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    I had a spacetime disagreement with a tree last night.

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    bikelopnik mtb bicycles snow mountain biking two wheels good
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    • StuckMTB
      StuckMTB last edited by

      IMG_5121.jpeg

      There I was, all by myself, out enjoying a nice peaceful evening ride through the snow covered woods. The center of the trail was a bit slick, so I was riding a bit more off-line than I might normally be doing, but all was well.

      WHAM-SLIDE-OOF-SLAM.

      Now I'm on face down on the ground with the wind knocked out of me wondering what the hell happened. Based on my highly skilled and technical forensic analysis, I believe the likely offender is the tree in the foreground of the crime scene image depicted above. I think my wayward line strayed a bit too wide and my knuckles of my right hand decided they would like to occupy the same space as that damned tree.

      IMG_5119.jpeg

      That scrape there on my pinky knuckle was the result (and despite two pairs of gloves), in addition to what's probably a broken middle finger on my left hand. I didn't realize this at the time, but it's slowly been swelling to about 130% of its normal size and it hurts like hell when I try and bend it.

      IMG_5125.jpeg

      I did eventually catch my breath again and finished up my ride. Not one of my best, but definitely entertaining. Stay safe out there, OPPO!

      IMG_5096.jpeg

      2009 Corvette Coupe, 2004 BMW 330Ci, lots n lots of pedal powered things!

      doodon2whls Chariotoflove R BicycleBuck nermal 10 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 13
      • doodon2whls
        doodon2whls @StuckMTB last edited by doodon2whls

        @stuckmtb
        I rapidly egressed from my bi-wheeled trail navigation contraption last fall.

        I leaned into a corner only to realize (too late) that a 4" tree jumped in front of my inboard shoulder, and then I was having a small yardsale in the middle of the trail. Thankfully, I egressed clear of the bi-wheeled thing and only skinned a knee. Thank goodness for gloves, or my palms would have been raspberry-like. I caught my breath and continued on gingerly as I had twanged my knee on impact pretty goodly.

        That chest-blow, though... Fun times. Glad you are OK.

        Y'all be carefy out there.

        (The snow looks peaceful and great for night riding ! The local parks here frown on overnight rides. 😞 )

        '21 K1600GTL
        '18 Jekyll AL3
        '16 F-150 Lariat
        '00 VFR800
        '96 R400

        StuckMTB 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
        • gin-san
          gin-san last edited by

          Dang, glad you're okay.

          I don't think I'll ever do MTB or downhill skiing in the glades like my friends do, I'm confident that a tree would kill me.

          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
          • OPPOsaurus WRX
            OPPOsaurus WRX last edited by

            i've never ridden at night on my own. i feel like if anything ever happened I wouldn't be found until the next morning. The last fall I took I couldn;t figure out how I fell. the best guess I have is that i had used a large root to jump a little and i may have landed on another root with was at an angle and turned my wheel for me. other than that I am completely clueless as to how it happened.

            StuckMTB 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
            • Chariotoflove
              Chariotoflove @StuckMTB last edited by

              @stuckmtb This is the age-old question, isn't it? If an opponaut hits a tree in the forest, and there's no one there to laugh at it, do we really care?

              Kidding aside, I'm glad you're okay. That could have gone badly. I was riding through the park last weekend, and there were EMTs and a fire truck around a guy who hit a pole he didn't see. He was standing but wobbly. So much blood on the ground and him.

              Curator, Kia enthusiast, dad joke specialist

              StuckMTB 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
              • HoustonRunner
                HoustonRunner last edited by

                @StuckMTB and @doodon2whls Those are two of the best descriptions of "I had a bike accident".

                2015 Suburban 4WD / 1988 Suburban (#squarebody) / Hunting older BMWs

                1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 5
                • R
                  RallyWrench @StuckMTB last edited by

                  @stuckmtb Argh, hate when trees reach out and touch us. Hope you get that swelling and pain down!

                  Side note: Riding in the snow sounds very peaceful.

                  1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
                  • StuckMTB
                    StuckMTB @doodon2whls last edited by StuckMTB

                    @doodon2whls @RallyWrench those damned trees! I also had a pretty good knee-knock in there too.

                    2009 Corvette Coupe, 2004 BMW 330Ci, lots n lots of pedal powered things!

                    1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                    • BicycleBuck
                      BicycleBuck @StuckMTB last edited by

                      @stuckmtb Glad you're ok. I'll swear that trees can be evil, reaching out to grab a bar end when you least expect it. It happened to me many times.

