Man down phoenix park

Pinch Flat · 28-01-2015 10:52am #1

Witnessed a nasty accident this morning. I was on the cycle lane coming through the castleknock gate, guy beside me on a carbon Corretec was accelerating beside me on the road - then bang - out of the blue both his forks snapped, about a quarter way down. Didn't hit anything - pothole, car etc. He went straight over and took the fall on his face - he was knocked out cold for about 20 seconds. Dropped my bike and ran over to him - he was unresponsive. Thankfully an eastern European girl was driving beside - turns out she was a nurse in James so gave her scarf to stop the bleeding in his face which was badly cut - gave him the once over and kept him warm with a blanket she took from the car. Put my waterproof jacket under him to keep the wet grass off him. Called an ambulance - seemed to take an age to come - and his girl friend as well on his mobile. She came and was a bit shocked - he was being loaded onto the spinal board as a precaution at this stage. Loaded his bike into the car for her.

Hopefully he's ok- he took a fair impact. 2 bad cuts on his face, knee badly cut. Took him about 15 minutes to work our where / what was going on, so he's being brought to the hospital for observation. Fair play to all that stopped in - good few cyclists and the two cars.

mickeyrooo · 28-01-2015 10:56am

Was he wearing a helmet?

Pinch Flat · 28-01-2015 10:58am

mickeyrooo wrote: »

Was he wearing a helmet?

Yes

tunney · 28-01-2015 11:09am

Pinch Flat wrote: »

Yes

Thats what caused it then

Orion · 28-01-2015 11:14am

mickeyrooo wrote: »

Was he wearing a helmet?

Seemingly a helmet doesn't stop forks from snapping. I could be wrong though.

happytramp · 28-01-2015 11:14am

mickeyrooo wrote: »

Was he wearing a helmet?

No, I hope he's okay. No, that sounds awful..... Classy fella.

Lumen · 28-01-2015 11:15am

Passed that myself about 8.45 as he was lying on the back board.

Looked like he'd done a few rounds with Katie Taylor.

Hope he's OK!

Chips Lovell · 28-01-2015 11:16am

mickeyrooo wrote: »

Was he wearing a helmet?

This is insensitive and irrelevant. Leave it.

check_six · 28-01-2015 11:31am

That's got to be one of the ultimate fears for a cyclist, sudden catastrophic equipment failure. You can't legislate for that at all.

Hope the rider recovers quickly.

Pinch Flat · 28-01-2015 11:34am

check_six wrote: »

That's got to be one of the ultimate fears for a cyclist, sudden catastrophic equipment failure. You can't legislate for that at all.

Hope the rider recovers quickly.

Have to say I was shocked witnessing it. Both forks sheared out of the blue for no apparent reason.

arybvtcw0eolkf · 28-01-2015 11:37am

A similar accident happened to a mate of mine a few years ago, although his injuries weren't quite so bad (from the OP's description) but I've always had a little irrational fear of it happening to me since (only one of my bikes has carbon forks).

Fair dues to the OP for lending a hand. I've had many crashes over the years and often times all it takes is a supportive voice, a gentle hand from a complete stranger to completely calm a situation where your mind is all over the place.

I'm sure you brought him a lot of comfort OP.

CramCycle · 28-01-2015 11:41am

As Makikomi says, a person beside you soon after makes a huge difference, I have not had many crashes but it has made a difference. The one time no one stopped for awhile, even though it was not a serious crash, was more terrifying at the time.

Fair play for getting straight over

Jawgap · 28-01-2015 11:43am

check_six wrote: »

That's got to be one of the ultimate fears for a cyclist, sudden catastrophic equipment failure. You can't legislate for that at all.

Hope the rider recovers quickly.

Nothing as serious as what @pinch_flat witnessed, but a while back I had a crank fail catastrophically as I was out of the saddle and pushing up a small rise.

Found myself heading over the handlebars and I remember thinking very clearly that I'd been clobbered from behind - anyway, sprawled in the road as I was (it was a fairly busy main road) - I lay there for a second trying to figure out (a) what happened and (b) if any bit of me was broken.......thankfully a sensitive motorist arrived and blew his horn to get me to pick myself up and move out of the road......he obviously thought I'd stopped for a bit of a lie down, as you do.

