much meaningful like experience.

GeneO 

IDK, why should some celebrity get any more attention (or derision) for a bicycle accident than anyone else. I don't think it is funny though, even though I am not particularly fond of U2 music or Bono as a person.

bikemig 

Good post @hobkirk

Reynolds 

My post in that thread was in reaction to those who mocked Bono for crashing, said that AC crashed too while trying to grab an energy bar.
For the kind of injuries, I think he must have hit a curb or something like that.

BoSoxYacht

You should petition the forum about getting a new name.

Sometimes I confuse you with RollCNY, and think you are a tool because of some stupid crap he said.

on the path

Not a good idea to ridicule another who has crashed bad and suffered major injuries. We are all a split second from doing the same thing every time we throw a leg over and start to roll.

FBinNY 

That's OK, I once ripped a nice guy on this forum a new one because I confused him with someone else who deserved it. Thankfully he posted a "what'd-I-do???!!!" and we straightened it out.

BTW- it's sort of ironic RollCNY comes form upstate where they have a nice guy reputation and I'm from NYC and...

cydewaze

I'm a huge U2 fan, though I really wish he'd quit beating himself up right before tour. This is the second time in a row!

As far as Bono as a person, it's sort of a given that people are going to hate on him and by hyper critical just because he's so popular. I'd venture to say that were the Beatles still around, they'd likely be hated every bit as much as U2 is (by some people) today.

That said, I have a hard time being critical. Back in the early 90's, my wife (an even bigger U2 fan than I am) was sitting in the lobby of the Four Seasons hotel with a friend while the band was playing in town. They were hoping to catch a glimpse. Bono indeed strolled through the lobby, and when he saw them, he walked over and asked to have tea with them, and had a nice chat.

In 2005 he pulled my wife up on stage during a show in Toronto, and she got to do a little dance with him.

The band really is good to its fans. Funny though - my wife is an Edge fan, yet she keeps ending up meeting Bono.

GhostSS

I defended him, if somewhat casually. The remark about his pale skin was only because most cyclists tend to have a horrible tanlines in contrast (which is consider chic du jour for cyclists).

I don't speak for everyone, but I think the somewhat snarky reaction is that Bono is a celebrity who is known for being a bit of an ego maniac. At my workplace they don't even let me play any U2 music because they think he's an ass.

CNC2204

Its a good thing the ground broke his fall ....

coasting 

all i said was he looks big for his bike. go do your hysterics on something more deserving.