Lucky lucky lucky

[vernon]

I took my tourer/hybrid out for an evening ride - the first time that I'd ridden it since getting back from France. I chose it because it has dynamo lighting and I'd never used it before. I di a ten mile urban loop through Meanwood, Headingley, Woodhouse, Sheepscar up the harrogate Road to moortown before returning home.

There were some fastish stretches at 30+km/hr and everything went well until I stopped at the end of our drive and the front end stepped out on the slippery leaf goo and the front forks rotated 90 degrees to leave the front wheel parallel with the handlebars.

I'd loosened the handlebars/ahead clamp to rotate the bars for transportation on the European Bike Express trailer and there was no immediate need to adjust and tighten them when I was dropped off as I was picked up by my wife. I'd forgotten all about the loosening.

I shudder to think of the consequences of an impromptu re-alignment of the forks while I was scooting about.

Anyone else done something like this and got away with it?

 

[661-Pete]

I'm pretty certain, I've had the front skewer open at the end of a commute ride, without noticing. And that's without 'lawyer lips' . But yours sounds well dodgy!

 

[vernon]

I'm pretty certain, I've had the front skewer open at the end of a commute ride, without noticing. And that's without 'lawyer lips' . But yours sounds well dodgy!

I reckon all I needed to do to have a disaster was to hit a pot hole or a steep camber and the resultant torque would have initiated the twist that I had at the end of the ride.

 

[661-Pete]

I reckon all I needed to do to have a disaster was to hit a pot hole or a steep camber and the resultant torque would have initiated the twist that I had at the end of the ride.

You might have ended up doing the 'Ballantine emergency stop manoeuvre' (as described in detail in Richard's Bicycle Book, first edition - twist the bars 90[sup]o[/sup] and stop "in a controlled crash as the wheel and forks buckle"). I asked the question before, I don't think anyone's tried it and I don't think it works. But lucky for you, you didn't put it to the test.

 

[Keith Oates]

Close call Vernon, it really was your lucky day!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[brokenbetty]

I'd been riding with my newly-fitted dynamo wheel for about a week of 12 mile round trip commuting, including a daily 20mph+ downhill in three lanes of traffic. One evening as I was putting the bike away my boyfriend lifted the bike and span the front wheel to see the dynamo working and the wheel fell straight out of the dropouts

 

[vernon]

Close call Vernon, it really was your lucky day!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I think, on reflection, it was part of karmamechanics as postulated by Aperitif in message number two of this thread

It was a good thing in that a bad thing didn't happen if you get my drift.

 

[Aperitif]

I think, on reflection, it was part of karmamechanics as postulated by Aperitif in message number two of this thread

It was a good thing in that a bad thing didn't happen if you get my drift.

Quite so vernon. I once cycled to work on a Monday morning with my nuts loose. My rear got a tad wobbly and, subsequently, I had to stop in Hampstead to adjust them.
All's wheel that ends wheel though...we karmachanics just cannot lose eh?