Ice crash... my luck ran out.

[biggs682]

i chickened out today and for rest of week due to ice and have got the car out again its sooooo wrong

 

[bigjim]

I took a spill in Mallorca this year due to a puncture. Only thing I knew was the bike on top of me and my leg cut and horrendous pain in my arm. so bad that I could not bend it straight. I actually fitted a new inner tube and rode a couple of miles back to the hotel one armed. I elected not to go to a Spanish hospital as I was due to fly home so used one arm all the way home. saw GP who sent me straight to A&E who said arm is not broken [no x ray] and said wait for it to heal. Six weeks later with no improvement, back to A&E where I insisted on Xray. Arm/elbow showing breaks [almost healed] in three places. I now have one arm permanently bent and a trapped nerve which will require op to release.
NHS not always the best. Now wish I had gone straight to Spanish A&E. Been to see consultant on four occasions and have yet to meet him. Always see an underling who has a different theory. I now stay away from icy weather and have dumped my cleats.

 

[craigwend]

Went out Saturday, snow / ice had partially 'softened' & not so deep... luckily, 'I got away with it' on the ride Sunday a serious freeze overnight, decided to give it a miss.

After reading this thread - I made the right decision.



Much haste to your bodily repairs - a cautionary tale for us all!

 

[airbrake]

i chickened out today and for rest of week due to ice and have got the car out again its sooooo wrong

There's nothing wrong with a healthy streak of self-preservation !

That particular morning, I was thinking to myself 'I'm softening... not as tough as I used to be' etc. I kind of bullied myself into going out.

I wish I had been a 'chicken' that day - a healthy chicken can ride again

 

[airbrake]

NHS not always the best. Now wish I had gone straight to Spanish A&E. Been to see consultant on four occasions and have yet to meet him. Always see an underling who has a different theory. I now stay away from icy weather and have dumped my cleats.

Sorry to hear about that bigjim.

There were certainly some aspects of my treatment that left something to be desired. The ambulance crew told me they were going to take me a gentle 'easy' route to hospital to avoid speed bumps etc. I don't know where we went, but I began to be concerned by the duration of the journey. We were going around tight corners and roundabouts with braking and acceleration from junctions. This was bizarre - I began to wonder where I actually going.

To cap it all, we went over a speed bump... and the journey had taken around 35 - 40 minutes. The journey if we had gone direct would have been 15 - 20 minutes, and there are no speed bumps, islands or corners...

I can only think the crew were time-wasting to avoid going out on another job close to the end of their shift.

I could relate quite a few other things - the X-ray guys talking about who had the better 4X4 system on their cars who somehow lost a huge X-ray plate that I had held been holding very tight... I always hold these things steady so it's a sharp image (not keen on multiple X-rays). This guy takes it away and resumes his conversation, but then comes in again and says ''where have I put it... I'd lose my head if it wasn't screwed on"

His colleague then came in and said "we have to take another one... I mean one from a different angle". The angle was exactly the same...

At no time was I weighed - this is important for the anaesthetic. I queried this and was told "we will guess your weight" ! I told them my weight...

I told around 6 doctors and nurses who were making notes in preparation for surgery that I had a slipped disc (sustained in 1997).

Shortly before surgery, the anaesthetist came in and said "we are going to do an epidural". I told her that I had a slipped disc about a third the way up my back. She turned her back to me and said "about here" ? while pointing halfway up her back.

I said no, lower down. She said "ah.... that's where we would do it".

I had a general anaesthetic, and to be honest I was glad not to hear the drilling and tapping etc anyway

Regarding clipless pedals, I have to say I've always been wary of them - particularly off-road. A couple of friends broke their collar bones when they were unable to unclip, and one day on an icy track a girl was laid across a frozen puddle with cleats firmly stuck. Her boyfriend was struggling to get them free.

Having said that, I did buy some SPD pedals recently for road use. When I'm recovered, I will use them but set to easy release tension.

 

[airbrake]

Went out Saturday, snow / ice had partially 'softened' & not so deep... luckily, 'I got away with it' on the ride Sunday a serious freeze overnight, decided to give it a miss.

After reading this thread - I made the right decision.

Much haste to your bodily repairs - a cautionary tale for us all!

Thank you craigwend. Glad you made the right decision

 

[asterix]

Your NHS experience sounds like the stuff of nightmares!

When I was taken to A&E (by a 1st class ambulance crew) the doctor told me I was badly bruised and would need to take it easy for a couple of weeks. I'm not sure what prompted them to take X-rays unless it was my symptons of agony but I am pleased that they did as it revealed 1st that I had broken my back. They than asked if I could raise my head which I refused to attempt, took a 2nd x-ray and found my neck had 2 fractured vertebrae as well.

My remaining stay in York hospital was pretty dire as there was no-one to insert a catheter for hours, they didn't know when I'd be transferred so wouldn't feed me until I insisted and 2 days later I was transferred to a Hull Neurosurgical ward. What a contrast!

