Friday night, the ER and a word to the wise.
 

First a word to the wise, just because you like a harder ride, don’t over-fill your bicycles tires, like pushing them to 90psi when they’re only rated for 65psi. Do the right thing; swap out the tires for ones rated at the psi level you like. This is a well-learned lesson, just a little too late for me.

Short background; I’m 52, ride my bike to work everyday, all year. Do about 500 miles a month. On my birthday, last week did my first century. Lost over 60 lbs over the last 2 years riding. Own five bikes, no car.

So I just left work at about 2PM and as I’m just cranking up a little hill, suddenly I’m bouncing off the asphalt. Apparently my front tire had a catastrophic blowout. (See lesson above) hit the road hard on my left shoulder. At first I didn’t think I was hurt too bad so I got up fixed the flat, wiped up some blood and rode to Performance Bike shop three blocks away, it’s a good opportunity to show off some road rash, pickup some extra tubes and take a closer look at the damage to the bike. The front rim was badly tweaked but still rideable due to the disc brakes. I was banged up and had a little road rash. Seriously considered riding the 4 miles home but instead in a moment of temporary sanity, I called my son James to come over and pickup poor old dad. The phone call to my wife was fun “Hi love… hay…. I’m OK but!… I had a little crash” she freaked. I handled that well…not.

So my son brings me and my bike home to the waiting loving arms and “eye of analysis” of my dear wife. She’s a wonderful supportive partner and is a bicycle fan, we watch the Tour together every July and have plans to go to the Tour of California in 2011. She even understands my “need to take a ride” thing. We do have a “one bike in the living room” rule. My Internet “bicycle porn” addiction is another matter.

It’s about 3:30, I’m also becoming aware that my pain level is getting higher, not good. So off to the doctor’s office we go. I didn’t want to go to the ER. After all I didn’t break anything. Just wanted to have the doc take a look and write a scrip for something for the pain and inflammation. I figured I’d take a couple of days off and get a ride in on Monday (Labor Day) or just hold off until my commute to work on Tuesday morning. Definitely prefer to avoid the Emergency Room, I know if we go there it will be a good six to nine hours…so the doctor sends us to the ER…bottom line, broken clavicle (collarbone), six to eight weeks off the bike and off work for at least a month. Also I’ll have to scrub my plans to ride the MS Bay to Bay 150 mile ride in October. Oh, we got out of the ER at 11PM

:bike2:

Wow! Sorry to hear that. There seems to be lots of that going on lately.

I'm getting ready to order a new bike because my son had his last one trashed in a car wreck.

After I clean up in the office I'm riding back home, which always makes me a bit nervous: 8 miles, lots of traffic. However, I'm riding during the UK/UL game so the roads should be deserted.

I'm like you. I don't feel pain initially, maybe due to the adrenalin of having a crash.
After my crash on the way to work, I carried on my merry way. Only went to the hospital because co-workers insisted. Discovered I had a broken elbow and was in a cast for 6 weeks.

So sorry to hear about that. Get well soon.

I doubt that over-inflation caused your catastrophic blowout. You might want to check for other causes - tire/tube mounted improperly, bad rim tape, valve wearing against valve hole in rim.

I had a catastrophic blowout once - it was caused by the LBS incorrectly mounting the tire/tube.

Broken collarbone is a badge of honor among cyclists but I don't want one.

Have a nice rest....don't be afraid to take pain pills.

Tandem riders regularly over pressurise their tyres with no problems. And I don't just mean the road tandems either. We still get punctures but caused by some other means. Obviously at Higher pressures than recomended a tube can split or rip if a puncture does occur but that has not been the case with me. Snakebites are still my main cause- OR- badly fitting tubes in the first place.

But have to admit that the proper tyre for the use it is given is still the best bet.

I never overinflate. When you go above max rated pressure you're playing up in the safety factor level, whatever that is. Overinflating a 65 psi rated tire to 90 psi is equivalent to inflating a 120 psi road tire to 165 psi. And I don't know anyone who does that.

Ouch!

Tough break. Heal well. A month off work for a broken collar bone? What do you do?

Hope you heal fast. I've had several friends break their collarbone so I know how much it can hurt. Good luck.

School bus driver semi-retirement job

Sorry to hear. Get well soon.

Wow that kinda blows, heal well and take it easy.

I see. Yes, that makes sense. I hope they can find a worthy substitute.

Hey semsd, I didn't mean to sound judgmental with my post above about tire pressures. I hope you heal well and quickly. Regards.

Not minimizing your experience -- broken c-bones, while a "badge of honor", are more of a pain the ace than they are the upper chest -- but you DID get off easy.

Mine, there was no 'get up and fix', no 'maybe ride in a couple days'; I knew immediately, when I COULDN'T get up, that I was in for it. (BTW -- commuting TO work, October 22, 2008, 815 AM; my front disc overpowered my soon-to-be-changed, too-weak fork spring, and dead-sailored me)

It took the abysmal VA ER crew 5 hours to tell me what I knew in less than 10 minutes: "Yep, it's broken." With the sharp peak of bone threatening to push through your skin, you kinda get that idea, even through three morphine shots. What they DIDN'T catch was that it was broken in five places!

This was a Wednesday; Thursday I was back in the VA, raising hell, and Friday I was in the Ortho's office. Monday -- I was in surgery, getting the steel plate that STILL doesn't set off a metal detector!

A week on Vicodin, then changed to oxycodone for the remaining 6 I was off work -- I could do little but take walks in the brisk, bracing Indiana November weather.

The day I was released to return to work, I was back on the bike -- then, a week later, we got hit with the worst ice storm of the region for the last 20 years.

You will do well, m'friend.

I had a front tire blow about 12 years ago, on a gravel road. I ate a bunch of gravel. I think mine was right at the sidewall rated tire pressure limit. I think mine was either a defective tire or a tire that was a couple years old and starting to get too old.

I'm glad you have a supportive wife and family. That's really important.

Why is it that I'm so tempted to begin all of my posts with OK or So now?

Must be your first, huh?

Maybe time to write the great American Bike Porn novel. There is a lot of back story here on BF.

Maybe we can partner on it.

Let me know if you can think of a good plot line. That's my weak spot. I am really good at moral ambiguities.

I think you may have the wrong idea what I meant by "Bike Porn" it's surfing he net for bike stuff, ebay, craigslist, blogs, forums, maps, sale sites, retailers, etc, etc.......

Get well soon, fellow San Diegan. I won't be riding Bike the Bay because I got suckered into helping out at the big stopover point at Westfield Plaza Camino Real, but that should be fun, anyway.

At age 26, in my one-and-only collision with a motor vehicle, I suffered a double fracture of the left clavicle. I had youth on my side, but the fact that mine healed in 2.5 weeks may give you some encouragement. (I call 6 weeks "the orthopedic constant," because it is so often cited as the healing interval for a fracture or a soft tissue injury.)

Update 30 hours later I'm off all pain meds except Ibuprofen.

It may have been a defective tire or a bad install. I should have checked it closer myself.

Good deal on the pain meds. The only one I take is aspirin, because most of the others nauseate me and don't help that much more with the pain.

A bad installation is a distinct possibility -- been there ... done that, although I was using a heavy-duty innertube and caught mine just as the bead was starting to come up over the rim flange.

Oh, no. That's hot stuff.

"It hung there for all to see. But I knew it was mine from the first moment my sick, depraved eyes began to wolf down the majesty that was that poor hungry little bike."

I had to swallow on a dry throat. I knew I was looking at destiny.

So, what do you think?

Sorry to hear about your accident. Hope you heal quickly and well.