Random11

My second crash in five and a half years of riding. I try to avoid riding in the rain, but it rains a lot in Florida and sometimes I get caught. Looked at the radar and thought I could beat it, but I was wrong. I was coming through a roundabout and the bike just slipped out from under me on the wet road. I have a bit of road rash and a sore ankle and shoulder. I don't feel too bad, but am thinking the ankle and shoulder might feel worse tomorrow. There were several cars in or about to enter the roundabout and they all came to a complete stop, even when I wasn't bocking their way, and a few people asked me if I was OK. It was nice to see the courtesy and concern shown by drivers, who don't always seem that courteous or concerned about cyclists.

MinnMan

Ouch! I hope you heal up soon.

It's true - sometimes it's hard to gauge the severity of those kinds of injuries until the next day.

Iride01 

It happens to the best of us.

Glad you're okay for the most part.

DeadGrandpa

... deleted....

SpedFast

I had a very similar experience today in the opposite corner of the US. I posted it over in the crash thread. Hope you bounce back quick, Smokey

Chuck M 

Hopefully you heal quickly and listen to your body. I would take some Aleve or the like tonight to reduce any swelling or inflammation.

I had a spill myself about three weeks ago. My wrist is pretty badly sprained and I can't operate my front brake properly and every crack in the road causes pain. As we get older it seems we bruise easier and heal more slowly.

jon c. 

Hope tomorrow treats you well.

Hard to avoid the pop up thunderstorms in the summer around here.

BlazingPedals

The good thing about having your tires slide out in the rain is that the water also lubricated your landing and subsequent use of your skin as a braking surface. Hopefully your 'road rash' isn't too bad and you heal quickly.

Biker395 

Hope you’re ok and feeling better. If you’re going to ride, you’re going to crash. It’s unfortunate, but true.

Artmo 

Glad you’re relatively OK, but, more importantly, how is the bike?😊

OldsCOOL

Glad to read that you are ok!

Random11

Thanks for all the supportive comments. As I suspected, I'm having mobility issues today, mostly because of the foot and shoulder sprains. As BlazingPedals conjectured, I think the water on the road did lubricate my fall somewhat so my road rash isn't as bad as it would have been if I'd gone down on a dry road. With my other injuries, I don't even notice the scrapes! I didn't realize it yesterday, but I also have a bruised and swollen hip. After my crash yesterday I rode home, but I certainly don't feel like riding today.

And yes, the bike is OK. There is a small tear in the grip tape, but minor enough that I don't plan on replacing it.

BlazingPedals

Sorry to hear of your injuries, but I'm glad they weren't worse.

SammyJ 

I hope you are OK tomorrow!

Jumpski

Hopefully you feel well now. Take some time off the bike and rest.

dmanthree

Glad you're OK. I had a crash in FL about a year and a half ago, and it was on a perfectly sunny day. I hit something that felt like ice, hit the pavement, and got pretty banged up. Like your situation some people stopped to help me, thankfully. So many nice people in FL. But that was my last road ride...

WT21

Sorry to hear of it. I have yet to have a big accident (short of tipping over while clipped in).

Maybe ... put up with the slower ride on better rain-ready tires? I prefer speed personally, but it's all very rainy in the northeast right now, and the riding opportunities for dry riding have been few and far between, so thinking on the same issue.

RB1-luvr

oof! hope you're ok and back on the bike soon. I had a spill recently too.

Random11

I agree. I just wasn't paying attention to the risk of the bike sliding out from under me on a wet road. I was riding through a roundabout with lots of cars about, and was paying more attention to the automobiles than the road conditions.

I was riding my Caledonia when I went down, and have since wondered if I had instead been riding my Diverge, with 700x38 tires and more tread, if I might have avoided that crash. I ride the Diverge on the road a lot, and even though it's categorized as a gravel bike, it's very nice on the road. (Mine has 48-34 chainrings.)

Meanwhile, I'm pretty compulsive about riding and anxious to get back in the saddle. I almost decided to try it today. I can hardly walk because of my foot sprain... but I'd be sitting if I went out for a ride! Maybe tomorrow...

scottfsmith

The Diverge would definitely grip better in the rain. I try to remember to drop the tire pressure when it is raining, and that can help a fair amount. The worst problems I have had is when it had been dry and it was the first rain for a long time and there was a lot of oil that has not washed away yet. Some spots are shockingly slippery in those circumstances. Hope you feel better soon.

Random11

Rode 15 miles today. I figured I'd give it a try, and despite my injuries, I had no trouble riding. I can barely walk (foot sprain) and stairs are especially problematic. I made a joke earlier that you don't have to walk to cycle, you can just sit, and there may be some truth in that. It didn't hurt and wasn't uncomfortable.

I'm a bit compulsive about my riding. My only quantifiable goal is to ride more than 100 miles a week, and I rarely miss that (but will this week). I'm riding for fitness and health, and it seems to me that weekly goals make more sense for that than annual goals. Anyway, I gave it a try and didn't have any problems. My typical ride is 15-20 miles, but I rarely miss a day.

My wife had mixed feelings about my riding today. On the one hand, she thought I should rest a few more days and heal up a bit more. But she also observed that for a lot of old people (like me), they can take a fall and never recover, so she thought it was a good sign that I felt well enough to ride.

On a semi-related note, the bike has quick releases on its through axles, and the paint was ground off on the rear axle, as well as on the edge of the pedal, and the bar tape was also torn, all on the bike's left side. So, it appears the bike did a three point landing, skidding on the quick release, the pedal, and the bars, keeping the frame off the tarmac. If the quick release wasn't there, it might have damaged the frame. It looks like those quick releases might offer some frame protection!

LeeG

Good to hear you are recovering well. Everytime I crashed I made sure to do some walking as a kimd of diagnostic exercise after I was off the bike. I don’t have enough bounce in me to crash.

SPlKE 

Glad to hear you're back in the saddle, Random11.

You mention "100 miles a week" in your post.

Back when I was riding at least 100 miles a week every week, my everyday riding buddy always said: If you ride 100 miles a week, you can eat and drink anything you want, and you'll still be in shape. It's just as true today as it was back then (late 80s - mid 90s).

79pmooney

Said before on this thread but I'll reiterate - tires. Better rain tread can often keep us off the pavement. Good news (but no, not cheap) is that new graphene stuff can make for a tire that is better in the wet and still not a slouch on the dry. I really like the Vittoria Corsa G+ and G2.0 tires. Also - drop your tire pressure. Even with the good rain tires.

The most treacherous time of a rain shower is often early on as the oil from cars is lifted from the pavement.

Random11

Good information for me to read this week. If I'd read that last week, I would have said that doesn't apply to me, because I never crash, even when I ride on wet roads.