First big crash

[ColinJ]

Reading about this wobble it can be induced by bad design yes but in this case and after 5000 miles on the bike I'm confident it's not that. Just bad luck, lack of experience, too much speed and gravel. Perfect storm really and you'd have to be really unlucky for everything to stack up like that again I think. Or I hope! :-)

I don't want to worry you, but ...

 

[Chrisc]

I don't want to worry you, but ...

Cheers Colin!
I think the top tube knee thing is going to become the norm for me.
I've never experience so much as a twitch before last Sunday tho and have descended longer faster sections. Averaged 42 coming down the moss the same morning with no bother.
Very odd.

 

[hopless500]

Ouch - hope that all heals quickly.

 

[Ken Dawson]

Out on a clubrun last Sunday enjoying the Derbyshire countryside I experienced a speed wobble for the first time ever on the descent into Charlesworth village. This quickly developed into an uncontrollable wobble and sad to say I was unable to avoid crashing. Hit the chapel graveyard wall a glancing blow with my left shoulder travelling at about 40mph and went down sliding about 25 yards down the hill to a stop.
Destroyed the left shifter on the bike but remarkably the rest seems fine.

I wasn't so lucky myself. Took two hours to get to hospital, an hour of which was trying to get me enough morphine in so I could be put on a spinal board properly.
Upshot is four displaced fractured ribs, broken collarbone, separated shoulder and a nice two piece shoulder blade plus road rash to left leg, hip, shoulder and knuckles. That said I'm so lucky not to have suffered a head or neck injury. Helmet hit the road and is scuffed and cracked from the impact so did the job it's paid to thanks very much. New one required.

Lots of new kit was out that day that is now trashed, either in the accident itself or scissored off in the Manchester Royal. Been looked after brilliantly over there before discharge and now face months of healing and probable surgery to plate things up.

As I said I never experienced this wobble before and the combination of that lack of experience in how to deal with it, extreme downhill section of road, a bend with a high wall and a gravelly corner right at the point where I really needed to be hard on the brakes but couldn't all conspired to put me up the creek without as it were. Apparently its 'common to assume that something has failed on the bike, wheel or head bearings as this is what it feels like This reaction creates a 'never going to save this' attitude at the outset. The thing to do is to level the pedals and clamp the top tube between the knees to stabilise things and hopefully bring things back under control. My descending in future is going to be a little more circumspect....
Anatomy lesson.

rash

jersey

forgot this one, CT scan image of my new two piece scapula, floating lower section highlighted.

and a last juicy CT image looking up and out of my ribcage at the shoulder , bit gruesome seeing your own internals like this but what a picture!

Hi. I'm with the Polocini Club over in Romiley which I believe is where you were heading?
Speed OR Death Wobble happened to me last year whilst riding with the Polocini lads, 42mph down the Snake Pass. I too had never heard of it or been informed on how to avoid or deal with it. Unlike yourself I was lucky and after 400m of wobbly decline managed to come to a standstill. If you want to know more read Dave Moulton's bike blog on Speed Wobble, it's educational and informative.
I feel strongly on the subject of Wobble because it can kill you yet nobody talks about it? I recently wrote to Cyclist, the magazine and asked them to do an article on it, awareness is important. Like yourself, I will never forget that feeling of the whip and uncontrollable nature of the complete bike which almost threw me over the edge of the Snake. Get well soon mate.

 

[nickyboy]

Jeez, get well soon.

I live about a mile from where you crashed. It's an extremely dodgy descent for even those very familiar with it. Look on the bright side; last year a cyclist lost control of the descent from Charlesworth village into Broadbottom and went straight over the dry stone wall at the bottom and into the river. Even more seriously injured than you.

 

[Chrisc]

Jeez, get well soon.

I live about a mile from where you crashed. It's an extremely dodgy descent for even those very familiar with it. Look on the bright side; last year a cyclist lost control of the descent from Charlesworth village into Broadbottom and went straight over the dry stone wall at the bottom and into the river. Even more seriously injured than you.

