Have you ever crashed?

I've been riding on the road for about a year now but can't seem to get over a fear of crashing. I saw I roadie on tv crash awhile back and can't seem to get that image out of my brain. I would love to be able to take the curves fast and really lean into it but the fear of road rash makes me hit my brakes. I am especially fearful of loose gravel...I almost went down once on that stuff!

I've crashed on my mtn bike several times and it wasn't that big of a deal but there's a big difference between mother earth and father pavement. :)

Have any of you crashed on the road? Is it as bad as it looks?

you've been riding a year an NEVER crashed! http://www.smileycons.com/img/emotions/211.gif geez... for a while there hubby was calling me "crash"!

my most memorable was the time i crashed in front of an amulance! yes... an ambulance! they stopped... had the lights on.. the whole bit.... (i was ok! bruised ego and bruised palms of my hand and bloody ankle.. but ok!)

then there was the time i crashed and squished my banana.... i had one in my rear pocket.. and was must upset that i had squished it!

i layed the bike down going around a corner in sand.....

i wasn't paying attention and crashed off the side of the road...

and that doesnt even include the learning to ride clipless (uhm....... FIRST day on the bike.. leaving the driveway... i fell over trying to get clipped in)

so yes... i have most certainly crashed... fortunately all mine have been minor (some major bruising... but nothing broken)

there are some on here with some really bad stories (bad as in hurt bad)!

consider yourself lucky that you have never crashed!

Well, I did fall over at a red light once...but I mean going more than 5 mph.

Did you get road rash? Did it heal or scar?

i never got bad road rash.... mostly bruising... the time in front of the amublance i had some gravel in the palms of my hands (i wasn't riding with gloves cuz of tanlines :rolleyes: )

the time i slide in the sand making a corner.. i had a HUGE bruise on my upper leg/hip.. but no road rash (i've never torn any of my clothes in any of my crashes! just squished my banana :rolleyes: ) that time i had on amfib gloves.. so my palms were sore/bruised.. but the palms of amfibs are thick! so no gravel!

i can't even remember if i had "road rash" the time i endo-d on my mtb! (i've fallen over a LOT on that too! but the endo was the WORST! scared the bejeezus out of me!)

Tjodit,
I've never crashed on the road - yet - but I've had two bad mtb crashes. One I flipped over onto a boulder (dont' know how it tripped me up), which left a scar on my knee. The other was a wipe out on a scree hill so that would constitute road rash. Yes it hurt and yes it left a scar. Lesson learned: don't use hydrogen perioxide on road rash, and clean it out as soon as you can. It really hurts to clean gravel out of your rash after it's hardened and starting to scab (I rode 14 miles after I crashed). There was a good thread here on how to treat road rash complete with ingredients for a road rash kit. I saved it somewhere, I just can't find it now....

I had a bad road crash that I posted elsewhere a while back. My front tire clipped my friend's rear one. Anyway I had road rash on my upper thigh on the side. Didn't phase my PI tights I was wearing--no scarring. My glasses broke and cut my forehead to the tune of about 15 stitches--slight scarring there, but you really have to look to see it. I spent 2 days in ICU because my brain bled in 7 places. I don't think there's any scarring there--I feel normal and people don't seem to look at me sideways or anything. Hurrah for my helmet!

I also went down on some railroad tracks one time (I now walk them) and have a slight scar on one knee--badge of honor!

Don't be scared--everything in life involves risk. The rewards of cycling are worth the risks.

Oh yeah.

1. Rode into a pole dividing the "lanes" of the Truckee River bike path during the Tahoe century, which I was coaching for Team in Training. They removed ALL of the poles except ONE - the one I hit!. I was riding with an honoree (leukemia patient) whom I adore, and he tends to go off and tell these wonderful stories, so I got distracted and hit the pole dead on with my handlebars, going about 15. Did and endo and basically landed on my feet but I broke off my computer.