Another chap on the other side of the road proved to be more of a good Samaritan.

Here's hoping the guy this morning has a rapid recovery. I wonder how old the bike was.

dermo1990 · 28-01-2015 11:55am

Saw the guy sitting up while being tended to by paramedics just after half 8, hope he isn't badly injured. Was wondering what happened to him since I was hit about a week ago in the park, was hoping it wasn't that. Its always nice for the victim to have someone stop and take care of you, made a big difference

P_Fitz · 28-01-2015 11:59am

Jep Gambardella wrote: »

This is insensitive and irrelevant. Leave it.

At the risk of getting shot what was wrong with the question?

There was a lot of thanks to your reply so I'm braced for the onslaught!

diomed · 28-01-2015 11:59am

Pinch Flat wrote: »

both his forks snapped, about a quarter way down.

Both forks snapped is frightening. The only positive I can think of is it didn't happen in heavy traffic, or coming downhill on a solo spin in the mountains.

I hope he recovers quickly and he has no permanent damage. He might not even know what happened.
Well done Pinch Flat and the nurse who helped.

Pinch Flat · 28-01-2015 12:00pm

Jawgap wrote: »

.....I lay there for a second trying to figure out (a) what happened and (b) if any bit of me was broken.......thankfully a sensitive motorist arrived and blew his horn to get me to pick myself up and move out of the road......he obviously thought I'd stopped for a bit of a lie down, as you do.

Yeah I was kind of surprised about the whole thing and how it panned out. My wife worked in Beaumont hospital for a while, so I heard stories of people that had concussion or head trauma being aggressive - natural reaction when shock and adrenaline kicks in. He was a big lad - I'm 6'2" so maybe a bit taller than me. When I went over to him, I picked up his bike, phone and smashed glasses from the road. When I produced his phone and asked if there was anyone I could ring he got a bit spooked and tried to get up - he had no idea where he was, if he'd been asleep, how did he get to where he was, what day of the week - nothing.

It took the nurse running back from her car and another couple of people to help him out - the cars immediately beside where it happened when just gawked out and kept going in the crawling queue of traffic.

Yeah I had someone beep at me a few years ago when I did a really inconsiderate thing - in back to back traffic, I slid on ice in front if him, bike went from under me and I came down heavily on my knee. I was still clipped into the bike when I fell. I

His beeping and almost running over me as he swan necked around me was most welcome. I hope he'll get that 10 seconds back some day.

Pinch Flat · 28-01-2015 12:03pm

P_Fitz wrote: »

At the risk of getting shot what was wrong with the question?

There was a lot of thanks to your reply so I'm braced for the onslaught!

If you need to ask there's probaly no point asking. The guy came down face first from the bike - having a helmet was of little use to him. His face took the full impact.

CramCycle · 28-01-2015 12:04pm

P_Fitz wrote: »

At the risk of getting shot what was wrong with the question?

There was a lot of thanks to your reply so I'm braced for the onslaught!

MOD VOICE: It comes across as victim blaming and is in fact irrelevant to the accident, as Jeb has pointed out before, leave it there is you have an issue, discuss it with me via PM, not in thread.

tunney · 28-01-2015 12:18pm

Pinch Flat wrote: »

If you need to ask there's probaly no point asking. The guy came down face first from the bike - having a helmet was of little use to him. His face took the full impact.

Oh no. Yuck.

check_six · 28-01-2015 12:24pm

Jawgap wrote: »

.......thankfully a sensitive motorist arrived and blew his horn to get me to pick myself up and move out of the road......he obviously thought I'd stopped for a bit of a lie down, as you do.

Bonkers behaviour from the driver! Weirdly, I'd guess if they were on foot they'd come over and help you out. Being cocooned inside a car sometimes cuts people off from their humanity. Glad to hear there was pelnty of assistance this morning.

I had a chain snap suddenly once and it was like the handlebars jumped up and punched me in the face (in reality I was powering myself towards the ground). Not fun!

not yet · 28-01-2015 12:35pm

Is this a very unusual thing to happen i.e Carbon forks giving out..

As said by a previous poster it is your worst nightmare.

