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Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 09-05-2009, 01:39 PM:
 
I just had a nasty accident. I was in the hospital from Monday afternoon until Thursday. I got hit by a car while riding my bicycle.

I am somewhat pissed off because I have no memory of the accident.

I *JUST* bought the bike, only minutes before!
I had been looking at bicycles for about a week. I'd been in and out of that store two or three times, just nosing about. Finally, I decided to pull the trigger and get the one I'd been looking at. Trek 7100e I didn't want anything fancy. Just a good "around town" bike. Maybe I'd ride to work once in a while.
Anyway, I digress...

I only live about 4 or 5 blocks away from the bike store.
My plan was to ride the bike home, lock it up in the garage then walk back to the store and pick up my car.

So, I'm all paid up. I lock up the owner's manual, the receipts and all the paperwork on the front seat of my car. I wheel the bike outside. I got all situated right near the back bumper of my car. I spent about a half-minute fussing with things to get everything adjusted the way I wanted it. Then I started peddling toward home.

I remember, maybe, 20 seconds after that...

I don't know what the hell happened. I don't know who hit me. I don't remember a damn thing.

The next thing I know, I'm sitting on the back bumper of an ambulance. There is a cop and a paramedic shouting at me, trying to convince me to get inside.

All I remember are quick flashes of events from here on out...

I remember shouting at the paramedic, "Leave me alone! I'm all right! I just want to go home!"

"You can't go home! You're all beat up!", I remember him saying back.

I don't remember, exactly, but I think I touched my face and my hand came up all bloody. I looked at him and said, "Aw, Dammitt!" We hopped inside, they strapped me to the gurney and off we went.

My face looked like I fell out of an ugly tree and hit every damn branch on the way down! Rocky Balboa looked better than I did! My left eye was swollen up like a grapefruit. Blood all over the place!

At the hospital, several CT scans later, I've got three cracked vertebrae. (C7, C8 & T1) I've got two hairline skull fractures around the left eye orbit and I have some small, petecieal hemorrhages in the right frontal area. No other broken bones. Just lots of bumps and scrapes and bruises.

It's my second day out of the hospital. The first full 24 hours.
Most of the bruising is going away. If I wear dark sunglasses when I go outdoors, I won't scare children and small animals.
I've got lots of lovely pain pills to take. And, over the week, I've lost almost 10 pounds of excess weight! Went from 265# to 256#!
(Now, THAT's what I call a "crash diet"! )

I'm probably going to go back to work next Tuesday or Wednesday, just for a half-day. I'll probably stay home for the rest of the week after that. I just want to get the feel of the place again. You know... "Back in the saddle", as they say.

Anyhoo...
Next comes all the insurance bullshit. :roll:
Then we have to start answering all kinds of shitty questions.

I really don't remember shit!
I remember wheeling the bike out of the store. I remember getting situated. I remember peddling away. MAYBE, I remember 20 seconds after that.

I don't remember getting hit.
I don't know who did it. (It's in the police report which will be mailed soon.)
I've got no frikken' idea what happened!
The next thing I know, the cop and the paramedic are trying to get me into the back of the ambulance.

I have no recollection of the incident and that disturbs me.

Yeah, I know... The Neurologists all told me. It's post-traumatic memory blockage. They say that it's probably better that I don't remember. I think I agree with them.

But, DAMMITT! I just want to know what the fuck happened!

For insurance purposes, maybe it's better that I DON'T remember... ifyouknowwhatimean... It would be the truth anyway.

So... To anybody who has had an accident:
Do you ever get your memory back?
 

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Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 09-05-2009, 01:54 PM:
 
You need to make "one call, thats all!" Sorry to hear about this. In this sort of situation never settle out of court and always hire an attorney what will work for a reasonable percentage of the take. You may have other problems and expenses creep in down the road as a result of this. Your advantage is that the Police DO know who hit you.

Mark
 

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Posted by Jon P. Inghram (Member # 4125) on 09-05-2009, 02:39 PM:
 
Ouch! You may want to read up on Concussions and Post-traumatic amnesia.

From personal experience, I know that dealing with the monetary and legal issues after an accident are often worse than the injuries themselves, hopefully everything works out smoothly for you!
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 09-05-2009, 03:45 PM:
 
Damn, Randy. That really sucks. I hope you make a full recovery very soon. Get all you can from that driver's car insurance. With the injuries you sustained and the sorts of long term pain you may have in the future you need to get as much money as you can to cover any of those unforeseen medical costs.

I don't know about recovery of memory after getting a concussion. I've been knocked out a couple different times in sporting accidents and even once in a fist fight. The memory of those knock out moments have never come back to me.

Were you wearing a helmet? It's possible to get a serious head injury even when wearing one of those goofy looking bicycle helmets, but they're better than nothing. They're just techie looking high density Styrofoam.

I do a lot of bicycling to stay in shape. I ride over 100 miles per week, mainly on a bike path at a park not far from where I live. I have a Novara FS Ponderosa bicycle, which I purchased at REI while vacationing in Colorado. Had to drive to the Littleton, CO store in metro Denver because the Colorado Springs store didn't one in the right size. Anyway, I really like the bike. It has a Rock Shox suspension, disc brakes, 24 gear settings, quick release wheels, etc. The bike is made for rough off-road riding. The bike is very durable, but it is no match against a car.

I used to bicycle from my house to the park, but I stopped doing that after too many close calls with car drivers afflicted with head up the ass disease. Now I mount the bicycle in my pickup bed using a Thule removable bicycle rack.

Even at the park I still have close calls with cars. There's two places where the bike path has to cross a street. Lots of idiot drivers pull through the intersection without looking. Many are too immersed in their mobile phones to notice any bicyclists or pedestrians crossing in front of them. It's pretty amazing a lot of people aren't being run over there.

This past week here in Lawton two teenage girls were hit by cars on the same day, both walking near their schools. One girl was clipped by the car's mirror. The driver wasn't watching what he was doing (probably involved with his phone). The other girl was text messaging on her phone and walked out in front of a car. She only received some bumps and scrapes because the car slowed down enough to keep from killing her.

When bicycling on a bike path you have to watch out for oblivious pedestrians. They can't hear you coming, even when you're honking an electronic horn at them. In the evening they still don't seem to see you coming even if your bike has a battery powered light as bright as a car head lamp. They're either yakking on their phones or have their iPods turned way up drowning out the outside world. Moms with little kids are one of the biggest hazards. Young children naturally just want to run in your way at the last minute as if they're gravitationally pulled towards danger. I've even nearly run over a few prairie dogs! Some of those little rodents just want to run in your way too!

When bicycling you just have to use the strategy of thinking everyone around you is blind, stupid and just can't see you. Defensive driving has to be taken to a new extreme.
 

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Posted by Frank Angel (Member # 248) on 09-05-2009, 03:56 PM:
 
Wow, Randy, quite a spot of bad luck -- fast recovery, my friend.

About 15 yrs ago I fell on an ice slick coming out a parking lot in back of my apartment and whacked my temple on the curb. I remembered nothing. It was a total blackout and I have no recollection from the time I fell to the time I became aware of my surrounding in my apartment. I knew NOTHING. Not my name, not the place I was standing which was in the bedroom; it was as if I had never been there before. When I walked into the living room it was like discovering a place for the first time. There was the wall of audio and video equipment, all of it was on, pilot lights all lit, yet I had no idea what any of it was for, who it belonged to or why I was there. It was really very frightening.

I saw the telephone on the desk, it looked familiar, but I didn't exactly know what to do with it. I picked up the handle, mostly out of curiosity, and pushed the first button which, luckily for me, was the programmed button with my girlfriend's office number. When she said "hello," it was a surprise....I actually didn't expect to hear a voice come out of it. I responded, but had no idea who this voice belonged to. Of course she recognized me and asked what was wrong. I told her that I thought I hit my head. She kept asking questions -- is there blood on your head, were you in a car accident, -- I couldn't answer any of them except for the blood which was all over my jacket and hands. But she kept calm and asked if anything hurt, my arms, my legs. She told me to sit down and she would be right there. Even at the end of the conversation, I still had no idea who she was. To this day, I am very grateful that I did recognize her when she came in the room. I don't think I would every have lived it down if I said something like, "So, who are you?" She rushed me to the hospital.

