OldEd
contributor
Reged: 02/05/04
Posts: 117
Loc: The Great South
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I'm back on the bike, sort of, and tonight I came to a familar stretch of road -- very short, very savage 18 percent grade, not more than 20 feet of it but it'll crack your knees and mind -- and when, as always, I stood to hammer up it, when I brought the crank over the top to make that first harsh PUSH, the bike and I went DOWN. Back wheel spun like on ice and I torqued the bike on over. Nothing serious (I was barely moving at the time) but I'm sporting a nice scary looking road rash on my knee and hip, and I finished the ride (another hour) with spectacular-looking blood streaks down my leg.
I've been riding for 48 years (including kid riding) and NOTHING like this has ever happened to me. The road was dry, I couldn't see any oil on it. Hmmmmm. Maybe I'm simply more stump-legged than I thought. We all love torque, eh?
Anyone else ever had this experience? It was a tad unsettling, so say the least.
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sn69
friend
Reged: 04/03/04
Posts: 28
Loc: San Diego, CA
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The East San Diego County Avacado Death Ride. One moment's inattention....
To quote the traffic advisory sign in "LA Story," R Y O K?
Just back from Sitka, amigo. Wowsers. Got one day of fishin' and landed two 30 pound king salmon--they're currently in the freezer. Got two hikes in, one modest and one very long (and high/steep) indeed. Saw lots of bald eagles, big-a@@ banana slugs (6-8 inches), fresh deer prints, fresh brown bear prints, and two huge piles of bear scat. No sign of Mr. Griz, however. Great...he was stalking us the entire time.
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Scott Needle,
nobody of particular importance
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Allan
journeyman
Reged: 05/04/04
Posts: 198
Loc: Bds,W I
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Hey Scott,
Dont you ever get that strange feeling down low when you are riding through a heavily wooded area on an offical bike path and suddenly see signs posted saying "Bears are known to frequent this area" and then you suddenly pass some bear calling cards on the sides of the same path that look fresh. This is when i sprint really fast AND very quietly for a long time.
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Its time to ride.
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OldEd
contributor
Reged: 02/05/04
Posts: 117
Loc: The Great South
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no bones or ligaments involved. It must have been a funny sight. There goes the old guy, standing to hammer! There goes the old guy, down!
Gotta admit, the adrenaline rush made for a strong ride subsequently. Five minutes later I climbed the area's baddest hill (what the Louisville Bicycle Club calls "Smiley Face Hill," which is what some club joker painted at the top to cheer you up in your trans-anaerobic White Light death throes) stronger than I've ever climbed it.
I now understand how a bloodied Lance came back to win that key mountain stage last summer. Crash-and-injury adrenaline is powerful stuff.
Not as powerful as hooking a 30-pound salmon, I'm sure!
Edited by OldEd (06/02/04 12:42 PM)
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Nev
captain
Reged: 05/03/04
Posts: 376
Loc: Never where I want to be
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Quote:
Allan wrote:
Hey Scott,
Dont you ever get that strange feeling down low when you are riding through a heavily wooded area on an offical bike path and suddenly see signs posted saying "Bears are known to frequent this area" and then you suddenly pass some bear calling cards on the sides of the same path that look fresh. This is when i sprint really fast AND very quietly for a long time.
For adrenalin rushes, nothing like blazing down blind twisty forest trails at night (mtb biking) with lights, mystery creatures of the night running along side through the brush -- is it gonna leap out at me or not? -- other creatures middle of the trail around a corner, even stranger and bigger animal noises on both sides of the trail, spiders right in your face web breaking across your cheeks and arms and legs, and what looked like a rock is really a frog as it jumps out of the way freaking me out more than any of the other stuff.
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Cory
new member
Reged: 02/05/04
Posts: 16
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Somebody, maybe Grant Petersen, wrote about a similar experience when the back tire crossed a paint stripe. He hit the gas just as the tire hit the slick spot, and down he went.
In a related note, one bad thing about being a gray-haired cyclist is that even if you can still do it a little, even if you can still do it BETTER THAN 95 PERCENT OF THE PEOPLE YOUR AGE AND A LOT OF YOUNGER GUYS, all anybody sees is an old fart who hasn't learned to play golf. Every day I come closer to understanding what my father felt like when my mom died and he remarried at age 75.
"Everybody says 'Isn't that cute?'" he said. "I'm NOT cute. I'm just another guy getting married."
I'm not cute. I'm just another guy riding a bicycle.
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OldEd
contributor
Reged: 02/05/04
Posts: 117
Loc: The Great South
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And I'm not cute either, man. I'm DANGEROUS. Ho, ho.
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sn69
friend
Reged: 04/03/04
Posts: 28
Loc: San Diego, CA
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it was always the kitty-variety beasties that worried me...and that was years ago/years before that poor gal got her face bitten.
The ironic thing is that bears are just as fast in a short sprint. Fortuitously, the bears in the mountains of San Diego County are the small, shy black variety, not the large, brown ravenous beasties from Alaska. Then again, I donated my old hartail to charity and stick only to the road now.
...And there's nothing dangerous there.
...Except for metric a@@ tons of idiot drivers in 2000 pound weapons.......
Be safe, y'all.
Scott
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Scott Needle,
nobody of particular importance
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OldEd
contributor
Reged: 02/05/04
Posts: 117
Loc: The Great South
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back in the National Forest with a little patch of Kentucky's Number One Cash Crop to protect. They can be real impolite. Rather take my chances with a Kentucky Wildcat, frankly!
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sn69
friend
Reged: 04/03/04
Posts: 28
Loc: San Diego, CA
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It's not just there. In my previous life in helicopters, we used to find their meth labs in trailers scattered all about the Mojave Desert. It wasn't uncommon to get lased by those guys, the laser presumably affixed to the sights of a rifle.
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Scott Needle,
nobody of particular importance
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OldEd
contributor
Reged: 02/05/04
Posts: 117
Loc: The Great South
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anyone who cites Steve Earle is one musically and culturally tasteful fellow.
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sn69
friend
Reged: 04/03/04
Posts: 28
Loc: San Diego, CA
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I also tend towards mid-to-late 80's alternative, surf punk and concept rock (Dream Theater, Planet P, Poe, etc...). Steve Earle belts 'em out for sure, but he's no Buddy Guy.
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Scott Needle,
nobody of particular importance
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