Kudos Pinch flat, If only there were more like you..

markens2 · 28-01-2015 12:41pm

Fair play for stopping OP. Nice to know there are some good people out there.

I hit black ice right on the edge of the road a car was squeezing me from behind almost into the ditch. Needless to say I went sprawling on the deck. I was picking gravel outta my arse for days. Unfortunately not one person stopped to see was I okay. Thought I was fine until I got to work. My helmet was pretty badly damaged and turned out I had concussion. Lucky enough my boss was awake and noticed how shook I was and sent me home.

Hope the guy who fell is okay. If there is any silver lining he has an excuse to get a new bike once he's back on his feet.

Dcully · 28-01-2015 1:26pm

Jaysus im worried, im riding a corratec alu frame with carbon forks, should i be worried?
Im not one of those super-thin athletic cyclists either, im a big lad hence my concern.
Hope that chap is alright.

Chips Lovell · 28-01-2015 1:30pm

Random material failure is a very rare occurrence and isn't confined to carbon. For example, I can think of at least two Boardsies who've had aluminium handlebars snap unexpectedly, mid-spin.

magicbastarder · 28-01-2015 1:33pm

plus, we don't know the history of the bike, whether it may have taken a previous hard knock which may have compromised it.

Pinch Flat · 28-01-2015 2:31pm

magicbastarder wrote: »

plus, we don't know the history of the bike, whether it may have taken a previous hard knock which may have compromised it.

I noticed the front tyre was flat when I lifted it into his girlfriends car - perhaps it's was a blow out or the front tyre coming off the rim that got stuck - couldn't see and didn't inspect it in detail. Just pure speculation

Wishbone Ash · 28-01-2015 6:33pm

Jawgap wrote: »

.......thankfully a sensitive motorist arrived and blew his horn to get me to pick myself up and move out of the road...

I took a spill on a muddy bend on a narrow back road a few months ago. A motorist who was immediately following me, and who would have witnessed my fall, expressed annoyance at having to negotiate his way around my crashed bike. I was just picking myself off the ground and hadn't had a chance to get to it. I caused him about 10 seconds delay but I suppose he'll never get that back.

Rojo · 28-01-2015 6:48pm

That is terrifying - hope he's ok. I'm spooked about my own bike now!!

Thargor · 28-01-2015 7:02pm

Carbon forks on my Boardman are 4 years old now and they've had some serious thwacks over the years, might be time to use my bike2work credit.

Wishbone Ash · 28-01-2015 7:19pm

Jep Gambardella wrote: »

Random material failure is a very rare occurrence and isn't confined to carbon. For example, I can think of at least two Boardsies who've had aluminium handlebars snap unexpectedly, mid-spin.

Didn't another Boardsie have a steerer/headset suddenly disintegrate during a ride?

billyhead · 28-01-2015 7:30pm

You cant be riding around on your bike being paranoid and being fearful about this scenario happening to you. If you think the integrity of your carbon frame or forks have been compromised i.e visible chip, dent crack etc then get it checked out and don't ignore it, but to allow this incident play on your mind when your riding your bike in future is pointless.

Inbox · 28-01-2015 8:54pm

Would it help if you wrapped your forks with tape. Might give you a chance to realise what's happening.

OldBean · 28-01-2015 8:58pm

Then you run the risk of not seeing a potential fault forming. I'd rather be able to check for stress/cracks/chips.

Hope the poor chap is alright.

crosstownk · 28-01-2015 9:34pm

I hope the cyclist is OK. It's an unusual circumstance by all accounts.

As others have said, being stressed or concerned about a catastrophic component failure is futile. Just get on the bike.

Stressing yourself about potential failures is pointless. If I was to stress about things like that, I'd never drive a car, get on an aeroplane or get out of bed in the morning.

Raam · 28-01-2015 9:38pm

Jep Gambardella wrote: »

Random material failure is a very rare occurrence and isn't confined to carbon. For example, I can think of at least two Boardsies who've had aluminium handlebars snap unexpectedly, mid-spin.

One was me, or at least it happened to me. I had been out in Howth doing repeats. The bars gave way when I was heading back home so I was on the flat and thankfully not tearing down the hill.

