Today was our first real crash on a cargo bike that was moving. I've dropped both bikes a few times when getting on/off or while walking with it. They've always been slow and controlled falls, no damage to anyone or the bikes. The last time I was hurt on a bike was the incident last year with Zorro, although Jose took down the Bullitt on his first attempt out (no kids, thankfully) and that damaged the box a bit.
I've always told people that if you're going to go down, it's most likely going to be in one of the scenarios that we've experienced already. Those falls aren't so scary once you've gone through one or two. However, today, we were moving fairly quickly and I went down pretty hard but, as crashes go, it still wasn't that bad.
We had taken the long way home along the bike trail and after going through Old Sac, Big Brother wanted to ride along the promenade to see the sparkly cement. I agreed because they had been so accommodating the whole ride and Little Brother was fast asleep. To get up the ramp, I had to maneuver across a set of parallel train tracks. The whole time, I was being extra cautious about crossing them with my wheel at an angle so as not to get stuck (parallel cracks/edges are one of the top causes of solo falls, and solo falls are the top cause of injury to bicycle riders). The first track was fine and I thought I had turned my front wheel enough to get over the second--I hadn't. I knew as soon as I felt the first rumble of my wheel that I was going down. I have no idea what hit the ground or anything beyond my roll off the bike.
The boys stayed in the box because we had our weather protector on but neither was buckled so they both got tossed around. Big Brother fell across Little Brother (who was awoken) but neither was hurt or even very shaken up. There were no tears, no anger, no fear and I think it was helpful that I was staying calm so they didn't freak out. It was also our luck that we weren't in traffic or had to worry about any outside danger, we could pick ourselves us slowly and asses the damage.
I've always told people that if you're going to go down, it's most likely going to be in one of the scenarios that we've experienced already. Those falls aren't so scary once you've gone through one or two. However, today, we were moving fairly quickly and I went down pretty hard but, as crashes go, it still wasn't that bad.
We had taken the long way home along the bike trail and after going through Old Sac, Big Brother wanted to ride along the promenade to see the sparkly cement. I agreed because they had been so accommodating the whole ride and Little Brother was fast asleep. To get up the ramp, I had to maneuver across a set of parallel train tracks. The whole time, I was being extra cautious about crossing them with my wheel at an angle so as not to get stuck (parallel cracks/edges are one of the top causes of solo falls, and solo falls are the top cause of injury to bicycle riders). The first track was fine and I thought I had turned my front wheel enough to get over the second--I hadn't. I knew as soon as I felt the first rumble of my wheel that I was going down. I have no idea what hit the ground or anything beyond my roll off the bike.
The boys stayed in the box because we had our weather protector on but neither was buckled so they both got tossed around. Big Brother fell across Little Brother (who was awoken) but neither was hurt or even very shaken up. There were no tears, no anger, no fear and I think it was helpful that I was staying calm so they didn't freak out. It was also our luck that we weren't in traffic or had to worry about any outside danger, we could pick ourselves us slowly and asses the damage.
Some grumpy faces and scratches to the window.
I had rolled off the bike pretty gracefully, if I do say so myself (my dad might have another version since he was right behind us). My wrist is sore, I have a few weird aches and pains but no bruises that I've found, yet. I didn't hit my head. The only thing I can't explain is that the tip of my left ring finger has a numb feeling. I may find some new things tomorrow, I'm certainly feeling more sore and more grumpy now that it's been a few hours.
Our poor Bullitt shows some damage. Sadly, most of the damage has to do with our new weather protector. The snap on the side was ground down (same thing happened when Jose went down), an unused mount that was screwed into the side tore out, the foot rest is scraped, and the front attachment for the cover came out.
Our poor Bullitt shows some damage. Sadly, most of the damage has to do with our new weather protector. The snap on the side was ground down (same thing happened when Jose went down), an unused mount that was screwed into the side tore out, the foot rest is scraped, and the front attachment for the cover came out.
It's all minor cosmetic damage but still frustrating. The cover window is scuffed but nothing torn or cracked. I used a bit of super glue for the front mount and I'm hoping that the side snap will still function (we paid $5 to replace it last time). I may have to use a bit of glue to seal the cracks on the back corner. It's interesting to me that it's mostly the same parts that Jose's crash dinged but I was going faster so it's more pronounced. My dad is suggesting a roll cage or bar to protect the most vulnerable parts. This is one of those instances that I kind of wish I had a Cycle Truck instead because of the sturdiness of the integrated box.
My dad asked how I thought it would have been different crashing on the Mundo, which I thought was a pretty interesting question. The first thing, however, would be to point out that this crash probably wouldn't have happened on the Mundo because I could have been watching the front wheel and seen that it was running too parallel to the track. However, it's hard to say what the difference would have been for the crash part. Big Brother would have rolled off the bike from a slightly higher position, Little Brother would have been buckled into the Peanut Shell, and I would have been about the same. I guess it's impossible to know because the situation would have been different. Overall, I think it's pretty important to point out that we are almost totally fine and have no permanent damage. I could have gotten this hurt by tripping down the stairs, so it's not necessary to make this into any more than the mishap that it is. But if it helps another person realize that crashing on a bike with kids isn't the worst thing in the world, I'm happy to share my story.
It's annoying to have fallen for such a common mistake, one that I was even consciously trying to avoid. So, to make myself feel better, I'm ending with the video of Jose crashing. Enjoy!
My dad asked how I thought it would have been different crashing on the Mundo, which I thought was a pretty interesting question. The first thing, however, would be to point out that this crash probably wouldn't have happened on the Mundo because I could have been watching the front wheel and seen that it was running too parallel to the track. However, it's hard to say what the difference would have been for the crash part. Big Brother would have rolled off the bike from a slightly higher position, Little Brother would have been buckled into the Peanut Shell, and I would have been about the same. I guess it's impossible to know because the situation would have been different. Overall, I think it's pretty important to point out that we are almost totally fine and have no permanent damage. I could have gotten this hurt by tripping down the stairs, so it's not necessary to make this into any more than the mishap that it is. But if it helps another person realize that crashing on a bike with kids isn't the worst thing in the world, I'm happy to share my story.
It's annoying to have fallen for such a common mistake, one that I was even consciously trying to avoid. So, to make myself feel better, I'm ending with the video of Jose crashing. Enjoy!
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