2. Riding down Silverado trail at 20 - 25 mph in Napa into a stiff headwind after a 90 mile ride in 100 degree heat, during which I basically bonked. We were in a tight paceline, and a gust of wind hit the rider in front of me and we touched wheels. This happens, and usually I could deal with that and not crash, but I was so fried from the ride that I couldn't recover and went off the road. Bent my bars and got some road rash, but otherwise okay.

3. I coached the Tour de Tucson last year for TNT. This is a real race, and I generally race it, and do pretty well. But last year I decided to coach instead. Big mistake. My ride group was pretty strong, but there was one guy who didn't make it to the practice rides - we usually would not let someone like that ride with the group, but since the group was all friends we made an exception. Bigger mistake. Anyway, one mile into the race, in a tight pack, someone's water bottle popped out and rolled across the road. This happens all the time in races and it is no big deal. But the weenie who hadn't trained with us shrieked like a little girl and slammed on his brakes and hit the deck. While I could have avoided or run over the bottle, I could not avoid the 200 pound weenie right in front of me, so I hit him and crashed hard on my hip. :mad: No road rash, but I knew immediately when I got up that my back wasn't right. I ended up DNF'ing - my first ever. As a coach, my priority was my ride group, and I rode about 40 miles with them and they all ended up finishing fine (even the weenie!). But my back still bothers me a bit climbing.

I have been riding about 6 years pretty seriously in long distance events and races, so the number of crashes may seem like a lot, but over that long, its really not a big deal. I also seem to fall well - knock on wood. I grew up riding horses, so I am good at the tuck and roll. Don't stress about it. It may happen or it may never happen.

I was doing great dodging Brooklyn traffic when on the way home I misjudged the height of a driveway entrance and side swiped it. Funny thing about all my crashes have been that they've all happened so fast that I've never stuck my hand out. My elbow took it the worst in the driveway and I didn't realize that you can get road rash when completely covered! I had to peel the shirt from my arm. :(

Grit and speed still terrify me.

Add me to the group. I went down on bad road way and fractured my shoulder this past Labor Day. However, I have been riding on and off all my life and road consistantly, 4-5 times a week (includes indoors on the trainer) for the past 4 years.

I recently just have been back to outdoor road riding, weather permitting but I can relate with you about visions of falling. Although I am riding "very" cautiously, I have the visions more when I am off the bike, especially when driving in the car and I see badly patched roads and rough terrain, think, "oh, this is not a good road to ride on".

I am sure the more I ride, the visions will eventually go away.

~ JoAnn

Cali....Have you fallen with your new Ruby? I often wonder how a carbon frame would hold up in the event of a fall.

~ JoAnn

I've never gotten road rash. Never crashed in that manner. Sand and gravel on the road aren't a big hazard as long as you see them ahead of time and ride ride straight (no lean to the bike) across them. My accidents:

1) hit by car in 1977. I was on a 3 speed and got hit at an intersection by a car going very slowly. Bike fork got bent. I was fine except for ripping a seam in my jeans.

2) solo accident May 2005. Hit a curb due to not watching where I was going, did an endo and broke collarbone. Have no memory of actual crash. Bike was fine. I was riding again in 4 months. Shoulder is now almost normal again.

. Shoulder is now almost normal again.[/QUOTE]

That is so good to hear Deb. I am still getting better and going back to the orthopedic in a couple of weeks to make sure all going ok. I continue to improve so I feel good about that.

~ JoAnn

I've had my share of nasty crashes both road and mountain. The worse was 7/4/2004 when I hit a bump in the pavement, was tossed off my bike and landed on my head, knocked out cold for 20 minutes, came to was rushed to the hospital, Cat-scanned and then sent home. The next day, as I was driving my stick swift car, I heard a loud crack and realized I also fractured my right collarbone. Back to the hospital, off the bike 10 weeks and have just recently had surgery to repair the fracture which never healed. Again off the bike this time for 12 weeks. I just started riding again. 4 months post surgery and the fracture still has not healed. I pray by 6 months it's OK. I also have some residue post-concussion head injury but I'm probably not any more ditzy now than I was then.