I had a concussion and the amnesia was fairly severe. I couldn't remember people or names, or who was president or my birth day. It was very traumatic. It took about two weeks for me to get most of my memory back, but it came back in patches. I spent hours going thru my telephone book trying to remember who each person was. It was incredibly frustrating. You know what it feels like when you are trying to think of a name or title of a movie and it is right on the tip of your tongue but it won't come to you? Well EVERYTHING was like that for weeks. Many times I would be able to remember one of my friends but not another -- talk about adding even more pressure to remember....in the first few days, I would even fake knowing someone just because I could see how much they wanted me to know who they were. I saw some co-workers one-up another because I would recognize him and not another, like it was some kind of competition. Then the one I didn't recognize would be angry at ME because of it. It was aweful.

The other side of that coin was, once I came upon a co-worker who I never liked and strangely enough, I recognized her right away, but I acted like she was still blocked from my memory....and would stay that way for as long as I could pull it off....hehe.

This I can tell you, tho, Randy, don't try to force yourself to remember -- it will just frustrate you to tears, and it never seems to actually help bring back the memory. It's when you are not focusing directly on something but maybe thinking of something related that a recognition will pop back, usually rather unexpectedly.

At that time I was the Recording Engineer for the center and the first time back to work, I remember looking at the sound console thinking, "I know what this thing does?" I was terrified. Cindy was by my side the whole time and was a great comfort because it was very scary but she assured me that I would remember, and even if I didn't, I would learn it again. It did all come back, or at least most of it. I got the technical stuff within maybe 5 days. The people stuff seemed to take longer. Most people was pretty cool about it. If there is any long term memory that is permanently lost.....I'll never know about it.

Thing is, I never got back the memory what happened immediately after the fall. To this day, I have no idea how I got back to our apartment from the parking lot which was around the block, or who helped me and why they didn't stay to call 911. The doctor said I may very well have been coherent for a short time and talking to that person, but I have no recollection of it at all. So you may not ever get back the memory of exactly what happened. Then again, my doctors also told me the brain is a mystery (not something you want to here from the doctor who is supposed to fix it for you) and everyone will recover differently and at different speeds from this type of trauma. It's just from my experience, I never got that time back right after the fall.

It's amazing to me that someone could hit a person, obviously causing serious injury, and then not stay to help.

Again, feel better Randy; the physical healing will probably be allot easier than dealing with the insurance company!
 

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Posted by Joe Redifer (Member # 3) on 09-05-2009, 04:13 PM:
 
I am very sorry to hear about your experience, Randy (you'll be getting a lot of this, and people mean it). I've blacked out a few times (no concussions) but have never recovered the memories. All I recall is waking up on the ground, wondering "WTF??" It is pretty scary. My theory is that the memory never had a chance to be recorded in the first place, not any of this memory-blockage nonsense. When something is happening to you and you don't know what it is and it is all very sudden, it is no wonder that the mind cannot remember the details. It doesn't know what to remember it as. It never had a chance to do much, if any interpretation of the event before you went unconscious. Gone forever, most likely. By the way, do you know where the accident occurred? How far did you ride?

Slightly off topic and not geared specifically towards Randy himself:
When I see bicyclists on the road and I am driving, I get extremely nervous. I am afraid that I will hit them. I feel that bicycles should be on the sidewalk. People are a lot softer than cars. Sometimes you don't have a choice, however. But when I bike, I always stay on the sidewalks and/or paths when I can. What also scares me is that many cyclists these days seem to be of the mindset that they always have the right of way. They expect cars to to all of the work in avoiding them, but they don't seem to make much effort avoiding cars. Turning right in your car and there is a bike coming up from behind? The cyclist will expect you to yield and let him go straight. This happened to my mom. The guy hit the back of her car and fell off. He was OK except for a few minor scratches, but he came off with an arrogant attitude about the whole thing.

Motorcycles scare me, too. I always feel like I will squash them. Their speed is rarely consistent.
 

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Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 09-05-2009, 04:30 PM:
 

quote: "Wikipedia"

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Retrograde amnesia sufferers may partially regain memory later, but memories are not regained with anterograde amnesia because they were not encoded properly.

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According to that, it doesn't look like I ever will remember.
As I said, maybe it's better that I don't.

I'm not one for suing people when it's not necessary. I only do it when I have to.
But, if the responsible parties don't step up, I will certainly take it up with a lawyer as the situation calls for.
I believe in giving the other person the chance to come forward and be honest before taking the legal route but I'll play hardball if they make me.

All I wanted to do was get my bike back home. According to Google Earth, it is only 1.4 miles from the store to my house. The bike would have been inside the garage and I probably wouldn't have taken it out again until after dinner.
I was only planning to ride it around the neighborhood streets for the first day. I wanted to check out how the gears shifted and fiddle with the trip computer. I was not interested in riding 50 miles a day. For somebody in my physical condition, I figure it is wise to limit myself to an hour's worth of riding until I start getting used to it. I had no intentions of pretending I'm in the "Tour de France." Nor do I ever intend to. This whole thing was supposed to be about getting some exercise and having fun doing it.

No, I did not have a helmet. For a 1 mile jaunt from the store to my house, I had no concept that I'd even need it. Shit like this happening is a 1 in 1,000,000 chance!
I WAS thinking about it. The shop I bought the bike at offers a discount on accessories when you buy a bike. I was mentally taking count of all the stuff I'd need. I fully intended to get some more stuff when I returned to pick up my car.

Y'Know what... I don't think a helmet would have made much difference with my injuries.

I have hairline fractures around the left eye socket. I was told I went face-first into the hood of the car that hit me. A helmet would be useless, there.
I have three cracked vertebrae. The left transverse processes of C7, C8 and T1 are cracked.
I have petechial hemorrhages in the right frontal area. The doctor guesses that it is a kind of "rebound" injury where the skull suddenly starts/stops moving but the gray matter keeps sloshing around inside.

The doctor and every person involved ask me the same question: "Were you wearing a helmet?" as if it was a pre-programmed response. But I can also tell the look of begrudging agreement on their faces when I ask them, "Given my injuries, would it have made much difference?"

I have known the owner of that bike shop for more than 25 years. Bicycles are his life's work. He agrees. Wearing a helmet in this case would have made only a minor difference if it made any difference at all.

Besides, the day I was released from the hospital this woman social worker came into my room and GAVE me a bicycle helmet. So even though it probably wouldn't have made a difference, I have a helmet now.

So, for nearly $500 worth of bicycle shot to hell in one day, what do I have to show for it?

A nice, shiny bicycle helmet!

BTW: Thanks for all the words of encouragement.
As silly as some may think they seem on the surface, they really do help!
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 09-05-2009, 04:35 PM:
 

quote: Joe Redifer

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Motorcycles scare me, too. I always feel like I will squash them. Their speed is rarely consistent.

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quote: Randy Stankey

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I'm not one for suing people when it's not necessary. I only do it when I have to.

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quote: Joe Redifer

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Motorcycles scare me, too.

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quote: Marky Mark

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UDOT refused to close the canyon road for an hour so they cold hold the racr.

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That wasn't very bright of them. A ton of bicycles going down the road for an event and they didn't close it? Sheesh! Here we have Lookout Mountain and bicyclists love absolutely nothing more than to ride up and down the tiny, winding road that goes to the top. Coming around a corner and seeing a bicyclist flying at you at 40+ mph is very scary. They must have death wishes.
 

