True Confessions

[shootingstar]

Mimitabby has made a good point, that perhaps even in car, your car, the big monster, could slide abit too if you weren't paying attention.

Since living in Vancouver I've fallen 3 times. The last one...was freakishly scary, a path that was sheer ice all the way around. I was damned if I tried stopping, and damned if I kept going.

So I kept on going and ...fell on the ice, in slow motion. towards the end of the path. Ironically this was in the new future 2010 Olympic athletes' village area that's under construction. I was not hurt much, just late for an art class.. It did bother me for a few hrs. Ice had melted off 4 hrs. later when I biked home.

I've been very lucky so far, each time I fell, it has always been black ice, where ironically I was going slow. Another time I fell on icy road while going up a hill.

I don't have tire studs. Do I plan to get them? no. Simply because in our area black ice and snow on the mainland at the foot of mountains...doesn't actually get much snow ...compared to other parts of Canada. When it does snow and there's ice, I won't cycle.

I know alot of highly experienced, strong cyclists who simply don't ride if their winters are often snowy and icy. this is very true in toronto, which has similar winters to Massachussetts.

As for my precautions that I take...I was hit as a pedestrian in the winter when I was a teenager. In front of a life insurance company. It is possible thereafter, I just take more precautions. I go through times where I forget about this accident, it is almost like denial that I could have permanently disabled, etc. If a small car hits you with a certain impact, you could be thrown onto of the hood..