detroitjim

Can't tell if shes clipped in or not,I don't think so.

Been a while since it happened to me. I was clipped in. Stopped for a traffic signal . It was in slow motion.(Still can replay it in my mind today)
Driver behind me got out to check on me.
When I said I was OK , he exclaimed "That looked like a Benny Hill skit".

Doesn't hurt to be reminded. Lean left ,LEFT foot down! Lean right ,Right foot down!

https://www.itemfix.com/v?t=edy69l

Jeff Neese

It looks like the woman in the video tried to put her foot down while still in the saddle. That's a common newbie error, but is never correct on a regular bicycle.

It might be true that "you never forget how to ride a bicycle", but people sure do forget how to mount and dismount one properly.

work4bike

I don't think she forgot to unclip anything (I think she had normal pedals). It seems as though she planed to use her foot at the six o'clock position to plant on the ground as she came to a stop -- perhaps the ground was further down than she expect, plus on a slope, causing her to tumble.

I always use the foot at the 12 o'clock position to plant on the ground.




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FBinNY 

Impossible to know whether she was clipped or not, but I strongly suspect she was. Wrong lean/wrong foot or not, people's reflexes are too good for this to happen unless she was restrained and couldn't correct fast enough.

This is classic for those first using clips & straps or clipless pedals. It rarely happens more than once, once the correct sequence - disengage pedal, commit to that side, plant foot when stopped - becomes second nature. Over the years I've seen every variation of this problem the most amusing of which is the new rider coming to a full stop with both feet still clipped.

The other variation that can happen even to experienced riders is to do everything right and be OK with one foot and the other clipped. Then, if the front wheel is turned toward the down foot, something causes the bike to roll, such that you're now off balance toward the clipped foot. Too late, to correct, and you're laying on the ground, hopefully laughing at your own clumsiness.

Eric F 

What I think I'm seeing is that there is a significant downslope on the right ride, and when her foot landed on that side, she was past the tipping point.

I've had that happen to me while MTB'ing. I stalled out (tire spin on loose dirt) at the top of a very steep pop-up section, got caught with my weight going the wrong way, my right foot landed on the soft edge of the trail, the dirt gave way, and I tumbled. Thankfully, there was shrubbery to stop me from rolling, and my body was there to give my bike a soft place to land. Also thankfully, no one was recording video. However, I had friends there to laugh at me...and help get my fat ass out of the bushes.

jon c. 

She was on the edge of the pavement and the ground where she was trying to plant her foot was substantially below the level of the pavement. I could easily see that happening, especially if you didn't realize you were going to need to stop until the last second. I've come close to doing that with much less of a drop off.

SpedFast

I'll bet in the future she gets off the saddle before stopping. I agree that it appears the ground sloped down steeper than she was expecting.

FBinNY 

Watching the video closely, it's clear that she was trying to plant the left foot. However, she was probably over committed to the right, possibly planning to plant the right before noting the drop-off. Having steered all the way to the burn, she couldn't or wouldn't steer off the edge to bring the bike back under her.

I've seen similar falls, even when not planning to dismount, as riders fixate on what they're trying to avoid instead of the "escape" path.

IMO this is a good example of "target fixation" where she was so focused on not dropping off the burm that she rode right up to it, leaving herself without options.

It's why we train folks not to stare at the rear tire of who they're drafting. Instead look slightly to the left, while tracking out of the corner of their eyes.

This is a counter-intuitive learned skill that will have you riding around hazards rather than into them.

Jeff Neese

Unless it's a "pedal forward" design (or a recumbent), the ONLY way to properly dismount a bicycle is to come off the saddle, and THEN put your foot on the ground. Clipped in or not, ground sloped more than she thought, she leaned the wrong way - none of that matters. If your seat is the proper height, you will not be able to solidly plant your foot on the ground while still in the saddle.

Proper mount and dismount is an important skill to develop. I always encourage people to watch YouTube videos, and drill it over and over until it becomes muscle memory. This is why we see so many people on the MUP riding with their saddle way too low. They think you should be able to put your foot down while seated, and no one showed them any better or taught them how to get on and off their bicycle.

I-Like-To-Bike

And of course "so many people" haven't studied the GOOD BOOK of PROPER CYCLING. Thank goodness there are so many experienced experts available to preach the ONLY PROPER WAY to ride a bicycle.

Jeff Neese

Yes, there are many experienced experts who have made videos on this topic. Here's a link to three, out of many. Notice they are all demonstrating the same technique, which is what every beginner should practice. There are variations, and other mounts and dismounts for more advanced cyclists, but sitting in the saddle while planting your foot is never one of them. The problem is that newbies don't educate themselves, and (as is the case of the woman in the video), they get hurt. Learning the basics matters.

FBinNY 

ONLY is a very limiting term. There are very few things that can only be done one way, and this isn't one of them.

I've been a lifetime road cyclist with something like a quarter million miles of experience. I'll routinely stop while in the saddle, and while I can't plant my foot, l've never had problems with a toe down stop.

Whether to do a toe down or an off saddle stop is purely at the rider's discretion, though the ability to do so (with the saddle at proper height) might depend on such variables as BB height and foot size.

