Lost my nerve :(

[buggi]

Came off my bike on slippy mud slide of a road three weeks ago. Hip still hurting although the surface bruising has gone. 5 more cyclists at work have come off on either mud or ice, one resulting in a fractured wrist, and even my die-hard cyclist friend, who normally rides all through the winter, has also come off. I've completely lost my nerve and it doesn't help that my die-hard cyclist friend has hung his bike up for the next week or so because of this weather .

If he's scared, what hope have I got ???

 

[Deleted member 26715]

I thought you midlander's were made of sterner stuff, I would have thought it would have been the Suvern softy's hanging up their pedals

Alan...

 

[HLaB]

Take a break, its nearly Christmas and in the New Year, if not sooner you'll be raring to go

 

[defy-one]

I came off on Sunday, straight back on again .... Us southerners don't need to talk about it all the time .... We just get on with it ;-)

 

[buggi]

so did I. what's happen to me my mate is a well hard cyclist too, two years ago we were cycling 25 mile commute together in minus temperatures. maybe i'll feel braver when my hip doesn't hurt anymore?? same with him i think, last spill banged him up a bit.

 

[buggi]

Yea, i couldn't carry on at the time (although i wanted to) cuz my bike was banged up (all fixed now) and i was on my cross bike at the time. 2 days later i cycled in on my road bike with skinny tyres. Got to the same patch of road and could feel the wheels slipping on the approach to the corner. got off and walked that bit, and got back on and rode to work and back, but coming back in the dark i was pooping my pants, on the brakes all the time (which obviously is not the best thing to do in slippy conditions but my fearful heart was overruling my head). i figured it was coz i was soo bruised but haven't been back on it since. maybe i should just pick it up when the weather improves and get the turbo out.

 

[Col5632]

I aint been on my bike since my fall last week and it wasnt even that bad, i don't mind cycling in the cold and frosty when its light but its a whole different story in the dark and there is always the worry a car doesnt stop for you, slids on the ice and knocks you off

 

[derrick]

Man up, if your still breathing ride.

 

[Tynan]

I had a very low speed fall on a wet manhole early in the year which seemed to be the final straw for my nerves adter a decade of crashes and falls that didn't hardly bother me at all, seeing the girl in front of me get hit hard by someone turning right seemed to finish me off about six weeks ago

I rode like an old woman in the wet and didn't trust the tyres at all to even go round bends on wet tarmac and every bit of metalwork looked deadly, it was silly but there it was

it's only n the last few weeks my nerve has started to come back, it's simply and obviously a matter of keep riding

I am still more cautious in traffic now than I ever have been, but for fact it's prevented two collisions in the last month odd just from expecting the worse

in short, get out there and ride, with due caution

 

[buggi]

i can't man up coz i'm a

 

[Pat "5mph"]

i can't man up coz i'm a

Hi Buggi!
Know exactly how you feel. Fell on ice last winter (it was my first winter on the bike), chickened out for a week, then I became annoyed at myself seeing other cyclists still riding in icy conditions.
Because I'm stubborn decided to do some research.
Cycle Chat helped as always with the excellent suggestion of getting Marathon Winter studded tyres or Marathon ice tyres.
Falling on ice is really sore, even at 5 mph
You don't need to man up, you need the right tool for the job!
GWS

 

[daSmirnov]

Still commuting on 23c tyres. Just ride in accordance to the conditions, avoid braking, and turning on anything that looks iffy or could be iffy.

Granted I lost the front wheel today. My fault really was going too fast for the conditions - saved it before going down though.

 

[shouldbeinbed]

Don't overthink things and if cycling isn't making you happy right now, take a break.

 

[Crankarm]

It staggers me that at the onset of winter so few road users are prepared for the conditions car drivers as well as cyclists. It is not as if winter is unpredictable, it happens every year and still the same ignorance and foolishness takes place whether on bikes or in cars. Get the right kit for the conditions - winter tyres with studs in the case of bicylces and for cars winter tyres and chains if it snows. Simples. It is not as if any of this winter kit is hard to get or particularly expensive, it is not. People are basically muppets blaming the road conditions. The only thing they should blame is themselves. Fail to prepare and prepare to fail. Sorry to be blunt but it is true.

 

[middleagecyclist]

It staggers me that at the onset of winter so few road users are prepared for the conditions car drivers as well as cyclists. It is not as if winter is unpredictable, it happens every year and still the same ignorance and foolishness takes place whether on bikes or in cars. Get the right kit for the conditions - winter tyres with studs in the case of bicylces and for cars winter tyres and chains if it snows. Simples. It is not as if any of this winter kit is hard to get or particularly expensive, it is not. People are basically muppets blaming the road conditions. The only thing they should blame is themselves. Fail to prepare and prepare to fail. Sorry to be blunt but it is true.

Err...tell it like you see it Crankarm. No point beating round the bush.