Well, I finally fell!! Ouch

I went on a 16 mile ride today. It was windy and I didn't try to get in any kind of a hurry. Hadn't been able to ride in over a week, so didn't want to really push real hard. I had a great ride. I need it. I have been so stressed out and bike riding is such a de-stressor (if thats a word).
Anyway, I get through my whole ride, get almost to the driveway on my dirt road, and decide to pull up to the mail box and grab the mail.
How stupid was that!!!!

I pull up there, and think I will grab the mail box as I stop and I dont' unclip, miss the mail box completely, and OH NO, I cannot get unclipped fast enough and CRAP, down I go.
At least it wasn't real bad, but I am heavy so any fall I take is HARD. My elbow is burning, but other than that just my ego is hurt.
Oh and I really scrapped up my new peddals. I'm not happy about that at all. I don't think I hurt my bike but I pulled it down with me, so I will have DH look at it tonight to make sure everything is okay.
I will heal, ya know, I don't want my bike messed up.

Anyway, at least I have that under my belt. I guess I got to cocky. I really thought that I was going to make this transition with no wrecks. :D

NOT :eek: LOL

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Originally Posted by DDH

I went on a 16 mile ride today. It was windy and I didn't try to get in any kind of a hurry. Hadn't been able to ride in over a week, so didn't want to really push real hard. I had a great ride. I need it. I have been so stressed out and bike riding is such a de-stressor (if thats a word).
Anyway, I get through my whole ride, get almost to the driveway on my dirt road, and decide to pull up to the mail box and grab the mail.
How stupid was that!!!!


Anyway, at least I have that under my belt. I guess I got to cocky. I really thought that I was going to make this transition with no wrecks. :D

NOT :eek: LOL

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when did you make "this transition?" I am assuming you have gone clipless?

i'm glad you were not badly hurt

Donna - I feel your pain! Whenever I have had a fall from a bonehead move it has been in front of an audience. Talk about mortified!:mad:

The first time I ever had clipless pedals on my bike (then a mountain bike) I fell - and I hadn't even gotten ON the bike. My son and a friend of his were standing there, I clipped in on the right pedal and with my left foot on the ground, weighted the RIGHT pedal and fell! I had a wonderful chainring bite on my right calf for weeks (I claimed a bear bit me!).

Good luck & keep pedaling!

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Originally Posted by mimitabby

when did you make "this transition?" I am assuming you have gone clipless?

i'm glad you were not badly hurt

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Yes, I went clipless. LOL
I think we bought the clipless back in Sept. I can't remember now when I went to them. I was so scared of them and have been so careful because I was afraid of falling. See what happens when you get comfortable to the point of letting your guard down.

Hiya,

I feel your pain! I went clipless in September, and have fallen three times, all sort of bonehead accidents- unclipping, but then leaning to my clipped in side to push a button at a traffic light, etc. But the good thing is, once you fall, you realize it's not that big a deal, and I think it makes you less afraid.

I'm a big girl, too, and I think the extra padding definitely helped cushion my falls!

Wear your scrapes as a badge of honor....

-Amy

Donna,
Congratulations on going cliplessa nd now you have this fall over with, it should be smmoth sailing. :) I am very glad to har you were not badly injured. I do so hope your bike is okay. Heal quickly. :)

Glad to hear you weren't hurt too badly. Sometimes it's our pride that gets hurt worse than our bodies when we have a clipless accident.

I'd be willing to bet everyone who rides clipless has a story to tell about falling. I began riding at in 2002 at age 50 after having not ridden at all since college. I didn't take the time to figure out which foot to unclip first prior to attempting my first clipless ride. Big mistake! DH unclips on the right, so that's what I did as we were coming to a stop on a bike trail on my first ride. Problem was, my brain told me to unclip my left foot. I struggled, panicked, and toppled over at a complete standstill. Unfortunately, I landed on my left elbow and ended up at the emergency room with a radial head fracture :( . I was in a removable cast and sling for two weeks. Both the doctor and the PT told me I could get back on the bike after six weeks, but it was a full 12 weeks before I could ride comfortably again. I thought about going back to platform pedals, but decided to bite the bullet and stick with the clipless. I was mighty careful for months afterward and did fall a few more times, but I'm so glad I stuck with it. Now, of course, clipping out is second nature and I can't remember the last time I had a problem getting unclipped. But I'm also a much more confident rider 4 1/2 years later, so even if I were to get my foot stuck now, I could probably avoid falling.

Donna, if this is your first fall after several months of riding clipless, you're doing GREAT! My helmet is off to you.

Virginia

geez, Virginia, i did NOT need to hear YOUR story.
I am now clipless on my bike on the trainer and am really afraid to take it outside to try in the real world. THis has been a BIG step for me.

i just turned 55.

argh.

Mimi, you can do it! You are practicing and getting comfortable on a trainer first, which is what I should have done. Or at least I should have practiced on grass. Once you get past the initial clumsiness and fear, you'll will be so glad to made the switch. My cycling improved so much after going clipless.

I know plenty of people who have fallen a few times in the beginning, but I'm the only one I know of who was actually injured. I hesitated posting about that, but I wanted those of you on the fence about clipless to know that it can be done. I just went about it the wrong way. If I'd had known about the TE forum back then, I would gotten better information before taking the plunge. Oooh, that's probably a bad choice of words :D .

It'll be OK, everybody. I've told you my clipless fall stories somewhere else, I think. Got them over with, haven't done it in a long time, would never switch back. It'll be OK.

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Originally Posted by five one

Mimi, you can do it! You are practicing and getting comfortable on a trainer first, which is what I should have done. Or at least I should have practiced on grass. Once you get past the initial clumsiness and fear, you'll will be so glad to made the switch. My cycling improved so much after going clipless.