About 8 years ago I tumbled down a short cliff while mountain biking and jammed the bar end into my right thigh. It caused a hematoma the size of a basketball which did not subside for almost 8 months. That was attractive. I now have a permanent indention in that thigh. Last summer, while tackling a rock garden I again flipped over, came down on my back, sat up and thought I was OK until I saw the blood running down my arm and leg. Turns out I busted my elbow open. The blood made me pass out a few moments. My buddy, an experienced rider who had charged down the hill, knew to come back looking for me. There just weren't enough bandages in either of our packs to stop the bleeding. I do carry, and don't laugh because it is effective, a small sanitary pad in my first aid kit and that help absorb alot of blood but I still had to walk out of the park were we were riding another 12 miles (I ended up riding most of it blood flying everywhere. My bike was covered). Elbow required 10 stitches.

So both knees, both elbows and both shoulders have permanent road rash/injury scars for all my falls. But as my buddy says "if you ain't falling, you ain't trying" so guess I've been trying alot! :o

Unfortunately, my answer is yes too. I've only fallen a few times, but the last one was a doozy. Before that one, it was an exercise in picking myself up, checking the bike for damage, getting back on and starting to ride again.

My crash in May of 2004 was different. I don't know what caused the crash since I have no memory of that day or the next few either. I suspect my wheel got caught in or on something. I know that the bike flipped over the front wheel and I rode it over and landed on my head. I had a skull fracture, brain injury, broken bones (pelvic bone, a couple of ribs, bones around one eye), and a lot of bruises. If I hadn't been wearing a helmet I don't believe I would have survived. I spent 2 weeks in the hospital, and worked up from walking very short distances to walking for longer periods of time, to riding my bike again just 6 weeks after the accident (much to the dismay of some of my docs!).

It took the better part of a year for me to work back to what I consider normal from an endurance standpoint, but I proved to myself by the end of last year that I truly was back (over 4000 miles on my bike did that for me!).

But I sense that your question is more than finding out who has crashed. It seems to be more of "how do I get over being afraid of crashing". I think it's important to look at how much time we spend on our bikes and how many rides we have taken and will continue to take without crashes. I've been riding a long time. At first it was more an occasional thing, but since I started touring back in 1988, riding my bike has become something that I do all of the time. I refuse to let the possibility of crashing scare me away. Like JoAnn pointed out, coming back after a crash can bring more care in riding style or location. But for most of us, that extra care doesn't stop us from enjoying riding.

--- Denise

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Originally Posted by Aint Doody

Don't be scared--everything in life involves risk. The rewards of cycling are worth the risks.

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Excellent advice, doody girl!

I had road rash on my knees but that was because I was dragged across the street when another dog attacked my dog (and yes, bit ME). The road rash hurt some, but it wasn't half as painful as the dog bites (took a chunk out of my calf). That said, I didn't take the pain meds the ER doc gave me. Keep in mind that I have a high tolerance for pain, so pain measure is relative. I do have scars from the road rash but it doesn't bother me as I just tell myself that my many imperfections make me more interesting.
:) :) :)
Denise, man, what a crash. Thank goodness you are OK. You are one brave lady!!!

When I would go down very steep hills I would fear a groundhog or other small animal running out in front of me. When I finally really did crash, afterwards, it was very scary getting back on the bike. A walnut in the middle of the bikeway was enough to give me the hebbie jebbies! But I got over it. I had just one big crash and I have been riding 37 years. That's not a bad average. We have had several people die on our club rides. Some from natural causes and 2 from encounters with vehicles. Its a risky passtime but beats the heck out of television. (If you die on a club ride, you usually get a bench somewhere with your name on.)

age 16 - riding on the sidewalk the wrong way - hit by a car, shattered my leg.

4 years ago - trying to turn up onto the sidewalk from the road. didnt turn sharp enough, the tire stayed in the street, following the road curb, i kept going in my original destination. road rash and scratches to my glasses.


within the last year, I've had enough to make me wonder if I'm in too dangerous a sport. i keep telling myself that there are commuters who have no major incidents for decades....

