How come when everyone else falls/crashes

[kajero]

They walk away with scrapes and scratches.

Me . . . if I fall or crash it's broken bones resulting in surgery, and/or hospitalization? Even my girlfriend says I have the worst luck!

I watched a video of someone going over the handlebars. He got up and walked away! I saw someone go down on the trail the other day and get up on walk away!

[zoom-zoom]

I don't know...I currently have THREE friends with broken bones. 2 with badly broken wrists and 1 with a fractured collarbone. I think a lot of it has to do with how/why a person falls. All of my falls (mtn. and road) have been low-speed topples that mainly leave me with lower body bruising. My friends who have busted wrists (one has broken hers twice) likely tried to break their falls with their hands...it's instinctive for a lot of people. Somehow I never reach out when I am falling...I hang onto my bike for dear life (perhaps to protect the bike--I think I care about my bikes more than my body, heh). This is a good thing, I guess. Both of my friends with wrist fractures need surgery. One has already had surgery and things aren't healing, so she needs another surgery. She already has 2 Ti plates.

[Owlie]

Are you doing weight-bearing exercise otherwise? Are you putting your arms out when you fall?

[Scrappy]

Oh No! Did you fall recently? Are you okay?

I can totally relate. Last month I fell twice in one night within 20 minutes of each other. First fall - chain ring scratches, no biggie. Second fall? Sprained knee and (likely) a torn meniscus that will require surgery.

Scrappy

[Bike Writer]

Are you fine-boned?

Shrug. Perhaps a bone-density test is in order. I've never broken a bone, but there are many times when that should have happened. I'm 42, and have done a lot of high-intensity sports. Dating back to childhood.

You do have to do weight-bearing exercise to build strong bones over years. And you have to have a good diet. OTOH, I'm quite large-boned and muscular naturally. So is the rest of my family. Does it make a difference? Possibly.

But this is a question for a doctor, I think. Everyone is different.

Agreed, weight-bearing exercise to build bones is important as we age along with the good diet to enhance bone health. I am amazed at some of the falls I've had from my bike have not resulted in broken bones and attibute it to having had a regime of weight lifting for several years, even though I don't do it currently. My most recent crash, I was certain that I had broken a rib or two. X-ray's showed differently, however the continued pain makes me wonder? I'm healing but it hurts like heck at times.

If your Dr. will prescribe a bone scan & density test for a baseline reading would be a good thing to have.

[Bike Writer]

Oh No! Did you fall recently? Are you okay?

I can totally relate. Last month I fell twice in one night within 20 minutes of each other. First fall - chain ring scratches, no biggie. Second fall? Sprained knee and (likely) a torn meniscus that will require surgery.

Scrappy

Ow Scrappy! Hope it heals without the surgery! But if you must, there are a lot of good Drs. out there.

[zoom-zoom]

I do wonder about the bone density thing, too. It's one reason I keep running...it's a good weight-bearing exercise, since cycling isn't. I tend to be sort of "sturdy," also. My one friend with a broken wrist is finer-boned and my other friend with multiple break episodes has lupus, which apparently does a number on a person's bones.

[Scrappy]

Hi Muirenn & Bike Writer - Thank you for asking. Still stuck in a holding pattern waiting for insurance. It's about as healed as it will get without surgery - still have some swelling and cannot straighten it completely or bend it all the way even though it's been 32 days since the crash.

To be honest, I would've preferred broken bones to this stupid sprain. A break probably would be healed by now... sigh..

Scrappy

[zoom-zoom]

Ha! I resemble that. And I also have only broken my tailbone...which is pretty easy to break. Other than that, just soft-tissue. Badly sprained my left ankle during a trail relay 2 Summers ago (that injury got me into cycling, since I couldn't run at all for 5 weeks, but I could carefully pedal). I think a less solidly-built person would have broken that mess!

[Bike Writer]

Scrappy and Bike Writer, how are you both?

I'm ok, the road rash has healed well in all of the various places. I still had to pick out some tiny embedded bits of gravel out of my hand this week. Bruises are healing up too, it's just the ribs that ache and so do my hands and wrists. Dr. said the good news is they wern't broken, the bad news is that they will feel like they are. Considering that fall was on Aug 1st I am guessing/hoping that the ribs will cease their hurting in a week or two.

Knock on wood, I don't break many bones, but I sure to bruise like the dickens.

[Bike Writer]

Scrappy, you get well soon too!

[Scrappy]

You too Bike Writer!

[Kiwi Stoker]

I think I know the answer.

In one race DH and I did on the tandem we started at the front of the entrants.

As we are not fast cyclists this meant we got passed by the elite riders etc in waves.

The faster rider bunches did have crashes but they were amazing to watch. I think it was a combination of speed and skill that the riders that crashed seemed to "tuck and roll", quickly got up and again and got on their bikes and raced off. WOW!

It wasn't until later with the slower people with less skill that we saw BAD crashes. Like lots of blood, wrapped around a power pole and out cold crashes. The faster, experienced bunches actually rode safer and called hazards (or pointed) and had faster reflexes. The slower people did more silly accident stuff like touch wheels.

I also was in one race (on the tandem) when one guy's front tyre blew on a downhill. Becuase he was in a bunch of experienced riders, the guys next to him grabbed an arm each and actually used their brakes to slow him down and then move him off the side of the road. Otherwise he would of taken out the whole bunch.

I think experience is one factor in avoiding broken bones (says the person who has broken a collarbone due to a stupid rider in front of her and a shoulder- this time due to her own inexperience.)

[zoom-zoom]

To be honest, I would've preferred broken bones to this stupid sprain. A break probably would be healed by now... sigh..

Scrappy

Yep...people minimize the severity of a sprain. Sprains are bad news...they can take a VERY long time to heal and once you've sprained a spot your risk of a re-sprain is greatly increased. My left ankle will never be the same and I will likely never again do trail running after my grade 2 sprain.

[pll]

I also was in one race (on the tandem) when one guy's front tyre blew on a downhill. Becuase he was in a bunch of experienced riders, the guys next to him grabbed an arm each and actually used their brakes to slow him down and then move him off the side of the road. Otherwise he would of taken out the whole bunch.

Wow. This is remarkable! Seeing that type of reaction is amazing.

I ride with a woman who also races and she says the slow crashes are the worst in terms of broken arms and collarbones because generally people have time to try to halt the fall by stretching an arm.