patentcad

I purchased my Breitling Aerospace used from my pal Don about 10 years ago for $600. It fell off my wrist (the Titanium band must have popped a link or blown a pin) while cycling. Yes I did backtrack the entire route. 30 miles of cycling back while staring at the pavement. No dice. Oh well. I did get 60 miles in that day instead of 30. So that's something.

I will be replacing it. Except now that will cost more like $2K. This is the only bling in Pcad's life. And it's actually fairly low key (I do not consider bike schwag to be 'bling' whatsoever).



Bummer. In 18+ years of daily cycling this NEVER happened to me before. What are your 'I lost it cycling' stories (no virginity posts please).

Snicklefritz

I haven't lost anything that I can think of. Perhaps just a clif bar that I tried to take out of my pocket, but dropped. Although a friend of mine borrowed my Light-and-Motion Vega to use on a night ride. Somehow it fell off the mount. He and his buddies spent an hour or so looking for it and did mnage to find it. However, it came back looking like a pit bull had used it as a chew toy.

zimbo

How in the hell can you ride with a watch on? Doesn't it drive you crazy?

--Steve

patentcad

But I never heard of anybody losing their watch on a bike. Never happened to me, that's for sure.

I will be wearing the new Breitling while cycling. I buy these watches to wear them. Can I afford to lose one every 10-12 years? Yes. But this will make me lean more towards the $120 Highgear atltitude/hrm watch for cycling. I'll concede that.

Like my watch would cause me to crash if it got caught in my spokes. Right. Have you ever seen a Mavic Ksyrium wheel? If anything ever got in there while the wheel is moving it would be snapped into multiple pieces instantly. Small animals would become The Red Haze.

Did you really call me a n00b? Oh man, I wish. I probably have cycling socks older than you. Which is considerably suckier than being called a n00b.

Damn. What time is it anyway?

old and new

PITIFULL ... Learned your lesson Isuppose. I view watchs as I do sunglass. If the watch is light and has a leather or plastic strap, I'll wear it. Your's was neither nor was it cheap . Sunglasses ,as long as they have non-distortion lenses and fit, I use the cheap ones, $20 to $40. I learned THAT the hard way.

daytonian

I've fallen off a jet ski before and lost a 100 dollar pair of Ray Bans, but not 6 benjies.

Pharmr

dude that sucks....I havent lost anything cycling yet...but I was on a 4 day motorcyle/camping trip in Big Bend with some of my friends recently and I was getting some sunglasses out of my windshield bag and watched my mp3 player pop out and hit the pavement at around 70mph...needless to say, I didn't need to turnaround to look for it.

patentcad

I agree on the sunglasses. I dropped a pair of $40 Performance 'Oakleys' and didn't even go back for them (in the heat of a competitive Sunday ride). That's why I buy cycling shades that are $50 or less (and some of them are actually very good, particularly Tifosi brand). But watches are fastened to your wrist, not stuck upside down in your helmet (like mine were that time).

But I suppose bracelet type watchbands are fallible.

'Pitiful'?

It would only be pitiful if I were unable to replace the watch. That is not the case This is yet another Stupid BF Anecdote.

There is exponentially more stupidity in one afternoon on BF than in the entire Pcad Stupid Moment Portfolio. That's certain. All I have to do is read some of the post topics. Many of them are not response worthy.

I do miss Ryanf however.

'nother

What's this? A catastrophic titanium failure?!?!? Are you sure it was not carbon fiber?

srsly

that really sucks dude. it's too bad i can't wear a watch because it drives me bat**** crazy; because i do love me a good lookin watch.

only thing i've lost are expensive sunglasses. but those are only one benji.

bdcheung

quick, someone get a tissue for botto

patentcad

That is my second Ti failure. The first was not catastrophic, but my 1991 Merlin frame did crack in two places with about 40K miles. Nothing sudden, the rear wheel rubbed, noticed the second cracks later.

