shine2000

Today i was riding around in a heavy traffic area so i was on the sidewalk and knew this small area of grass and i still got on it but i went halfway to the ground with my mtb but managed to not fall! What are some of your close calls?

Hokiedad4

Riding on the sidewalk, I'd say you're quite fortunate to have that as your closest call.

I live near the beach and have wiped out a few times hitting deep sand where I thought there was asphalt underneath.

Ilbiker

Last Saturday I was in the bike part of a full duathlon brick and I ride county roads and its planting time. Well, I come head to head with a Deere 9420 pulling his disc setup. We're both over as far as we can go but the d@&$ cross wind pushes me scary close. He wouldn't even know he ran over me. ����

Maelochs

Just some odd strips of roadkill ... Harrowing experience.

Ilbiker

I get that too plus critter poop. Just gotta do it in the road. 😂

supton

I recall jumping over the handlebars a couple of times, but that was MTB'ing and it's kinda expected. But one time I was going down a class 6 road, picking up good speed, and remembering... I wanted to go down this hill slow... couldn't remember why... until I came across the water-runoff that someone had cut into the road. I hauled down on the brakes and felt the rear tire lift up (I ride rigid, so hitting something at speed will hurt). I then became aware that no one knew where I was, and I was a couple miles from anyone one else, and likely not near cell service... Years prior I recall being out in the woods, doing a bit of scouting, and managing to get separated from my bike *and the trail*. That was a bit scary for a few minutes, like a panic attack.

Another time I realized I needed to get into the shoulder and stop, as I was getting passed by a school bus. Who had a large truck in the other lane. And we all were on one of those roads where the white line is also the edge of the road, with dirt beyond it. And the road is in poor shape. I've been avoiding that road ever since (shame as it's the road I live on!).

One time I could hear someone driving up behind me, and something seemed wrong... sure enough, they were pulling close to me, and someone had their hand out.

BobbyG

https://www.bikeforums.net/18834522-post1.html
6/12/16
A mirror saved my life...again!

A mile into my commute home there is a long traffic light I must always stop and wait for. On the far side of the intersection a narrow bike lane begins and a third of a mile down the road is a heavy constuction company which is home to big dump trucks and those long gravel trucks.

I wait for the light at the pedestrian crosswalk, and when it changes I cross in the crosswalk which then funnels me into the clearly marked, but narrow bike lane. This means there is a line of traffic to my left that had built up at the light.

For the third of a mile leading up to the construction company there are four or five side streets. I am always anticipating cars driving up to the corner and about half the time I will encounter at least one, but because of the line of traffic that has now passed me, the side street traffic has stopped, or is slowing.

Well, yesterday afternoon, despite the traffic on my left, there was a large pick-up truck that came out of the side street at about 50mph. I hit my horn and my brakes, but the bike lane had gravel and loose dirt (thanks in part to the construction trucks) The pickup must not have anticipated stopping at the stop sign, nor the possibility of cross traffic, and hit his brakes.

In just an instant I had three thoughts. First, he is going to slide into traffic and hit a car. Second, he will hit me first. Third, I must swing left.

Fortunately I reflexively checked my take-a-look mirror which was filled completely with the grill of a gravel truck coming up behind me on my left. So I didn't veer left. I was still carrying too much speed and past the point of turning right into the side street and I honestly don't know what happened, but I came to a stop in the bike lane just past the street. I looked back and the pickup truck was stopped over the bike lane and partially into traffic.

Had I veered left I would have surely been run over by the gravel truck. But the mirror stopped me. And it allowed me to continue looking forward at the same time as well.

In the future, after the long light I will cross the street at the light but then stop and wait the 10 to 20 seconds for traffic to pass me, then I can just take the lane and be further out from the side streets. I have a couple of other narrow points on my commute where if I see traffic coming up behind me in my mirror I will stop before the road narrows for a few seconds to let them pass.

BobbyG

One more: Twenty-one years ago (when I was 34) I decided to see how fast I could ride down this crazy steep, long hill on the Schwinn Cruiser Supreme I brought with me to Colorado from Iowa. I knew eventually I would hit cross traffic at the intersection at the bottom of the hill, but I was creeping up ever closer to 50mph. I hit 49.7mph about 100 yards from the intersection. The cheap, old side-pull brakes were not up to the task and I had to Flintstone it at the end. Scared me so badly when I got home I removed the seat, rear rack and lights and threw the bike in the dumpster. A few days later I bought the 1997 Nishiki Blazer that was my only bike for 12 years and is now my snow bike and back-up commuter. As a side note I just replaced the cantilever brakes on that with v-brakes early last winter and it still has the rear rack I bought for the Schwinn in 1987.

55murray

So many, but here are two memorable ones:

A night cruise in rural Indiana, passing through a wood lot and a herd of deer run into the road. Missed a couple within a few feet, thought I was in the clear when a yearling suddenly pulled up and actually made contact, but just a tap and no crash.

