had my first crash this morning eden quay

00sully

just after o'connell bridge, in the cycle lane plodding along at decent enough pace when a girls stepped off the path into the gap between path and cycle lane then straight into cycle lane.

Haven't been cycling too long and didn't have a lot of time to react so pulled both brakes and went over the handle bars - don't even know if I hit her. I landed pretty hard on knee somehow and elbow. I wasn't wearing a helmet (won't do that again!)

anybody see this? was about 8.30 this morning fairly busy too.

Question is, I badly injured myself so as not to hit her, someone in work says I should have used back brake and her as a cushion. She was very apologetic but I just couldn't look at her I was so miffed. bike in the boot on way home

fletch

Nearly got wiped out myself this morning. Was just crossing the Luas tracks before joining the North quays when a girl (on a bike) decides to not look before crossing the road. After coming down the hill from the Phoenix Park and with a wind behind me, I'd say I was nudging 30kph. SLAMMED on the brakes but no way was I going to stop in time, luckily at the last moment, she turned around and saw me and I slipped by. Phew!

While people might advise you that you should have used her as a cushion, I think in reality, instinct takes over and you'll try anything to avoid an impact.

07Lapierre

00sully wrote: »

just after o'connell bridge, in the cycle lane plodding along at decent enough pace when a girls stepped off the path into the gap between path and cycle lane then straight into cycle lane.

Haven't been cycling too long and didn't have a lot of time to react so pulled both brakes and went over the handle bars - don't even know if I hit her. I landed pretty hard on knee somehow and elbow. I wasn't wearing a helmet (won't do that again!)

anybody see this? was about 8.30 this morning fairly busy too.

Question is, I badly injured myself so as not to hit her, someone in work says I should have used back brake and her as a cushion. She was very apologetic but I just couldn't look at her I was so miffed. bike in the boot on way home

Use a Pedestrian as a cushion????? Even if the Ped is 100% in the wrong, I don't think running into them helps anyone.

00sully

it would help me - she literally stepped into the cycle lane and I hurt myself more than I would have if I had of hit her!

I took 2x damage she took 0 - surely 50-50 would be fair considing I totally buckled myself so as not to hit her! If I had of swerved to avoid I could have ended up in a car on my right or through a shop window on my left :-o

Lumen

00sully wrote: »

I took 2x damage she took 0 - surely 50-50 would be fair

You have a duty to avoid a collision but that doesn't mean you have to throw yourself over the handlebars.

Go find some more pedestrians to practice on.

72hundred

Lumen wrote: »

Go find some more pedestrians to practice on.

Fat ones frequent the cycle track in the P park. Probably good to start with the softies.

Captain Havoc

Glad you're OK. You did the right thing though, it's very rare you'll end up going over the bars.

levitronix

Well if it helps i got wiped out last week on my way to work, got pushed into the kerb by and car hit the deck the f"ucker never stoped and broke my right lever , only saving grace it wasnt my good bike

Lumen

72hundred wrote: »

Fat ones frequent the cycle track in the P park. Probably good to start with the softies.

Never mind the softness, think of the inertia!

Runners might be a better bet, usefully lighter and half off their feet already. I often see groups of runners on the cycle tracks in the Park. Skittles anyone?

Captain Havoc

I'm worried about Lumen.

cdaly_

No comments on the possible choices but, to avoid going over the handlebars in an emergency braking situation, you should push yourself as far back on the bike while slamming on the brakes. This shifts your weight further back and makes an up-and-over less likely.

Shouting at the offending pedestrian as you do so probably helps too as you'll get a small jet thrust from your breath as you yell...

tomasrojo

00sully wrote: »

just after o'connell bridge, in the cycle lane plodding along at decent enough pace when a girls stepped off the path into the gap between path and cycle lane then straight into cycle lane.

Glad you're largely ok.
If there are pedestrians nearby, don't cycle near the side of the road. If there's a narrow cycle lane, cycle on the far edge of it and keep half an eye back for near passing drivers. You are quite likely to have a collision with a pedestrian when cycling near the footpath, so keep an arm's length out. If you can't keep that far out, go more slowly than you normally would.

00sully wrote: »

I wasn't wearing a helmet (won't do that again!)

