Go Back  Bike Forums > Bike Forums > Advocacy & Safety
Reload this Page >

wat happens if i hit this

Notices
Advocacy & Safety Cyclists should expect and demand safe accommodation on every public road, just as do all other users. Discuss your bicycle advocacy and safety concerns here.

wat happens if i hit this

Old 08-10-20, 05:11 AM
  #1  
mtb_addict
Senior Member
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Jun 2011
Posts: 265
Mentioned: 22 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3307 Post(s)
Liked 78 Times in 65 Posts
wat happens if i hit this

here where i live, there is alot of MUPs. Problem is there is lots of intentional obsticles. this one is actually one of the easier one.

i had few close calls with the ones that make the lane very narrow.

i wonder what will happen to me if my pedal strike the metal bollard while going say 12 mph?

will it snag my pedal and throw me off my bike? or will it just be a glancing blow and i keep upright and can keep pedaling?



Last edited by mtb_addict; 08-10-20 at 08:34 AM.
mtb_addict is offline  
Old 08-10-20, 06:27 AM
  #2  
unterhausen
Randomhead
 
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Happy Valley, Pennsylvania
Posts: 24,364
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4 Post(s)
Liked 3,666 Times in 2,497 Posts
I once saw someone hit a bollard. Their fork folded, cheap bike.
unterhausen is offline  
Old 08-10-20, 06:32 AM
  #3  
bobwysiwyg
Senior Member
 
bobwysiwyg's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2016
Location: 961' 42.28° N, 83.78° W (A2)
Posts: 2,344

Bikes: Mongoose Selous, Trek DS

Mentioned: 8 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 941 Post(s)
Liked 319 Times in 189 Posts
Originally Posted by mtb_addict
here where i live, there is alot of MUPs. Problem is there is lots of intentional obsticles. this one is actually one of the wide ones.

i had few close calls with the narrower ones.

i wonder what will happen to me if my pedal strike the metal bollard while going say 12 mph?

will it snag my pedal and throw me off my bike? or will it just be a glancing blow and i keep upright and can keep pedaling?


This does look like poor, risky design. That being the case, I'd slow down to negotiate them safely.
bobwysiwyg is offline  
Old 08-10-20, 06:45 AM
  #4  
Moe Zhoost
Half way there
 
Moe Zhoost's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2015
Location: North Carolina
Posts: 2,955

Bikes: Many, and the list changes frequently

Mentioned: 5 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 985 Post(s)
Liked 879 Times in 526 Posts
It's easy to negotiate these if you slow down and pay attention. These obstructions are intended to keep other larger vehicles off the path making it safer for you.

These ones look a bit narrow though. I doubt that I could fit my trike through them.
Moe Zhoost is offline  
Likes For Moe Zhoost:
Old 08-10-20, 07:01 AM
  #5  
BobbyG
Senior Member
 
BobbyG's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Colorado Springs, CO
Posts: 5,962

Bikes: 2015 Charge Plug, 2007 Dahon Boardwalk, 1997 Nishiki Blazer, 1984 Nishiki International, 2006 Felt F65, 1989 Dahon Getaway V

Mentioned: 54 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1359 Post(s)
Liked 1,658 Times in 822 Posts
I'm 58. When I was 14 I was riding no-handed through a park with a major tailwind, going at least 20 mph when my left pedal clipped a parking riser that I was certain I was well clear of. I woke up a few yards down the path, bruised, cut, scraped and bloody. Forty-four years later I still think about that every time I see a bollard or narrow pass-through. In fact I immediately thought of it when I saw your photo, before I even read any words.

The left crank was torqued out about 10 degrees. Still have a scar under my right arm-pit.

Last edited by BobbyG; 08-10-20 at 07:06 AM.
BobbyG is offline  
Old 08-10-20, 07:05 AM
  #6  
Juan Foote
LBKA (formerly punkncat)
 
Juan Foote's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Jawja
Posts: 4,299

Bikes: Spec Roubaix SL4, GT Traffic 1.0

Mentioned: 17 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2208 Post(s)
Liked 960 Times in 686 Posts
There was a TDF a few years back where a fan reached out and grabbed someone's handlebar right as the sprint to the finish was ongoing. I would imagine it's going to look a lot like that.
Juan Foote is offline  
Old 08-10-20, 08:19 AM
  #7  
GAtkins
Full Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: Springdale, Arkansas
Posts: 318

Bikes: 2021 Trek Domane SLR7 Project One 62cm- 2010 Specialized Allez 61cm

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 118 Post(s)
Liked 88 Times in 44 Posts
I wouldn't hit that at any speed.

