G
Gags
Guest
After 4 and a half years of riding in Melbourne I finally had a stack on the
tram tracks tonight. Just as I left work it absolutely ****** down with
rain for about 5 minutes or so and everything got pretty wet. I cut through
between the MCG and Rod Laver arena as per usual then got up to Wellington
Parade and went to cross over the tram tracks. I made it over the first set
OK and the first track of the second set.....I then rode along the tracks
for a bit until a gap in the traffic and then went to cut over to the left
hand side of the road. A combination of wet tracks, worn tyre, not enough
angle of approach, and accelerating to get across the road resulted in my
rear tyre sliding out from under me to the right!!! I ended up on my bum in
the middle of the road and my bike skidded all the way across the lane and
an empty parking spot and into the gutter (luckily there was no parked car
there). I got up really quickly to get off the road as there was a car
coming and jumped on the bike again. It wasn't until I got around the
corner that my leg, fingers, and arm started to hurt a bit.
I stopped to take stock of the situation and it turns out I got off pretty
lightly. Because the ground was so wet I pretty well skidded and only ended
up with a bit of road rash on my upper left shin, slightly tingly fingertips
(not scraped enough to graze them though) and a bit of a bump to my left
forearm. I was initially pretty concerned about this as it was the same arm
I broke about 18 months ago but it feels fine now so I assume I got away
with it. Most importantly the bike came out OK with only a bit of
scratching on the handlebar plug and the LHS of the rear quick release.
There was also a slight graze on the LH rear of the seat but it is not too
bad (I think the wet road reduced the overall damage).
To make it worse, I had a near miss earlier in the week when the rear tyre
(a really worn 26 x 1.5 IRC Metro Slick) slipped on the tram tracks but I
caught it before I fell off - I went into Peter Moore last night and bought
a new set of Schwabb 26 x 1.75 tyres but didn't get around to fitting them
last night (they are still hanging in the shed).
Oh well......I just hope I can go at least another 4.5 years before that
happens again!!!
Gags
tram tracks tonight. Just as I left work it absolutely ****** down with
rain for about 5 minutes or so and everything got pretty wet. I cut through
between the MCG and Rod Laver arena as per usual then got up to Wellington
Parade and went to cross over the tram tracks. I made it over the first set
OK and the first track of the second set.....I then rode along the tracks
for a bit until a gap in the traffic and then went to cut over to the left
hand side of the road. A combination of wet tracks, worn tyre, not enough
angle of approach, and accelerating to get across the road resulted in my
rear tyre sliding out from under me to the right!!! I ended up on my bum in
the middle of the road and my bike skidded all the way across the lane and
an empty parking spot and into the gutter (luckily there was no parked car
there). I got up really quickly to get off the road as there was a car
coming and jumped on the bike again. It wasn't until I got around the
corner that my leg, fingers, and arm started to hurt a bit.
I stopped to take stock of the situation and it turns out I got off pretty
lightly. Because the ground was so wet I pretty well skidded and only ended
up with a bit of road rash on my upper left shin, slightly tingly fingertips
(not scraped enough to graze them though) and a bit of a bump to my left
forearm. I was initially pretty concerned about this as it was the same arm
I broke about 18 months ago but it feels fine now so I assume I got away
with it. Most importantly the bike came out OK with only a bit of
scratching on the handlebar plug and the LHS of the rear quick release.
There was also a slight graze on the LH rear of the seat but it is not too
bad (I think the wet road reduced the overall damage).
To make it worse, I had a near miss earlier in the week when the rear tyre
(a really worn 26 x 1.5 IRC Metro Slick) slipped on the tram tracks but I
caught it before I fell off - I went into Peter Moore last night and bought
a new set of Schwabb 26 x 1.75 tyres but didn't get around to fitting them
last night (they are still hanging in the shed).
Oh well......I just hope I can go at least another 4.5 years before that
happens again!!!
Gags