Oddest Near Miss Yet...

[John the Monkey]

Cycling home last night along Parrs Wood Road, a wayward lob from a group of lads playing football on the grass to the left of the carriageway headed for the road. Tried to anticipate the bounce and put myself where the ball wouldn't be (within the constraints of parked cars to the left, and oncoming traffic on the right).

However, the ball bounced awkwardly - could have been the camber, or an imperfection in the road, and ended up pretty much square under the front wheel. Cue much loss of control, right foot out of pedal, and a swerve across the oncoming traffic. I stayed upright, fortunately the driver of the little grey hatchback coming the other way was awake & braked to let me pass in front of him, and I came to a stop in the cycle lane on the other side of the road, miraculously between the two parked cars there.

Any ride you can walk away from, right? Oddly, I felt less angry about this one than I have done about the numerous ones due to driver inattention, perhaps I'm thinking of it as an example of living streets in action, or something.

In terms of weirdness, the only thing I can compare it to is the escaped greyhound on Crewe Road a couple of years ago.

 

[Browser]

In terms of weirdness, the only thing I can compare it to is the escaped greyhound on Crewe Road a couple of years ago.

Owning a greyhound myself, and knowing how (a) fast and ( dim they are I can ap[precaite how traumatic this must have been.
Glad you survived the football, I'd imagine you felt a bit daft for not managing to avoid it?

 

[siadwell]

Go on, admit it. You were going for a header.

 

[BentMikey]

Owning a greyhound myself, and knowing how (a) fast and ( dim they are I can ap[precaite how traumatic this must have been.
Glad you survived the football, I'd imagine you felt a bit daft for not managing to avoid it?

That reminds me of my mate's greyhound. In an acre garden, it would wind up like a turbine and still be accelerating by the time it got near the hedge on the far side. Too stupid to plan ahead and think about stopping, it'd go crashing into the hedge.

 

[Sh4rkyBloke]

Did you shout "'Ave it!" as you bounced it off your front wheel?


Sounds like it could have been a lot worse, glad it wasn't!

 

[swee'pea99]

Please don't get me wrong - I wasn't there and I'm not criticising, but FWIW I've found myself increasingly adopting a policy where my default, confronted by anything that might do unpredictable things, whether a pedestrian, a dog or a frisbee, is to slam on the anchors until I see how it works out. It's generally easier to avoid trouble at walking pace than at 20 mph.

 

[palinurus]

Footballs move in mysterious ways. I've been taken out by one, it looked like it was going to pass right in front of me but somehow it jinked between my wheels on the last bounce.

 

[jonny jeez]

Bloody footballs, bouncing all over the road without any thought to other road users

and I bet they dont pay road tax!!!

 

[StuartG]

Bloody footballs, bouncing all over the road without any thought to other road users

and I bet they dont pay road tax!!!

Precisely. All footballs should be registered and be properly tested by a qualified coach at least once a year to ensure they bounce truly.

Just as important is to train the kickers. Before they are allowed a provisional licence to dribble - they must go through a theory test and be able to plot any trajectory using differential methods. As for insurance - well I remember as a lad breaking our neighbour's greenhouse with an ill-judged header. Mind you a minimum age of 21 may help eliminate that danger.

Problem sorted. Next?

 

[StuartG]

Cue debate - should footballers wear helmets

 

[swee'pea99]

Only while they're jumping red lights...

 

[SavageHoutkop]

Ha ha! glad you're OK.
Of all the perils of Parrs Wood Road that would have been the last I'd expect. That said, I have had a wayward ball land in the road from the park when they're practising football there but it didn't come anywhere near me.

 

[fossyant]

Footballs move in mysterious ways.

Yeh yeh, thats what they all say when they lose the match !

Very lucky there JTM.....

 

[John the Monkey]

Owning a greyhound myself, and knowing how (a) fast and ( dim they are I can apprecaite how traumatic this must have been.

Much worse for the dog, poor thing - Crewe Road can be very busy at that time of night. I helped the owner round him up while the drivers all sat in their cars waiting for someone else to sort things out.

Glad you survived the football, I'd imagine you felt a bit daft for not managing to avoid it?

Honestly, looking back on it, I don't know what I'd have done differently - thought I had a line where it and I wouldn't collide, and didn't. Swee'pea's advice of a precautionary slamming on of the anchors looks good with hindsight, although, tbh, at the point that that might have made a difference, I couldn't have told for sure where the ball would land. Would it have been worse to hit it with a braking wheel? Maybe not.

 

[BentMikey]

I reckon riding over a football like that could be really nasty!!