Spa Audax build photos

[NetworkMan]

You might not like my bottle cage, but I have mudguards Out on it this PM - no rain but breezy and Oh these Devon hills!

[Samuel D]

My Spa Audax is looking poorly this morning after crashing into an inexplicably stationary e-bike cyclist in the middle of a peloton doing 45 km/h. I’m not looking too hot myself (sailed through the air and broke my humerus – not as amusing as it sounds). Photo taken in hospital waiting room. Fingers crossed the frame is straight. Front rim pringled while tyre stayed inflated; rear wheel intact but tyre deflated. Explain that if you can! Chain came off. Must have been some violent accelerations involved.

[Brucey]

broken humerus? Ooooh dearie me....

do get well soon, all best wishes for a speedy recovery.

cheers

[reohn2]

Nasty,get well soon.

[Samuel D]

Thanks, gents. May as well introduce myself with a photo – I’ll never look more fetching!



That was last night. I’ve avoided serious crashes in a long time despite a lot of fast group riding. Guess the statistics eventually win.

[reohn2]

I'm finding the artwork on the right knee too much of a contrast with the blue top,though the pale faced look is in keeping with a broken bone or some similar trauma(ask me how I know) .
Take it easy.

[PH]

Ouch!
You and the bike, hope you both make a good recovery.

[amediasatex]

Rotten luck Samuel, hope you heal up fast.

[slowster]

That sounds pretty nasty. Trying to see it from a more positive perspective, from your description you might easily have suffered much worse injuries.

My advice is to enjoy some good quality inactivity for the next few days and weeks - you can do that now without feeling that you should be riding or busy doing something. Maybe go sit in the park some days in the last of the good weather and watch the world go by.

Get well soon, and enjoy your recovery and time off the bike.

[Samuel D]

Thanks for the well wishes, all (but that’ll do now!). I like your idea of enjoying this forced downtime, slowster. I’ll try to put that into inaction.

Trying to see it from a more positive perspective, from your description you might easily have suffered much worse injuries.

True. Another guy in the crash broke his elbow and wrist and severed a tendon in his hand. Unpleasant.

The woman on the e-bike didn’t have a scratch – just as well, really. The wide cycle path around Longchamp is customarily a training ground for sports cyclists and almost everyone knows that, but occasionally someone shows up who doesn’t know the unwritten rules (e.g. ride on the right, check your six before changing your line, etc.). If an accident results, we group riders are presumably to blame for not maintaining safe braking distances, etc.

There is a quick take on liability in groups rides here. Not sure how it applies to spontaneous groups like those that arise at Longchamp.

[Brucey]

your 'hospital' photo brings back some memories for me. At one time I seemingly didn't go more than a year at a time without an unplanned visit to A&E. Waiting to be treated is possibly the worst bit; in my case I swell up and every minute waiting greatly increases the effort required to reset bones. On one occasion I sat in A&E waiting and I didn't just have blood down my leg; I was bleeding copiously from a bad cut in my arm and there was a significant wait; by the time they got to me there was about one square yard of floor covered in a puddle of my blood....

Healing up is frustrating but can be constructive; you can probably do easy sessions on a turbo trainer (which keeps the endorphin junky monkey off your back a bit) and you can do other things as well. Living with a disability temporarily gives you a whole new insight into the lives of those that are similarly afflicted on a permanent basis.

cheers

[Samuel D]

Oh boy. I can’t even unscrew the moka to make a coffee! New respect for our own Tigerbiten.

My left arm has gone blue down to the elbow, apparently normal with this injury. Most things hurt from head to toe. Since I had some abdominal pain (probably just a pulled muscle – flying through the air was a tense experience), the hospital staff put me on a drip instead of food and water for a period of observation in case they had to operate on the organs. That meant I was dying of thirst for the first couple of hours. Sheesh.

I’m not sure how you and other racers put up with multiple bouts of injury like this. Think I’d call it a day pretty quickly.

[pwa]

I remember hearing of a cyclist who lost it on a downhill corner and went through a hedge and managed to break bones in both forearms. Both! By my calculation that would be six weeks of not being able to manage one's own toilet business!

Mend quickly.

[horizon]

Thanks for the well wishes, all (but that’ll do now!).

Sorry Samuel, one more!

But the plus for us is all that thinking and reading time for further, hopefully frequent, future posts of yours.

[kylecycler]

Hi Samuel, how are you keeping?