returning to two wheels

[foxyrider]

So okay, over the years i've had several 'accidents' on the bike, usually it's a few scrapes and soreness and often i've been riding again in a couple of days. Well on Tuesday I managed a new injury, wet road, low temperature (Strava reckons -2c) and suddenly i'm on black ice and skating. End result eaten some tarmac and few scrapes so I dusted myself off and finished the ride (oops, a further 100km!)
Well by the time I got home I could hardly hold the bars or brake, clearly more than just a bit of a bruise.
So i've done the xray stuff, been back for a second opinion and got the all clear and a wrist brace. Oh i'm a bit sore in one or two places but nothing else to cause any riding issues.

I am of course keen to get back out on the bike (poor thing suffered a scraped carbon lever and damaged bar tape), the bare minimum will be to operate the brake lever of course but has anyone had a similar 'sprain not break' injury, how long did it keep you off the bike?

[Cugel]

So okay, over the years i've had several 'accidents' on the bike, usually it's a few scrapes and soreness and often i've been riding again in a couple of days. Well on Tuesday I managed a new injury, wet road, low temperature (Strava reckons -2c) and suddenly i'm on black ice and skating. End result eaten some tarmac and few scrapes so I dusted myself off and finished the ride (oops, a further 100km!)
Well by the time I got home I could hardly hold the bars or brake, clearly more than just a bit of a bruise.
So i've done the xray stuff, been back for a second opinion and got the all clear and a wrist brace. Oh i'm a bit sore in one or two places but nothing else to cause any riding issues.

I am of course keen to get back out on the bike (poor thing suffered a scraped carbon lever and damaged bar tape), the bare minimum will be to operate the brake lever of course but has anyone had a similar 'sprain not break' injury, how long did it keep you off the bike?

Long enough to realise when it's safe to ride a bike and when it's not.

Or to find the biketech that will mitigate against dangerous conditions such as that highly likely black ice. How about the studded tyres? I have some and can tell you that they at least chuckle in the face of black ice, frost and even green slime - although they not so unwise as to laugh in their face, as this would be tempting fate.

The Schawlbe Marathon studded tyres are best in that their studs have a TCT core inside their steel jackets and so don't wear out in 5 rides, like some studded tyres one can mention. They are heavy (about 1kg each) and wide (35mm) but in a winter bike based on a cross-bike they are just the thing. One may even ride them in the dry or merely wet conditions and enjoy their snap-crackle & pop sound. Surprisingly, they aren't that slow either.....

Now, I am hoping that you are not a-one o' them who also goes out in the cold in shorts, like the lad I passed today when it was a mere 5 degrees of C. You only get one body (so far - robot bodies may be available soon) so best to take care of it, see?

Cugel

[foxyrider]

So okay, over the years i've had several 'accidents' on the bike, usually it's a few scrapes and soreness and often i've been riding again in a couple of days. Well on Tuesday I managed a new injury, wet road, low temperature (Strava reckons -2c) and suddenly i'm on black ice and skating. End result eaten some tarmac and few scrapes so I dusted myself off and finished the ride (oops, a further 100km!)
Well by the time I got home I could hardly hold the bars or brake, clearly more than just a bit of a bruise.
So i've done the xray stuff, been back for a second opinion and got the all clear and a wrist brace. Oh i'm a bit sore in one or two places but nothing else to cause any riding issues.

I am of course keen to get back out on the bike (poor thing suffered a scraped carbon lever and damaged bar tape), the bare minimum will be to operate the brake lever of course but has anyone had a similar 'sprain not break' injury, how long did it keep you off the bike?

Long enough to realise when it's safe to ride a bike and when it's not.

Or to find the biketech that will mitigate against dangerous conditions such as that highly likely black ice. How about the studded tyres? I have some and can tell you that they at least chuckle in the face of black ice, frost and even green slime - although they not so unwise as to laugh in their face, as this would be tempting fate.

The Schawlbe Marathon studded tyres are best in that their studs have a TCT core inside their steel jackets and so don't wear out in 5 rides, like some studded tyres one can mention. They are heavy (about 1kg each) and wide (35mm) but in a winter bike based on a cross-bike they are just the thing. One may even ride them in the dry or merely wet conditions and enjoy their snap-crackle & pop sound. Surprisingly, they aren't that slow either.....

Now, I am hoping that you are not a-one o' them who also goes out in the cold in shorts, like the lad I passed today when it was a mere 5 degrees of C. You only get one body (so far - robot bodies may be available soon) so best to take care of it, see?

Cugel

I'm well aware of studded tyres and own a set of Schwalbe. My question was as to what point others get back on the bike not how to weigh it down!

[Cugel]

So okay, over the years i've had several 'accidents' on the bike, usually it's a few scrapes and soreness and often i've been riding again in a couple of days. Well on Tuesday I managed a new injury, wet road, low temperature (Strava reckons -2c) and suddenly i'm on black ice and skating. End result eaten some tarmac and few scrapes so I dusted myself off and finished the ride (oops, a further 100km!)
Well by the time I got home I could hardly hold the bars or brake, clearly more than just a bit of a bruise.
So i've done the xray stuff, been back for a second opinion and got the all clear and a wrist brace. Oh i'm a bit sore in one or two places but nothing else to cause any riding issues.