--April - was riding and due to construction and large netted fences, i realized I needed to turn NOW. the bike had just been in the shop, but i didn't realize they'd tightened my front tire brake...i wasn't going to fast, but I still went over the handlebars. only thing hurt was my pride.

--may - new to slicks on my hybrid. i was riding on gravel and decided to turn while riding at 16-18. My tire slid out from under me and i hit the ground hard. i still have rocks in my hand, and am skittish of turning at high speeds. i've gotten much better, but skittish anyways. 4 stitches, 2 weeks off the bike, and a broken computer. not official road rash, but worse - you could see the fatty tissues in my knee! I'd say it was 7 months before the insides of the knee stitched themselves together.

--june - fell over when i couldn't clip out. twisted my ankle a little. it bothered me off and on for about 4 months. Broke my computer.

--last fall - got run over by another cylist. tight paceline of 2. the light turned, and it was one of those iffy ones, but with a car waiting to turn. I stopped too fast for my companion. While I was on the brakes, he hit my bike frame, knocked me over and proceeded to ride over my leg. I had a tire burn mark on my leg, more road rash on my arm (on top of the area healed from june!) I had a nasty headache for a few days, broke my computer.

--1 week before christmas - i was out riding my solo 200mile ride, crossing some baaad train tracks (they cross the road at worse than a 45 degree angle). had some truck drive into my bike lane, and scare me bad enough not to turn sharp enough, i went down. road rash (under my clothes) and arm, I'll bear the scar on my hip for years if not a lifetime). got up, and managed to finish the 60 miles i had left to ride.

--This last February - Got hit by a car when turning left. Rode the ambulance, my bike road the firetruck. off the bike for 3 weeks, and even still recovering. Damaged rib cartilage and muscles, some spine damage, but nothing to severe there. more road rash - one right on top of the june knee scar and june/Fall arm scars. the arm one was clothing rash. took out the computer, clothing, helmet, and i couldnt lay down for several weeks without pain (especially transitions from sitting to laying and vice versa. getting up was the most painful part of any day). I still feel my side whenever i try to lift anything.

kinda painful laying them all out to realize. sometimes it seems like some of them were a very long time ago, not so recently.

of course, the most important lesson is to have a large supply of computers or at least new wiring :D

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Originally Posted by ladyjai

...lots of crash stories...

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Ouch - I have to say I'm amazed that you still seem to be happily riding your bike with all of your crashes!

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Originally Posted by ladyjai

...crossing some baaad train tracks (they cross the road at worse than a 45 degree angle). had some truck drive into my bike lane, and scare me bad enough not to turn sharp enough, i went down.

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Ah, nasty train tracks. I ride across them if they run perpendicular to the road. But I am more likely to put my feet down and walk if they are angled - unless the road I am on is totally empty of vehicles. Then I'll head across at the right angle.

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Originally Posted by tjodit

Have any of you crashed on the road? Is it as bad as it looks?

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I'm afraid that based on your question "have you crashed" you are getting stories only from those of us who have crashed. And I think the whole point of the question was to help you get past your fear of falling. It seems that everyone who answered who has crashed has also moved past the crash and continued riding.

A certain amount of fear - or maybe I should say caution - may be good, but I hope that you don't let these stories scare you away from cycling. As I said before, I really believe that if you look at the overall number of crash-free rides vs. the rides where someone has hit the ground - well the crash-free happy rides are much more common.

--- Denise

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Originally Posted by DeniseGoldberg

Ouch - I have to say I'm amazed that you still seem to be happily riding your bike with all of your crashes!

Ah, nasty train tracks. I ride across them if they run perpendicular to the road. But I am more likely to put my feet down and walk if they are angled - unless the road I am on is totally empty of vehicles. Then I'll head across at the right angle.
--- Denise

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I love riding. I just hope my biggies are over for now. My boss said i was grounded, lol. He only knows about 3... :rolleyes:

I've both walked and ridden the tracks since then. I definately am much more cautious and aware...