On another occasion I was commuting to work in the rain on my MTB, was on a bike lane that was entirely a metal drainage grate. Someone walked right in front of me and I locked the brakes, spun about and did a full 180 without going down.

79pmooney

I don't keep track. I raced and trained out of Boston decades ago. Our motto was "close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades".

Ben

digibud

Coming down a hill with my wife and son in law, a grizzly with a cub came out of the bushes onto the road so close that we had to slam on the brakes. My wife dislodged her rear (horiz dropout) wheel. Mama spun around but did not attack. She might have been 20 feet away. Once I stopped and looked over the edge down a slope of the road and saw a grizzly about 10 feet from me. It had it's nose buried in a hole it was digging and didn't see me. Wind was blowing toward me. I left. I've heard many people have trouble with cars. Not me...

travbikeman

Was riding on a main road at 5am with my lights on. A guy in his work pickup truck stops to look both ways to turn onto the main road from the neighborhood. Looks at me and waits till I'm closer and then pulls out in front of me. He then speeds off with extra exhaust from his non diesel coming out. Nice!

Another one was when I was riding through a round about, a guy looking at his cell phone didn't pay attention and cut in front of me when he should have yielded. He then stopped right when I was about to splat into his drivers door when he saw me. He did get yelled at!

Several trail mishaps with sliding on a turn or slipping and falling into the creek when crossing it.

MarioT

WTF is wrong with people? You go down badly and die, he/she is up for manslaughter. WTF??

I once had a car turn right in front of me, and fortunately I was also turning, but he didn't know that, and I would've hit their car if I would've continued straight.

euclidean plane

pro tip, be careful when wearing headphones > _ <

jefnvk

The first couple times I rode C&V road bikes, with their lower bottom brackets, and clipped my pedals on the ground trying to pedal through a turn. That'll wake you up!

prostuff

Almost getting hit by a parked car's door opening because the driver isn't looking in the mirror. I got hit once before that and had 2 surgeries on my hand .. now I'm very careful and my reflexes are sharper. BE WARY OF PARKED CARS!

SPiN 360

I was exiting a trail, and there is this metal railing right at the exit. I tried to ride around the railing but my handlebar caught the edge of it.

Went careening forward and crashed into a garbage bin but it could have been MUCH worse.

KD5NRH

Waited for a slowpoke on the street I was about to turn left on. 30mph speed limit, and I'd guess he was going maybe 20, downhill, 3 blocks from the last stop sign for that street. He finally got past, and I pulled out behind him at a moderate pace of 12-14mph, then looked down to see why my chain was being noisy. Trimmed the FD a bit, and looked up to see I'm about two feet off his bumper as he's obviously slowed by at least 50% and is still slowing. Idiot had no brake lights. Fortunately, my brakes were quite a bit better than his, though it came close to being a failure-to-unclip-in-time incident.

MarktheMonarch

I was a freshman in college and had just gotten a new specialized rockhopper. I was a jackass and spent 1000 on a bike but didnt spend a dollar on a helmet. I was riding at my local trail in Southern indiana and rode over a hill with a turn way too fast i slammed the back brake and burned out stopping just before a ditch with a log over it. It was a close call untill i fell into a hole of a fallen over tree hitting my head. Buy a 1000 dollar Brain bucket if you have too lol

jgwilliams

So when was the last time you saw your home?

jgwilliams

This was the most recent:


Heavier than a grizzly but not as vicious. It's funny how time slows down. Afterwards I wondered if I should have tried to stop, but when I saw the video I realised that it just happened far too quickly.

John

jlax2485

One of the roads that I have to take to get home has a few traffic circles- it is a residential road with a 35mph posted speed limit, and I usually take the whole lane to discourage cars from trying to cut me off and squeeze past as I approach the traffic circles. I come up to the traffic circle going fairly fast and a car comes up behind me, dips into the opposite side of the road entirely and goes into the traffic circle to purposely cut me off. Came within about 6 inches of side swiping me and scared the crap out of me. This was one instance where I wish I had a camera to capture the footage and call the police.

daviddavieboy

I was coming down a fairly steep rough road this weekend and heard a fairly loud snap. It turnes out I cracked the carbon steer tube on my 2K Pina Opera at 40 MPH. Nothing happened to me except a few tears later on cause I cant find another.

Billy Bones

>>>biking close calls?<<<

Runner-Up: Endo out in The Maze...all 187 pounds directly head-first...felt my neck compress...busted my helmet...walked away...the Eternal Gods were with me.

Worst: Wheeled in to a 7/11...saw this nurse...heartbreakingly sexy...started to walk up to her...thought better of it...walked away...learned later she's quite insane...[see Eternal gods, above]

wphamilton

Sunday, the traffic circle on Lower Roswell Rd exiting to Willeo Rd, where it just finished with a 5-6% downhill I took the circle exit at 31mph, somehow misjudging the apex and coming within a foot of the divider. No one involved but myself, but that was the hairiest close call in recent rides.