Well, you didn't actually hit your head, did you? You might have hit your head if you had one on, given that it would have made your head considerably bigger. But we already have the Friday Helmet Thread for this week:
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055923125

youcancallmeal

I think I know where your talking about OP and its notoriously dangerous, in fact the entire quays are dangerous. I cycle home that way and I always feel more at ease once I'm off the quays! A few times I have had to shout at pedestrians who start to step onto the road without even looking behind them :mad: I must get a bell or something?

tomasrojo

In fact, if you're fairly new to cycling, keep your speed down when there are a lot of crossing pedestrians. You have to adjust your speed to you reaction times and skill levels, which probably won't be that high until you've been cycling a while.

manwithaplan

I sent a poor unsuspecting pedestrian an obscene distance once. I was travelling down Camden Street at a fair clip. The traffic was at a standstill. I was going up the inside of a bus which was stationary in traffic when its front doors opened and some poor young lad stepped almost directly on to my front wheel. He was almost graceful in flight. I fell off but was perfectly fine. He was very shaken but there didn't appear to be any damage done.

The bus driver, of course, was almost entirely at fault. He hadn't pulled in at all before opening his doors and he wasn't at a bus stop. Presumably the punter asked him if he could let him off and he opened the doors without checking his mirrors (or checked them and didn't see me). I accept a smidgeon of blame in that I was pissing along at close quarters to the stationary traffic.

petethedrummer

When there are pedestrians about you're just gonna have to slow down to avoid this type of thing. You can try and educate them all one by one by using them as cushions but the best thing is just to slow down and expect people to walk out.

BostonB

Its great that you are ok. Pedestrians are unpredictable. Lesson here is to slow down and look ahead. When your in heavy traffic sometimes we forget. North side quays are ok IMO. Its the southside which are the main problem.

Bunnyhopper

I'd like to make it clear that I don't condone crashing into pedestrians, just in case my not explicitly stating it led to accusations of complicity in a criminal cycling conspiracy.

(It is still Friday, after all....)

chakattack

@ OP

Sorry about your accident but you wouldn't feel any better (and probably worse) if she was hurt too.

If you went over the bars on a flat road (been there, done that) you need to practice emergency stops. Pull both front and back equally hard and shift your body weight back over the saddle.

Mute

Title: had my first crash this morning eden quay

Are you expecting many more?:rolleyes:

00sully

Mute wrote: »

Title: had my first crash this morning eden quay

Are you expecting many more?:rolleyes:

nope but it would be naive to think I won't have more/near misses given the the short time I've been cycling, reading this forum AND asking more experienced cyclists :rolleyes:

Instinct took over anywho and I avoided hitting her (mostly I think it's a blur now) so that's how I will always react I guess.

good tip bout leaning back it all happened so fast tho :eek: funny thing is at that spot, there is already a gap between the path and the cycle lane, still should have been aware she could have popped out at any point. bah!

wowzer

I was on eden quay at that time myself, what were you cycling?
That part of the quays is a nightmare,pedestrians can be so silly at times. After cycling along the quays 5 days a week for the past 2 years i definately think the worst spot for an accident is the left turn off the quays towards jervis st car park.. I dont like doing this but i've had to slap or kick numerous cars there when they make a sudden left without checking mirrors etc...

foggy_lad

Ah sure where would you be going with NO BELL on your bike?

I always thought it was compulsory to have a bell or horn on a bycycle to avoid collisions with pedestrians?

tomasrojo

wowzer wrote: »

i definately think the worst spot for an accident is the left turn off the quays towards jervis st car park.. I dont like doing this but i've had to slap or kick numerous cars there when they make a sudden left without checking mirrors etc...

Please don't do that. Somebody will get out and floor you for it one day.

Negotiate your way to the centre of the left-turn lane in advance of that junction and that stops anyone overtaking you and swinging left. It 's much easier and safer. It means ignoring the cycle lane, but this is often the best thing to do.

IM0

manwithaplan wrote: »

I accept 100% of blame in that I was pissing along at close quarters to the stationary traffic.

No?

cdaly_

tomasrojo wrote: »

wowser wrote:

left turn off the quays towards jervis st car park

Please don't do that. Somebody will get out and floor you for it one day.

Negotiate your way to the centre of the left-turn lane in advance of that junction and that stops anyone overtaking you and swinging left. It 's much easier and safer. It means ignoring the cycle lane, but this is often the best thing to do.

I think the issue with this turn is that there is not enough of the bus lane marked for this particular left turn so cars tend to turn / pull in directly from the next lane...

kumate_champ07

the stretch from O Connell Street to Heuston Station I've tried to avoid, way too dangerous with buses and taxis moving thru different lanes.

had a crash last week 20 seconds after leaving the house, a Jag pulled across into the cycle lane then slowed down a bit and decided to turn and indicate across in front if me, he didnt look behind, by the time I realised that he didnt see me I just about brought my speed down but not enough to get to stay on the kike, got thrown off ta good distance and had the car bonnet end up over my head!

a few people stopped there cars and ran over and took my side, I didnt take the guys number as I survived with just a scraped shoulder and no other damage.

I think if youre gonna cycle in the city you will have at least a couple of accidents a year, the more aware you are of your surroundings the less dangerous the accident, possibly..