I know plenty of people who have fallen a few times in the beginning, but I'm the only one I know of who was actually injured. .

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Even if you're practicing on the trainer (assuming not rollers where you have to balance), still start out practicing on grass. My first attempt was a big scrape, just trying to get on the bike, then I moved it to the grass. Much softer. Still the most injured part was my ego. That and I broke a brand new cleat. Better it than my ankle.

I haven't had problems unclipping, except for the 2nd foot when I've accidentally leaned the wrong way when standing there. Still scared enough not to be cocky.

sorry, the grass is covered with icy snow. And tomorrow, when it melts off, the grass will be a sea of nasty mud.

I will just continue in the basement.

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Originally Posted by mimitabby

sorry, the grass is covered with icy snow. And tomorrow, when it melts off, the grass will be a sea of nasty mud.

I will just continue in the basement.

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I didn't say you had to do it tomorrow :rolleyes: .. but when you do take the plunge outside, grass can be your friend. ;)

oh, thanks. I feel better now. :)

I recently went clipless--what an adventure! I haven't had the big fall......yet--partially because my cycling buddy occasionally reminds me to remember to unclip as we're slowing or about to stop. I've been riding with old-fashioned toeclips during most of my adult cycling life, and they were easy to remember because I could always feel the pressure of the strap around my feet. With clipless, there's no pressure to remind me that my feet are attached to the bike, so I have to be extra careful.

DDH, your tone is humble but not daunted--good for you--pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and get back in the saddle. Yeah, easy for Miss-I-Haven't-Fallen-Yet to say, right? I'm sure my time is gonna come......:eek:

Before you start using clipless, you should start using imaginary clipless pedals!:p Seriously, before you even think about using real ones, everytime you ride, pretend you're clipped in. When you come to a stop, 'click' your ankle out, as if you're unclipping. It should become second nature by the time you're ready for the real ones. Make sure you do it every single time you come to a stop, because once you're on the real ones, it will have to be every single time.

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Originally Posted by Pedal Wench

Before you start using clipless, you should start using imaginary clipless pedals!

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I know someone who did this. On rides, using platforms, she would follow her friend with clipless pedals and "clicked out" whenever her friend did. I wish I would have thought about that before my first attempt. It's good advice.

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Originally Posted by Pedal Wench

Before you start using clipless, you should start using imaginary clipless pedals!:p Seriously, before you even think about using real ones, everytime you ride, pretend you're clipped in. When you come to a stop, 'click' your ankle out, as if you're unclipping. It should become second nature by the time you're ready for the real ones. Make sure you do it every single time you come to a stop, because once you're on the real ones, it will have to be every single time.

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PW
that's a good idea. YOu know, on my "outside" bike, i have straps, which i have to pull out of. So maybe it's almost the same thing?

But i will try that!

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Originally Posted by mimitabby

YOu know, on my "outside" bike, i have straps, which i have to pull out of. So maybe it's almost the same thing?

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Yes and no, Mimi. I've found that from years of riding with traditional toeclips, I've got the right reflexes (or whatever you'd call it) for unclipping. But as I mentioned earlier, with clipless, you don't feel the straps around your feet so there's a bit of a tendency--at least for me--to feel like the feet are, well, clipless, and hence to maybe forget that there's anything to clip out of. Does that make any little bit of sense at all?

Having said that, I do think it's easier to get used to clipless pedals if you've already been using some other attachment system on your pedals. AND, the feeling of freedom and oneness with the bike is unmatchable.

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Originally Posted by Bad JuJu

Yes and no, Mimi. I've found that from years of riding with traditional toeclips, I've got the right reflexes (or whatever you'd call it) for unclipping. But as I mentioned earlier, with clipless, you don't feel the straps around your feet so there's a bit of a tendency--at least for me--to feel like the feet are, well, clipless, and hence to maybe forget that there's anything to clip out of. Does that make any little bit of sense at all?

Having said that, I do think it's easier to get used to clipless pedals if you've already been using some other attachment system on your pedals. AND, the feeling of freedom and oneness with the bike is unmatchable.

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sounds good, anyway! thanks!

I love my clipless pedals but I did have the inaugural fall not long after I started using them.
I was climbing a hill, creeping by the time I got near the top, when I turned my head to say something to friends about making it to the top, threw off my weight balance and just tipped over to the side. It all seemed like it was in slow motion but I had no chance to clip out. Not hurt just scraped up a bit.

Glad you're OK, DDH! :D

Gypsy

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Originally Posted by mimitabby

geez, Virginia, i did NOT need to hear YOUR story.
I am now clipless on my bike on the trainer and am really afraid to take it outside to try in the real world. THis has been a BIG step for me.

i just turned 55.

argh.

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Mimitabby - You can do it! :p I just went clipless in November and I think its great to be "one with the bike". Like you, I started out on the trainer first to get myself more comfortable and to practice getting out of the thing. The thing about my MTB pedals (on my road bike) is that one side of the pedal is for the clip and the other side of the pedal is just a regular pedal that you can start out with and then clip in as you get going. The other thing is that I have the spring tension set as low as it can go so that I can get the hell out of them easily. :D Congrats on just turning 55.... I'll be 60 in April... and I just started biking after a 44 year hiatus. You know, at age 16 when you trade in the 2 wheels for 4. Just reverting back. :D

DHH - sorry about your fall. I have told my normally self-confident self to NOT get cocky with clipless pedals. Sometimes I clip out in anticipation even when I don't need to, but just to be on the safer side. :) I recognize that this will not guarantee that I won't fall, but it probably helps my odds. :D