We had someone die on one of our trails yesterday

[thekarens]

Let me preface this by saying Houston isn't known for it's mountain biking. We have a handful of trails and they are all considered beginner to intermediate. There's nothing super gnarly, no downhill. In fact, to up the difficulty most people (not me) just go faster.

Up until this point when I think of biking injuries I think of my MTB community and when I think of biking deaths I'm always thinking about my roadie community. This is the first time I've heard of someone locally dieing while MTBing. He was wearing his helmet and he was on one of our intermediate trails and from what I've heard he went off one of the bridges. They Life Flighted him out, but he died en route. I didn't know him, but I still ache for his family.

It really makes you think.....go out, enjoy your ride, but be safe!

[Catrin]

Very sad to read this, thinking of his family. Be safe!

[indysteel]

Wow; I'm really sorry to hear that. This is why I get pretty anxious each time we mountain bike.

[zoom-zoom]

I really WANT to love mountain biking, but after breaking my wrist in 2 places last Nov. on my longest ever ride (only 18 miles, but on some fairly challenging, twisty terrain)...and having 2 friends who also busted their wrists <6 months before my injury (one for the 2nd time) I'm not sure how much of a future I have in the sport. I'm 40, which is totally not old, but maybe it's too old to teach THIS dog new tricks. I have friends who have hopped on mountain bikes and taken to it like it was the most natural thing ever. But I never felt confident. The most confident I ever felt was the day I busted myself. Now I'm totally gunshy with a beautiful bike that has only 102 trail miles (I put a few hundred on a low-rent 26er bike. We felt like I was ready to upgrade to a better quality 29er and it was awesome to not work so hard to keep up with others or die on minor hills). Contributing to my apprehension is the fact that my right wrist still doesn't have full function, so I'd not be able to have the best control over my bike that I would with a non-bum wrist.

I suspect that I am really too short to be comfortably piloting a 29er (I'm just under 5'4"), too, but there were almost no 650b options when we bought my Salsa El Mariachi. Even now, the shop we frequent has only ONE 650b option that would fit me and it's easily a grand more than what we would willingly spend (not sure why Jamis makes the $2900 Dragon in a tiny size, but not the $1900 Nemesis).

I'm registered for a 30ish mile mountain bike race in Nov., but I suspect I will be transferring my registration to someone else. Maybe I'll feel better about getting back to it in 2014, but I'm not holding my breath. In the next couple of years my 12 year old son will likely fit my bike well, so maybe I'll pass it off to him...or sell it and upgrade my CX bike!

[TigerMom]

Poor Zoom Zoom. Maybe you are just racing too hard/too fast on your MTB rides?

Sad to hear about the Mountain Biker falling off of a bridge.

In my cycling club (I wasn't there that morning), we recently had a road biker fall off of the road and down a cliff. His bike hung in a tree and he had huge gashes on his face. But, surprisingly, he survived.

[thekarens]

I love MTBing, and I used to think I wanted to start trying harder trails, but I've since decided I'm happy at the level I'm at and I'll stick to those types of trails that I'm ok at and just enjoy the ride.

[Catrin]

Zoom Zoom, I hear you! As much as I loved mountain biking, and as hard as it was for me to decide to quit, the decision brought a measure of relief. While it looks like my mountain bike crashes left some permanent physical consequences (neck) for me, I am very lucky compared to some I know of. CNS damage can be far worse than what I experienced. It is a great sport - but certainly on the edge! My problem last year was that I kept second guessing myself which didn't help the soft tissue damage that I am currently dealing with - I KNEW I should have stopped before I did but darn it, when it worked for me it was so much fun! In retrospect, it was a bit much to take on at 51-52 years old but I HAD to try it

[indysteel]

Zoom, have you taken a skills clinic? If you haven't, I strongly recommend that you do. I really want to do the Women's clinic next year. Care to join me?

[zoom-zoom]

Zoom, have you taken a skills clinic? If you haven't, I strongly recommend that you do. I really want to do the Women's clinic next year. Care to join me?

I'd really like to do that, next year. I did one short clinic nearby a few months back, but really haven't been back on my bike, since then. My wrist is still quite weak, plus fairly stiff and often sore, so it makes me feel like it's limiting my control of the bike. I figure next Spring I'll hopefully be in a better place to give it another go.

[emily_in_nc]

When I first started mountain biking (in my mid-40s), I tried doing some more technical stuff (which was still very easy by experienced MTBer standards), but to me the roots, rocks, and twisty switchbacks were just too much. I fell enough that I ultimately decided "enough". I know I could have gotten better with practice and clinics, but I decided I much more enjoyed the less technical stuff than singletrack, unless it's very easy singletrack. So now I pretty much stick to unpaved rail-trails and very easy trails, and when something starts getting a bit sketchy, I don't hesitate to get off and walk a bit. I also enjoy riding my MTB for urban rides on crappy, cracked, potholed paved roads -- it's just more comfortable with the wider tires and suspension. We've been riding our MTBs a lot more than our roadies here in the Kansas City area (plus the Katy Trail and our recent trip to New Mexico).