But most riders can probably do a toe down stop safely, and might prefer to do so for a short stop.

Eric F 

While I agree with you completely, stopping is different than dismounting. Jeff did say "dismount".

FBinNY 

Yes, but one can easily stop, and then dismount.

In any case, opting for an off the saddle dismount would not have changed anything in this case.

Either way requires committing to one side, leaning that way and planting the foot with the other foot staying on the pedal, either for control, or for support off the saddle.

In fact, I'd venture that changing sides would be harder once your off the saddle and supporting yourself on the "up" foot.

cyccommute 

Nope. Around 20 seconds you can see the bottom of feet as she goes over the side. At 1:45, you can see the pedal from the hillside and it is clearly a wide, flat pedal. No clips or toeclips involved.

You must be watching a very different video than I am. At 24 seconds, she throws her left leg up in the air as she puts her right foot down while still seated on the saddle. The hill is too steep to the right and she is too close to the edge and goes over. She might have been able to avoid the problem if she had slide off the saddle first instead of trying to put her foot down from the saddle.

Gresp15C

My casual assessment is that a few minor errors compounded one another and happened altogether too quickly for this cyclist. Starting with, following the car too close, and being very close to the edge of a road with no shoulder, she's gotten herself into a tiny box that's going to be hard for even a good cyclist to get out of. Once you're at a standstill, you have no control. Once your center of gravity is in the wrong place, the rest is self-fulfilling.

Could've been me. It's a reminder to be like a chess player and always be thinking a couple of moves ahead. Stay out of that tiny box in the first place.

Amazingly, she took quite a tumble and walked away from it.

FBinNY 

I guess I must be watching a different video.

In the one I'm watching, her left leg is clearly coming off the pedal, and seeming to reach down, while her right leg is stationary. Of course, there's no certainty since the shot is framed too high.

However, we can give the rider some credit. She very carefully rode to the right edge, yet avoided going off the burm. Given the care and time involved, I'm comfortable in crediting her with the sense to note the drop and plant to plant the left foot on the high side.

But, as you pointed out, we're watching different videos, so there's no point in arguing ad nauseum.

Jeff Neese

Most can probably do a toe down stop?

A proper stop and dismount, as demonstrated in the video links I posted and just about every other video you'll find, always works. That's why it should be part of every cyclists muscle memory.

Even if you can touch the ground on the tippy-toes of one foot, it's certainly not secure and I would contend it's a bad habit. What happens when you reach for the ground with your toe and it's not there because there's a hole or depression of even just a few inches? Look what happened to the woman in the video. Had she come off the saddle and put her entire foot down like you're supposed to, she wouldn't have crashed over onto her side.

Jeff Neese

There is no need to lean the bike in order to stop. Once you're stopped and want to get off the bike completely, it helps to lean it to one side so you can step over, but that's when you're getting off the bike. Had she been off the saddle to stop, she wouldn't have had to lean the bike to touch the ground, and wouldn't have fallen.

cyccommute 

Slow the video down to about 0.25 speed. You’ll see that here left leg is coming off the pedal up into the air. She isn’t reaching down with the left pedal. She’s reaching down with the right one and there just isn’t anything under the right leg.

cyccommute 

My foot doesn’t come within 4” of the ground. I’m pretty sure that even if I did a ballerina toe point that my toe would be a good inch off the ground. I’ve never toe down stopped in 50+ years of riding.

FBinNY 

The difference is that I'm not the one arguing that there's ONLY ONE WAY to stop or dismount.

In any case, there's no point in trying to teach anyone here something that they've done successfully countless times, usually with little, if any, conscious thought.

I invite anyone who cares to give a bit of conscious awareness to their stops/discounts next time they're out.

Whether they stay seated or not the basics are the same. You get ready to stop, prepare the designated "down" foot and leave the other, "up" foot, on the pedal, either for control or as a step to lift off the seat. (Without keeping the up foot on the pedal, you cannot come off the saddle).

Now that you,ve decided and cued your down foot, the final and critical step is to lean the bike or shift your weight to ensure that the bike will "fall" toward the down foot side.

However the person in the video fell, what is clear is that she erred in one of those steps, either by choosing to step to the side with a fall off, or failed to achieve the required lean to the left.

I saw it as the latter, others the former, but I'm happy to accept that "only her hairdresser knows for sure".

Jeff Neese

I just went out and tried to stop while still in the saddle. Technically, I can reach the ground with my toe if I really reach, but why would anyone do that? It's a simple matter to just slide forward off the saddle and plant that foot firmly on the ground, standing over the top bar. Then to get going again, the other foot is already in position to launch so you just stand up and back into the saddle. It's a lot easier, and safer for sure.

Jeff Neese

It's not that there's only one way to stop or dismount. I'll occasionally do a "cyclocross" dismount, myself. But there is a definite WRONG way. Sitting in the saddle and putting your feet down while stopped is never a thing, and beginners should be taught that from the beginning. Otherwise they put their saddle too low, just so they can put their feet down. The exception would be pedal-forward bikes that are specially designed for that.

FBinNY 

You've said this before and are absolutely free to believe and repeat it

I try to avoid arguments about opinions and am happy to let anyone to draw their own conclusions.