Has this ever happened to you?

**FlyingScot** · 03-29-2012, 10:40 AM

Freaky thing happened to me on my ride last night. 20mph headwinds (very proud that I kept my 16mph pace) with a sudden wind shift and gust of maybe 40mph (per the news) straight line that totally blew my bike out from under me!!!!!. Seriously a guy who came to help me said I didn't tip over. He watched my bike shift to parallel with the ground then drop straight down. Fortunately I was riding the edge of a bike path so I mostly hit grass. Bumps, bruises and some dings on my bike but nothing bent. Seriously, I felt like that flying cow in "Tornado". I might think twice about riding in the wind again. BTW, I'm small but not tiny!

**indysteel** · 03-29-2012, 11:00 AM

Yikes! I haven't had that happen, but I've come pretty darn close. I'm glad you weren't seriously hurt and I hope your bumps and bruises heal quickly.

P.S. Way to live up to your screen name!

**ny biker** · 03-29-2012, 01:14 PM

I've come close to being knocked over by the wind a few times. Just one more reason why I hate riding on windy days...

**tealtreak** · 03-29-2012, 01:22 PM

wow- this is scary in light of the fact that during a ridiculously windy ride yesterday I felt like I was going to get blown off the bridge- I pretty much had my belly on the bar to lower my center of gravity.......it never occurred to me it could really happen!!!!!

**FlyingScot** · 03-29-2012, 01:45 PM

This particular gust pulled up some large trees and damaged a few roofs. I had been knocked around quite a bit prior to it but this gust was really unusual. Probably never happen again in my lifetime.

**ny biker** · 03-29-2012, 01:51 PM

Originally Posted by FlyingScot

This particular gust pulled up some large trees and damaged a few roofs. I had been knocked around quite a bit prior to it but this gust was really unusual. Probably never happen again in my lifetime.

A couple of years ago, we had a summer thunderstorm that included a gust of straight-line winds that knocked down or severly damaged about 60 trees in the neighborhood where I live. I saw some fairly large, mature trees snapped in half like toothpicks. The wind also blew out some car windows nearby.

Nature can be pretty dangerous.

**OakLeaf** · 03-29-2012, 04:33 PM

First ride I ever did with the club in Florida, there was an unexpected rain and it was super windy going over the bridge. It was definitely scary - even on a normal day, winds are something else on these high hurricane-resistant bridges. At the bottom, the guys decided to turn around and go back. I never have understood that, since at that point we had to go back over the bridge regardless of whether we finished the rest of the ride or not.

Anyway, glad you're okay!

**chincitop** · 03-29-2012, 06:05 PM

Holy crap! @_@ I was out in pretty intense wind today on the new road bike, and I got off and walked, because I was pretty intimidated. I'm glad to hear you're okay!

**AppleTree** · 03-29-2012, 06:08 PM

That is SO scary. It's why I don't mind rain TOO much, but I hate to go out if there is a strong wind. So lucky you weren't hurt or there wasn't a car nearby.

**zoom-zoom** · 03-29-2012, 06:27 PM

Originally Posted by Muirenn

There have been a couple of times where I thought it was going to happen, and found myself wishing for a steel mountain bike with bombproof wheels

Yep, me too. It was worse with my previous bike...aluminum with larger, sort of triangular tubes. That thing was like a sail. My current bike is lighter, but the tubes are smaller and more round. I still won't ride if it's super windy, though. I'm paranoid of things like trash cans or branches flying in front of me.

**Owlie** · 03-29-2012, 06:42 PM

Originally Posted by zoom-zoom

Yep, me too. It was worse with my previous bike...aluminum with larger, sort of triangular tubes. That thing was like a sail. My current bike is lighter, but the tubes are smaller and more round. I still won't ride if it's super windy, though. I'm paranoid of things like trash cans or branches flying in front of me.

My bike is the same kind of construction as your old one. I've certainly felt it shimmy or scoot sideways on windy days, but I've never been worried about it tipping. I don't ride when it's really really windy though, either. There aren't enough windbreaks where I ride.

**marni** · 03-29-2012, 07:14 PM

somewhere on you tube there is a video of the Dutch biking team out training on a windy day, and one of the guys is trying to remount his bike which is blowing out parallel to the ground.

I haven't ever been blown off my bike but I have been blown off the road on my bike.

marni

**shootingstar** · 03-29-2012, 07:42 PM

Glad you're safe...Flying Scot!

**Anelia** · 03-29-2012, 07:57 PM

YEs, this happened to me in the mountains. We weren't riding but were lying on the ground and holding our bikes. Still, the wind lifted me and tried to carry me somewhere else. The others held me and stopped me. It was scary.

**Catrin** · 03-30-2012, 03:49 AM

Anelia - scary!

Glad you weren't alone!

I've been out on windy days and have been blown over into the next lane, thankfully there were no cars on that country road. That was when I set a rule that I don't rind on the open road on windy days. If the winds are >17 mph then I just ride in the park (very large park with a ~7 mile route through the various roads). Greater than 25mph I don't ride there.

I didn't realize when I built up my custom bike last year that the spokes on my wheels are bladed, so they really catch the wind...

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