                      That bridge reminds me of one particularly bad wreck. They had just built a new bridge for a small crossing, but the trail team hadn't installed any side rails. They also didn't consider speed or direction when they placed it. So, I rounded a corner and was presented with a bridge that was just a little too far off the original line. I just barely missed it and went over the bars. I learned just how rough freshly cut wood can be as it did its best to remove most of the skin off my right thigh. It hurt worse than road rash. Probably because of splinters and dirt.

                      I'd get the finger checked just in case it's a torn tendon and not a cracked bone. One can be fixed with a splint. The other might require surgery.

                      Happy Healing!

                      Never discount the possibility that you might live through it.

                      I 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                      • StuckMTB
                        StuckMTB @OPPOsaurus WRX last edited by

                        @opposaurus-wrx said in I had a spacetime disagreement with a tree last night.:

                        i've never ridden at night on my own. i feel like if anything ever happened I wouldn't be found until the next morning.

                        This fear exactly! I don't typically ride solo at night, but if I do, I'll choose trails that I know are frequented by other loonies like myself so I'm not the only one out there. Last night I was itching to get out there and my usual riding buddies couldn't make it. It was peaceful as hell, but that thought is always in the back of my mind.

                        2009 Corvette Coupe, 2004 BMW 330Ci, lots n lots of pedal powered things!

                        VincentMalamute 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                        • StuckMTB
                          StuckMTB @Chariotoflove last edited by

                          @chariotoflove said in I had a spacetime disagreement with a tree last night.:
                          I was riding through the park last weekend, and there were EMTs and a fire truck around a guy who hit a pole he didn't see. He was standing but wobbly. So much blood on the ground and him.

                          Ouch, hope he made it out alright! That sounds like a scary scene.

                          2009 Corvette Coupe, 2004 BMW 330Ci, lots n lots of pedal powered things!

                          Chariotoflove 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                          • Chariotoflove
                            Chariotoflove @StuckMTB last edited by

                            @stuckmtb said in I had a spacetime disagreement with a tree last night.:

                            Ouch, hope he made it out alright! That sounds like a scary scene.

                            I'd be surprised if he didn't spend the night in a hospital bed under observation.

                            Curator, Kia enthusiast, dad joke specialist

                            1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                            • nermal
                              nermal @StuckMTB last edited by

                              @stuckmtb How did you take the picture of both hands?

                              spacekraken StuckMTB 2 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 2
                              • Cash Rewards
                                Cash Rewards @StuckMTB last edited by

                                @stuckmtb on an adventure race I had the same accident. Right before my wedding too, so that 'hold hands with your new rings' photo had this gnarly wreck of a pinky. This is 13 years ago
                                PXL_20201202_201604683.jpg

                                1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                                • spacekraken
                                  spacekraken @nermal last edited by

                                  @nermal said in I had a spacetime disagreement with a tree last night.:

                                  @stuckmtb How did you take the picture of both hands?

                                  This is the real question...

                                  Glad you're mostly ok and hope the hands heal up well!

                                  Ben | observer of rocks | VW Alltrack and many bikes

                                  1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                                  • StuckMTB
                                    StuckMTB @nermal last edited by StuckMTB

                                    @nermal + @spacekraken I used the timer on the camera app and set it on a higher surface.

                                    2009 Corvette Coupe, 2004 BMW 330Ci, lots n lots of pedal powered things!

                                    1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
                                    • VincentMalamute
                                      VincentMalamute @StuckMTB last edited by VincentMalamute

                                      @stuckmtb said in I had a spacetime disagreement with a tree last night.:

                                      @opposaurus-wrx said in I had a spacetime disagreement with a tree last night.:

                                      i've never ridden at night on my own. i feel like if anything ever happened I wouldn't be found until the next morning.

                                      This fear exactly! I don't typically ride solo at night, but if I do, I'll choose trails that I know are frequented by other loonies like myself so I'm not the only one out there.

                                      I learned that this year too! This summer I got a concussion in a crash and was walking around completely out of it for several hours but my riding buddy kept me from wandering off into the mountains.

                                      A few months ago, we rode up Rollins Pass which is relatively well trafficked but we came back down a double black diamond trail with zero traffic. I face planted and thought I broke facial bones.

                                      After that, we decided to do the risky technical trails close to home and stick to the safer trails if we're riding in the remote mountains. And now I'm always wearing a full face helmet regardless of terrain!

                                      ...meh...