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Posted by Claude S. Ayakawa (Member # 1401) on 09-05-2009, 06:51 PM:
 
Randy,

I was sorry to learn about your terrible accident and pray for a full recovery. I once had a ten speed French bike when I was younger and a group of friends and I went for a long ride from Waipahu all the way to Waianae on the island of Oahu - span of almost twenty five miles. It was a very enjoyable ride but I had to admit, the thought of getting hit from behind by a motorist was very unnerving.

-Claude
 

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Posted by Chad Souder (Member # 343) on 09-05-2009, 07:05 PM:
 
I've never recalled memories from my accident in 2001. Some 76 year old man pulled out from a stop sign in front of me as I was moving 45 mph through a small town. The witness said there was no way I could have avoided it. There are laws against driving drunk, but not against driving old. Anyway, I don't remeber several seconds before the accident either. When I "came to," the EMTs were already there. I watched with interest as they used the jaws of life of the door of the other truck and then politely requested that at their convenience, if they were not too tired, if they could please come try to get my door open as well. I believe it came out something like "Aaaauughheerrry" since I had the wind knocked out of me. So the time leading up to the accident is gone for me too. That could go with the "memory never being recorded" theory Joe has, as it would never have switch out of my short term and into my long term memory. Someone into hypnotism once told me that a good hypnothereapist could get me to recall the memory, but that sounded as inviting an idea to me as getting into another wreck. I know what happened due to the witness's statement and that's good enough for me.

As far as permanent effects, my long-term memory is fine but my short-term memory often fails me. As far as permanent effects, my long-term memory is fine but my short-term memory often fails me.
 

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Posted by Emma Tomiak (Member # 1862) on 09-05-2009, 09:24 PM:
 
I'm so sorry to hear about your accident, Randy. I certainly hope the person who hit you will do the right thing and pay up for your medical care, and that you don't have to start looking for lawyers.

Your accident terrifies me because I have been looking at bikes for about a week as well. I picked out a bike in fact, one model down from the one you chose. And I only planned on riding it to and from school, about an 8 mile round trip.

I live in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, and it is obvious to me that bicyclists are NOT welcome on our roads by the vast majority of drivers. I always yield to cyclists, but I've seen cars zoom by them at 50 mph with little more than 6 inches between car and human. Even though it's technically against the law, I'll be riding on sidewalks thankyouverymuch.

I wish you a speedy recovery!
 

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Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 09-05-2009, 11:07 PM:
 
Thanks, Emma.

The guy who owns the bike shop is a family friend from long ago. I got a good explanation of the differences between models.
For obvious reasons, I don't remember model numbers very well. I know the model number of my bike because it's written on the receipt. However, I remember the differences between models okay.

Here's what he explained to me:

First, we're talking about a "hybrid" bike. It's a cross between a "road bike" (what we used to call a 10-speed when we were kids) and a "mountain bike." It's got a lighter frame than a mountain bike but heavier wheels than a 10-speed, road bike.
You want a lighter frame because it's easier to maneuver but you still need some strength because you will have to deal with some obstacles like potholes and curbs, etc. You're going to be riding over mostly smooth terrain but not flat ground like you would on a road bike. You want beefier wheels than a 10-speed to handle bumps, etc. but you don't want knobby, off-road tires either.

Second, you look at riding position. You can ride in an "upright" position like we did on our old Schwinn bikes when we were kids. You can ride in the "egg" position like bicycle racers often use when riding 10-speeds. You can also adopt a "sport" position that lies somewhere between the "upright" and "egg" positions. You will move from "upright," through "sport" and towards the "egg" position as you progress from "comfort" riding through higher maneuverability riding and, finally, down into high speed/efficiency riding.

Third, you're considering quality of components and overall design/construction. Cheaper bikes have components meant to be taken as a group rather than individual parts. You will also see "flimsier" frames and wheel rims.
If you break a spoke on a cheaper wheel, you might have to replace the whole thing rather than have your bicycle mechanic re-spoke it. Hubs, break shoes, gear cassettes and things like that will last longer on more expensive bikes. If/when they wear out you can replace just the suspect parts and you aren't compelled to buy a whole new assembly.

The bike I bought: The Trek 7100. It has a heavier-built frame with shock absorbers in the front forks. It's got a "mid-sporty" riding position and upgraded hubs, breaks, gears and derailers, etc. The frame and wheels are still made of aluminum so I still have less weight to haul around when I need to maneuver.

I do not intend to ride long distances. It is about 8 miles from my home to my place of work. Just about every place I can think of riding to is less than 10 miles away from home. The MOST ambitious ride I can think of, at this time, given my (pre-crash) state of health and fitness is approximately 20 miles round trip. And, with that, I'd have to work up to it.

I picked my model because I wanted something I could grow into a little but but I didn't want to spend a whole lot of money. I liked the sportier riding position because it feels a little more like exercise to me. I picked upgraded components because... well face it... I'm a technician! I think I can replace a break shoe or some other small part when it wears out!

I have known the shop owner for years. Although I would never expect to get goods below his cost, I certainly expect a fair price and good advice. The bike I bought was only $100 more than the cheaper model. That includes the cost of the trip computer that I bought to go along with it. (Time, distance, speed & 2 memories. Only cost ≈$30. Then I got a discount for accessories-with-purchase.)

If you are looking at the Model 7000 vs. the Model 7100, either one will be a good choice. The thing that made the decision for me was the sportier riding position and the better components.

So, there you have it. That's my bike-buying decision. Take what you know about me and apply it to your situation.

As to the danger of riding bikes:
Regardless of where or when you do it, you have to consider it an "assumed-risk" sport. No matter how safely you ride... No matter how careful you are... You are going to have to accept that you WILL have an accident, even if it is only minor.
You are bound to get bumps, bruises, scrapes and sore muscles. You will eventually come home sporting a case of "road rash."

I'm sorry to sound so blunt... I don't mean to be rude... But if you can't accept the risk that you might get hit by a car, you don't belong on a bicycle.

This comes from a guy who just got his ass creamed!

This was a freak accident! It was a 1 in 1,000,000 chance! A 1 in 10,000,000 chance, even!
Come ON! A guy buys a bicycle and gets run over 30 SECONDS after paying for it?! You can't make shit like this UP! Even Stephen King wouldn't have dreamed this up in one of his novels!

D'You know what? I'm getting back on that damn bike, don't-cha know! Just for the freakin' PRINCIPLE of it!

Okay...okay, okay...
I'm being a cranky-ass "brain concussion guy" right now.
I don't mean to offend.

Yes, I do understand your concern about riding bicycles near roadways. But I think if you take it easy and use your common sense you will have no problem riding safely.

Don't let me scare you too badly!

Oh! By the way!
Here are some pics I took from Google Earth to show you where it happened.





Those two red arrows in the second picture show what I remember doing.
I came out of the bike shop and stood by the crooked arrow. I turned left, got ready and started peddling.
The end of the second red arrow is where my memory ends.
I don't remember anything until you get to the little red "splotch" on the left. Even then, I only remember little "flashes" and "snippets" of things.

I do not know who hit my or where they came from.
I'm guessing... only guessing... the woman came out of that parking lot behind the office building and didn't look as she exited. I only know these things because people told me things, after the fact.

My memory ends at the point on that second red arrow, pointing left.
 

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Posted by Emma Tomiak (Member # 1862) on 09-05-2009, 11:54 PM:
 
No offense taken, it's all great advice really. I understand the risk completely, I do. I've planned a route that takes me down the safest and least traveled roads (and those with the lowest speed limits). All have sidewalks, and I believe I'll use those at first until I get used to commuting. I've never ridden a bike to commute before, just on rec trails and state parks. This is a new adventure for me, so I'm in full on learn-everything-I-possibly-can mode!

PS-The model I am looking at is indeed the 7000.
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 09-05-2009, 11:59 PM:
 

quote:

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D'You know what? I'm getting back on that damn bike, don't-cha know! Just for the freakin' PRINCIPLE of it!

