E
Ez Biker :-\)
Guest
Well fellow recumbo friends, a few weeks back I had the misfortune of rolling over Boca Raton, Fl.
Bridge grating, on a wet road and tires, which (Of course) resulted in a lovely... AND IMMEDIATE
CRASH on the bridge grating. ABSOLUTE "0" control-ability! (With the majority of the weight being
towards the back, via my seat and rear bag, the front wheel just seems to track ever which way,
causing the recumbo to get squirrelly - even on a dry pavement / bridge) Lucky for me, my GRR Ti
handlebar end and Ran's side seat bar took most of the blunt of the crash. My left elbow received a
gash and the mother of all strawberries road rash on my right rear side. However on the mental side
the experience has me stopping to walk over the same bridge or trying to use the side pedestrian
walkway. That phobia has now spread to other bridges as well. Today was clearly THE MOST PATHETIC
DAY IN MY 45 YEARS OF CYCLING.
I'm in the process of talking to local bike activists and see what can be done to get some
protective stripping or covering on the bridge. (Some bridges have a cement strip that is actually
meant to make the bridge grating less noisy, when vehicles roll over it. For years, the State Of
Florida has resisted in any kind of bridge strip additions on it's bridges, sighting the stripping
would add too much weight, for the bridge to lift it. Recently I went and photographed the bridge
and watched numerous DF cyclists navigate over the bridge, VERY CAREFULLY and with GREAT CONCERN
looks on their faces. It's a shame, a State that touts it's self to being a bicycle friendly state,
allows for this kind of cyclist nightmare to exist, without any motivation to re-design more bicycle
friendly bridges.
For now, I'll be riding the opposite way, with only 2 bridges to cross, (Both with the stripping)
and also wearing roller skating elbow pads (Saw a West Palm Beach low racer use them at the recent
local Florida HPV event) as some sort of mental safety insurance. BUT, it's that PHOBIA, that I'm
going to have to contend with for sometime... :-( Sorry for the WHINEY post - just needed to vent
my ANGER and depression for becoming a bridge crossing WIMP.
EZ (Phobic of Bridge Grating) Biker :-((( Pompano Beach, Fl. (GRR Ti & Tailwind Pilot)
Bridge grating, on a wet road and tires, which (Of course) resulted in a lovely... AND IMMEDIATE
CRASH on the bridge grating. ABSOLUTE "0" control-ability! (With the majority of the weight being
towards the back, via my seat and rear bag, the front wheel just seems to track ever which way,
causing the recumbo to get squirrelly - even on a dry pavement / bridge) Lucky for me, my GRR Ti
handlebar end and Ran's side seat bar took most of the blunt of the crash. My left elbow received a
gash and the mother of all strawberries road rash on my right rear side. However on the mental side
the experience has me stopping to walk over the same bridge or trying to use the side pedestrian
walkway. That phobia has now spread to other bridges as well. Today was clearly THE MOST PATHETIC
DAY IN MY 45 YEARS OF CYCLING.
I'm in the process of talking to local bike activists and see what can be done to get some
protective stripping or covering on the bridge. (Some bridges have a cement strip that is actually
meant to make the bridge grating less noisy, when vehicles roll over it. For years, the State Of
Florida has resisted in any kind of bridge strip additions on it's bridges, sighting the stripping
would add too much weight, for the bridge to lift it. Recently I went and photographed the bridge
and watched numerous DF cyclists navigate over the bridge, VERY CAREFULLY and with GREAT CONCERN
looks on their faces. It's a shame, a State that touts it's self to being a bicycle friendly state,
allows for this kind of cyclist nightmare to exist, without any motivation to re-design more bicycle
friendly bridges.
For now, I'll be riding the opposite way, with only 2 bridges to cross, (Both with the stripping)
and also wearing roller skating elbow pads (Saw a West Palm Beach low racer use them at the recent
local Florida HPV event) as some sort of mental safety insurance. BUT, it's that PHOBIA, that I'm
going to have to contend with for sometime... :-( Sorry for the WHINEY post - just needed to vent
my ANGER and depression for becoming a bridge crossing WIMP.
EZ (Phobic of Bridge Grating) Biker :-((( Pompano Beach, Fl. (GRR Ti & Tailwind Pilot)