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Old 11-04-15 | 11:40 AM
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79pmooney
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Joined: Oct 2014
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From: Portland, OR

Bikes: (2) ti TiCycles, 2007 w/ triple and 2011 fixed, 1979 Peter Mooney, ~1983 Trek 420 now fixed and ~1973 Raleigh Carlton Competition gravel grinder

I don't keep commuting stats. Been commuting at least part of the week most of the many jobs I have held since around 1970. My commuter bikes that got probably 75% of those miles but a lot of additional miles as well have total ~75,000 miles. 4000 commutes? Crashes? Lots. Wet leaves, snow and ice. My days of no car in New England and Michigan there would be one day every winter that a street would be unrideable and I would crash 3 times just to get down it, (One was solid, very bumpy ice in Ann Arbor. Gave up and walked. Those spills hurt. Another was a 2 mile stretch leaving Boston. Deep, wet, heavily rutted snow. No sidewalk. Had to ride if I wanted to get home.) Those winters were usually 5 spills per.

I haven't had a lot of car crashes. A door opening. Don't remember if that could be considered a commute. Wasn't my usual route but it was my commuter and I could have been coming from work. That was a bad crash. Had a postal jeep right turn me. I made the turn inside its path with the help of contact between our front tires. Close! My elbow was nearly in the driver's face. RR tracks on Seattle's Alaska Way before they ripped them out and beautified the pavement. An unlit bike on a path in Seattle.

Edit: I forgot a fun one! I used to ride across the Ballard Bridge in Seattle on the sidewalk. Every 10-15 feet was a concrete post that intruded into the narrow sidewalk. On the road side was a 15" "curb". I used LowRiders. One morning I brushed the curb with the pannier. Knowing the going over the curb onto the metal grate roadway was not going to end well, I yanked the bars to the right. The right pannier hit the concrete "rail" on the river side, slowing the bike. I went forward and to the right, planting my chin on the large pipe rail at the top. My chin opened up like facial wounds do. Turned my bike around and rode three block to the local hospital and walking into the ER. Discovered that a 7 am workday arrival with a bleeding face will get you very fast attention! 2 stitches and I was back on my bike. Missed a couple of hours of work.

So, no numbers. I've thought about trying to document all my crashes just to get an approximate total, but then think "Waste of time. Why? Obsessive maybe? Probably will never happen. (I can tell you how far all those bikes went and for the past decade, where. Not totally obsession free.)

Ben

Last edited by 79pmooney; 11-04-15 at 11:51 AM.
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