Glenn
GAtkins is offline  
Old 08-10-20, 08:31 AM
  #8  
mtb_addict
Senior Member
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Jun 2011
Posts: 265
Mentioned: 22 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3307 Post(s)
Liked 78 Times in 65 Posts
Originally Posted by Moe Zhoost
It's easy to negotiate these if you slow down and pay attention.em.
there is one that is challenging. because its at bottom of a small hill. if you slow down, you lose momentum that can carry you up the hill.

Last edited by mtb_addict; 08-10-20 at 08:55 AM.
mtb_addict is offline  
Old 08-10-20, 08:58 AM
  #9  
Moe Zhoost
Half way there
 
Moe Zhoost's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2015
Location: North Carolina
Posts: 2,955

Bikes: Many, and the list changes frequently

Mentioned: 5 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 985 Post(s)
Liked 879 Times in 526 Posts
Yes, I do hate to lose momentum; however a spill would be worse. I hope they give this area a bit more thought when they get around to renovating it.

Stay safe, mate.
Moe Zhoost is offline  
Old 08-10-20, 09:02 AM
  #10  
livedarklions
Tragically Ignorant
 
livedarklions's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2018
Location: New England
Posts: 15,613

Bikes: Serotta Atlanta; 1994 Specialized Allez Pro; Giant OCR A1; SOMA Double Cross Disc; 2022 Allez Elite mit der SRAM

Mentioned: 62 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 8186 Post(s)
Liked 9,094 Times in 5,053 Posts
Originally Posted by mtb_addict
here where i live, there is alot of MUPs. Problem is there is lots of intentional obsticles. this one is actually one of the easier one.

i had few close calls with the ones that make the lane very narrow.

i wonder what will happen to me if my pedal strike the metal bollard while going say 12 mph?

will it snag my pedal and throw me off my bike? or will it just be a glancing blow and i keep upright and can keep pedaling?


Bollard on right, 2 poles on left, curb right before the mess, and a strange manhole situation right after, what could go wrong?

I'm taking this really slow.
livedarklions is offline  
Old 08-10-20, 09:16 AM
  #11  
Litespud
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2017
Location: Chapel Hill NC
Posts: 1,683

Bikes: 2000 Litespeed Vortex Chorus 10, 1995 DeBernardi Cromor S/S

Mentioned: 4 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 645 Post(s)
Liked 797 Times in 446 Posts
Unless you're using particularly wide platform pedals, it's likely your foot will catch one of the uprights and hopefully glance off. But if you're sufficiently close for your foot to catch something, it's likely that your handlebar will get there first, in which case, you're probably going down. But it looks like the path is crossing a road - so why would you not be slowing down?
Litespud is offline  
Old 08-10-20, 10:54 AM
  #12  
berner
Senior Member
 
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Bristol, R. I.
Posts: 4,340

Bikes: Specialized Secteur, old Peugeot

Mentioned: 20 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 663 Post(s)
Liked 496 Times in 299 Posts
a year or two ago a tour rider clipped a pedal on something and landed face first against something and died.
berner is offline  
Old 08-10-20, 11:15 AM
  #13  
work4bike
Senior Member
 
work4bike's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Atlantic Beach Florida
Posts: 1,926
Mentioned: 18 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3748 Post(s)
Liked 1,018 Times in 768 Posts
I would love to see some pics of the worse barriers.

You don't want to clip anything with your pedals, it's scary. The only thing worse (other than a head-on) would be to clip your handlebar.

I was once doing a fast left-hand turn (in heavy traffic) and as I came out of the 90 deg. turn at a fairly good speed, I clipped the curb with my right pedal. I don't know how I kept the rubber side down -- it was really scary.