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quote: Galen Murphy-Fahlgren

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The irony of motorists becoming irate with cyclists is that cyclists are in fact extremely accommodating of motorists.

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quote: Randy Stankey

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Regardless of where or when you do it, you have to consider it an "assumed-risk" sport. No matter how safely you ride... No matter how careful you are... You are going to have to accept that you WILL have an accident, even if it is only minor.

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quote: Bobby Henderson

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Yeah, you can get some road rash from longer distance rides, even if you buy a really nice after-market saddle.

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Road rash is a nasty wound from falling and scraping along the surface of the road. It is also a kick ass video game for the Sega Genesis and the Panasonic 3DO. As for "saddles", I find that if I ride too much, by boys don't feel right. I have to limit my riding to maybe three times a week max, and I have a really nice seat. I don't know how guys who ride every day can cope. Maybe they just have really small balls? I think Lance Armstrong had one of his balls removed to help with this and also probably to make him lighter, faster and more aerodynamic.
 

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Posted by Galen Murphy-Fahlgren (Member # 4535) on 09-06-2009, 09:58 AM:
 
Okay, an overwhelming majority of cyclists try very hard to coexist with motor traffic. I too have seen people on bikes doing very stupid things, like riding on the left shoulder or two riding abreast without taking the lane. Also, there's those videos of the lunatic Critical Mass guy attacking that car. Most people who ride bikes irresponsibly are the same people who drive recklessly, and it is not the serious cyclists like road bikers or mountain bikers. There is a culture around these activities, and it strongly shuns people who act dangerously and project a bad image of the sport.

State laws vary on where you are supposed to ride, and very few states consider a bicycle pedestrian traffic, and rightly so. In Michigan, and I believe California as well, a bike isn't supposed to be on the sidewalk ever. It is legally the same as me riding my motorcycle or driving a car down the sidewalk. I'm not saying that bike riders don't have to do their part to keep the roads safe, but it has to be cooperative. Most motorists, too, try to do the right thing, but the few that don't have a much larger impact than the cyclists who don't: literally. A small car weighs 3000 lbs now, and my bike and I weigh 150 lbs together. Consider the cost involved before you mow someone down with your car because they irritated you.
 

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Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 09-06-2009, 12:14 PM:
 
Hey! Look, everybody! Gory pictures!

This is me in the hospital. The picture was taken approx. 24 hours AFTER the accident.


This is me at home. The picture was taken just a short time ago. It is now almost a week (6 days) after the accident.


If I wear dark glasses, it doesn't look too-awful bad!
At least it doesn't scare children and small pets!
(Looks more like the Unabomber! )


I wish I had some pictures on the day of the accident.
By the time that first hospital picture was taken, they had given me lots of anti-inflammatory drugs to reduce the swelling and to reduce the chances of complications from the brain concussion. My face looked even WORSE before that!

As for the bike, I'm not 100% sure.
They stored the bike for me at the bike shop. I only made it 50-60 yards away from the front door before getting hit. I visited the store again after I got out of the hospital.

The front wheel was bent. The saddle was bent. The frame and the front forks didn't look bent. There were a few scratches and shit like that but it didn't SEEM to be trashed.

They are keeping the bike at the shop and they will be going over it and fixing it up during the next week or so. They'll be giving me a call when they know more.

When I left, we agreed that the front wheel would be replaced and the saddle would be replaced. Then, they said, they would have one of their guys take it out and ride it around to test it out. If they find anything they will let me know.

So, Emma! If you want to know whether Trek bikes are crashworthy, there you go!
I think the Model 7000 will be just fine for you.

Do girls ride "ladies" bikes anymore?
That whole thing about the top bar is rather silly. Isn't it?
That design change was only made for women in the 1890's so their skirts wouldn't ride up and get caught.
Do women who ride bikes today even give a horse's patootie?

Anyhow... I figure I've been pre-disastered. Eh?
I've gotten all my accidents and injuries out of the way. Now I can go out and ride my bike and not have to worry about it!
Right?!
 

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Posted by Joe Elliott (Member # 4006) on 09-06-2009, 01:27 PM:
 
My face looked even WORSE before that!

We know, we see your Film-Tech picture.

Just kidding, sorry, couldn't resist.

As someone who used to bike over 100 miles a day just for fun, and then ride to work and back too, I would have to agree with you that getting in an accident is 1 in 10000. Get back up on that bike and have some fun.

My brother and I rode from Colorado Springs, Colorado, to St. Joseph, Missouri with nothing but what we could carry on our bikes. On that trip, we had semi-trucks that would pass us, and even when they would pass with lots of room, the wake they created would nearly suck you underneath the trailer.

I do also ride a motorcycle, and I ride not only assuming the other drivers can't see me, but as if they are out to get me. I didn't used to ride my bicycle that way, but I know it came from riding by bike. Besides the drivers who didn't see you, there are drivers that will be dicks and try to pass you as closely as they can, even on a multi-lane road, with absolutely no traffic.

Get back on it, but be paranoid. Sometimes they are out to get you.
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 09-06-2009, 02:25 PM:
 
To me the debate over who has the right of way on a city street (be it a car, bicycle or even pedestrian) is kind of pointless. You're not going to care who is at fault if you're killed in a bicycle-vehicle collision.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration 716 bicyclists were killed in accidents in the United States during 2008. 52,000 were injured. 5,290 motorcyclists were killed in accidents in the US last year.

I take as few chances as possible and never take it for granted a car driver or pedestrian will see me approaching. The only city streets I use are ones in residential areas. If a sidewalk is available I'm going to use it. The police have never told me to get by bicycle off the sidewalk.

It is a little strange how the nearby park has a dedicated bike path with all sorts of bicycle-oriented traffic signs, yet the pedestrians act like they own the path. It's really annoying when you get a family reunion sized group of slow walkers completely blocking the path. They won't clear one of the two bike path lanes. And there's always some little two year old among the group likely to run at your bicycle without warning.

There's lots of animosity going both directions between bicyclists and car drivers. My father has a really nasty attitude toward bicyclists on the road, and both my parents have fairly expensive mountain bikes like mine. My parents live outside of Colorado Springs. Colorado Springs is also home to the US Olympic Team. So you'll see quite a few serious bicyclists training there and choosing the most stupid, hazardous routes to do their training. For example, US-24 is a mostly 2-lane road between Limon, CO and Colorado Springs. That road has so much traffic, truck traffic in particular, that it really should be an Interstate highway from I-25 to I-70. Lots of fatal car accidents happen there. At least a few of those head on collisions occur due to a motorist trying to get around some wanna be Olympic athlete on a bicycle. If I had to drive in Colorado Springs all the time I might have just as much of an angry attitude toward bicyclists. Get off the damned high speed 2 lane highway and on to a safer path, dumbass!

Regarding "road rash," yeah I should have used the term "saddle sores." Nevertheless they can be a real bitch. The thing I really hate is if I get an ingrown hair or some sort of boil from the rash. That can hurt like hell.

On the subject of protecting your balls or prostate from the saddle, you have to put more of your weight on the pedals instead of the saddle. I stand on the pedals quite a lot when I ride. I especially do that when going over bumpy terrain, street curbs and through uneven intersections.
 

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Posted by Galen Murphy-Fahlgren (Member # 4535) on 09-06-2009, 02:28 PM:
 
Looking good in that last picture, Randy. And remember: it could've been worse. Imagine if you'd been riding a penny-farthing instead of a safety bike!



Good advice, Joe. We must make up for other people's inattentiveness by being twice as cautious.

Bobby, the best way to avoid saddle sores is to get the hardest saddle you can find that fits right, and powder your balls. People think softer saddles are better, but they in fact cause more rubbing and trap heat, thus making you sweat, so, double whammy.
 

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Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 09-06-2009, 02:55 PM:
 
If I was riding a penny-farthing I might have been launched completely OVER the car, landing on the other side! I would have but a few scratches on my elbows!

