Good crashing technique

blorg

Interesting article, I have experience with more than a few of these techniques.

seamus

The low side is the tough one, especially when you're clipped in. The natural reaction is to try stop yourself with the hand closest to the ground.

I've gone over the bars before and landed on both feet perfectly upright in front of the bike. So if you're not clipped in, that's an option.

One thing they missed was the "I'm about to hit something". In this case, you should perform the highest blasphemy of all blasphemes and jump off the back of the bike. Not something I've ever been able to bring myself to do.

droidus

He gets a lot of flak in the comments, but Ive consciously done the over the handlebar roll a couple of times. Its always nasty, but better than landing on your head/face. Im not sure if its worse with or without a backpack though.

lukester

Saw that article in this month's Cycling Plus.

I've never seen a bicycle high-side. Seen lots of motorcycles do it.

blorg

seamus wrote: »

The low side is the tough one, especially when you're clipped in.

Indeed, it is one of my favourites, I have plenty of experience with it. Coming in to a wet hairpin with gravel at 70km/h was the most recent, on aerobars.

droidus wrote: »

He gets a lot of flak in the comments, but Ive consciously done the over the handlebar roll a couple of times. Its always nasty, but better than landing on your head/face. Im not sure if its worse with or without a backpack though.

Indeed, I think the people giving the most flak are those with least experience of crashing. Practice makes perfect.

lukester wrote: »

I've never seen a bicycle high-side. Seen lots of motorcycles do it.

That one stood out as unfamiliar all right, the writer is a mountain biker, maybe it happens there?

lukester

blorg wrote: »

That one stood out as unfamiliar all right

One to add to your collection so :pac:

seamus

blorg wrote: »

That one stood out as unfamiliar all right, the writer is a mountain biker, maybe it happens there?

If you watch downhill, you'll see it happen quite a lot as the rider has to bank left-to-right (and vice versa) very quickly (think of slalom skiing). If they hit a rock or a patch of solid ground while banking, they can be thrown off sideways.

rochefan

Anyone ever practise crashing??? In an article in a cycle mag last year Guirmard (sp?) the coach of Lemond/Hinault etc was maoning about how these days if there is a crash 5 or 6 guys will have broken collar bones because they don't know how to crash.

poochiem

the time i lost it along the canal was high side crash i guess. the funny thing is because of the laptop in my backpack (its always there in the back of your mind) i think it makes you react differently to how you crash...kind of like tripping in the pub, if you have a full pint you're going to save that at all costs!

lukester

lukester wrote: »

I've never seen a bicycle high-side. Seen lots of motorcycles do it.

This crash has often been described as a high side, even though he comes off on the inside of the turn:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RtZhG2kWVLY

Wez

I think when it comes to bags, it really depends what's in them!

Did the over the handle bars once, after barely missing an illegally turning van, smacked a curb straight after. Actually kinda leapfrogged it, but didn't get my feet out in time, smacked my knees off the concrete and then my upper body slammed the ground. I just remember thinking "roll, roll, roll" which saved me alot of grazing and bleeding!

That's one thing that's worked for me a few times, but on a motorbike in leathers, you'd wanna slide, to scrub speed (but keeping gradually rolling to spread the heat).

Really depends how/when it happens, but the best cure is preventing them in the first place! Had a few hairy situations (I'm sure I'm not alone) where I've thought "wow, that woulda been very messy to clean up".

Stay safe!

Alanstrainor

I've done the whole flip over the handle bars one on more than one occasion, i've never landed on my feet mind, but usually flip so i land on my back, which is usually protected by my bag.

briano

poochiem wrote: »

the time i lost it along the canal was high side crash i guess. the funny thing is because of the laptop in my backpack (its always there in the back of your mind) i think it makes you react differently to how you crash...kind of like tripping in the pub, if you have a full pint you're going to save that at all costs!

I had a low side crash on the east wall road, reckoned the (work) laptop saved me from a harder knock on my back. It has been somwhat moody since then admittedly, but it still works.

billy.fish

lukester wrote: »

Saw that article in this month's Cycling Plus.

I've never seen a bicycle high-side. Seen lots of motorcycles do it.

Done it a few times on the MTB, and once on the track in Manchester when someone switched me and front wheel went away from me.

It wasnt pretty.

Thankfully only on the red line at the time

lukester

Motorcycle highsides can be quite spectacular:

dolanator

i find the best way of falling of a pusher is to simply tuck your head between your hands and try roll when you hit the ground ive been knocked down more than ten times and im still alive with no major injurys,i was a courier by the way

lukester

dolanator wrote: »

i was a courier by the way

Did you ride a white Dolan track bike?

dolanator

lukester wrote: »

Did you ride a white Dolan track bike?

not white no

lukester

Must have been someone else I spoke to about a fixed project so.

chakattack

If only I read this last Wednesday!

I've done a flip onto my back before and thankfully was bringing a bag full of clothes home from work so it didn't even hurt.

Wasn't so lucky last week, over the bars face first into the road...all quite slow motion...thought my hands would brace me reverse pressup style....tuck and roll in future....

Saxobank

Thanks for posting that, now to put it into practice, nothing worse than going over the handlebars i find. happened to me once landed on my facem nearly broke my nose, was fixed and on the bike soon after though.

tomasrojo

I hit a rock in the road when I was kid and flew over the handlebars. I instinctively tucked my head, did a forward roll and ended up kneeling in the road after a few rolls.. It may have looked quite impressive. I wish I could go back through time, La Jetee style, and find out.

redmaxi

Had an uncontrolable urge for speed as a youngster (well still do actually), but I had some terrible crashes.
I slammed face down onto a gravely road at 50mph after which I spent two weeks in C.U.H. getting plastic surgery.
I can still see the little stones buried into my skin !.
The worst bit is seeing people recoil in horror as you approach .

fenris

My last significant MTB crash was a high side, dropping into a small gully, with a bit of a slide to the right, both wheels locked into a cut (probably water erosion) and I was flicked into a pine tree about three branches up, followed by a less than dignified Homeresque arse first descent (ouch, ouch, ouch - thud) resulting in a busted wrist (nearly healed).

I am normally pretty good when it comes to crashing, tucking, rolling, not sticking out easily breakable bits etc. but it is the change of direction associated with a high side that nails you, I think that your body starfishes automatically to try and gain some orientation and by the time that it is under control you have hit something, if you have enough time to think then you are probably going for a big hit after big air!

Back in the good old days when mountain bikes didn't have suspension we used to practice over the handle bars crashes by lashing full tilt down the hill into Portlaw (Waterford), and going straight into the river, as the river started shallow, we would get launched over the handlebars tuck into a ball and splash down out towards the middle, good for a laugh, got the bikes semi clean, and helped get some useful reflexes bedded in.