Scary Road Sand!

[kfergos]

Bottom line: when you're on two wheels, you gotta pay attention to your road surface.

Rollie, I'm very glad you're OK, but consider that the lesson may not be "don't ride," but rather "be aware when you're riding."

I second this. Cycling is about taking acceptable risks after mitigating whatever risks we can. Every time we go out we risk serious injury or death, but it's acceptable because we're careful and alert. If we let anything hazardous keep us off the roads, we'd never get out at all! I agree sand is certainly dangerous to cyclists, but with diligence (and the right tires; fat treaded ones in the winter make a big difference for stability on sandy surfaces) we can fairly safely venture out even in sandy conditions.

[RolliePollie]

I second this. Cycling is about taking acceptable risks after mitigating whatever risks we can. Every time we go out we risk serious injury or death, but it's acceptable because we're careful and alert. If we let anything hazardous keep us off the roads, we'd never get out at all! I agree sand is certainly dangerous to cyclists, but with diligence (and the right tires; fat treaded ones in the winter make a big difference for stability on sandy surfaces) we can fairly safely venture out even in sandy conditions.

I totally get what you guys are saying, but my personal choice is going to be not to ride until some of the sand is off the road. I live in a rural area where it is pretty dangerous to ride anyway (no shoulders or bike lanes, etc.) and the addition of sand on the road is too risky for my taste. I knew I shouldn't ride, I tried it out, and now I know I don't want to risk it. And I was being very careful. If others are ok with it, that's fine with me. I'm just saying for me, no more riding on sandy roads. I am actually very glad they sand our roads when it's snowy. I'd rather give up riding on my local roads for a couple of month a year than have my car slide off the road when it snows.

[Crankin]

Yes, you have to be aware, and that's the key all of the time, but sometimes, I just won't take the risk. Just like I don't ride when it below a certain temperature.
Around the time I first started riding, my husband came home from a quick Saturday morning ride. He was taking a cool down lap around the cul-de-sac, which was at the bottom of a teeny hill when he wiped out on sand. He came home with a bloodied face and shoulder, torn jersey and shorts, and wrecked shifters, etc. This was at the end of April and in my old town, they never cleaned the streets until May 10th or so. We had to call the town many times in the following years and explain how unsafe these conditions were for cyclists (there are a lot of riders in this area).
But, I don't want them to stop sanding the roads. Even though I have a car with all wheel drive, I want everything possible to make conditions safe for driving in a storm. And around here, if you don't shovel your sidewalk, you get a fine.

[Bluetree]

Sand scares the dickens out of me, esp. since the seaside winds can blow it all over the place. You never know if the roads will be clear one day to the next.

I've been taken out twice by sand on corners. Once in a double paceline training ride, another time while riding solo pre-dawn. I was lucky both times. In both instances there was just so much sand that it spared me from a more severe road rash. In my solo crash, I slid across an intersection and stopped at the feet of an old man walking his chihuahua. Poor guy almost died of shock. My bikes went straight to the shop for thorough cleanings!