As it was, I had just gotten off work. Everything was done for the day and I left early. I had some extra time to head by the bike shop on the way home. I whizzed by the bank to be sure my paycheck had been deposited as planned then headed to the store.

It was approximately 4:30 to 5:00 PM. The weather was sunny and clear. The temperatre, I estimate, was between 65º and 75º F.
I was wearing a pair of khaki trousers and a bright red polo shirt with short sleeves.

The bicycle was white with brown accent/trim colors. Even though it was broad daylight, the bike had all the required reflectors, etc.

The only thing that would have made me more visible would have been to put flashing beacons on top of my head!

This just occurred to me... Just a spitball idea. Not really serious. Just an idea...

How about I handle legal matters this way:

1) If the person was talking on a cell phone or putting on makeup or something stupid like that, I'll call the sleaziest lawyer I can find and let them take that person to the cleaners.

2) If it is at all believable that this was an "honest" accident, I'll tell my insurance agent to handle it.
(P.S. - The insurance agent is also a long-time friend of the family. )

So, here I am, sitting in my little "post-concussive fog." That seems like a right-fine idea to me, right now.
Maybe I'll come back and read this in a few hours and think it was the most hair-brained idea I ever had.

What do you guys think?
 

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Posted by Joe Redifer (Member # 3) on 09-06-2009, 03:16 PM:
 
How the hell to people even get on and off bikes like the one Galen posted? Why were they designed the way they are? Regardless, I want to see someone do some extreme tricks on one of those! It's practically a unicycle. Hmmm.....

quote: Bobby Henderson

---

I take as few chances as possible and never take it for granted a car driver or pedestrian will see me approaching.

---

quote: Bobby Henderson

---

It is a little strange how the nearby park has a dedicated bike path with all sorts of bicycle-oriented traffic signs, yet the pedestrians act like they own the path.

---

quote: Bobby Henderson

---

On the subject of protecting your balls or prostate from the saddle, you have to put more of your weight on the pedals instead of the saddle. I stand on the pedals quite a lot when I ride.

---

Same here. In fact unless I am going fairly slow or an just cruising, I like to stand. That's how I rode my BMX when I was a kid (the seat on that is actually plastic to reduce weight so I didn't use it much). When going up hills I usually stand as well instead of shifting into a low gear. When my gears are at the lowest settings, I am peddling way too fast and only moving inches and that makes it hard to keep balance. I'm not even sure why the gears go that low as it is quite useless.

If bicycles are considered vehicles just like cars and motorcycles, etc, why don't bicycles require insurance?
 

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Posted by Galen Murphy-Fahlgren (Member # 4535) on 09-06-2009, 05:39 PM:
 
Joe, I can't explain the peculiarity of the law, but it could be in part because cyclists have a pretty hard time doing the kind of damage that a car or motorcycle can do. Not that a cyclist can't do damage to pedestrians, themselves, or property, but I can inflict just about as much damage running along at 12-15 miles an hour as I can going 30 on my bike. Here is a good link to the laws regarding vehicular cycling in Colorado. This is pretty standard across most states, even a little restrictive of bikes, comparatively. I notice Colorado requires bikes to use shoulders where safely practicable, whereas Michigan gives cyclists the lane whenever they desire, barring limited access highways or places where they fail to meet the minimum posted speed limit.
 

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Posted by Joe Redifer (Member # 3) on 09-06-2009, 06:09 PM:
 
Wow, Michigan sucks. It seems to favor cyclists over motorists. It is no wonder a lot of motorists there are pissed at cyclists.
 

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Posted by Tim Reed (Member # 137) on 09-06-2009, 06:22 PM:
 
GEEZE, RANDY!!! That's messed up! Sorry you went through that, bro. I'd be pissed off, too.

I'll bet she was talkin' on the phone...

Take care of yourself, guy. Hope you feel better soon.
 

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Posted by Galen Murphy-Fahlgren (Member # 4535) on 09-06-2009, 08:24 PM:
 
Joe, that's my point: cyclists have the same rights as motorists, and yet we cede the lane almost universally. We do not have to, but we do. A big chunk of the problem is that a select few motorists apparently don't recognize a cyclists right to be there at all. And I wouldn't say a lot of motorists are pissed at cyclists here, more like a vocal minority who don't even know what they're talking about.
 

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Posted by Clint Koch (Member # 1179) on 09-06-2009, 09:45 PM:
 
Randy,
I am very sorry to hear about this and wish you a quick recovery.
To answer the topics question, from experience, no, you will not remember what actually happened. I was hit back in 1976 by a motorcycle while on a bicycle. I remember seeing the motorcycle coming at me yet it was still a good 30 yards away from me. I do not remember the impact or the 30 yards traveled by the motorcycle before it hit me. The next thing I can remember is coming to with a few dozen people around me. Nothing else.
 

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Posted by Emma Tomiak (Member # 1862) on 09-06-2009, 11:55 PM:
 

quote: Randy Stankey

---

Do girls ride "ladies" bikes anymore?
That whole thing about the top bar is rather silly. Isn't it?
That design change was only made for women in the 1890's so their skirts wouldn't ride up and get caught.
Do women who ride bikes today even give a horse's patootie?

---

I specifically asked for the regular model, not the "ladies" model, even though they suggested I look at that first. I think "ladies" bikes are just plain ugly. I rarely wear skirts/dresses, and would sure as hell never ride a bike wearing one, so there is no point for me to buy an ugly girl bike.
 

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Posted by Demetris Thoupis (Member # 833) on 09-07-2009, 12:13 AM:
 
Looking forward to your swift recovery. In 1996 when I was trying to cross the road to get to the bus stop and a tourist big bus just ramped me across the street! It lead to multiple head injuries, dislocation of my jaw which is still vissible and I don't really care of putting it back now and a big swollen eye. The stangiest thing about it is that I was hit from the right side and my left eye got all swollen! I only recall the minute I tried to cross the road and after that I remember getting in an ambulance and reaching the hospital and then waking up in a bed! I though cracked the whole front windshield of the bus and the police was so qurious how I managed to crack it! Guess it was a fast impact. I did not break any other bone on that day but I sure remember the experience. It really sucks doesn't it.
 

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Posted by John Wilson (Member # 269) on 09-07-2009, 04:26 AM:
 
Hi Randy

Ouch!

Wishing you a speedy recovery from this side of the half-way mark.

Hope the pain is bearable at least.

John
 

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Posted by Jim Bedford (Member # 4) on 09-07-2009, 09:21 AM:
 
I "ouch" you too Randy. Get better fast.

I have a hard-core, road-bike-riding bro-in-law who got sideswiped by a 17 YO girl who was talking on a cell phone and never saw him riding on the edge of the road. Destroyed his helmet and made his ear mostly go away but he's back to 100%, but it took almost a year.

I gotta say though, regardless of the law and freedom of choice, I don't quite understand why people put themselves on a 25 pound bike and then compete for space with 2000-4000 pound vehicles doing two to ten times their speed. You can jump out of a plane without a parachute too. Many drivers are inattentive idiots and I don't want to take the chance when the odds are stacked so much in their favor.

I mountain bike all the time and frequently use it as in-town transportation in our little mountain town. But mostly I'm on back streets or bike trails. The only time I'm ever on a highway is when I cross them, usually walking the bike. Basically I'm just scared shitless to ride with traffic on busier roads.
 

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Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 09-07-2009, 10:10 AM:
 
Thanks again for all the encouragement!

I am getting better, day by day.
I took my pain pills last night at approx. 10:00 PM. I'm supposed to take them every 4 to 6 hours. I went to bed just after midnight. I didn't wake up again until 8:30-9:00 AM and I hadn't needed the pills all evening. I took another dose at about 9:30 but I don't expect to take any more pills until after lunch.

The prescription says to take two pills but I think I'm going to cut back to one. I don't know... We'll see how it goes.

