Originally Posted by
canklecat
Nice theory. Rarely works without regular practice.
That instinct from training doesn't include the vast majority of cyclists. Look at all the many hundreds of videos with road cyclists falling. Most of them fall without any apparent plan because it happens too quickly. There's no time to think your way into a correct fall. There's no practical way to train to fall on the road that isn't also incredibly risky.
As I've said before, when we fall and aren't injured we congratulate ourselves on our superhuman reflexes and finely honed instincts. When we're injured we chalk it up to bad luck. Then when we retell stories of our misadventures we selectively choose those that confirm our biases.
I think we're discussing two different kinds of falls.
The original intent of the thread was the 0-mph can't-get-my-foot-out-at-the-stoplight tumble or, 'Tombay' if you will. Also happens when you 'stall out' on a steep hill; happens often in MTB'ing, esp if you ride clipless. There's always a little bit of warning, so you can set up. I try to lean away from the fall, so the first thing that hits is the 'cheek' of my hip; Keeping your hands on the bar, elbows in, and roll from your butt to he back of your shoulder. It's not that hard to do, you just don't let go of the bike.
What you're talking about is going down at speed, where things happen a lot faster. It's happened a few times, both on velos and moto, and I usually have about enough time to think 'oh, crap' before I hit the deck. Just don't let go of the bars. If you're riding relaxed (or semi-flexed) then pretty much the same thing happens as in a Tombay, just harder and faster.
If you're tense and stiff, your body wont' absorb the fall as well. You're also more likely to let go of the bike, and more likely to have an incident put you in to trouble, than if you're staying loose on the bike.
'Keep Riding The Bike' was something we stressed with motos; If you've got a 500 lb moto that's on it's way down, you're not going to catch it with one arm.