Cyclist collides with cactus.... he is spiked not spoked

[mercalia]

Cyclist collides with cactus.... he is spiked not spoked, ouch

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/othersports/article-8939151/Thorny-issue-Amateur-cyclist-THOUSANDS-Cactus-spikes-pulled-body.html

[thelawnet]

Seems to be quite common





<Insert joke about BMW driver crashing into cactus here>

[peetee]

On one ride I veered off-course and had to squeeze between a couple of gorse bushes which wasn’t pleasant but the worst encounter was a hawthorn. The spikes are one thing but I believe they are coated with something that makes the pain worse. It was only one stab on my finger but it throbbed like crazy for hours. Very similar to a wasp sting, in fact.

[Jdsk]

Never heard of that with hawthorns. Just the once? I'd guess that it's idiosyncratic/ allergic rather than a toxin.

These events are always a good time to think about tetanus:
https://www.nhs.uk/common-health-questions/accidents-first-aid-and-treatments/do-i-need-a-tetanus-jab-vaccine-after-an-accident-or-injury/

Jonathan

[irc]

I once brushed against a Cholla catcus while camping in the Arizona desert. I needed to cut myself free with my Swiss Army knife. Anything else I tried just got me more stuck. Lucky it was in my waist bag and not a pannier.

THe big one to the right of my bivvy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DD6m8vmH2Lg

[kylecycler]

Never heard of that with hawthorns. Just the once? I'd guess that it's idiosyncratic/ allergic rather than a toxin.

These events are always a good time to think about tetanus:
https://www.nhs.uk/common-health-questions/accidents-first-aid-and-treatments/do-i-need-a-tetanus-jab-vaccine-after-an-accident-or-injury/

Jonathan

Me neither, at least concerning actually crashing into a hawthorn bush (there are plenty, even on the verges, where I live so it's a real possibility), but some might remember a poster called Heltor Chasca (his dog's name, IIRC!) who is a landscape gardener and I'm sure he warned about not using your fingers to feel for a thorn in a tyre. Maybe there was just a risk of infection, but it might have been to do with what peetee experienced.

I think he might also have mentioned that you should indeed consider a tetanus jab if it happens.

[Jdsk]

Yes, they can definitely cause local infection and tetanus.

Jonathan

PS: Anyone ever been speared by a porcupine quill?

[mercalia]

I once brushed against a Cholla catcus while camping in the Arizona desert. I needed to cut myself free with my Swiss Army knife. Anything else I tried just got me more stuck. Lucky it was in my waist bag and not a pannier.

THe big one to the right of my bivvy.

desertcamp.jpg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DD6m8vmH2Lg

how on earth do you brush against some thing like that?

[peetee]

Yes, they can definitely cause local infection and tetanus.

Jonathan

PS: Anyone ever been speared by a porcupine quill?

Very nearly. My family went to Longleat and that’s one of the memento’s my daughter came back with. I found it in the car seat pocket whilst cleaning up and was quite lucky not to catch the sharp end.

[DaveGos]

I did it once in Gran Canarie , it just stopped me going down a ravine, think it was a prickly pair , not bad at all as fewer spikes, just had to remove myself carefully

[climo]

On one ride I veered off-course and had to squeeze between a couple of gorse bushes which wasn’t pleasant but the worst encounter was a hawthorn. The spikes are one thing but I believe they are coated with something that makes the pain worse. It was only one stab on my finger but it throbbed like crazy for hours. Very similar to a wasp sting, in fact.

Sure it wasn't a blackthorn? They can be poisonous.

[peetee]

On one ride I veered off-course and had to squeeze between a couple of gorse bushes which wasn’t pleasant but the worst encounter was a hawthorn. The spikes are one thing but I believe they are coated with something that makes the pain worse. It was only one stab on my finger but it throbbed like crazy for hours. Very similar to a wasp sting, in fact.

Sure it wasn't a blackthorn? They can be poisonous.

Could be. I’m not an expert.

[Jdsk]

On one ride I veered off-course and had to squeeze between a couple of gorse bushes which wasn’t pleasant but the worst encounter was a hawthorn. The spikes are one thing but I believe they are coated with something that makes the pain worse. It was only one stab on my finger but it throbbed like crazy for hours. Very similar to a wasp sting, in fact.

Sure it wasn't a blackthorn? They can be poisonous.

Could be. I’m not an expert.

I don't think that there's a toxin in blackthorn thorns, although there is in the fruits and leaves. The thorns are notorious for getting under the skin and causing local inflammation with or without infection eg:
https://emj.bmj.com/content/21/3/392

Jonathan

EDITED: This is wrong, see below.

[uwidavid]

Are you sure that blackthorn fruit is toxic? I have searched and they are used to flavour drinks and can be made into jams and jellies.

[Jdsk]

Thanks... I meant flowers and leaves. (And pits.)

http://www.naturessecretlarder.co.uk/wild-food-useful-plants/blackthorn-sloe-prunus-spinosa.htm
http://www.horsedvm.com/poisonous/blackthorn/

Sorry

Jonathan (looking forward to sloe gin at Christmas!)