Down twice

For the whole winter thus far, I have not "had a spill" as they say. When people ask me whether or not I fall during my Winter riding, I say "Yes, I usually go down two or three times a season." And then they ask me whether it hurts, and I say "Not as much in winter as it does in Summer." In Winter, when I go down, it's usually on ice, and I and the bike will slip earthward in a kind of arc. Sometimes I stay with the bike, and sometimes not. Whatever the case, going down in Winter is much less traumatic than going down in Summer.

Well today I went down twice. We had a few warm days at the end of last week, so the snow melted. Then we had a bit of rain too, which froze when it got cold again. And then it got really cold, and windy, so the icy sections were really buffed.

So Monday's ride was cautious, but successful, and this morning's ride was the same, but into a stiff West wind. I stayed at work late however, so it was dark by the time I got on the bike. I have lights, but they don't really tell you clearly, or with enough warning, that you're about to meet an icy patch. So today, heading home, with wind, at a good pace, at more or less a complete surprise, I met a patch of ice that I could not handle. The bike seemed to fly out from under me, because I was moving pretty fast, and the two of us slid for about 10 yards - separately.

Well there was no damage done to the bike (not even the chain was off), and I thought nothing was done to me, so after I was done cursing and inspecting and readjusting the lights, I got back on and kept riding (I was about two mile from home). Then, just as I was turning onto the yard, I met another patch that I couldn't handle and the bike slid out again. This time the chain came off. Disgusted, I just walked last few metres to the house.

When I got the bike in I had to adjust the seat, and put on the chain, but everything else was fine. When I took off my gear I found a rip in my jacket, about where there was a reasonable scrape on my forearm, and as the evening wore on, my left hip and knee began to ache. Right now my knee is pretty stiff.

So I'm just about at my quota of falls for the winter. It wasn't too bad really, I think if I'd been riding in the light, I'd have been able to find a less slippery spot. (I'm sure there's a spiritual lesson in there somewhere.)

Ride report

in: -21'C wind W 40 ks (very cold on big Jim and the twins)

out: -17'C wind W 30 ks