The accident today sounds horrible and not something I wish anyone to experience.

ROK ON · 28-01-2015 9:48pm

OP good for helping that person. Hopefully the karma will be repaid in spades.

I have had a steam crack on my while cleaning the bike - thankfully then as opposed to out on the road - I keep it on my sideboard as a memento.
On the Etape Ras Mumhan a few years back I had a left crank sheer off.
Sometimes stuff fails. This chap sounded unlucky.
Horrible thing to witness I would imagine.

iwillhtfu · 28-01-2015 9:52pm

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

I took a spill on a muddy bend on a narrow back road a few months ago. A motorist who was immediately following me, and who would have witnessed my fall, expressed annoyance at having to negotiate his way around my crashed bike. I was just picking myself off the ground and hadn't had a chance to get to it. I caused him about 10 seconds delay but I suppose he'll never get that back.

Just to balance things out a bit for the motorists. I took a heavy spill back at the start of December on a slippery bend motorist not far behind pulled in and ran down to check I was ok. Nothing major wrong but she was more than helpful offered to call ambulance/drop home even a cuppa as she lived down the road. Cuts and bruises so back on the horse and carry on pride firmly dented.

Hope the lad mentioned in op is quick to bounce back. Fair play op for lending a hand as others have said a calm voice is a welcome sound when your on the floor in a heap. Alhough I'd have killed you if you called my missus

lucernarian · 29-01-2015 10:48am

Hearing the stories about motorists when they are ignorant really gets my goat. I'm thinking that passer-bys should pull over in most circumstances if they are the first one to come across a pedestrian or cyclist who just had a bad fall. It takes some a-hole to ignore an accident and look inconvenienced about it too!

tunney · 29-01-2015 10:55am

Raam wrote: »

One was me, or at least it happened to me. I had been out in Howth doing repeats. The bars gave way when I was heading back home so I was on the flat and thankfully not tearing down the hill.

The accident today sounds horrible and not something I wish anyone to experience.

I had a wheel completely collapse on me. Went from circular to collapsed rim and all broken spokes in a second. Thankfully on an uphill.

buffalo · 29-01-2015 1:22pm

Both times I've had bad accidents on the bike, passers-by have all been extremely helpful. From the driver who pulled in behind me while I was lying in the open road and blocked the lane, to the passing doctor who performed a quick concussion test.

One driver with whom I collided told me later that he tried to move his car away from me to give the ambo crew more room, and someone else cut him off and boxed him in because they thought he was trying to flee the scene!

Bloggsie · 29-01-2015 6:19pm

Pinch Flat wrote: »

Witnessed a nasty accident this morning. I was on the cycle lane coming through the castleknock gate, guy beside me on a carbon Corretec was accelerating beside me on the road - then bang - out of the blue both his forks snapped, about a quarter way down. Didn't hit anything - pothole, car etc. He went straight over and took the fall on his face - he was knocked out cold for about 20 seconds. Dropped my bike and ran over to him - he was unresponsive. Thankfully an eastern European girl was driving beside - turns out she was a nurse in James so gave her scarf to stop the bleeding in his face which was badly cut - gave him the once over and kept him warm with a blanket she took from the car. Put my waterproof jacket under him to keep the wet grass off him. Called an ambulance - seemed to take an age to come - and his girl friend as well on his mobile. She came and was a bit shocked - he was being loaded onto the spinal board as a precaution at this stage. Loaded his bike into the car for her.

Hopefully he's ok- he took a fair impact. 2 bad cuts on his face, knee badly cut. Took him about 15 minutes to work our where / what was going on, so he's being brought to the hospital for observation. Fair play to all that stopped in - good few cyclists and the two cars.

fair play Pinchflat for stopping & looking out for him.

I had the mudder & fadder of cramps last summer while out on a spin out the dunboyne/dunshaughlin way & not one hoor in a car stopped to see if I was alright while lying in the road trying to stretch it out, limped about 25 kms home on 1 leg at about 10 kms p/hour, the most depressing time i have had since getting i the saddle.

