Russ

Could you come over some time and give me a good spankin?

jyossarian

Ahhh...you must've known they were giving free helmets away tomorrow at CP so you figured you crack the one you had so you could get a new one. Good thinking!

Glad to hear you're still in one piece. At least you don't have chunks missing this time. Take a pic of the plates and send them to the DOT. Call 311 to file a report of a road hazard. Those plates are supposed to have a rough coating on them so stuff like this doesn't happen. Slick steel > braking car OR bike/motorcycle.

jwbnyc

There's Two things I'm noticing street-wise around this burg lately:

1) Way more plates than usual. The streets are worse than ever.

2) Extremely slick conditions in the rain. There is an a ton of oil and grease on the streets. It's particularly bad where there is a lot of construction going on. Diesel from trucks?

Glad you're semi-okay.

Hope you aren't off the bike for too long.

What am I saying? Hope you aren't slow on the bike for too long.

Stacy

[motherly tone] Next time slow down in the rain and avoid those damned plates !! [/motherly tone]

Glad you're OK.

becnal

FWIW Exas, I agree with you to a large degree. I almost never see anyone around here going faster than that, unless they are in roadie gear and are obviously out for a training ride.

becnal

Slvoid is a prime example of the New York Motto: NYC: Where the weak are killed and eaten!

slvoid

Actually to those of you that don't live in NYC, it's 100% true, here's usually what happens if you don't get moving soon after an accident:

Your bike will last about 30 seconds before it's stolen.
They'll take your bag.
Then they'll clean out your pockets.
The same guy who took your bike will probably realize it's clipless and come back for your shoes.
The ambulance chasers get there and plaster you with business cards, you deserve compensation.
Finally, the homeless will strip whatever's left off you until the cops come and find your naked business card-ridden body in the street 3-4 minutes after the accident.

That's usually the way it happens. Your metal fillings may or may not be in your teeth when you regain consciousness.

slvoid

You know which one actually makes me cringe now, the one that goes down to riverside drive on 165th, it's kind of steep and right in the middle are like, 3 big slick metal plates.
https://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&ll=4...&t=h&z=18&om=1

Schwinnrider

When my helmet was damaged in a crash, I called Bell and told them. They took the serial number and sold me a new one for a substantially discounted price.

daredevil

line of the day so far in my book....

2manybikes

Sorry to hear about that. Heal quickly! Glad you had your helmet on.

We both think it's going to be a short ride, ending before dark.
I leave the bright light home, I go straight over broken bottles. Twice!
You leave the bright light at home you hit a slippery steel plate.



Don't make me come down there and epoxy a light to each of your bikes!

Wait.....it's a trick....you want my other HID light.....ha!

BigMacFU

I hope this wasn't the night you offered me to ride with you to Sunset Park, i always have the light on my bike. Glad to read the damage wasn't enough to stop you from riding and the bike only needs some minor hammering.

pmseattle

Thank goodness the bike was OK !

joelpalmer

Glad to hear you're doing well. Last time I saw a helmet mashed like that the woman wearing it was in the hospital for four days and couldn't see straight for almost a month. Guess one of you has an abnormally soft/hard head (but I'm not about to make any assumptions on that....)

specq

Whilst negotiating a thoroughfare astride one's velocipede, one should take pains to circumnavigate the very freshest agglomerations of horse dung, lest one's britches become besmirched.

wheezl

We should remember this is the same dude who was once attacked by a garbage bag. Yes New York is that crazy

Glad the melon still works.

newsace

Actually, yes. I stood there in the rain for awhile, brushing myself off, washing dirt and gravel out of the scrapes, letting the adrenaline calm down, and picking up the pieces of my headlight (which was the only casualty of the spill). I decided I'd put too much into it to give up because of a little wreck, and continued on my way. I think I ended up commuting twice more that week, because I was trying to get some more mileage in to be ready for the Assault on Marion that weekend, which was going to be my first "organized" ride. A year or so later that stretch of road got repaved, so the tracks aren't as much of a danger as before, but I'm definitely a lot more careful when crossing them now, even in dry conditions.

Alfster 

Not only should you replace the helmet (with one of your other 3) but you should probably replace the bike. At least that's what I would tell my wife. That's the only way I'd get to upgrade.

wheel

Metal plates when covered with dirt are also the same.

Even a few pebbles and wow.

oboeguy

Having ridden briefly with slvoid once, I can say I'm not surprised he took a tumble.

Glad you made it out in one piece, bud. Be careful out there, at least a little!

icedmocha 

So I shouldn't fall onto my arm? Should I land against the upper portion of my arm tucked into my body to spread the impact over a larger area?

Flimflam

Jeez, ouch - quick recovery - glad you were able to ride home and tell us about it. Take it easy on those mofos, and always take a decent light if riding - never know if it's gonna mass downpour rain and get all black/dark in the midday/whenever.

Great move on the helmets

14mph is usually my warm-up speed to get my knees and legs warmed up for riding. That's like my base "idling" speed. Get a grip!

CB HI

So it is not just a Canada thing, it is also a Frankfurter thing too?

donnamb 

Some of the construction sites in downtown Portland have this anti-slip stuff on the metal plates now. I like it a lot. I hear that stuff is required on plates in Seattle.

Burrito Eater

Great story ^^. One of my most graphic memories from childhood was riding in the backseat of my parents' car and coming up to an accident scene on a narrow bridge. My mother saw what happened and yelled "don't look!" Of course I did and was treated to the sight of a cyclist's body, evidently after he had went down and a van had run over his head with a helmet on. Needless to say there was no head, just a bunch of mush splashed all over the roadway. Will never forget the scene. Be careful, helmet or not.