I have had both a hardtail and two full-suspension MTBs and prefer the full-suspension. Much more comfy, but then again, I'm not doing anything technical.

[Crankin]

I'm another one who made the decision to stop mountain biking. I was in love with the idea of it, and of being in the woods. I had one year, where I attempted and did fair on some hard stuff, but mountain biking is something you have to practice a lot to do well, and I hated taking time away from my road bikes. I am not naturally a risk taker and since I was also in my early fifties when I started, I decided it wasn't worth it. We sold both of our mountain bikes about 5 years ago, after we rode them on dirt roads up in Maine. Even that was harder than I thought, although I would do it again. There's very little in the way of mountian bike trails here that aren't rooty or rocky and when I started, I still hadn't found a medication I could take for my osteoporosis. That is now being reversed, but I just couldn't risk falling, which I did some, but mostly, I didn't try anything too risky.
I am not that kind of scared at all on the road.

[zoom-zoom]

I'm another one who made the decision to stop mountain biking. I was in love with the idea of it, and of being in the woods. I had one year, where I attempted and did fair on some hard stuff, but mountain biking is something you have to practice a lot to do well, and I hated taking time away from my road bikes. I am not naturally a risk taker and since I was also in my early fifties when I started, I decided it wasn't worth it. We sold both of our mountain bikes about 5 years ago, after we rode them on dirt roads up in Maine. Even that was harder than I thought, although I would do it again. There's very little in the way of mountian bike trails here that aren't rooty or rocky and when I started, I still hadn't found a medication I could take for my osteoporosis. That is now being reversed, but I just couldn't risk falling, which I did some, but mostly, I didn't try anything too risky.
I am not that kind of scared at all on the road.

I TOTALLY get what you are saying. I think I love the IDEA of mountain biking more than the reality of it. When it's good it's awesome and blows road biking away...but the inherent risks, especially to a noob who falls a LOT, are a bit beyond what I often think I want to deal with. I felt this to a very small degree before I broke my wrist. Before that I felt sort of invincible and was sorta proud of my massive (and frequent) bruises. But after causing major injury to myself I wonder if the risks are worth the reward. Being laid-up for 6 weeks really sucked -- and it was during the worst part of the year, weather-wise. If I found myself relegated to the sofa in the middle of Summer I think I'd be unbelievably miserable. And unbelievably miserable to be around!

[tealtreak]

I really WANT to love mountain biking, but after breaking my wrist in 2 places last Nov. on my longest ever ride (only 18 miles, but on some fairly challenging, twisty terrain)...and having 2 friends who also busted their wrists <6 months before my injury (one for the 2nd time) I'm not sure how much of a future I have in the sport. I'm 40, which is totally not old, but maybe it's too old to teach THIS dog new tricks. I have friends who have hopped on mountain bikes and taken to it like it was the most natural thing ever. But I never felt confident. The most confident I ever felt was the day I busted myself. Now I'm totally gunshy with a beautiful bike that has only 102 trail miles (I put a few hundred on a low-rent 26er bike. We felt like I was ready to upgrade to a better quality 29er and it was awesome to not work so hard to keep up with others or die on minor hills). Contributing to my apprehension is the fact that my right wrist still doesn't have full function, so I'd not be able to have the best control over my bike that I would with a non-bum wrist.

I suspect that I am really too short to be comfortably piloting a 29er (I'm just under 5'4"), too, but there were almost no 650b options when we bought my Salsa El Mariachi. Even now, the shop we frequent has only ONE 650b option that would fit me and it's easily a grand more than what we would willingly spend (not sure why Jamis makes the $2900 Dragon in a tiny size, but not the $1900 Nemesis).

I'm registered for a 30ish mile mountain bike race in Nov., but I suspect I will be transferring my registration to someone else. Maybe I'll feel better about getting back to it in 2014, but I'm not holding my breath. In the next couple of years my 12 year old son will likely fit my bike well, so maybe I'll pass it off to him...or sell it and upgrade my CX bike!

Zoomzoom- you may have answered/ heard this before....but have you done any physical therapy for your wrist? Mine is arthritic but I have regained most strength and range of motion with PT (though my break was kayaking not biking....pain is the same!)

[tealtreak]

so sorry to hear about this....): thinking about his family and your entire biking community...

[zoom-zoom]

Zoomzoom- you may have answered/ heard this before....but have you done any physical therapy for your wrist? Mine is arthritic but I have regained most strength and range of motion with PT (though my break was kayaking not biking....pain is the same!)

I have -- and it really made a huge difference in the early months of healing. I know from my experience with a grade 2 ankle sprain 3 years ago that I can expect at least a full year to 2 years before it will likely feel anywhere near pre-injury condition. It's only in the past year that I've contemplated a return to trail running after that injury. Soft tissue/ligament damage stinks!

How long since your injury? How bad is your arthritis? I'm good on the road bike on the hoods or drops, but rotating my hand 90º medial is still uncomfortable...ie the tops on a road bike or mtn. bike handlebars. It's only in the past month that my SRAM road/CX shifters weren't really requiring major effort to operate. I'm about back to shifting without giving it much thought.