A day of Firsts! Endo too!
12-04-08 | 09:06 AM
#1
Thread Starter
Senior Member
Joined: Jun 2008
Posts: 1,824
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From: Western Chicagoland
A day of Firsts! Endo too!
Ahh, winter. Icy streets, rutted sidewalks, and sadistic plow drivers who pile snow high right where you want to go. And I have been waiting for this day for months!
6 am, 17 degrees. Ice on the streets, a few inches of days old snow laying around. Ride to work for the first time on wintry roads. Riding studded tires for the first time ever as well. I have seriously underestimated the workload of running on 40mm tires with studs on an old schwinn comfort bike. I am sweating in no time. Half way to work the roads are still icy, but traffic is building, and they are doing 60 mph in a 45, on icy roads, passing close. I move to the side walk. (you lane takers need not comment, it ain't going to happen on these roads).
A POX ON ALL WHO DON'T CLEAR THE SIDEWALK after a snow! Ruts, boulders thrown up by the plows, piles of snow built by homeowners with narrow gaps, and worst of all are the 1 to 2 foot high ramparts in in the crosswalks built by the snow plows a few days earlier. The smaller walls of snow and ice I begin to hop and climb over. I am successful five or six times, and my confidence in studded tires is soaring. And they don't let me down, there is a much more trecherous fate awaiting me.
I come to a 12 inch snow wall blocking the cross walk doing about 8 mph, and attempt to hop it like the rest. Front wheel goes over, I am unweighting the back wheel to complete the jump, and my front wheel sinks deep into soft snow and stops dead. I still have my forward momentum, so over the bars I go! At the zenith, I seem to pause for a moment in time, or maybe it just seems that way. I know there is no stopping the giant endo I am about to do, so I let out a yippee and just go with it. Then Spread eagle, face down in the snow... wait for it... wait for it... Ah, the bike catches up and lands right on top of me.
I jump up. Any witnesses? NO. A shame, I am sure my style and form was excellent. The Handlebars are askew, but there is no other damage, to the bike or me. My first endo, ever!
Can't wait for the ride home.
6 am, 17 degrees. Ice on the streets, a few inches of days old snow laying around. Ride to work for the first time on wintry roads. Riding studded tires for the first time ever as well. I have seriously underestimated the workload of running on 40mm tires with studs on an old schwinn comfort bike. I am sweating in no time. Half way to work the roads are still icy, but traffic is building, and they are doing 60 mph in a 45, on icy roads, passing close. I move to the side walk. (you lane takers need not comment, it ain't going to happen on these roads).
A POX ON ALL WHO DON'T CLEAR THE SIDEWALK after a snow! Ruts, boulders thrown up by the plows, piles of snow built by homeowners with narrow gaps, and worst of all are the 1 to 2 foot high ramparts in in the crosswalks built by the snow plows a few days earlier. The smaller walls of snow and ice I begin to hop and climb over. I am successful five or six times, and my confidence in studded tires is soaring. And they don't let me down, there is a much more trecherous fate awaiting me.
I come to a 12 inch snow wall blocking the cross walk doing about 8 mph, and attempt to hop it like the rest. Front wheel goes over, I am unweighting the back wheel to complete the jump, and my front wheel sinks deep into soft snow and stops dead. I still have my forward momentum, so over the bars I go! At the zenith, I seem to pause for a moment in time, or maybe it just seems that way. I know there is no stopping the giant endo I am about to do, so I let out a yippee and just go with it. Then Spread eagle, face down in the snow... wait for it... wait for it... Ah, the bike catches up and lands right on top of me.
I jump up. Any witnesses? NO. A shame, I am sure my style and form was excellent. The Handlebars are askew, but there is no other damage, to the bike or me. My first endo, ever!
Can't wait for the ride home.
12-04-08 | 10:32 AM
#3
Senior Member
Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 3,040
Likes: 1
From: Austin, TX
Bikes: Bacchetta Giro, Strada
Beats the hell out of my first endo ...