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Originally Posted by DeniseGoldberg

I'm afraid that based on your question "have you crashed" you are getting stories only from those of us who have crashed. And I think the whole point of the question was to help you get past your fear of falling. It seems that everyone who answered who has crashed has also moved past the crash and continued riding.

A certain amount of fear - or maybe I should say caution - may be good, but I hope that you don't let these stories scare you away from cycling. As I said before, I really believe that if you look at the overall number of crash-free rides vs. the rides where someone has hit the ground - well the crash-free happy rides are much more common.
--- Denise

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Exactly. I've put in 7000-8000 miles in the last year. That's a lot of safe riding too. Don't let it scare you. Crashes happen. They happen everywhere. Do you drive a car? cars get in crashes too. some really really bad ones. Do you live in a home? miswiring, carbon monoxide and myriads of other 'disasters' are potential. Do you move from point a to point B? You are taking your life in your hands, you might be mugged, raped, hit by a car, or....
Life is dangerous no matter what/where you are/do. We have one life, I don't want to face my maker and say, "I burried my life, because i knew you were going to take account, and didn't want you to see my mishaps and failures" I want to say, "I lived my life, this gift you gave me to the fullest." wether it's on the bike, at work, with friends, at home, drawing, dreaming, living....

Hmmm... have read this thread over a few times... kind've a cringe-making thread...

Like others here I have had my fair share of falls... not unclipped quickly enough... skidded on wet grass...

I have had two "major" crashes... though not as major as some of the girls here...

When I was about 15 I was biking to the library and a parked car opened its drivers door on me - I did a 3 point landing - my wrists and chin - no helmet of course in "those" days... I assured the driver I was ok, biked on to the library and then rang my dad because shock had set in and I started shaking and was holding back tears.


The second crash was last year in a team triathalon - I was biking of course, and on the greasy road, taking a corner slightly too fast, my back wheel slipped and I hit the curb and tumbled.

Was the crash bad you ask, TJ...

Well, I don't really remember the crash... I know I rolled on the road several times... I remember thinking "there's the road... oh f**k, theres the road again... S**T!!! theres the road AGAIN!" so I guess I tumbled at least three times. When I stopped I sat up but was unable to make my body get off the road even though I knes thats what I supposed to do. Thank goodness for the marshalls there to drag me and my bike outta the way of other cyclists and of cars (the road was not closed).

One of the marshalls checked my bike, said everything was still aligned and did i feel ok to finish - that surprised me as I assumed as I had crashed i couldn't... so I jumped on my bike full of the confidence of the marshalls faith in my ability to finish.

I arrived at the finish line still in good time, dripping blood from both elbows and forearms, a smudge of blood on shoulders and one hip but feeling ok. One of my team-mates took my helmet from me and noticed it had a piece the size of my fist out of the back.

So no, TJ, in short, the crash was fine - a surprise but it didn't hurt - but recovering was not good - headache for a week and very stiff and sore, but the crash itself was almost like something I watched, rather than was a part of.

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Originally Posted by DeniseGoldberg

Ouch - I'm afraid that based on your question "have you crashed" you are getting stories only from those of us who have crashed. And I think the whole point of the question was to help you get past your fear of falling. It seems that everyone who answered who has crashed has also moved past the crash and continued riding.

A certain amount of fear - or maybe I should say caution - may be good, but I hope that you don't let these stories scare you away from cycling. As I said before, I really believe that if you look at the overall number of crash-free rides vs. the rides where someone has hit the ground - well the crash-free happy rides are much more common.
--- Denise

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You're right. I wasn't really looking to hear all those horror stories!! (I may not be able to sleep tonight ;-) ) But it's comforting to know that you can move on after a bad crash. I love speed and I want to take corners fast...it just feels so cool to lean the bike into a curve. But if I see any gravel or sand on the road I turn into a big weenie and brake and cross it going very slowly. And maybe there isn't anything wrong with that.

I was really hoping to find out how painful laying the bike down on a road was...but I guess realistically that would depend on the individual circumstances.