cinderly
05-16-2006, 06:16 PM
(I didn't want to hijack Sydney's thread with my whining, so I'm starting my own.)
Summary
Lesson learned: hills require lower gears than flats
Price of lesson: big, purple bruises and bloody shins; damage to ego for crashing on a BEGINNER trail
The Epic Novel
Sunday morning, the Other Human and I loaded our bikes into his Saturn (and made them fit, darnit!) and drove out to Earthquake Park for a nice, easy ride on the Tony Knowles Coastal Trail. It's a paved trail that winds along the ocean from the southwest of the airport through the city and into the heart of downtown.
There are a few hills and valleys, but they're easy fairly climbs (even for a wimpy beginner like me) and most of the mileage is flat.
We cruised the first 3.6 miles at a decent -- but not punishing -- pace. I needed to rest at the trailhead, but was back on the bike within 5 minutes. Since the alternative was to battle traffic through Downtown, we turned around and headed back up the trail the way we came.
About 1/2 mile or so into the ride back, I needed to stop -- my water bottle wouldn't come out of the cage. We pulled off into the first rest stop we came to (http://www.trailsofanchorage.com/2S063.jpg), but the benches and overlook were at the top of a small hill. The Other Human cruised right up the 4 foot knoll, and I followed. In 2nd gear.
I was in trouble almost immediately. Frantically, I tried to downshift as my progress slowed to a standstill. My bike began to roll backwards, so I started to bail. No time. The bike's going over. So I roll with it, absorbing most of the impact of the fall with my left hip and part of my well-upholstered rear end. Cool. First crash, no big deal.
Except it wasn't over. My bike went cartwheeling backwards over me, catching both lower legs with the pedals. I was bruised and bleeding and stunned. I managed to get to my feet, check myself and bike over, and get myself back onto the trail with relatively little fanfare.
Unfortunately, I was bleeding in rivulets down both legs. I got lots and lots of curious stares from people I passed on the trail. Now, I've got some slowly-healing scrapes and some gorgeous, giant bruises as my battle scars. (Word spread fast at the office -- I spent half of today hiking up my pantlegs to show off my war wounds!)
So, next time you're feeling down or blue, remember this -- you didn't do a backwards endo on a paved beginner's trail. :D (I had to tell you guys, because most people don't understand why I find the whole thing funny.)
Summary
Lesson learned: hills require lower gears than flats
Price of lesson: big, purple bruises and bloody shins; damage to ego for crashing on a BEGINNER trail
The Epic Novel
Sunday morning, the Other Human and I loaded our bikes into his Saturn (and made them fit, darnit!) and drove out to Earthquake Park for a nice, easy ride on the Tony Knowles Coastal Trail. It's a paved trail that winds along the ocean from the southwest of the airport through the city and into the heart of downtown.
There are a few hills and valleys, but they're easy fairly climbs (even for a wimpy beginner like me) and most of the mileage is flat.
We cruised the first 3.6 miles at a decent -- but not punishing -- pace. I needed to rest at the trailhead, but was back on the bike within 5 minutes. Since the alternative was to battle traffic through Downtown, we turned around and headed back up the trail the way we came.
About 1/2 mile or so into the ride back, I needed to stop -- my water bottle wouldn't come out of the cage. We pulled off into the first rest stop we came to (http://www.trailsofanchorage.com/2S063.jpg), but the benches and overlook were at the top of a small hill. The Other Human cruised right up the 4 foot knoll, and I followed. In 2nd gear.
I was in trouble almost immediately. Frantically, I tried to downshift as my progress slowed to a standstill. My bike began to roll backwards, so I started to bail. No time. The bike's going over. So I roll with it, absorbing most of the impact of the fall with my left hip and part of my well-upholstered rear end. Cool. First crash, no big deal.
Except it wasn't over. My bike went cartwheeling backwards over me, catching both lower legs with the pedals. I was bruised and bleeding and stunned. I managed to get to my feet, check myself and bike over, and get myself back onto the trail with relatively little fanfare.
Unfortunately, I was bleeding in rivulets down both legs. I got lots and lots of curious stares from people I passed on the trail. Now, I've got some slowly-healing scrapes and some gorgeous, giant bruises as my battle scars. (Word spread fast at the office -- I spent half of today hiking up my pantlegs to show off my war wounds!)
So, next time you're feeling down or blue, remember this -- you didn't do a backwards endo on a paved beginner's trail. :D (I had to tell you guys, because most people don't understand why I find the whole thing funny.)