Johnny Mullet

We were doing our Monday night Slow Rolla' Ashtabula ride tonight like we do every Monday night. We were on the Greenway trail with about 12 of us riding together. I don't know how it happened, but 2 roadies were approaching us and just as they passed us I heard a scream and a loud crash! Looked back and seen the riders on the ground.

One of our riders was on a classic Schwinn and the roadie was on a newer aluminum Trek. Thankfully nobody was hurt minus a few scrapes, but the Trek did not make it......

jefnvk

Someone was probably staring at their front wheel, like the group of two dozen MTBs that almost demolished me coming at me three wide in the 20MPH range on the trail last week.

Greenways are not for fast rides, not that I think the one with the Schwinn was probably the fast one.

mcours2006

Steel is real!

...but what's with the giant reflectors on the Trek?!

Maelochs

I am not concerned with the frame damage ... I am concerned with the brain damage which must have occurred long ago in both riders lives, so that they could Slam Head-On into one another on a bike path.

How messed up do two riders have to be to be unable to negotiate a freaking MUP? And to hit Head-On? Maybe I am different from everybody else, but my eyes sort of face forward by default.

I realize I wasn't there and do not know what happened. It does look (supposing the Schwinn photo is also an "after" photo) that the trek hit head-on into the Schwinn's side at a slight angle ... but how, did they not see each other coming and make room, and/or slow enough to safely maneuver ....

it takes a lot of force to kink a metal frame. A lot of force would indicate a lot of speed.

Anyway ... it is always good when on one gets hurt.

jefnvk

As I mentioned above, nearly happened to me last week. Three wide group ride blowing past staring at their front tires, me about as far right as I could go without leaving the path, and shouting as loud as I could at the middle of their group to get them to squeeze over. Poor group etiquette, thinking others would just get out of their way. Then again, I did, so maybe learned behavior is that others will take care of your lack of attention?

If I wasn't paying attention, it would likely have ended up the same. Just takes someone more concerned with themselves than others to happen.

Maelochs

I am glad there are no MUPs around here so i won't be tempted to risk my life.

Johnny Mullet

I got the story after this post from the guy on the old Schwinn. He said he seen them coming like all of us did and moved over, but there was a rider beside him.The roadies were looking at the ground or front tire. He screamed, but it was too late.

ColonelSanders

I take it the Trek rider was a girl?

Johnny Mullet

Yes. A young lady in her 20's

Retro Grouch 

It was probably the Schwinn rider's fault.

That sometimes happens when you have 2 guys and 1 girl riding toward you on the trail. Neither of the guys can move because that would be yielding the girl to the other. If the girl tries to either speed up or slow down, both guys will simply match her. That's part of the mating ritual and it can't be violated. Everybody else is supposed to pull off of the trail and let them pass by.

SquidPuppet

OK. I'll be the one to say it...

broken foot

i do 2k miles p.y. by bicycle and 12-15k per year by car, today i finally learned why so many bikers to stupid things: they ride looking their own wheel !!

BlazingPedals

Been there, uh... SEEN that. One club ride I did many years ago was a very laid-back Sunday ride. We were riding on the sidewalk along a busy road, toward a side road where we could ride more peaceably. I was near the front of the group. A woman on a road bike went by in the other direction, looking intent on speed. Didn't think much of it until the crashing sound as she hit one of the riders at the back. According to him, her head was down and he couldn't get her attention to wave her back onto her side of the walk. Taco-ed her front wheel, he was OK.

Hardrock23

That's too bad about her bike...at least she only damaged her own, it would appear. I don't understand why you would look down when passing. Had she not seen they were coming, not heard them? Just odd.

Maelochs

No sane or safe way to look down while riding a bike at all.

No different than driving a car. Would anyone consider it acceptable to drive down the road in a car no looking where one was going? It is actually illegal ... and it is on a bike too. Simple unsafe operation.

No sympathy for the lady, sadly ... but then, instead of hitting a gown mam, she could have hit a mom with a double-wide stroller.

Hardrock23

True^

jefnvk

Club ride on a sidewalk???

Rollfast

The Trek is of an entirely different style of construction, thick round tubes vs. wide oval shaped, the Trek was hit on the wider, oblong side. Ovals have variable circumference and the pressure against them is not equal on all sides. It looks to me like the Trek's frame reacted as could be expected.


And as you said, you were not there. Are you expecting that the Schwinn ran into the Trek wheel first? I've looked at the picture of the Schwinn and that rim should also be aluminum, or an alloy. It should nonetheless show damage. The angle at which the photo is take, the position of the rim and the angle along with some resolution issues of the image as posted leave me unable to truly see any damage without some software or a different shoe of the rim.


My guess is that the bends are not from the bike-bike collision but a secondary impact.

Maelochs

Actually I assumed, fromm the direction of the bending, that the Trek went head-on into the Schwinn at an angle ... in fact ... I ACTUALLY SAID THAT IN MY POST.
Your response sort of loses all gravity and impact when it becomes apparent that you didn't even bother reading the post to which you claim to be responding.

Johnny Mullet

The frame bent at impact. There was no "secondary impact" because as soon as I heard the collision, we all stopped and the bikes and riders were on the ground. The first pic of the Schwinn is right after the impact and you can see the paint damage on the down tube and fork.

All I can say is I am happy there were no serious injuries. The Schwinn rider had no helmet on and he had a scrape on the side of his head and a few scuffs on his arm. The young lady only had a scrape on her knee and elbow.

rydabent

DF riders claim that they never stare at their front wheel with their head down. Yeah sure and instant coffee tastes just as good as fresh perked.

Several times on the local trails I have had to yell at an on coming roadie with his head down on my side of the trail.

Gresp15C

Riding with head down could be a symptom of a poorly fitted bike, and the rider wanting to briefly give their neck a rest. Not a brilliant idea, of course. I see a lot of cyclists riding with their elbows locked, meaning that their bike is set up poorly.

bikecrate

I've posted this before...but I had something similar happen a couple of years ago when a lady on one of those heavy cruisers was coming around a blind corner on the wrong side of a MUP. I saw her at the last second and was able to turn a bit sideways. I got broadsided. My bike's front wheel and chain ring were bent. My left leg is still not quite right. She sustained no damage.

jefnvk

Just out of curiosity, for those of you who have been in multi-bike wrecks, do you bother to call the police and get a damage report written out?

Much rather deal with the DF cyclist with their heads down than the recumbent trikes that rides in the center of the trail leaving no room to get around.

CliffordK

It looks like the typical front impact damage that is seen from running into the backs or sides of cars, or running into just about anything else.

With steel frames, it normally is just behind the lugs. But, with tube butting and tapered tubes, it appears as if the weak spot was about a foot back.

I'm glad everyone walked away from this... even if they had to actually walk.

As far as looking down, there is always the habit of scanning the road for glass and debris that could cause a problem. While a bit of look-ahead is good, one can easily miss the fine details. Ideally one would both scan ahead, as well as looking for the stuff coming up under the wheels.

I would encourage you not to ride on a MUP in a manner that you can't pass or be passed. If the trail isn't wide enough for 3 bikes, then you should probably be single file.