Here, take a look at this map picture:

(Sorry... 550 pixel limit makes it hard to see the details.)

The light yellow lines are main thoroughfares. Route 5 (AKA 12th St.) is the main drag (east-west) through this area. Route 299 (AKA Powell Av.) is the cross street (north-south) near my house.

Google Earth plotted the purple line as the shortest distance between the pins on the map. It's an "okay" route but not the most commonly used one.

The RED line is the route I plotted. It takes back streets through the neighborhood. It's the route that folks who live in the neighborhood might take.

Here's the thing:
I started out by the yellow map pin in the upper-right corner of the map. I was headed west on Rt. 5. (Diagonal down-left on the map.) Basically following the purple or red lines.
I got run over at approximately the place where the circular white "Rt. 5" symbol is on the map. Barely 50 yards from the starting point.

I hadn't even come to the intersection where I would have had to make a decision on which route was the best, the safest, the fastest or even the most fun route to take. I was still 50 to 100 yards away from the point where I would have even been able to make that decision.

I hear you guys talking about how cars don't respect bikes, pedestrians and other things. I agree with you guys, 90%!

But, damn-blast-it!! I didn't even get a freakin' chance to make up my mind!
 

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Posted by Joe Elliott (Member # 4006) on 09-08-2009, 01:00 AM:
 
From the close-up you posted earlier, it kinda looks like that office building has a sign or something blocking the view of anyone leaving too. If that's the case, you would have a lawsuit against them too. If that's the case, personally, I would file one, and tell them I would drop it if they fix the blind spot. But that's only a guess from the picture.
 

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Posted by Chad Souder (Member # 343) on 09-08-2009, 06:01 PM:
 
So it's been just over a week and it sounds like you're making healthy progress. That's great to hear! Best of luck in the coming weeks.

The one piece of advice I can give you is do NO negotiating with the insurance company of the woman who hit you until you are fully healed. This could be 6 months from now or a year from now or two years from now, but that's how it needs to go. After my crash, I wasn't looking for any big pay day, but a person's car insurance takes it completely out of their hands. Whoever hit you could call her insurance company day after day begging to give you a large settlement because it was her fault and she feels horrible, but it won't matter. Insurance companies love to take their premiums, but they are very stingy at giving it back out. If they haven't already, they will be contacting you pretending to have concern about how you are doing and how you are feeling and then offer you some piddly amount for pain and suffering. Don't be offended like I was, it's their job. Regardless of the level of intent/stupidity of the driver, it won't matter much. Her insurance company will fight for her case the same as yours would for you. It's just how the game is played.

Now, I am by no means offering legal advice here, but in my situation, I found a cheaper compromise between lawyer and nothing at all. In my area, there is a former insurance adjuster that after retiring, formed a business helping people that have been in accidents. Enyart Claims Consulting is the name. How they work is, they do all the legwork the lawyer would do then bring it to a lawyer (if necessary) they regularly work with who in turns takes a smaller percentage because they don't have to do all that work. They just present the case, usually to a mediator (such things rarely make it to trial) and everyone settles. A lawyer for a case like this would typically take 33% of the settlement. In my situation, the lawyer took 20% and Enyart's fees came out of his cut. So, in the end, I ended up with knowledgeable representation at a smaller cost. The reason it works is because a normal lawyer is lucky to get 5-7 cases per year. There's a lot of them around. With good word of mouth references, these guys were able to bring their lawyer(s) as many as 10 cases a month. Huge incentive to take a smaller percentage. And, if it never gets to the point where it rises to the level of needing a lawyer involved, these guys charged a reasonable hourly fee, carefully documenting all the time they actually spent working on the case, not rounding up to the nearest hour like a normal lawyer does. I still have their old itemized summary and I was shocked to see a total charge of $20 for filing, phone calls and etc. A lawyer my sister had a few years ago charged her $95 for one 5 minute phone call. Anyway, it may be worth checking into in your area. I have no idea if someone like that exists there or not. I do know, however, that the insurance company representing the driver will try and buy you off as cheaply as possible as quickly as possible. Wait until there is no question about permanent injury before you have any conversation with them. If you want to settle on the bike only, that's fine because it won't change much.

Good luck with everything. It's a horrible, long process to go through but remember, it wasn't your fault and you're not being greedy by receiving a cash settlement plus hospital bills. Money is what is used to compensate people for pain, loss, incapacitation, disability, etc. in this country.
 

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Posted by Joe Redifer (Member # 3) on 09-08-2009, 06:48 PM:
 
I've said it before and I'll say it now: Money is more important than ANYTHING else on the planet, even life. That's a fact.
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 09-10-2009, 09:39 PM:
 
Around 5:45pm this evening in Edmond, OK (a suburb north of Oklahoma City) a bicyclist was struck and killed by a truck hauling drywall. The bicyclist was riding on the sidewalk, but lost control of his bike entering Kelly Ave. where he was struck by the truck. He was declared dead at the scene. Ugh.

Reports didn't say whether the bicyclist was wearing a helmet. Not that it would have made any difference.

Moral of the story: when you're going to crash your bicycle try to crash onto the grass or the sidewalk itself and not in the middle of the street!

 

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Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 09-10-2009, 11:48 PM:
 
Oh, shit! That's rough!

I'm sorry to hear the guy got killed.
But it's good to know that he didn't suffer very much.
And from what I experienced, I can say with confidence that the guy didn't even know what happened.

(At least I can hope so.)
 

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Posted by Joe Redifer (Member # 3) on 09-11-2009, 12:14 AM:
 
True, he probably doesn't even know he's dead. He probably did experience some fear as he was struggling to control his bike during his final moments.
 

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Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 09-11-2009, 01:21 AM:
 
It's a weird feeling. It's like somebody just turned off the movie, all of a sudden. The screen goes black.

I remember, maybe, 20 seconds of riding the bike. Then there is just NOTHING. I don't know what hit me. I don't even know from what direction.

A person who has an accident like that guy's would probably remember thinking, "Oh, shit!" as they lose control of the bike but, even if there was 5 or 10 seconds between the time of losing control and getting run over, I don't think those memories would be stored in the mind.

It is my belief that the guy's last thought was "Oh, shit!" and then it was "LIGHTS OUT!"

(At least I sincerely hope so!)
 

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Posted by Joe Redifer (Member # 3) on 09-11-2009, 03:02 AM:
 
I don't think it would be akin as if the screen when black, as then you'd know that the screen was black. Instead, it was almost as if some footage was cut out and you didn't realize it until well after the splice had passed. It was probably a shitty splice, too.
 

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Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 09-11-2009, 10:10 AM:
 

quote: Joe Redifer

---

It was probably a shitty splice, too.

---

:LOL:

Actually it was one of the smoothest splices I've ever seen.

For me, there is some "black space" in between my last solid memory of starting to pedal the bike and my next memory of being coaxed into the ambulance. Even though I have no memory of the accident I definitely sense the passage of time, even though I don't know exactly how much time. I do know that the time from the end of "reel 1" in the movie to the start of "reel 2" in the movie is different. I just don't know how long.

It's just a weird feeling.
When you are sitting in a movie and the projector suddenly stops... JUST STOPS!... that's what it feels like.
Imagine like somebody pulled the main power disconnect on the entire projector all of a sudden without warning.

There would be a short period of time... maybe 5 or 10 seconds... when the audience doesn't realize what has happened. They sit there, somewhat dazed and confused. It takes them time to figure out that the movie has stopped.

Now, just before they realize that the movie has stopped, "reel 2" kicks in but, when the projector starts, the picture is out of frame and out of focus and the sound is all wobbly. Now there are several more minutes of confusion while the audience tries to figure out what happened to the second reel.

It probably takes until the second reel is half over before the picture stabilizes and the audience understands what's going on.

(Yes! I'm pissed off and I want a fuckin' refund! )

For the guy who got hit by the truck, I think the movie goes:

"Oh, shit!"... "Reel 1" cuts out but there is no "reel 2".
 

