My first big spill (Now I KNOW that helmets work!)

I was in the bike lane on N. Portland Road, in Portland, Oregon. The lane was marked as a bike lane, on the shoulder of the road. Evidently, I hit some wood debris. All I know is that I was airborne, and skidding, and wondering just how much further I was going to slide before I came to rest.

I found myself lying in the ditch by the side of the road, with chest and shoulder pain, and not knowing if I would be able to get up, I was thinking how much I really did not want to be alone, on the side of the road. I saw an SUV backing up toward me, they had seen my bike and thought it was unusual, for someone to leave a bike lying on the road, like that. (They had thought that maybe I was emptying my bladder in the bushes.)

When they asked if there was anyway they could help, I asked if they could drive me home, I thought it was about 2 miles.

Once home, I called my friend, neighbor, and nurse, and went over to her place, where she cleaned me up, and even canceled my date. Since I didn't have a change of clothes, and since the road rash was still oozing, she wrapped me up in her sari, a souvenier from Nepal.

Upon returning home, I wondered if I would need to replace my helmet. (That is how convinced I was that I didn't hit my head.) Then a chunk of foam fell out of it. On closer inspection, I now see that a large portion of the foam is shattered, and from the outside, the helmet is not only flattened, but also has dents. I called my friend, who said that she knew that I must have hit my head, but since I was so insistent that I didn't, and I was not complaining of symptoms, she didn't push it.

Wow, I couldn't have had a better accident experience, except to have avoided it. Within an hour, I was back at home all cleaned up, and ready to just chill and recover. The bruising is already fading, just a day later.

And I learned through this, that I am much tougher than I thought I was. Though I think I will change from wearing shorts to pants that cover my knees.

And to add some humor, I was reminded of WHY one of my ex-BF's is an ex. He did agree to get my bike, and when he came back, he said that there was no wood in the road. Well, I didn't LEAVE it there, moron! (Actually, it was the motorists who saw it and kicked it off of the road.)

What, did he think I was lying about the accident? Or, that I suddenly forgot how to ride a bike, momentarily? That I was just too lazy to ride home? The handlebars are way out of line with the front tire. I haven't even looked the bike over, yet. I showed him the helmet. But I am not sure he was impressed with it. But then again, he buys used motorcycle helmets at Goodwill

oh, I see, this is your accident. No, there's no one to report it to. just to us,
because we are sympathetic and are glad you were wearing your helmet!!!
I'm glad you are okay.

Ooooo, ow! I glad you made it through with minor injuries. The image of your shattered helmet is scary. I'm so glad that you were wearing it.

Yowzers! Talk about a close call. I'm glad that you're OK, and that you're smart enough to wear your helmet. It could've been a much different story otherwise...

The one high speed accident I had was so surreal. For me it happened in slow motion until I stopped, then time picked back up to normal speed. It was also when I started crying and gasping for air, just because the wind had been knocked out of me. Once I did the "everything's OK" check, I was fine. I'm glad that the person in the SUV stopped to check on you. See- there are nice people all around us. :)

For those who have had similar injuries, how long did it take to get better?

I visited my clinic, because there is a big lump still on my forearm, near my elbow. I bumped it the other day, and it was very tender, so I visited my clinic. The PA had no idea what is going on, there is a bit of warmth, so evidently there is inflammation. There is a lot of fluid, but there are other areas where the tissue is hard. There is still some bruising discoloration, but not too bad. This is near my joint, but not on it.

She wants me to go for X-rays, because she is concerned that there is a fracture. She said that elbows are funky. Personally, I really think it is soft tissue. Everything about my arm seems to be working alright, except for localized pain and numbness. in this swollen area, and occasionally, a vague dull ache, kind of like a toothache radiating down my arm. This pain was present initially, and is rare now.

I am not happy with this. If she were looking for something in particular, I wouldn't mind going for tests. But I have the impression that she doesn't know what to do, and so she wants to rule out a fracture.

I have been tempted to wear a light compression bandage, and see if that will help my body to reabsorb the fluid. She said no, but that I could try cold compresses, if I wish.

Nothing is getting worse, but I am not noticing any improvement. I thought I would ask here, because I expect someone has had a similar injury.

Thanks,
Mary

It may be a hairline or stress fracture. Just because there's not massive amounts of excruciating pain doesn't mean your bone structure is perfectly intact :p

I would get it checked out, especially if it's been over a week since your accident. Do you have experience with damaged/broken bones? Have you taken an anti-inflammatory to combat the lump?

Why did the health care professional say it was filled with fluid? :p That seems strange and infection-like :(

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Originally Posted by planetluvver

I was in the bike lane on N. Portland Road, in Portland, Oregon. The lane was marked as a bike lane, on the shoulder of the road. Evidently, I hit some wood debris. All I know is that I was airborne, and skidding, and wondering just how much further I was going to slide before I came to rest.