P.S. I was riding with clipless pedals.
.
work4bike is offline  
Old 08-10-20, 11:28 AM
  #14  
caloso
Senior Member
 
caloso's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: Sacramento, California, USA
Posts: 40,865

Bikes: Specialized Tarmac, Canyon Exceed, Specialized Transition, Ellsworth Roots, Ridley Excalibur

Mentioned: 68 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2952 Post(s)
Liked 3,106 Times in 1,417 Posts
Depending on the height, you might be more likely to hit with your bars, which might result in a broken hand, and would likely take you down. Either, be careful.
caloso is offline  
Old 08-10-20, 12:55 PM
  #15  
Notso_fastLane
Senior Member
 
Notso_fastLane's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: Layton, UT
Posts: 1,606

Bikes: 2011 Bent TW Elegance 2014 Carbon Strada Velomobile

Mentioned: 6 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 626 Post(s)
Liked 701 Times in 418 Posts
The bollards here are designed to stop/slow down bike traffic to keep them from bombing across the streets without stopping. They are a real pain to get through on my recumbent bike, but I can zig right through them (still have to really slow down) in my velo. There's not much hazard, at least, unless you're really not paying attention.


Notso_fastLane is offline  
Old 08-10-20, 05:30 PM
  #16  
njkayaker
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Far beyond the pale horizon.
Posts: 14,241
Mentioned: 31 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4222 Post(s)
Liked 1,322 Times in 916 Posts
Originally Posted by mtb_addict
i wonder what will happen to me if my pedal strike the metal bollard while going say 12 mph?
It looks like this is in Japan. I suspect the locals are used to dealing with it.

Much of the infrastructure in other countries is suited for slow riding.
njkayaker is offline  
Old 08-10-20, 05:55 PM
  #17  
Flip Flop Rider
Senior Member
 
Flip Flop Rider's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2016
Location: South Carolina Upstate
Posts: 2,105

Bikes: 2010 Fuji Absolute 3.0 1994 Trek 850

Mentioned: 3 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 761 Post(s)
Liked 555 Times in 322 Posts
definitely slow down and avoid that metal plate on the right side if it's wet
Flip Flop Rider is offline  
Likes For Flip Flop Rider:
Old 08-12-20, 07:47 AM
  #18  
wingless
Senior Member
 
wingless's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2017
Location: Florida
Posts: 343

Bikes: 2011 Trek 1.2 + 2016 Trek 1.1 H2

Mentioned: 4 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 132 Post(s)
Liked 20 Times in 16 Posts
The looong duration road construction on my daily path has "temporary" plastic / rubber speed bumps bolted to the roadway to decrease traffic velocity.

There is a ~3" pathway of normal roadway that requires hope and confidence to transit. Knocking on wood, even though I've brushed the edge of this obstacle I've remained upright.
wingless is offline  
Old 08-12-20, 10:34 AM
  #19  
downtube42
Senior Member
 
downtube42's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Portland, OR
Posts: 3,804

Bikes: Trek Domane SL6 Gen 3, Soma Fog Cutter, Focus Mares AL, Detroit Bikes Sparrow FG, Volae Team, Nimbus MUni

Mentioned: 11 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 879 Post(s)
Liked 2,019 Times in 1,055 Posts
People hit them from time to time, they crash, suffer various injuries ranging from damaged pride. I've seen trails where bollards had been removed, which makes me suspect lawsuits occurred.

I've been involved with MUP development in enough places to observe each municipality goes through the same learning process. Put up poor design, hear the complaints and/or lawsuits, react.
downtube42 is offline  
Old 08-12-20, 11:05 AM
  #20  
holytrousers
hoppipola
 
holytrousers's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2016
Posts: 423

Bikes: fausto coppi

Mentioned: 3 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 512 Post(s)
Liked 227 Times in 163 Posts
Originally Posted by mtb_addict
here where i live, there is alot of MUPs. Problem is there is lots of intentional obsticles. this one is actually one of the easier one.

i had few close calls with the ones that make the lane very narrow.

i wonder what will happen to me if my pedal strike the metal bollard while going say 12 mph?

will it snag my pedal and throw me off my bike? or will it just be a glancing blow and i keep upright and can keep pedaling?


What is that yellow pole to the left supposed to do ?
Where is this ? Japan ? China ?
holytrousers is offline  
Old 08-12-20, 10:56 PM
  #21  
mtb_addict
Senior Member
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Jun 2011
Posts: 265
Mentioned: 22 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3307 Post(s)
Liked 78 Times in 65 Posts
Originally Posted by holytrousers
What is that yellow pole to the left supposed to do ?
Where is this ? Japan ? China ?

yellow is plastic that bend when u hit it.

the grey is metal...these must be remnants from the old days.

but there are still plenty of metal pedestrian signal posts and sign posts, for u to hit if not careful.

