Close calls
05-04-15, 01:36 PM
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Close calls
On my way home, I cycled past a corner of a small refuse collection-building, and behind the bend a car drove out in front of me. Now, I've heard of people grabbing their front brake till the point of them flying over the handlebars, and considering that I haven't practised emergency braking, I was impressed by my ability to stop.
My bike's rear end lifted off the ground a fair deal two or three times as I re-applied the front brake, and I managed to stop just short of the car, leaving only a dust mark on the fairing in front of the front wheel of the car. The driver asked if I was okay and I said yes, I checked the car and I couldn't see any scratches, and we took off.
Granted, I wasn't going very fast at all (maybe around 15 km/h), but I was greatly impressed by me not flying over the handlebars considering I had just a couple meters to stop and was off the ground at least twice.
What close calls have you had recently, maybe you've even had serious crashes with other traffic? So far I've only injured myself on my own.
My bike's rear end lifted off the ground a fair deal two or three times as I re-applied the front brake, and I managed to stop just short of the car, leaving only a dust mark on the fairing in front of the front wheel of the car. The driver asked if I was okay and I said yes, I checked the car and I couldn't see any scratches, and we took off.
Granted, I wasn't going very fast at all (maybe around 15 km/h), but I was greatly impressed by me not flying over the handlebars considering I had just a couple meters to stop and was off the ground at least twice.
What close calls have you had recently, maybe you've even had serious crashes with other traffic? So far I've only injured myself on my own.
05-04-15, 01:44 PM
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My closest call to date (which didn't result in actually crashing... I've had plenty of those too 
) was with another cyclist. Standard ninja in the evening dusk hours pulled into the bike lane before planning on turning left [out of a driveway]... problem was that it was a fraction of a second before I came powering down the hill. My headlight caught his pedal reflector and I clenched my buttocks and shifted back. When I put weight on the front brake the back came up a bit and when he saw me and realized what was about to happen, he did an endo; he was standing up out of the saddle while he applied front brake. We both had some dusting off and laughing and smiling... granted inside I was cursing him out for not having any other lighting on his walmart bike. Good news is we never made physical contact before the obligatory fist bump as we headed our separate ways.
) was with another cyclist. Standard ninja in the evening dusk hours pulled into the bike lane before planning on turning left [out of a driveway]... problem was that it was a fraction of a second before I came powering down the hill. My headlight caught his pedal reflector and I clenched my buttocks and shifted back. When I put weight on the front brake the back came up a bit and when he saw me and realized what was about to happen, he did an endo; he was standing up out of the saddle while he applied front brake. We both had some dusting off and laughing and smiling... granted inside I was cursing him out for not having any other lighting on his walmart bike. Good news is we never made physical contact before the obligatory fist bump as we headed our separate ways.
05-04-15, 01:51 PM
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I haven't had any close calls with cars, but my front wheel was clipped by another bike cutting in front of me in a tri last week. Recently, I was drafting behind a buddy of mine and a dog charge him. He hit is brakes, and I hit his back wheel. I would like to claim that my fantastic bike handling skills saved me on both occasions, but I suspect that luck played a role.
05-04-15, 02:03 PM
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My closest call was way too close. While on the W&OD trail in Virginia, a lovely path for bikes and pedestrians only, a drunk driver entered it and drove at speed for about five miles, almost hitting several people on foot, and finally hitting me from behind at some 50 miles per hour. It was a close call because my helmet took the brunt of it, and my other injuries while serious were non life-threatening. I am back on that trail, and that driver moved to NYC, thank god, and she's not driving any more. For a while I was looking at rear facing cameras, but then I thought that if I was going to carry one of those I might as well not get out of bed...
I avoid normal roads, when while on them, however briefly, it is clear that the social contract cyclists get needs to be revised: we are like mice in an elephant stampede.
I avoid normal roads, when while on them, however briefly, it is clear that the social contract cyclists get needs to be revised: we are like mice in an elephant stampede.
05-04-15, 02:23 PM
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My closest call was way too close. While on the W&OD trail in Virginia, a lovely path for bikes and pedestrians only, a drunk driver entered it and drove at speed for about five miles, almost hitting several people on foot, and finally hitting me from behind at some 50 miles per hour. It was a close call because my helmet took the brunt of it, and my other injuries while serious were non life-threatening. I am back on that trail, and that driver moved to NYC, thank god, and she's not driving any more. For a while I was looking at rear facing cameras, but then I thought that if I was going to carry one of those I might as well not get out of bed...
I avoid normal roads, when while on them, however briefly, it is clear that the social contract cyclists get needs to be revised: we are like mice in an elephant stampede.
I avoid normal roads, when while on them, however briefly, it is clear that the social contract cyclists get needs to be revised: we are like mice in an elephant stampede.
05-04-15, 03:09 PM
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I haven't had any close calls with cars, but my front wheel was clipped by another bike cutting in front of me in a tri last week. Recently, I was drafting behind a buddy of mine and a dog charge him. He hit is brakes, and I hit his back wheel. I would like to claim that my fantastic bike handling skills saved me on both occasions, but I suspect that luck played a role.
GH
05-04-15, 06:58 PM
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Had the closest call yet today in 5 years of riding. I was going through an intersection in the right lane (on a green of course) and a car turned right from the center lane. We both hit our brakes and I came within a foot of hitting his passenger door. My immediate reaction was to explode in anger. Glad he didn't get out of his car. My bibs are no longer white ......
05-04-15, 07:24 PM
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I was hit in 1991' while on a 750 YAMAHA, took a year to walk.
Ive been hit twice the last year with no serious damage.
When you play in traffic everyday its not a question of if but when. Just part of the deal.
I still do over 40 mph on the downhill.
I tell young guys on Motorcycles & cycles "you can do everything right and still get killed'.
There is no excuse for stupid.