                                      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 3
                                      • trivet
                                        trivet last edited by

                                        f*cking trees think they own the woods.

                                        It was probably drunk when it swerved into you.

                                        Current stable: 2015 WRX Limited, 1987 Fiero GT,
                                        Past cars: 1990 Eagle Talon TSi, 1990 Plymouth Laser RS Turbo, 1982 Pontiac J2000 (my first) and many others I don't want to talk about.......

                                        1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 7
                                        • Highlander
                                          Highlander last edited by

                                          Nothing like hitting the deck clipped in.
                                          789e8320-de76-4c84-a932-7940ec0f8615-image.png

                                          And you may ask yourself, "Where does that highway go to?"

                                          trivet doodon2whls Rusty Vandura 3 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 1
                                          • trivet
                                            trivet @Highlander last edited by trivet

                                            @highlander said in I had a spacetime disagreement with a tree last night.:

                                            Nothing like hitting the deck clipped in.
                                            789e8320-de76-4c84-a932-7940ec0f8615-image.png

                                            Almost as bad - getting clipless pedals (Look) when they were the new hotness (yes, I'm that old - get off my lawn!)
                                            Just like these
                                            Capture.JPG

                                            Zipping around town, keeping up with traffic like the bad ass USCF racer that I was, feeling pretty smug on my fancy Campy Record equipped road bike and Flying Rhinos racing team jersey, coming up to a red light and instinctively tried to pull up and back on my pedals......stayed locked in and fell over in the middle of the street. Pretty much wiped the smugness away......only thing hurt was my pride (almost fatally).

                                            Current stable: 2015 WRX Limited, 1987 Fiero GT,
                                            Past cars: 1990 Eagle Talon TSi, 1990 Plymouth Laser RS Turbo, 1982 Pontiac J2000 (my first) and many others I don't want to talk about.......

                                            1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
                                            • nth256
                                              nth256 last edited by

                                              @StuckMTB Did you... digitally erase your thumbprint from that photo? If so, that's probably brilliant.

                                              1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                              • I
                                                ibRAD @BicycleBuck last edited by

                                                @bicyclebuck said in I had a spacetime disagreement with a tree last night.:

                                                That bridge reminds me of one particularly bad wreck.

                                                Once upon a time that may or may not have involved alcohol, I was zipping around a provincial park (campground) at night with no destination in mind and spied a bridge just like that out of the corner of my eye and decided to alter course and hit the bridge at an angle. Would not have been an issue except the evening dew on the wood wasn't sticky enough and I went down.

                                                I was OK. Nobody saw that. Until all of the sudden there were 2 cops there to help me up. I guess they were hiding in the bushes looking to bust the folks who were actively drinking. haha. they liked my bike and asked lots of questions.

                                                1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
                                                • lokerola
                                                  lokerola last edited by

                                                  I'm gearing up to ride 500K (311 US miles) for the Rapha Festive 500. Usually I have no time for it (even though I'm off work) because of all the in-laws in town. But thanks to the Pandemic (not really), I will have very few obligations this year and hope to get a lot of miles in on the bike.

                                                  Glad you survived relatively unscathed from the crash. I can ride in the wet/snow, or dark (if I have to). But I don't have the nerve to do it when it's both wet and dark.

                                                  1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
                                                  • doodon2whls
                                                    doodon2whls @Highlander last edited by

                                                    @highlander said in I had a spacetime disagreement with a tree last night.:

                                                    Nothing like hitting the deck clipped in.
                                                    789e8320-de76-4c84-a932-7940ec0f8615-image.png

                                                    I dunno how bad the egg-beaters are to get out of, but I use the SPD MTB setup and never have an issue getting out of them. They hold like crazy in the 'spin the crank' direction, but as soon as my ankle kicks out, they release. I think the mistake ppl make is trying to move their toe laterally... You need your foot to rotate which means relaxing your foot and letting it rotate while you move your leg (and ankle) outward.

                                                    '21 K1600GTL
                                                    '18 Jekyll AL3
                                                    '16 F-150 Lariat
                                                    '00 VFR800
                                                    '96 R400

                                                    Highlander StuckMTB 2 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 1
                                                    • SilentbutnotreallyDeadly
                                                      SilentbutnotreallyDeadly @StuckMTB last edited by

                                                      @stuckmtb Trees are cunning like that...I had one reach down and tap me on the head with a branch during a MTB race. Made me go all floppy.

                                                      Bridges on trails can't be trusted either. No sir...

                                                      Approaching hedges arse first...for quite some time

                                                      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
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