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Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 09-16-2009, 07:25 PM:
 
Just an update on things:

Tomorrow I go to the doctor for my official checkup.
I expect to get the OK to return to work, at least on "light duty."
(i.e. No lifting, no ladders, no catwalks, etc., etc.)
In fact, if they don't immediately say so, I'm telling THEM that I am going back to work! I couldn't STAND being cooped up in the house for another week!

My bike came back from the shop yesterday. They replaced the front wheel and the saddle. They took it out and test drove it for a post-crash checkup. They say it's all good.

I'm not supposed to be riding it but, I don't know... Somehow ten miles got clocked on the odometer this evening!

I was very careful! I stayed away from all the main streets. I only rode on neighborhood back roads. I never went over 10-15 MPH. I was very careful.

Y'Know... Even if I don't ride that bike for another two weeks, it was important for me to get back up and ride on the first opportunity I had. It's a psychological thing. Get it?
 

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Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 09-16-2009, 07:52 PM:
 

quote: Joe Redifer

---

That wasn't very bright of them. A ton of bicycles going down the road for an event and they didn't close it?

---

quote: Randy Stankey

---

Y'Know... Even if I don't ride that bike for another two weeks, it was important for me to get back up and ride on the first opportunity I had. It's a psychological thing. Get it?

---

It totally is! When I got in a car wreck, one of the first things I did was drive again (not my car since it was totaled), and I also drove it through the intersection where the accident happened a few times... all by myself. Very therapeutic.
 

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Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 09-16-2009, 10:22 PM:
 
My mother drove me back to the bike shop on the day I got out of the hospital. All I wanted to do is go home and go to sleep.
As pissed off as I was, it was probably a good thing I did go and face it.

I still don't remember shit.
I started peddling and the next thing I remember, they are trying to get me to go in the ambulance. All very surreal.

Except for pros or skilled amateurs, I kind of agree with Mark.
Riding a bicycle down hill all the time isn't worth it. Most people ride for fun and exercise. Right?

Now, if we're talking about "Tour de France" kind of bicycling, things are different. Those guys are pros. Riding all different types of terrain is meant to test their abilities. Getting up to 50+ MPH going downhill in a tight pack like that is not something I'd want to do but, for those guys, it's an "assumed risk." If somebody doesn't want to face that danger then they shouldn't race. That's how the game is played.

But that's not what I ride bicycles for so I'm with you. Ride elsewhere unless you're ready to accept the conequences.
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 09-16-2009, 10:54 PM:
 
The thing is with those Tour De France guys -those fellas are experts at cycling, they're elite athletes and they also have biking equipment that is truly built for the task (and frighteningly expensive). When they go flying down some mountainside road they're experienced at doing it. Then again, usually those guys are doing so on a closed course. Screw riding like that on any open highway!

I chuckled at the recent Tour De France 2009 broadcast on Versus HD -not at the cyclists, but at their support vehicles hauling 4 or 5 back up bicycles all costing upwards of $10,000 or more per bike.

Regarding the "facing your fear" thing, I believe in that as well. Back when I was a kid I was really into diving. I just barely hit my head on the board during one dive and it freaked me out. It was the hardest thing to force myself to do more flips to overcome the fear of hitting my head again.
 

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Posted by Galen Murphy-Fahlgren (Member # 4535) on 09-16-2009, 11:01 PM:
 
Yeah, racing downhill may not work your legs that much, but your heart is hammering. Last time I visited my parents, I went out with my dad and some of his employees on one of their regular rides out of the office, which involves scaling the biggest hill in town. I thought creeping up a huge "hill" at 2mph was the most terrifying thing I'd ever done until we started to descend. Even on my dad's sweet ti road bike with Campy Record brakes, I was sweating bullets, riding the brakes the whole way down. I was only doing about 25mph, but staring down that hill it felt like I was about to start flying if I let off the brakes. Scary.

Bobby, $10k would be a conservative estimate for a top Tour rider's bike. Even on top of the cost of the equipment, the marquee riders spend tons of time and money in wind tunnels and with sports doctors every season getting the bike fit perfect and getting their aero profile down. I know a few people with bikes over $10k who ride for pleasure and don't formally race at all. And, most professional riders actually suck at descents. This is why Floyd Landis cleaned up in stage 17 in '06, because he was a mountain biker and knew how to descend. Most of the other guys have no upper body strength, and are more afraid of going over the bars than anything else.
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 09-16-2009, 11:27 PM:
 
I'm mainly using the $10,000 barrier as a separator between the high end bikes from mainstream brands like Trek versus having something completely custom built from the ground up -which is naturally a lot more expensive.

Regarding the exercise you get from cycling, yeah I agree cycling is a good exercise but you have to augment it with other things. I do a good bit of calisthenics, some weight training, lots of push ups and quite a bit of running. The running makes a good difference on how strong I am in cycling.

It gets hotter than a $2 pistol here in Oklahoma during summer time. Only recently it has become cool enough for me to get back into running more frequently. Since I've been doing that, my 24 mile and 32 mile bike ride times have improved a decent amount.

The struggle most bicyclists have is the tendency to coast. You have that issue and then if you're riding on a bike path you have frequent obstacles -mainly dip shit pedestrians who can't stay in the fucking right lane -they gotta wander all over the centerline and then run freaking left like a moron when you're trying to pass on the left! Assholes! Just once, I'd like to run my front bike tire up the spine of one of these iPod wearing wonders to teach them a lesson. But I can't do that. Gotta run off the path into whatever terrain is there to keep from hurting anyone except myself if I crash.

Did I mention I don't like pedestrians on bicycle paths?

 

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Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 09-17-2009, 12:11 AM:
 
Personaly, I'm not into "Tour de France" riding in any fashion. Probably never will be.

The whole frickin' reason I got into this was because, last March, I weighed 278 lbs. (I'm 6' 2" tall.) I just got sick and tired of being sick and tired. I went to the doctor, took a physical and I told him what I was going to do to lose weight.

I told him how I was going to change my diet.
I told him how much exercise I was going to get.
I told him how much weight I wanted to lose and when.
All I wanted him to do was give me a "sanity check" and sign off on the plan. (He also gave me some good advice to go along with my plan.)

I started watching what I eat and going for 30-60 minute walks almost every day. (Not no "sissy" walks! I mean a "hustle!") It worked well for about 2-1/2 to 3 months. Then I plateaued.

I got down to a hair under 260 lbs then I gained a couple pounds back. I'd lose it then gain it right back. It was a real bitch to break the 260 mark for more than a couple-three days. I decided that I needed to do something. Either I was going to have to drastically cut calories or drastically increase workouts. You can't cut your diet back too much because it will make your body go into "starvation mode." I decided to keep the diet the same and go for the exercise.

I thought about all the things I could do: Running, going to the gym or the pool, etc. I like swimming but the gym and running aren't for me. Out of all the stuff I thought up, biking was the best. It's more exercise than walking. If you do it right, you can even get more of a workout than running or going to the gym. And, "Hey!" I thought, it's a lot more fun, too!

Well, you know the rest of the story!
Just pisses me off! I'm trying to lose weight and get healthy! Look what fuckin' happens!

In the last 2-1/2 weeks I've been at home so I can go out walking two or three times a day. I'm not allowed to drive so I can't go to the store and buy junk food. I'm getting a lot more exercise and eating a lot less. (Yes! It's the true definition of "crash diet!")

Right now, I'm down to 253 lbs. I've lost 25, almost 26 pounds total!

However, I plan to go back to work next week. The lack of sustained exercise and "stress eating" (munching on junk food when I don't need it) are going to start up again. I need to get on my frickin' horse and get the trend going down and KEEP it going down, at least until winter sets in. If I do that, I can get off another 5 or even 10 pounds before the weather closes in. I'll be good till spring if I just be sensible.

