Not confident about cycling again

[MarkF]

Accy, how many times have you been knocked off and when was the last, prior to recent accident?

 

[Moodyman]

I've never been knocked off, but a colleague and good cycling friend was killed in February riding in the quiet lanes in the Dales.

I ride daily because I commute, but it's made me very nervous around traffic to the pint that I've altered my routes to avoid the main roads.

 

[Tin Pot]

I've never been knocked off, but a colleague and good cycling friend was killed in February riding in the quiet lanes in the Dales.

I ride daily because I commute, but it's made me very nervous around traffic to the pint that I've altered my routes to avoid the main roads.

That doesn't seem logical.

 

[DCLane]

It's normal to feel nervous.

Any time I've had a problem it's taken a few days/weeks/longer to get back to normal. I still descend slowly after a near-off at 45mph coming down Holme Moss last April, albeit this is slowly improving.

Once you're on the bike again the major hurdle is solved. Even if it's a mile out from home and back.

 

[Moodyman]

That doesn't seem logical.

Which part?

 

[Tin Pot]

Which part?

Well, without being insensitive, the event occurred on a quiet lane, avoiding main roads seems to be the opposite reaction to what you'd expect.

I prefer the safety of roads where everyone is easy to see, few manoeuvres, and that's main roads round my way, the not quiet roads.

 

[Pat "5mph"]

That doesn't seem logical.

I can relate to @Moodyman.
When somebody you know or who rides your routes gets hurt while cycling, for a while it's in the back of your mind, it could have been me, so you seek alternative, less risky roads, even if the accident happened in a quiet lane.
A bit irrational, I know

 

[Andy_R]

Well, without being insensitive, the event occurred on a quiet lane, avoiding main roads seems to be the opposite reaction to what you'd expect.

I prefer the safety of roads where everyone is easy to see, few manoeuvres, and that's main roads round my way, the not quiet roads.

Statistics prove that quiet lanes are the most dangerous, because drivers don't expect anyone to be there and drive inappropriately to the conditions (cornering on the wrong side of the road, going too fast into blind bends, blind summits, etc)

 

[Accy cyclist]

Thanks for all your replies! I didn't make the Tesco car park. Instead i did 23 miles on the exercise bike,so at least i'm getting my fix of turning peddles. I must say though that since my crash and bike imobility i haven't had to endure that pre ride fear of such incidents happening.

 

[Accy cyclist]

Accy, how many times have you been knocked off and when was the last, prior to recent accident?

This is the second time. The last was in 2002.

 

[nilling]

I have been right-hooked twice on my commute. The fear and anxiety will subside given time. Try and find some traffic free routes and get use to riding your bike again. Make sure you tell your brief how the collision has made you anxious and nervous. In the first couple of weeks I seemed to re-live the collision trying to find something I could have done differently. Chances are there is nothing positive to be taken from the experience so don't beat yourself up about it. Avoid the site of the collision if possible, even if you are in a car or bus as it'll just re-awaken those negative feelings. Good luck!!

 

[annirak]

I haven't been on my bike since i was knocked off 12 days ago. I keep making excuses like i haven't got a new helmet yet or my knee wont be right yet to put pressure on,but the real reason is fear of it happening again. I keep thinking about that moment when boy racer didn't give a toss about me and cut right across my path as i approached him. I imagine how it would've affected my wife and daughter if i'd have been killed or brain damaged because of him. I imagine that i died that evening and that i'm now 6ft under while boy racer drives around like a looney as before, awaiting his court case charged with driving without due care and attention. All thoughts are going through my mind! When the sun is shining it's bad for me as i see the fair weather cyclists out there and think to myself you've been out on days when your water bottle has frozen over,or your fingers were that numb with the cold you couldn't put the key in the door when you got home. I've earned the right to cycle in the sun as much as anyone yet i can't do it! How will i go on when i see that impatient driver revving thinking " can i make it before he passes" when turning right across my path,or the idiot up my backside trying their damnedest to overtake me because they have to get to those traffic lights before me! Have any of you been in a similar situation and how did you cope? Do you know of anyone who's been knocked off and never ridden again?

I've been there.

Last August, someone turned through my cycle lane, leaving me in a neck brace for 6 weeks I didn't ride a bike for 10. It took me 4 months to get back on my bike regularly. I also felt pretty paranoid at first. I'd never ridden with high viz clothing and i don't believe that visibility factored into my accident--mid morning on a high overcast day--but the first thing I did was to get a high viz jacket. I also picked up a video camera for my handlebars so I would have more concrete evidence if something should happen again. My first ride out, I rode with a friend. I still didn't get back to commuting on my bike for another 2 months.

I had similar feelings to you when I was two weeks out from my accident. I was a little paranoid about travelling in any form, though that was in part due to the brace. I went through all the scenarios about what would happen depending on how my injury progressed or how it could have been better or worse. I certainly went over and over the accident in my head, trying to find something I could have done differently. It all comes down to one thing: it's not your fault.

I still suffer from hypervigilance. I brake earlier than I need to and I give cars more space than is necessary. I also yell at drivers more--though that's not saying much for me... Prior to the accident, I don't think I ever yelled at a driver. I still have drivers overtake me then slam on the brakes. I still have those panic moments when I wonder what will happen if the car I'm next to tries to turn into a driveway, but by and large, I'm back to my old self.

Depending on the extent of your injuries, wait for them to heal. Get some mates to go with you on your first few rides. I would take it easy and not get into much heavy traffic before you feel more confident, but until you get back onto the road, you won't know how it affects you. I had to ride past the site of my accident about 3 times before I knew I was, psychologically speaking, past it. Better to do it soon so a) you can work on the psychological healing process and b) you know how it's affected you psychologically, which may affect your claim.

Don't let the crazy drivers keep you from doing something you love.

 

[mooseracer]

I went/am going through something similar after breaking my hip. First ride I was absolutely petrified - legs shaking, holding on to the bike for dear life etc and I really didn't enjoy it at all. I have to keep reminding myself I've only come off a road bike twice in the last 15 years and only once did I hurt myself. I've made myself go on more rides and the enjoyment is back.

For me it was worth the effort to make myself do it again, hopefully it is for you too.

 

[w00hoo_kent]

Not had it with bicycle offs particularly, although being sideswiped/left hooked in a cycle lane has made me more vigilant for cars that might do that next time, I consider that sensible rather than anything else though.

I did get that fear after my motorbike accident. I think it was because it was sudden and arbitrary. There was little I would do differently a second time, maybe a bit more vigilance but it would have been unlikely to stop the incident happening. I was a basket case in a car for the week or two following the accident. Also hypersensitive of the other vehicles around us and positive that every one was going to hit us. It took me that long to be comfortable to drive again. First time out on a motorbike, taking my wife's for an MoT, was very similar. I was careful, ultra careful, with speed, road positioning, observation and again positive that every other vehicle on the road was going to drive in to me. I didn't replace my motorbike for 2 years, pretty much the length of the insurance claim, I think mentally I had to have it all finished before I could move on. But I missed being on a motorbike and eventually that want to still do it, coupled with two years of incident free car driving, meant my perception of the road had changed back to something more akin to how it was before the accident.

So, it can go away. It works differently for different people and a chunk of it probably depends on your motivation. Commuting to work regularly by bicycle I've found getting back on is easier because it's an expected part of my life. It's definitely about the lack of control, about the fact that they did this to you. So expect to be more sensitive to other vehicles and probably, as others have said, more caustic and shouty around them, at least until you realise they aren't quite all nobbers.