Hope the poor guy is okay & gets back on the bike again soon.(obivously the the one from this morning)

Unknown Soldier · 29-01-2015 10:06pm

Pinch Flat wrote: »

Witnessed a nasty accident this morning. I was on the cycle lane coming through the castleknock gate, guy beside me on a carbon Corretec was accelerating beside me on the road - then bang - out of the blue both his forks snapped, about a quarter way down. Didn't hit anything - pothole, car etc. He went straight over and took the fall on his face - he was knocked out cold for about 20 seconds. Dropped my bike and ran over to him - he was unresponsive. Thankfully an eastern European girl was driving beside - turns out she was a nurse in James so gave her scarf to stop the bleeding in his face which was badly cut - gave him the once over and kept him warm with a blanket she took from the car. Put my waterproof jacket under him to keep the wet grass off him. Called an ambulance - seemed to take an age to come - and his girl friend as well on his mobile. She came and was a bit shocked - he was being loaded onto the spinal board as a precaution at this stage. Loaded his bike into the car for her.

Hopefully he's ok- he took a fair impact. 2 bad cuts on his face, knee badly cut. Took him about 15 minutes to work our where / what was going on, so he's being brought to the hospital for observation. Fair play to all that stopped in - good few cyclists and the two cars.

Fair play to you, Pinch Flat.

Did you leave your details with the GF or anyone?

As someone who recently found themselves sprawled all over the road due to an accident, the most annoying part, for me anyways, is that I haven't been able to track down the kind lady who threw a coat over me and stayed with me till the paramedics took over.

I wasn't really thinking at the time and never got a chance to thank her. At this stage I've exhausted almost every avenue.

I'd love to be able to say thanks.

Beasty · 29-01-2015 10:46pm

I've been on both sides of this situation. First time was about 6 years ago when I crashed at speed when commuting. Don't think I was knocked out but I suffered a bad concusion and have no recollection of what happened but one guy stopped and when the dust settled put my bike in the back of his car, and a note with his contact details in my rucsack (which accompanied me to hospital). I really appreciated the opportunity to track him down and thank him for his help. He gave me a bit more info, including telling me that one of the drivers who had stopped had got some blankets from their car to wrap around me until the ambulance arrived

2nd time was 2-3 years later when I saw a cyclist down - it must have happened a minute or two earlier. I stopped along with a few others. Fortunately it didn't take long for Gardai and then an ambulance to arrive. I recognised the guy involved as we shared a large section of our commute and had spoken a few times. Remembering my own experience I made sure I looked after his bike (alas it ended up written off) and also that he had my contact details for his trip to hospital. I also managed to get his own next of kin details and was able to speak to his wife to let her know what had happened and also give here some reassurance

Last year, again I suffered a major concussion, but was also unconscious for most of the 45 mins it took an ambulance to arrive. Hence I was entirely reliant on 3rd party reports - it was bucketing down and the temperature was hovering around 3 degrees, but again someone just happened to have some blankets available! I made sure I took the first opportunity to thank the guy who looked after my bike, and he helped me track down the medic who had saved my life.

lucernarian · 30-01-2015 2:13am

I don't know anyone who's been knocked off their bike by another vehicle but there's quite a few posters who are reporting this experience here. Would those who have hit, considered themselves lucky?

I can imagine situations whereby someone doesn't recognise that there is an injured pedestrian or cyclist nearby because they mightn't notice that limp or clutching of an arm etc. Or they're walking their bike to take a break rather than because there is a puncture etc. Perception can be a pain.

A4droppedalot · 01-02-2015 5:09pm

Spoke to the victim in question today, cycling pal. He's fine, just resting up for a couple of weeks. Swollen face, stiches in face, scans cleared. He said he was really appreciative of all the random help including the lady who sacrificed her scarf to stem the bleeding. He was wearing a helmet which cracked correctly on the right temple, made the difference. Forks simply failed, cuts everywhere, road was "rough" there which seemed to cause vibrations but whether this caused it is unknown. Terrifying stuff but he's very thankful for all the help and will be racing a4 cat is year.