Remember the speedometer/trip computer I put on the bike?
Well, today, I put in 10 miles on the road at a moderate 10-15 MPH pace over the space of an hour. My calculations say I spent between 950 and 1,000 calories on that ride as compared with 500-600 calories if I walked 3-4 MPH for the same period of time.

Not to shabby! If I can keep THAT up, I'll be weighing under 225 in no time! (My goal weight.) Add in the occasional ride to work instead of driving the car. On weekends I can take a long ride if I ever feel up to it. That will make it even easier.

With all that, I MIGHT still be able to get down close to goal weight before the winter!

Then I go out and get creamed by some stupid lady driving a car!
Life is fuckin' beautiful! Isn't it?
 

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Posted by John Wilson (Member # 269) on 09-17-2009, 03:38 AM:
 
One word...Gymnasium.

Much safer...and you get to look at others in tight-fitting clothes.
 

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Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 09-17-2009, 07:58 PM:
 
Maybe in the winter I'll check out a gym. We spend too much time indoors all winter long. By the time summer rolls around, you want to do something outdoors.

I was a swimmer in high school and college. It came down to bicycling or swimming. I decided against swimming because I wanted something you could just go out and "do."

BTW: I put in almost 25 miles today.
I rode 15 miles around Presque Isle State Park. Google Maps: Presque Isle State Park
They have a bike/multi-purpose path that goes all around the park. 14.7 miles from the "base" of the park, to the end and back.
I did another 10 miles around the neighborhood after dinner.

Given my level of physical condition, that's pretty much my maximum. My legs are like rubber & my ass is sore but I'm happy I finally got to go out and ride.

I'm going to take the day off from riding tomorrow. I'll try to ride some more on Saturday and Sunday but not quite so far.
Monday, it's back to work.

Damn! I'm glad I'm finally getting to do what I started out to do!
 

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Posted by Martin Brooks (Member # 1269) on 09-18-2009, 10:05 PM:
 
Congrats on the recovery and I'm glad to hear that you're back riding. I'm a casual bike rider myself, I generally do 2-3 20 mile rides per week around New York City. Manhattan now has a fair number of protected bike lanes, so it's relatively safe. I've never come close to being hit, but I have been doored several times (which is illegal in NYC - I could have actually called the police and had them ticketed, but I didn't.)

Since you're doing long rides, be aware of the following. There's a vein in the crotch that can become compressed from sitting on the seat so long. If you ever have no feeling "down there", it's become compressed and you need to get a different bike seat - either one where the rear of the seat can be angled to be higher, so you're really just sitting on your butt or one where there's a cutout in the seat.

And...the second thing to go is the knees. And they won't necessarily feel painful, but if they start to feel weak when you get off the bike, it's better to do a greater number of shorter rides than fewer longer rides.

I have a very bad back, but I've always been able to ride, even when my back is out because there's far less pressure on the spine riding, then there is when you're standing on your feet.

Although I also bike ride for the pleasure and exercise, it's actually not very good exercise. A several hour bike ride only drops a few hundred calories. One bottle of juice or non-diet soft drink has more calories than you'll drop on a typical casual ride.

Good luck...and be careful!
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 09-20-2009, 12:38 AM:
 
I had another bike riding incident a couple days ago that had me pissed off but good.

I'm riding laps on the bike path at Elmer Thomas Park in Lawton as usual. I'm speeding downhill toward the 3rd street crosswalk. Some big Toyota looking SUV is parked across the cross walk. I wave my arms signaling the SUV to move. I lay into my annoying electronic horn. The fucking SUV is still not moving. Then I start yelling "get the hell out of the damned way already! MOVE!!!!!" This idiot, asshole chick is too busy taking photos of the Edward Scissorhands animal bushes to bother to see something like bicyclists coming from the other direction. I had to veer off the path, hop the curb and go behind this stupid bitch's SUV.

If you want to take photos of the sculpted shrubbery, GET OUT OF YOUR FUCKING VEHICLE TO DO IT, DUMB ASS! Do NOT block the fucking crosswalk!!!!

 

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Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 09-20-2009, 08:28 PM:
 
Martin,

My bicycle seat doesn't have a cutout but it's got a "gully" running down the middle. I have been watching out for the effect you mention. I haven't had a problem yet.

I have made two more circuits around the state park this weekend. Once on Saturday. Once more today. That makes three trips in 4 days. The total distance all the way around it 14.7 miles. That's just about all I want to do.

My first trip around took just a bit under 90 minutes. The second trip, yesterday, took 80 minutes and the third took 76 minutes. My average speed on the last trip was 12 MPH. That's up from 10 MPH on the first ride.

When I was on the swimming team, I learned that the biggest trick to physical conditioning is to keep your heart rate going at a good pace. Find a pace that is 20 beats per minute over your average resting rate and hold that for a minimum of 30 minutes. As you progress and become more fit, you will have to work more, swim harder or ride faster to maintain that rate. As you notice it becoming easier to maintain your pace, you will have to "up the ante" to increase your level of fitness.

The speedometer/trip computer I have on the bike calculates average speed. There are two little arrows to indicate if you are above or below the average. When I started out, I arbitrarily set my speed at 10 MPH. I occasionally monitor my progress to keep my average at or above 10 MPH.

I feel good that I have been able to increase my average speed from 10 to 12 MPH in only a few rides. If I can keep the pace and, hopefully, get it up to 14 or 15 MPH I will be able to burn approximately 1,200 calories per hour of bike riding.

My basal calorie expenditure is approx. 2,500 to 3,000 calories per day. A 1,000 calorie increase is quite a bit. If I can keep spending 1,000 extra calories three days per week, plus keep going for evening walks on the off days I think I'll be in good shape by the time the weather closes in and I have to stop biking for the winter.

My original plan was to get my weight down to 250 pounds by July or August. I'm a bit behind schedule. Right now, I'm at 255 lbs. but if the weather holds I think I can hit my goal, even if it's a bit late.

Bobby,

Most of the riding I have been doing is on a multi-purpose trail. When it was built it was SUPPOSED to be a bike path but, over the years, it got overtaken. Now there are walkers, Rollerbladers and even people taking their dogs for a walk.

Personally, I don't mind other people on the path but it's the "oblivious" ones that really cause trouble. Some people go fast. Some people go slow. That's life. You've just got to get used to shit like that.

But, regardless of how fast or slow a person goes, they have to remember one thing: THEY AREN'T THE ONLY ONES USING THE DAMN PATH!

I go out of my way to slow down when I come up behind somebody. I whistle or holler a warning if I have to. I try to remember that, even though I'm only going 15 MPH, there might be somebody else going 20 MPH, coming right up my ass at any moment.

If there's one thing I learned by cracking up and ending up in the hospital it's patience. But patience can still wear thin when I feel like other people aren't returning the thought.

That fat bitch in the SUV (I don't know if she was really fat but stupid people like that are almost always fat! ) reminds me of the stupid, fat, bitches in the grocery store who clog up the aisle with their shopping carts parked right in the middle of the lane!

I bet your SUV bitch is one of those stupid ones who also park their shopping carts in the middle of an aisle!
 

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Posted by Tim Reed (Member # 137) on 09-20-2009, 09:09 PM:
 

quote: Bobby Henderson

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I'm mainly using the $10,000 barrier as a separator between the high end bikes

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OMG!! If I had to lay down 10-Gs for a bike, it'd be one of these:


 

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Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 09-20-2009, 11:52 PM:
 
Nice!

Funny thing. Every time a doctor saw me in the hospital they kept saying I had a motorcycle accident. I probably had to tell a half-dozen different people, "Bicycle! You know? BI-cycle!"


 

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Posted by Joe Redifer (Member # 3) on 09-21-2009, 12:01 AM:
 
I guess they didn't know you were bi.
 

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Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 09-21-2009, 08:45 AM:
 
Humm, I've had another Film-Tekker post that on my Facebook page recently...
 

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