Last edited by mtb_addict; 08-13-20 at 02:46 AM.
mtb_addict is offline  
Old 08-13-20, 04:12 PM
  #22  
holytrousers
hoppipola
 
holytrousers's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2016
Posts: 423

Bikes: fausto coppi

Mentioned: 3 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 512 Post(s)
Liked 227 Times in 163 Posts
Originally Posted by mtb_addict
yellow is plastic that bend when u hit it.

the grey is metal...these must be remnants from the old days.

but there are still plenty of metal pedestrian signal posts and sign posts, for u to hit if not careful.
yeah looks useless behind that metal post. if you use that road frequently enough it might be useful to take care of it using some cordless angle grinder thus doing yourself and you community a huge favour
holytrousers is offline  
Old 08-13-20, 05:07 PM
  #23  
FiftySix
I'm the anecdote.
 
Join Date: Apr 2019
Location: S.E. Texas
Posts: 1,823

Bikes: '12 Schwinn, '13 Norco

Mentioned: 9 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1110 Post(s)
Liked 1,176 Times in 795 Posts
Looks like there have been plenty of pedal strikes on that center bollard already.
FiftySix is offline  
Old 08-13-20, 06:44 PM
  #24  
AdkMtnMonster
Airplanes, bikes, beer.
 
Join Date: Jan 2020
Location: Off the front
Posts: 763

Bikes: Road bikes, mountain bikes, a cx bike, a gravel bike…

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 398 Post(s)
Liked 788 Times in 339 Posts
There's a very easy to see blue arrow instructing you where to properly make contact with the happy steel rainbow. Pretty sure if you hit it hard enough, in the exact right spot, gold will come out.
AdkMtnMonster is offline  
Likes For AdkMtnMonster:
Old 08-14-20, 04:19 AM
  #25  
CliffordK
Senior Member
 
CliffordK's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2014
Location: Eugene, Oregon, USA
Posts: 27,600
Mentioned: 217 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 18323 Post(s)
Liked 4,490 Times in 3,338 Posts
Apparently a bollard placed where not entirely expected, away from a street corner, and in shade, without bright colors can lead to painful consequences.

Originally Posted by rumrunn6
was having a nice ride on the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail heading from Acton toward Lowell until our ride came to a crashing halt (5 miles from the car) at Pond St, Chelmsford when Wifey struck a stanchion hiding in the shade & broke her wrist (crack in the radius bone). she was distracted by the lovely beach we just passed. I think her dark sunglasses in the bright sunlight & the object being in the shade contributed to the collision. we had been dodging them the whole ride. we were also dodging raised brick lane dividers. one of which she rode into / over earlier in the ride. she was so shaken up, that we stopped so she could regain her composure. then a few miles later, this ;-(

a town employee came over. as did another good samaritan, a woman with a car. the town employee said there has been MANY SERIOUS CRASHES into this particular stanchion. then he made a face indicating they were even more disasterious than this one. one can only imagine ...

I was ahead of her & when I heard her anticipatory yelling I turned to see her crash & go down. I stopped & ran to her aid. she didn't want to get up right away & was considering what was hurt. after some amateur trail side triage & after conferencing for a few minutes in the hot sun with the two people who offered help, we decided to let the woman with the car, drive Wifey to Emerson hospital. Wifey said she should get an x-ray & definitely could not ride back to the car. the gentleman watched her bike while I rode back to our car, then returned to get hers, before joining her at the emergency room. boy that Emerson is a well oiled machine! (plus it was slow yesterday, go figure) by time I got to the ER she was walking out with her temp soft cast

before the crash, while we were enjoying our ride she was talking about how she could work a partial bike commute into her daily work schedule. well that's not going to happen. & her first ride of the summer was her last. I doubt if in mid-August she will want to ride again, even tho she loves it so much. too far into the future to consider right now. she did enjoy the new insulated water bottle holder *sigh*

Pond St & Bruce Freeman Rail Trail





















As for myself, I'm always terrified to negotiate around the bollards when pulling my trailer, especially the large heavy cargo trailer that is often a tight squeeze.

There's a bridge with bollards up the McKenzie River that they are spaced so closely that an ordinary child trailer won't get through. I think I towed my Bike Friday suitcase trailer through, and had to disconnect and lift it over.
CliffordK is offline  

Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service -

Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.