Quote Originally Posted by Owlie View Post
Took two short bike trips. The first went fine. Second one didn't go so well. I decided I'd bike to the library to pick up a book I need for my presentation. This involves sidewalk riding because the library is otherwise inaccessible (university library). I did a couple of loops around the area afterward, and then headed home.

The pedestrians around here are idiots. I was leaving the library "oval", and there was some girl with her headphones in walking in the middle of the path. I yelled "Bike behind you!" Several times. She didn't hear me. By this point, I was afraid that I might hit her even if I braked, and wound up ditching into a flowerbed. That was when I discovered that there was a ROCK in the the flowerbed. I dusted myself off, walked the bike over to the bench, and tried to clean all the salvia bits out of my chain. There was no way I could ride the thing back, so I somehow managed to call my boyfriend without covering the rest of myself in chain grease, then walked the bike home so he could look at it. Report is not particularly good: Not only did I scratch my poor baby, but also knocked my rear wheel out of true and screwed up my front derailleur (sp?).
Next question...can I afford the repairs?
Sorry to hear about this mishap Did the girl even notice? I get very concerned biking near people with iPods, because so many of them are totally oblivious to what is going on around them. For that reason (and a few others), I greatly prefer trails/parks/country roads to urban areas...which unfortunately, I get A LOT of around here.

I would take your bike to your LBS as soon as possible, so that they can assess the price of the damages for you. Hope your bike is back in good condition soon!