When was the last time you......fell off your bike ?

[fossyant]

Last week, just two commutes ago. Climbing a 270% very steep, very wet cobbled climb on the canal - front wheel washed out. No damage done, just swearing.

Before that, just a few weeks prior - lost count of the number of minor falls at Penmachno - fun though. Lying upside down, unable to get up at the side of the trail is fun. Make a move, then slide further down the hill.

The 'puddle' above our knees was a different kind of fun - needed a bike strip down after being totally submerged.

Anyone saying 'not fallen off', needs to try harder.

 

[ianrauk]

A good few years ago now. On the mornings commute. Literally 200 yards from work. Rounded a corner. Oil in the road. Front wheel wiped out. Down I went. No damage done except a smashed phone screen as I used to keep it in my jackets chest pocket.

 

[numbnuts]

Off my trike .........I've tried to tip it over without success, I think it is too low down

 

[fossyant]

PS I've avoided falling off a road bike for 6 years. Last time was rather painful though.

 

[Venod]

I think it was earlier this year going through Ryther, the River Wharf had been in flood, but the water had cleared from the road, but it left a sheet of black ice, I went straight down, but not injured, i found it hard to stand up, had to slide to the verge to do so.

 

[HMS_Dave]

Anyone saying 'not fallen off', needs to try harder.

Plenty of close calls in the past couple of years. I often ride on the canal and the closest ive come to going into the drink was when i put my left foot down to allow people past and did a silly tiptoe dance toward the canal finally resting on the metal barricades of the bank of it. I'd prefer to avoid canal water if you don't mind.

 

[figbat]

In early July I was descending a particularly rutted section of the Ridgeway on my gravel bike. It was about 2 days before I was going away on holiday, which was to be with a touring caravan. As I was descending I thought to myself "I'd better be careful - don't want to hurt myself before the holiday and not be able to drive". Around 10 seconds after thinking that I caught the edge of a rut and came off. Luckily it was a fairly innocuous fall - bike and rider survived with few marks and both were able to continue. It made me think though, some people would have called that "tempting fate". I don't go for all that, instead I put it down to being distracted by the thought at a time when I needed to be concentrating the most.

 

[DCLane]

January 2018 when I'd just started riding again after my major operation. It was a 100km audax; the car park was icy, roads were icy and two riders had already gone down on ice.

Yet, foolishly, I kept going but slid on black ice ironically getting out of the way for an ambulance.

I couldn't walk, let alone ride, as I'd landed on the repaired side. As a result I needed a taxi back to my car and was on crutches for 4 weeks afterwards.

 

[Spiderweb]

I think it was earlier this year going through Ryther, the River Wharf had been in flood, but the water had cleared from the road, but it left a sheet of black ice, I went straight down, but not injured, i found it hard to stand up, had to slide to the verge to do so.

The road often floods at Rhyther. One evening I ignored the flood/closed road sign and cycle through, in the semi dark it didn’t look that deep however both feet were submerged in freezing water, luckily i only had 4 miles to my home!

 

[T4tomo]

Climbing a 270% very steep

that is steep
I think my last one was setting off on the roadbike on a bit of gravel after remounting from going around a ford, it was still a bit gravely and slowly toppled over towards my clipped in foot, which was silly but amusing for two friends watching. I hit ice on the gravel bike and smacked rib up a couple or 4 years back - less fun. I was still holding the bars when I hit the deck.

 

[Alex321]

Day before yesterday. One of those stupid "fall over at a standstill" ones. I wasn't sure I( had my front light on the highest setting or one down, and didn't want to cycle through all the lower settings while moving, so pulled to s atop, unclipping my left foot, then came to a stop with my weight too far right, and just toppled over before I could unclip the right foot.

Unfortunately, managed to bend the rear mech in the process. Tried to bend it back last night, and broke it, so that was £47 in Tredz just now

Annoyingly, it was still rideable until I broke it, just had to be careful not to change beyond the lowest sprocket.

 

[IanSmithCSE]

Apart from falling off and being diagnosed with a subarachnoid brain haemorrhage, did I cause that by falling off and banging my head or did I fall off because of it.....? I started reading a support forum on this subject but got too depressed by it.

Anyway I was riding along a road and saw a section flooded by an overflowing river and a sign saying "road closed, flood". No, I don't believe that, I can get thru so I rode until the water came over the top of the chainrings and then decided to turn back, fell off completely and fortunately only had 10 miles to ride after an almost complete immersion (last December).

That was getting seriously close to hypothermia, I measured 32 deg. C under the tongue.

 

[The Crofted Crest]

February 2020, going through the centre of Utrecht at rush hour at about 20 mph. Woman on a dual carriageway bike path was all the way over on the left hand side; just before a junction she put her left hand out so I decided to undertake her on the right. Next thing I know I was summersaulting over the handlebars. Picked myself up and the woman said, "Sorry, I changed my mind". Cycled 15 miles to the local hospital where I was diagnosed with a broken collar bone, cracked shoulder blade and broken arm.

 

[fossyant]

Keep 'em coming !

 

[I like Skol]

Quite a while since I've ditched the road bike. The last time was sliding it across a mini roundabout on the way home from work, in the dry! That was on my current commute bike a little while after acquiring it so must have been early 2019.

MTB tumbles tends to be equally non-regular (relatively speaking) but I was with @fossyant at Penmachno and it really was a comedy clown fest of trips, stumbles and tumbles in mostly slow motion and rolling into the plentiful soft undergrowth at the side of the trail Felt even more like a kid than usual.....