magicbastarder · 01-02-2015 5:54pm

a colleague of mine came off on black ice last weekend and lost one of his front teeth.
he was giving me some advice on what to do if you lose a tooth in a situation like the above (through some ineptitude with some local dental practices (this was in the UK) it was three hours before he saw a dentist, by which time the tooth was dead) - don't wash it, and don't put it in milk to keep it alive - both will kill it; the best thing you can do is wipe it clean and insert it back in the hole; this keeps it at body temperature, can help re-establish a tiny bit of blood supply, and keeps the hole from swelling and closing up before you get to the dentist.

seventeen sheep · 01-02-2015 6:05pm

billyhead wrote: »

You cant be riding around on your bike being paranoid and being fearful about this scenario happening to you. If you think the integrity of your carbon frame or forks have been compromised i.e visible chip, dent crack etc then get it checked out and don't ignore it, but to allow this incident play on your mind when your riding your bike in future is pointless.

I'm not a cyclist anymore, but I do drive a car, and reading this thread makes me even more aware that there's always the chance of an essential piece of machinery giving out at any moment, no matter how well you maintain it.

I'm delighted to hear that (as above) the cyclist in question is recovering well. And I'd agree with what's expressed above - you can't live in fear of your equipment giving out at a crucial time. Sh*t happens any time, anywhere. By all means do what you can do to prevent it (by keeping your maintenance and repairs up-to-date) - but don't be worrying about the freak accidents that you cannot possibly prevent.

Pinch Flat · 01-02-2015 6:12pm

A4droppedalot wrote: »

Spoke to the victim in question today, cycling pal. He's fine, just resting up for a couple of weeks. Swollen face, stiches in face, scans cleared. He said he was really appreciative of all the random help including the lady who sacrificed her scarf to stem the bleeding. He was wearing a helmet which cracked correctly on the right temple, made the difference. Forks simply failed, cuts everywhere, road was "rough" there which seemed to cause vibrations but whether this caused it is unknown. Terrifying stuff but he's very thankful for all the help and will be racing a4 cat is year.

Good to hear - he contacted me through the forum. Glad he's ok and says he's getting back on a(nother) bike soon. Chapeau!

arybvtcw0eolkf · 01-02-2015 6:53pm

A4droppedalot wrote: »

Spoke to the victim in question today, cycling pal. He's fine, just resting up for a couple of weeks. Swollen face, stiches in face, scans cleared. He said he was really appreciative of all the random help including the lady who sacrificed her scarf to stem the bleeding. He was wearing a helmet which cracked correctly on the right temple, made the difference. Forks simply failed, cuts everywhere, road was "rough" there which seemed to cause vibrations but whether this caused it is unknown. Terrifying stuff but he's very thankful for all the help and will be racing a4 cat is year.

Someone was tore a new one earlier in the thread for asking a question I bet more than one or two of us wondered (regarding your mate wearing a helmet), on the very rare occasion I don't wear one, stories like this are a reminder not to be silly with my safety.

Re. the lady giving her scarf & the help from the OP, aren't people pretty amazing and caring sometimes. Fair play to 'em, fair play and regards to your mate, wishing him a speedy recovery.

Beasty · 01-02-2015 7:50pm

Maisie Obedient Pin wrote: »

Someone was tore a new one earlier in the thread for asking a question I bet more than one or two of us wondered (regarding your mate wearing a helmet), on the very rare occasion I don't wear one, stories like this are a reminder not to be silly with my safety.

Just to be clear (and there is to be no more discussion on this point in thread), we had a poster making their first post in the forum not asking how the cyclist was, wishing them a speedy recovery, or trying to understand what had happened. They asked a single question - was he wearing a helmet. That was totally insensitive given we had absolutely no idea of the condition of the cyclist at the time, and a large number of regulars are sick to the back teeth of people coming into the forum and telling them what they think is good for them.

We have a helmet megathread to allow those who have read through and indeed contributed to countless helmet threads the opportunity to avoid going through the same debate again and equally provide a readily accessible resource for anyone who does wish to understand both sides of the argument or contribute to the debate.

Again though, I will re-iterate, this is entirely off topic for this thread. We now know the cyclist was wearing a helmet. The effect of wearing that helmet is entirely a matter of speculation (and again to be clear I speak as someone who genuinely believes, but can never know for sure, a helmet saved my life in a cycling accident)

Man down phoenix park

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