At a red light. Heavy traffic. Light turns, I go, get in a few strokes before I work on getting clipped in. Going 15 mph or so. My foot slips, goes into the wheel. OK, foot stuck, bike slowing, then suddenly the front wheel locks. I fly (and like you, time stops for a bit), land on my hands, scrape my chin and leg and chest, bike lands on me (but my foot is still stuck in the wheel.) Amazingly, my foot and ankle are unharmed, though I did need a motorist to help extricate myself from the bike. (He figured I'd be going home in an ambulance, but instead I took a cab.) Chin and leg are road-rashed. Wrists are both sprained (not discovered until the next day, and took months to heal.) Hands are unharmed, thanks to my gloves. Helmet never touched the ground. Fork is bent, and the frame is damaged a bit too. Pride is seriously broken ... not only did I crash in a spectacular way with no apparent cause (to an observer), but I had a huge audience. It took months to get my mojo back ...
At a red light. Heavy traffic. Light turns, I go, get in a few strokes before I work on getting clipped in. Going 15 mph or so. My foot slips, goes into the wheel. OK, foot stuck, bike slowing, then suddenly the front wheel locks. I fly (and like you, time stops for a bit), land on my hands, scrape my chin and leg and chest, bike lands on me (but my foot is still stuck in the wheel.) Amazingly, my foot and ankle are unharmed, though I did need a motorist to help extricate myself from the bike. (He figured I'd be going home in an ambulance, but instead I took a cab.) Chin and leg are road-rashed. Wrists are both sprained (not discovered until the next day, and took months to heal.) Hands are unharmed, thanks to my gloves. Helmet never touched the ground. Fork is bent, and the frame is damaged a bit too. Pride is seriously broken ... not only did I crash in a spectacular way with no apparent cause (to an observer), but I had a huge audience. It took months to get my mojo back ...
Last edited by dougmc; 12-04-08 at 10:43 AM.
12-04-08 | 11:45 AM
#4
Didn't make it
Joined: Sep 2008
Posts: 931
Likes: 0
From: Weymouth, Mass.
If the crowd cheered, I would have bowed!
Hope you guys get better.
3 weeks since rotocuff surgery on my left shoulder.
I did my first ride just now 2 miles.
Doc says I'm a fast healer,go ahead,take it easy.
Off to do 4 miles on the flatbar.
NEVER GIVE UP! NEVER SURRENDER!!!
(Or they'll throw dirt on you)
Hope you guys get better.
3 weeks since rotocuff surgery on my left shoulder.
I did my first ride just now 2 miles.
Doc says I'm a fast healer,go ahead,take it easy.
Off to do 4 miles on the flatbar.
NEVER GIVE UP! NEVER SURRENDER!!!
(Or they'll throw dirt on you)
12-05-08 | 08:49 AM
#6
Senior Member
Joined: Sep 2008
Posts: 50
Likes: 0
From: KS
Bikes: Early 90's Trek, 07 Kona Jake the Snake
dougmc, my first endo was similar to yours! Old bike, chain slip, foot in front wheel while crossing a busy interesection. An older lady across the sidewalk let out a good scream as I went over! Last ride ever on that bike.
12-05-08 | 08:59 AM
#7
Thread Starter
Senior Member
Joined: Jun 2008
Posts: 1,824
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From: Western Chicagoland
Got stuck at work, had to return home after dark. Otherwise I was going to photo my endo snow angel.
Best part of the reutrn trip was following a single bike track home right to my door, which of course was mine from the morning commute. Discovered my head tube is a little loose on the way home. Don't know if it was from the crash or not. Not worried, that's what beater bikes are for.
Best part of the reutrn trip was following a single bike track home right to my door, which of course was mine from the morning commute. Discovered my head tube is a little loose on the way home. Don't know if it was from the crash or not. Not worried, that's what beater bikes are for.