I am of course keen to get back out on the bike (poor thing suffered a scraped carbon lever and damaged bar tape), the bare minimum will be to operate the brake lever of course but has anyone had a similar 'sprain not break' injury, how long did it keep you off the bike?

Long enough to realise when it's safe to ride a bike and when it's not.

Or to find the biketech that will mitigate against dangerous conditions such as that highly likely black ice. How about the studded tyres? I have some and can tell you that they at least chuckle in the face of black ice, frost and even green slime - although they not so unwise as to laugh in their face, as this would be tempting fate.

The Schawlbe Marathon studded tyres are best in that their studs have a TCT core inside their steel jackets and so don't wear out in 5 rides, like some studded tyres one can mention. They are heavy (about 1kg each) and wide (35mm) but in a winter bike based on a cross-bike they are just the thing. One may even ride them in the dry or merely wet conditions and enjoy their snap-crackle & pop sound. Surprisingly, they aren't that slow either.....

Now, I am hoping that you are not a-one o' them who also goes out in the cold in shorts, like the lad I passed today when it was a mere 5 degrees of C. You only get one body (so far - robot bodies may be available soon) so best to take care of it, see?

Cugel

I'm well aware of studded tyres and own a set of Schwalbe. My question was as to what point others get back on the bike not how to weigh it down!

Ah yes, silly me.

Well, I rarely fall off a bike and last got an injury doing so in June 1980. However, I found that it was best to leave getting on the bike until the injury had recovered enough to enable proper control of the machine, especially if the possibility of another fall was to loom into view.

How long is that? Well .... it depends. I do know that there's no formula for determining the time interval between accident and return to the bike. If there was, it would be on that Sheldon website.

Cugel, providing a daft answer to a daft question.

[hamster]

I badly sprained my ankle. I think the best guide is pain - if you have no pain it's OK, if you do then keep it very light and short. Your biggest trainig task is healing!

If it's just your wrist and you want to maintain fitness then an indoor trainer and riding with aero bars would be my preference.

[NUKe]

Usually wait till my pain threshold has reduced to the point where I can operate the bike. A few years back now I manged to dislocate 2 fingers to the point where they had to be reattached with nails and stitched back on. I found that dropped bar brifters were impossible operate. But I could just about operate 2 fingered MTB style brakes. So after about a week I was back on the bike, it took about a month though before I looked at riding any distance and a further month before I started to ride my drop barred bike.

[foxyrider]

Well I returned to the saddle last Tuesday wearing the wrist brace. No real issue other than a bit of discomfort pulling on the bars (which you do rather more than you think!)

A couple of rides down the line and whilst there is still some pain in the hand riding is okay with minimal discomfort. Will try a short ride without the brace today as I don't want to rely on it.

[vincent0]

"similar 'sprain not break' injury, how long did it keep you off the bike"

Hello,
Hope you are better by now.
I had a fall on black ice three weeks ago. One minute cycling along, next, on my side. Carried on to work and walked about a bit until I noticed that I had more than bruised my leg. Then it started to hurt.

...I didn't break anything but my knee cap moved 3 inches down from its usual position. It's back now.

I was given the all clear to cycle last week and had a go around the company car park, where my bike was abandoned. I decided not to cycle any further for the time being. I think by the end of week four, next week, I will take my bike home, seven miles. After that I can decide whether to go back to commuting to work. In answer, I think four weeks will be my "off the bike" time.

Bye

[foxyrider]

"similar 'sprain not break' injury, how long did it keep you off the bike"

Hello,
Hope you are better by now.
I had a fall on black ice three weeks ago. One minute cycling along, next, on my side. Carried on to work and walked about a bit until I noticed that I had more than bruised my leg. Then it started to hurt.

...I didn't break anything but my knee cap moved 3 inches down from its usual position. It's back now.

I was given the all clear to cycle last week and had a go around the company car park, where my bike was abandoned. I decided not to cycle any further for the time being. I think by the end of week four, next week, I will take my bike home, seven miles. After that I can decide whether to go back to commuting to work. In answer, I think four weeks will be my "off the bike" time.

Bye

Yes, i'm 'fully' recovered now - probably about 5 weeks before the wrist stopped niggling - guess it doesn't help that i've got the skinniest wrists you'll ever see! It has made me a bit more cautious on dubious surfaces than I might otherwise be. Well untilnext winter when i'll have forgotten about it

Hope you recover well - I think we all do the silly 'carry on, it just hurts' thing! Worst for me was breaking my Knee cap on the way home from work. Got up from the floor then rode best part of ten miles home only realised something was really amiss next morning, the football around my knee was the give away! I was back on a stationary bike in about 3 weeks after surgery, back on the road though took a while longer.