Do real cyclists stay on?

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Pastychomper
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Do real cyclists stay on?

Post by Pastychomper »

Years ago I was told of a tradition that a horse rider is not a "real rider" until (s)he's fallen off seven times. Presumably this is based on the truism that everyone who does enough miles will come off eventually, and the somewhat shakier notion that having come off means one has done "enough" miles.

Has anyone heard of a similar tradition for cycling? And does the number vary according to the number of wheels used?

If it's the same number across the board then I must be a real cyclist by now, but I'm still working on the horse offs.
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Si
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Re: Do real cyclists stay on?

Post by Si »

I always tell my trainees something similar when they have their first fall.

In terms of experienced cyclists having falls....I think it can happen quite a lot depending on what kind of cyclist you are. For instance I do a lot of off-roading and so expect to come off now and then. I also do a lot of riding in exceedingly busy traffic in the city centre, in all weather conditions and so it's not beyond the realms of possibility that I have the odd comedy dismount when meeting a half asleep driver who just surges over the giveway line with no warning.
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Cugel
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Re: Do real cyclists stay on?

Post by Cugel »

Pastychomper wrote:Years ago I was told of a tradition that a horse rider is not a "real rider" until (s)he's fallen off seven times. Presumably this is based on the truism that everyone who does enough miles will come off eventually, and the somewhat shakier notion that having come off means one has done "enough" miles.

Has anyone heard of a similar tradition for cycling? And does the number vary according to the number of wheels used?

If it's the same number across the board then I must be a real cyclist by now, but I'm still working on the horse offs.


You're a real cyclist when you become competent at it. This includes the ability not to fall off, amongst many other skills.

Some say you learn by your errors (i.e. falling off) but in my experience those who fall off a lot tend to keep doing so whereas those who stay on, well ... don't fall off. Some falls can be of no use as a lesson anyway, since they kill you. (Over the parapet; under the lorry; into the rocky stream-bed down below the verge).

The ability not to get knocked off is also a necessary competence of the real cyclist. Getting knocked off is usually a lot worse than falling off, since the knock-off implement is often a motorised vehicle with immense momentum. To avoid such incidents, one must develop the cyclist's sixth sense. This is the ability to notice a large range of twitches, facial expressions, driving styles and many other signifiers of potential danger to you, the cyclist.

I've enhanced my sixth sense by adopting the handlebar-end mirror, which increases the ability to detect loons coming from behind, since one can see them as well as hear them, revving and burning rubber as they set up their close or punishment pass.

But perhaps there are those who can relate how falling off several times taught them how not to fall off in future.........?

Cugel, allergic to pain, especially that from gravel rash.
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Marcus Aurelius
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Re: Do real cyclists stay on?

Post by Marcus Aurelius »

It’s not about when you fall / get knocked off ( if you ride, sooner or later you will ) It’s about how you come out of it, that’s the differentiator, and the outcome is reliant on experience.
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Re: Do real cyclists stay on?

Post by Bmblbzzz »

I thought the idea that a horse rider is not a "real rider" until they've fallen off a couple of times was based on the idea that some would be put off by the experience. Falling and then getting back on and riding the next day (or whenever your injuries have healed) shows determination and commitment to horsemanship. In that sense, the same could be said for cyclists.
Phil Fouracre
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Re: Do real cyclists stay on?

Post by Phil Fouracre »

Wot you need is a helmet!! Sorry, only joking :-(
Falling off does intrigue me, if that's the right word? People who keep saying that they need protection (ie helmet) for when they fall off. They then admit to having fallen off multiple times, as has already been said, look at cycling competence, before anything else. Bike handling and situational awareness are all that really matters to keep most people safe on their bikes.
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Mick F
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Re: Do real cyclists stay on?

Post by Mick F »

I did all my falling off as a kid on a bike.
Been cycling on two wheels since I was six or seven and had thrills and spills countless times.

66 years old this autumn, so it's basically 60years since I learned to ride on two wheels. Since growing up, I've only fallen off a couple of times, and they were sideways.
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Phil Fouracre
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Re: Do real cyclists stay on?

Post by Phil Fouracre »

Exactly the same for me, but, a couple of years less :-)
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Psamathe
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Re: Do real cyclists stay on?

Post by Psamathe »

What threw (pun) me recently was the bike fully loaded (4 panniers +1). I pulled up in a lay-by to find the under surface was hard tarmac with lose gravel on top. Normally my reaction time would have had my foot on the ground in plenty of time. But with all the load the bike moved from vertical to horizontal somewhat quicker and I went over with it. At least that was my impression/excuse.

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random37
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Re: Do real cyclists stay on?

Post by random37 »

The last time I fell off was riding an ancient Raleigh Clubman, this was perhaps 2008.

I hadn't tightened the headset properly, the bars turned, and the wheel didn't.

Ow!
Flinders
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Re: Do real cyclists stay on?

Post by Flinders »

When I started riding horses, they used to say you had to fall off 14 times before you could ride. :shock:
Trouble is, as you improve, you tend just to graduate to more difficult horses, or breaking them in, or doing more risky things, so you carry on falling off. Some of the best riders I know fall off on average about once a month- but that's people who do a lot of jumping with their horses. Professional jockeys over fences end up on the deck about one race in 13, IIRC, but to be fair, that's usually because the horse has fallen rather than the jockey 'doing a voluntary', as it is called....

I think the main idea behind the 'you have to fall off x times' is that if you don't you probably aren't progressing very far. But the adage that if you fall off, so long as you aren't too damaged, you need to get straight back on, really is important with horse riding. Having done both, it really is much more frightening, all other things being equal injuries-wise, than falling off a bike.
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gaz
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Re: Do real cyclists stay on?

Post by gaz »

Most of my falling off involves an SPD moment.

Edit: Arguably this is not "falling off" as I have "stayed on", it is simply a failure to remain vertical.
Last edited by gaz on 4 Sep 2018, 10:21pm, edited 1 time in total.
eileithyia
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Re: Do real cyclists stay on?

Post by eileithyia »

yep not a proper bike rider until you have broken a collar bone and not a proper trackie until you have experienced the 'joy' of a wood burn from the boards (ouch). :lol:
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Cyril Haearn
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Re: Do real cyclists stay on?

Post by Cyril Haearn »

Flinders wrote:When I started riding horses, they used to say you had to fall off 14 times before you could ride. :shock:
Trouble is, as you improve, you tend just to graduate to more difficult horses, or breaking them in, or doing more risky things, so you carry on falling off. Some of the best riders I know fall off on average about once a month- but that's people who do a lot of jumping with their horses. Professional jockeys over fences end up on the deck about one race in 13, IIRC, but to be fair, that's usually because the horse has fallen rather than the jockey 'doing a voluntary', as it is called....

I think the main idea behind the 'you have to fall off x times' is that if you don't you probably aren't progressing very far. But the adage that if you fall off, so long as you aren't too damaged, you need to get straight back on, really is important with horse riding. Having done both, it really is much more frightening, all other things being equal injuries-wise, than falling off a bike.

Risk compensation, we have come across that before somewhere :?
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NUKe
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Re: Do real cyclists stay on?

Post by NUKe »

Well according to you lot Iam not a real cyclists. having spent the last 3 weeks recovering from road rash.
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