BostonB

cdaly_ wrote: »

I think the issue with this turn is that there is not enough of the bus lane marked for this particular left turn so cars tend to turn / pull in directly from the next lane...

Also taxi's and buses don't let you in, so you have to force a gap. So you have to look forwards, and backwards at the same time. So as a cyclist you want to make your presence obvious to all.

markpb

kumate_champ07 wrote: »

I think if youre gonna cycle in the city you will have at least a couple of accidents a year, the more aware you are of your surroundings the less dangerous the accident, possibly..

I've been cycling from Santry to Stephens Green (and now Santry to Sandyford) through the city centre for over three years and (touch wood) I haven't had an accident in all that time. It can be very daunting at first because people can be very unpredictable but eventually you'll get to know where (places and circumstances) people do stupid things and learn to mitigate them.

If you see pedestrians close to the edge of the footpath, keep out. If there's a left turn coming up ahead, always be prepared to stop because people will regularly overtake and turn without leaving space. If there's a bus stop ahead of you and a bus stuck in traffic near you, expect passengers to de-bus even if the bus hasn't pulled in fully or hasn't reached the bus stop. Likewise when passing busses stopped at traffic lights, expect pedestrians to run up to the door hoping to get on.

tomasrojo

kumate_champ07 wrote: »

I think if youre gonna cycle in the city you will have at least a couple of accidents a year, the more aware you are of your surroundings the less dangerous the accident, possibly..

I have over two decades of cycling in the city without any collisions. An occasional fall I'd admit is probably inevitable, but collisions should be rare if you are working within your limitations, staying alert and using defensive cycling techniques.

I'm not being smart, but if you have a couple of "accidents" a year then you really are doing something wrong. If you haven't already, read Cyclecraft.

Piste

I've been living in the library in college for past month (gotta love exam season ), I cycle home up Wexford/Aungier/Camden St. and on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturday nights it's absolutely desperate. If it's not drunk pedestrians messing in the cycle lane it's taxis swinging in the minute they think they've spotted a fare. Not to mention the next morning when there's broken glass everywhere

Fatscally

00sully wrote: »

it would help me - she literally stepped into the cycle lane and I hurt myself more than I would have if I had of hit her!

If you step out in front of a car at what point will the car driver get the right to hit you? Pedestrians have right of way and it's your duty to avoid them at all costs.

72hundred wrote: »

Fat ones frequent the cycle track in the P park. Probably good to start with the softies.

Glad to be of some service

Fatscally

manwithaplan wrote: »

I sent a poor unsuspecting pedestrian an obscene distance once. I was travelling down Camden Street at a fair clip. The traffic was at a standstill. I was going up the inside of a bus which was stationary in traffic when its front doors opened and some poor young lad stepped almost directly on to my front wheel. He was almost graceful in flight. I fell off but was perfectly fine. He was very shaken but there didn't appear to be any damage done.

The bus driver, of course, was almost entirely at fault. He hadn't pulled in at all before opening his doors and he wasn't at a bus stop. Presumably the punter asked him if he could let him off and he opened the doors without checking his mirrors (or checked them and didn't see me). I accept a smidgeon of blame in that I was pissing along at close quarters to the stationary traffic.

A fairly sickening post to see you learned nothing and just blamed the bus driver (bar a smidgeon). I assume that with the rest of the recklessness that you weren't visible to the driver or the alighting passenger either. Traveling at speed in close quarters you gave nobody a chance to react.
You knew the bus was there and the potential danger and you didn't allow for it by cooling your speed or by not using that route at all.

Tau

00sully wrote: »

just after o'connell bridge, in the cycle lane plodding along at decent enough pace when a girls stepped off the path into the gap between path and cycle lane then straight into cycle lane.

Haven't been cycling too long and didn't have a lot of time to react so pulled both brakes and went over the handle bars - don't even know if I hit her. I landed pretty hard on knee somehow and elbow. I wasn't wearing a helmet (won't do that again!)

anybody see this? was about 8.30 this morning fairly busy too.

Question is, I badly injured myself so as not to hit her, someone in work says I should have used back brake and her as a cushion. She was very apologetic but I just couldn't look at her I was so miffed. bike in the boot on way home

You're assuming that going over the handle bars was the fastest way to stop - its not. The fastest way to stop (on a dry clean road) is to use the front brake only. You should have braked to slow down as fast as possible. This shouldn't involve coming off the bike.

Incidentally, a lot of people only ever use their front brake in emergencies and then end up going over the handlebars as a result - people should really practice emergency stops - even if you do only do it from 10kph you get and idea of how hard you can pull the front brake to stop quickly - it might be quite a bit more than you think.