They did offer me surgery for the back vertebrae but I declined as they said it would in any case heal sufficiently in a few weeks by itself. I'm afraid I gave them much trouble as I had to lie immobile on my back, but they never complained in the least and were kindness itself.

(I am fine, now!)

 

[airbrake]

Good to hear your back healed up ! Quality of care varies so much within the NHS (and it has to be said that Rotherham General Hospital does not have a particularly good reputation...) It wouldn't have been my first choice, but the surgeons were good, and there were some real angels amongst the staff.

That's terrible about the catheter and being reluctant to give you food... Food seems to be a lottery in the NHS. At Rotherham, various patients were coming in, cold and starving. Nurses would go out 'foraging' for whatever they could find. All the nurses were highly stressed - it was a real eye-opener. Many were on 12 hour shifts day after day - totally wiped out.


I wonder how long the NHS can go on like this.

 

[Campfire]

Oooh, Airbrake, how bad that is. I hope you heal soon and take care. I'm going to get my trike out soon, I'm relatively close to the ground so even if I fall off, won't fall far.

 

[airbrake]

Thanks very much Campfire. You know, this got me thinking about trikes - how about a trike with studded tyres ? That would go just about anywhere on ice...

I'd be interested to hear how the trike handles on ice. Be careful though !

 

[Arch]

Thanks very much Campfire. You know, this got me thinking about trikes - how about a trike with studded tyres ? That would go just about anywhere on ice...

I'd be interested to hear how the trike handles on ice. Be careful though !

A recumbent trike is about the best thing on snow and ice. Well, it's about the best thing ever anyway. Even an upright trike can be great - our work Maximuses are brilliant, I'm safer riding it than when I get off and try to walk on the ice. The braver lads like to throw them into skids.

Sorry to hear about your accident, and I hope you heal quickly. If you're fit, you have a head start.

With regard to the mobile - carry it. You can leave it turned off all the time if you prefer (like my Mum does*), but you'll have help to hand almost anywhere. In this weather, 10 or 20 minutes could be vital... And there's a huge mental boost knowing someone is on the way.

*She turns it on to make a call and then straight back off. She thinks she's 'wasting it'. I did once point out "Mum, you know how you always like to know where I am, and if you ring home and I'm not in, you call my mobile to make sure I'm ok? Well, sometimes, I'd like to be able to do the same..." and she agreed, but still, she leaves it off....

 

[Glow worm]

Flippin' eck just come across this thread. Wishing you a very speedy recovery Airbrake- Glad you had some good and swift treatment and hope you'll be back in the saddly in time for a sunny, warm ice free Spring which I have booked for us all from March 1st. Your story has certainly reminded me not to get too cocky as I tend to approach any dodgy conditions with a sense of enjoying the challenge and saying f*ck it, it's only ice/ snow/ storms etc. I'm with you on the moble thing - I bloomin' hate the things and if I had my way would never get one. Mrs G however, a far more level headed creature than I, has bought me one for emergencies. It's reassuring to have it if I get stuck and knowing that predictive text seems to have somehow made me fluent in Albanian. Get well soon and make the most of having everyone run about doing everything for you for a few weeks!

 

[airbrake]

Thanks very much Glow worm. The surgeons were indeed champing at the bit to pin it back together and give the best chance of repair.

A warm, ice free spring sounds great ! If I can be on 2 wheels by then it would be a good result. My parents love using their phones - well maybe not the predictive text part I must admit they make nifty MP3 players also. Another thing is that wih a mobile, I would be more confident about going further out - I've always limited myself to around a 30 miles radius, so that would be a plus.

 

[airbrake]

Sorry to hear about your accident, and I hope you heal quickly. If you're fit, you have a head start.

With regard to the mobile - carry it. You can leave it turned off all the time if you prefer (like my Mum does*), but you'll have help to hand almost anywhere. In this weather, 10 or 20 minutes could be vital... And there's a huge mental boost knowing someone is on the way.

Thank you Arch, and yes I'm hoping that my general fitness will help recovery.

I think I'd be like your mum and leave it off unless really needed - I'm also not too keen on microwaves being transmitted so close (do mobiles constantly transmit even when not in use ?) On the other hand, here I am using a wireless connection on my laptop...

The recumbent trikes look great fun - I was looking earlier at some ICE trikes. There are maybe a couple of issues for me though. I weave through traffic a lot, and also being on the southern part of the Pennines there are plenty of steep hills which have me out of the saddle (try to keep this to a minimum, but it becomes necessary).

With recumbents on hills is it a matter of low ratios and maintaining a higher cadence ? Or is it a case of simply making up on the flat due to the advantages of a lower drag factor ?

I definitely like the idea of stability, and also drifting the wheels on ice

 

[mgarl10024]

Hi Airbrake,

I was just sat here thinking and for some reason I remembered your accident. Just thought I'd dig out this thread and ask how you were getting along?

MG