Actually if it was the pins that hold the band to the watch, it was not a Ti failure but a SS (stainless steel) failure. That is far more probable.

patentcad

Yes, the only thing nicer than a good lookin' watch is a Porsche in the driveway. My pal Don has both.

'nother

Steel?! No way! It is real! It cannot fail!

Sorry, I don't mean to make light of your misfortune. That's a drag, no matter what material failed.



Just to be sure, though: you didn't see any mushroom clouds, right?

Walleye

Day-umm....

I have a Breitling, too (little guy-Colt Quartz). I rarely wear it cycling, though (HRM goes on left wrist).
I bought the watch when I was single. Now, with two kids, if I had to replace it.... no way.

FWIW, I have the pedestrian rubber strap on mine. Hasn't failed yet.

Saturday, my glasses fell off during a descent. I think I'm out about five bucks.

Sorry about your loss....Breitling IMHO makes some fine-lookin' timepieces.

ElJamoquio

Hell, he re-instated the Concorde fleet and is already backtracking the entire route.

Blue Jays

Sorry to hear the unfortunate account about the Breitling watch. My taste in watches runs towards IWC, Omega, Jaeger LeCoultre, and others...so those possessions don't see saddletime on the bike. My preferred riding watch is the very reliable Casio G-Shock GW 530-A model. It's lightweight, reasonably legible, and one less thing to worry about on the road.

As far as lost items, I'm very careful to keep my keys in a separate jersey pocket from food into which I might be dipping while riding. It isn't likely I would hear the sound of a single key hitting the pavement at 20 m.p.h. if I was reaching back for a Fig Newton snack, for example. Money, ID, credit card, key, and cellular, goes into a ziploc plastic bag and into one pocket while food goes into another. The center pocket stays empty unless I pack it with the occasional frozen water bottle for extra capacity.

patentcad

Losing a Breitling is not 'misfortune'. The correct response to the 'I lost my Breitling riding my Cannondale Six13' would be:

'Oh, you have a fancy watch AND a fancy bike?' as you point out the homeless dude passing by.

Until recently we had a major NY City homeless shelter in our town (Chester NY's Camp LaGuardia, 50 miles NW of NY City) which just closed, much to the delight of town residents (nobody wants bums wondering all over their town I suppose, that's what homeless were called when I was a kid, 'bums'). But I kind of miss it, because every time I saw one of those homeless dudes (and I saw them daily while cycling) it was a humbling 'that could be me' moment. But now PCad will only have faster cyclists to humble him. There's plenty of those, don't worry.

'Misfortune' is going bankrupt because your health insurance doesn't cover your deadly illness while your wife leaves you for another man. Or riding your bike into a garbage truck and getting killed or paralyzed. What happened to me is just another BF post.

'nother

So you're saying there was no mushroom cloud. OK, OK, I get it already.

patentcad

>>as a cyclist do you try and use your legs in a street fight<<

Actual BF forum topic from tonight.

I rest my case.

patentcad

I apologize. I did not mean to lay a Doc Ray sermon on you. I will refrain from such bombast in the future.

dagna

I was sitting here feeling all superior because my watch has a double safety system, when I suddenly realized my watch has a titanium band and by the law of instant karma I can now never again wear it riding. It won't matter how many safeties it has--since I was smug I *will* lose it. Instant karma is a b*tch.

I haven't lost anything important while riding yet, but I did put my iPod through the washing machine in my jersey pocket .

Ih8lucky13

Pcad I am truly sorry for your loss, but I am also saddened that the people who owned Breitlings in this thread actually purchased ones with a Quartz movement. For shame.

zippyh

Oddly enough, a spring bar on my Breitling Aerospace popped while I was on my bike.
I was in my driveway at the time having just returned from my ride, so I didn't lose my watch.
I even found the offending spring bar.

Bummer about your watch.

smoke

i'm a pilot. be happy it died the way we all want to go; giving our best. it passed away during a hard athletic endeavor. be proud of the fact it didn't die on your wrist in some froo-froo french restaurant. all things must pass. even a breitling. it died a noble death; with you while on a hard ride. rejoice