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I am SOOOO glad you are okay! What a horror those first split seconds must have been. Thanks for the report; it makes me sure to keep checking the road for debris.

And you are right, the EX deserves to be an EX.

My rule of thumb is if it wakes me up in the middle of the night or my gut tells me there is something really wrong, I don't usually go to the doctor.

Get a new helmet. Most of your body can be sewn up, replaced or fixed but your head? No. Keep this in mind too when traveling. I got a piece of luggage back that was clearly mangled with my helmet protecting an antique I bought out of town. When I saw that it had dents in it, it got replaced. Now I always carry it on the plane.

I think the biggest thing after my first wreck was the adrenaline rush. I literally jumped right up to make sure I wasn't dead!

Hope you feel better!

My neighbor/ friend's BF heard about my accident, and insisted on fixing up my bike, and gave me one of his helmets and a pair of amber Oakleys. I think that she was actually a bit jealous. She would say things like, "I don't know why, but he wants to."

I am glad he did this, because for a week, I was out of it. I didn't even want to look at the bike, though I did call around about helmet prices. So when I was ready to ride again, I was all set to go.

I am now a bit skittish. I haven't ridden that route since my accident. This friend wants to help me get my bike adjusted well. He said that I had my seat too high (I actually thought that I had it too low.)

But cyclists are wonderful, and I hope to conquer my fears and improve my skills.

I'm glad you're okay and had your helmet.

I doubt you had your seat too high - it wouldn't have contributed to your accident unless you couldn't reach your pedals.

If your leg is fully extended (with a slight bend in the knee) when you're on the saddle and your foot is all the way down on the pedal, you pretty much have the seat in the right spot. Some people are toe pointers when they pedal, so take that into consideration if you are. (I'm a slight toe pointer)


I have a friend who's a critical care nurse - she says they use spray n' wash on the accident victims with road rash that comes in - cleans well and is the most gentle. I haven't had a chance to actually try that. (thankfully)


There's no harm in getting an x-ray and it's better that you know just in case. It could just be a sort of internal bruising. I know when I had my only real spill off the bike - the chainring ended up going my right calf... I had a big bruise and cut - but for about 3 months after that, I had this big knot underneath the scar from the chain ring. It was painful if I touched it, but otherwise fine. My bf told me that it was probably just an internal bruise - and that boxers got them from high impact punches and to just keep massaging it and it would go away. it's maybe still a little tender in the area.

But definitely keep an eye on the area and take some ibuprofen to bring down swelling - it will help you heal faster.

Oh - another thing - if you don't use clip in pedals or pedal cages, you might want to think about them. If you hit some really big pieces of wood, this really wouldn't make a difference.

However, if you hit a bump/obstacle and you're not using clip ins or using pedal cages, it's very easy to lose control of the pedals - if you lose control of the pedals and the handlebar, you're usually pretty much screwed.

If your feet are clipped in, you at least will probably not lose the pedals, which at least lets you keep partial control of the bike - time to get your hands back on if you can and to try to control it.

Now if you're going to fly off your bike - this may mean the bike goes with you if your clips or cages don't detach. I use frog speedplays and they disengage pretty easily.


I know if I've taken a big fall when skiing, I ski like a grandma for the first couple days - then let loose when I've got my confidence back. Okay, let me qualify that to say like one of those really cautious grandmothers that inch their cars along, since it seems like there's some quite energetic & active grandmothers on here.

The first/only big spill I had - we were in the beginnings of a 40 mile bike ride. My backwheel had warped, so I couldn't continue that day, but I got it trued and the next day we rode 55 miles (my first time that long) and it felt great. (Ibuprofen is my friend and getting back on the bike immediately really helped modulate my fears...) It did help that I'd originally fallen because my bf had swerved while I was drafting him pretty closely and took me out.... So... I don't draft him closely anymore.

I had a stupid fall from my bike this summer that ended in a perfect one point landing on my elbow. It required a trip to urgent care and four stitches to make it all better. I was very luck I didn't break anything. I did however damage my bursa(sp?) Which developed into tramatic bursitis. The pain your talking about is just how my elbow has been feeling. The pain has gone from sharp shooting to a dull ache when I put pressure on it. I fell in the middle of July and am just now able to carefully lean on my elbow. It still has a lovely knob on it but it is slooowly getting better. The fluid thing in my case was from the inflamed bursa = bursitis. The only treatment the doctor told me was give it time to heal. That or they stick a needle in there and drain the fluid. :eek: I opted for "give it time!" :rolleyes: bikerHen

Yep - I had one on my knee. We went the no-needle route. Yeouch!!

I would go with getting an x ray just to be on the safe side. The FD told me I was ok, even when I had a fracture.

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Originally Posted by Fredwina

I would go with getting an x ray just to be on the safe side. The FD told me I was ok, even when I had a fracture.

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I agree. The doctor did an x-ray on my elbow too, just in case . . . bikerHen