Thanks for that! I consider myself very lucky indeed to have walked away, albeit shakily, from the scene of this stack. Starting to feel much better and hoping for a positive meeting with the surgeon Thursday morning. :-)

 

[Chrisc]

Hi. I'm with the Polocini Club over in Romiley which I believe is where you were heading?
Speed OR Death Wobble happened to me last year whilst riding with the Polocini lads, 42mph down the Snake Pass. I too had never heard of it or been informed on how to avoid or deal with it. Unlike yourself I was lucky and after 400m of wobbly decline managed to come to a standstill. If you want to know more read Dave Moulton's bike blog on Speed Wobble, it's educational and informative.
I feel strongly on the subject of Wobble because it can kill you yet nobody talks about it? I recently wrote to Cyclist, the magazine and asked them to do an article on it, awareness is important. Like yourself, I will never forget that feeling of the whip and uncontrollable nature of the complete bike which almost threw me over the edge of the Snake. Get well soon mate.

Hi Ken,

Yes I was indeed trying to get to Polocini for a coffee and cake but came up short just above the chapel.

Thanks for the heads up on Dave Moulton, will read up on that. Did you check out that link I posted to the video of it being set up earlier in the thread?

I'd never heard anything about this phenomenon and that played a big part in me not containing things as I was certain my wheel was about to collapse and almost resigned myself to a big one.

Agree that it ought to be more publicised given the speeds involved and potential for serious injury. It would've been useful to me to be aware of anything that might have helped. Scared the living s**t out of me riding a bucking bronco at 40mph I can tell you.

Take care

Chris

 

[Accy cyclist]

And to think someone was down the pub the other night telling me how golfers suffer more serious injuries than cyclists !

 

[Chrisc]

And to think someone was down the pub the other night telling me how golfers suffer more serious injuries than cyclists !

They do get hit by lightening a bit? ;-)

 

[smokeysmoo]

They do get hit by lightening a bit? ;-)

and golf balls do sting like a b!tch when they hit you, don't ask how I know this

How you feeling Chris? Hope you've not had need to sneeze yet pal!

 

[Chrisc]

and golf balls do sting like a b!tch when they hit you, don't ask how I know this

How you feeling Chris? Hope you've not had need to sneeze yet pal!

Bit ropey at times but not at all bad considering thanks for asking. My home nursing staff are doing the business. Meals, papers, brews, cakes all appear and are cleared away leaving me nothing to do but eat, drink, sleep and browse the web looking for bike spares and reading the forum. :-)
I'm seriously thankful for my missus. She's a star!

Off to see a surgeon Thursday so hanging in there till I find out what the master plan for re-assembly turns out to be. I can't see not getting plated up as all the ribs are overlapping and I can't see how they will heal in that position. But what do I know!
I have had to cough a few times and hiccups are fun too. :-)

 

[Sods_Laur]

Wishing you all the best for recovery, though I will warn you the patience of domestic nursing staff tends to run out quite quickly. Take advantage of it while you can!

Good luck for the appointment on Thursday, you've done a proper job on yourself. I'm sure your missus is grateful you're still in one piece. As are you I expect.

 

[Chrisc]

Wishing you all the best for recovery, though I will warn you the patience of domestic nursing staff tends to run out quite quickly. Take advantage of it while you can!

Good luck for the appointment on Thursday, you've done a proper job on yourself. I'm sure your missus is grateful you're still in one piece. As are you I expect.

Thanks! Well,my domestiques have gone back to the day jobs today but breakfast in bed still arrived, portioned out pill supplies and a sandwich is prepared for lunchtime, so far so good. Chapeau to my excellent staff.

 

[HLaB]

Yikes, Heal fast @Chrisc . Last thing probably on your mind Rapha will repair the jersey.

 

[Chrisc]

Yikes, Heal fast @Chrisc . Last thing probably on your mind Rapha will repair the jersey.

Cheers!
Actually, I hadn't seen the shoulder at the time, neck brace stopped me looking but they were about to cut that off and I asked them not to. The doctor grinned at me and asked if I was serious and I said yes, it'll come out from under, full zip you see. He told the nurse to make an official note, 'patient prefers pain to having his jersey cut off...'