hi everyone, i guess i should introduce myself— my name is daniel, i live in atlanta.

i recently bought a relatively cheap fixed gear bike, a vilano edge:
http://www.roadbikeoutlet.com/vilano...peed-bike.html

and basically, i have not ridden a bike since i was around 9 or 10, and even then, i only knew how to ride around in a parking lot. so essentially, i'm learning to ride a bike all over again.

i got a 50 cm bike, not because i wanted a short bike, but because i have short legs, and even with a 50 cm i have less than an inch of space between myself and the bar. however, i had the bike shop set the seat very low.

i got out in grant park, here in atlanta, on a sidestreet, and i got to riding, extremely wobbly. i felt like i didn't have any control over the bike— especially considering the "bullhorn" handlebars. however, i found that if i held my hands on the part of the bar that sticks forward, the "horn", so that my hands were parallel to the bike, i could balance and get a decent rhythm going. so i went around a bit and got to going faster, and felt a little more confident.

however, i started worrying about turning, i had one ahead. so i started to turn the bike, and it felt strange, like i was going to fall over, because my arms and hands were parallel to the bike— i felt like i had no control over it. so i steered back and then, i don't know exactly what happened, but my foot came off the pedal (not using clips yet) and got beat around by the moving pedals. the bike was swaying all over the place and i was 100% sure i was going to fall off. i didn't. i was able to grab the brakes and mash down until i slowed to a stop.

however, it turns out i sprained my ankle pretty badly, and i won't be able to ride for a few days. i feel pretty much like an idiot at this point— i never really felt like i was in control of the bike and steering was pretty much an impossibility.

does anyone have any useful advice?