0 comment Sunday, October 5, 2014 | admin
I got an update from Tamar by email this morning on Maynard:
Hi Will,
This is Tamar. Maynard crashed in deep sand under an overpass on the Cherry Creek bike path, near Quebec, Monday late morning. He was in the sand before he could see it, and also had just fixed a flat tire so the tire wasn't pumped up as well as it could have been with a floor pump. The sand washed up from the storm last Friday night. He crashed on some rocks which we think is what fractured his femur. It's his left leg. They (ortho surgeons at Denver Health) put a titanium alloy rod and two screws in the bone Monday night. He's been mostly resting since the surgery but the physical therapists got him to stand up yesterday - big accomplishment! He may be transferred to the VA rehab center to start regular physical therapy in the next day or two, we're not sure. He can't put weight on the left leg for 8 weeks. His spirits are pretty good considering, and he's already hatching plans for getting a stationary trainer for his bicycle for when he can swing a leg over the saddle. People are visiting and calling him. Feel free to do either.
Tamar
I also spoke to Maynard briefly last night, and he's doing well, all told.
It seems my last posts were strangely related, I did remark on the city worker cleaning up all the sand on the path, but I guess they hadn't made it up to Quebec yet. I know the underpass, and I'll probably forever fear it now, those are some chunky rocks down there.
If you want to send any get well wishes, address them to:
Maynard Hershon
c/o Salvagetti's Bicycle Workshop
1234 Speer Blvd.
Denver, CO 80204
They will make sure they get to Maynard or Tamar.
Or check out Maynard's blog: http://maynardnet.blogspot.com/
Hi Will,
This is Tamar. Maynard crashed in deep sand under an overpass on the Cherry Creek bike path, near Quebec, Monday late morning. He was in the sand before he could see it, and also had just fixed a flat tire so the tire wasn't pumped up as well as it could have been with a floor pump. The sand washed up from the storm last Friday night. He crashed on some rocks which we think is what fractured his femur. It's his left leg. They (ortho surgeons at Denver Health) put a titanium alloy rod and two screws in the bone Monday night. He's been mostly resting since the surgery but the physical therapists got him to stand up yesterday - big accomplishment! He may be transferred to the VA rehab center to start regular physical therapy in the next day or two, we're not sure. He can't put weight on the left leg for 8 weeks. His spirits are pretty good considering, and he's already hatching plans for getting a stationary trainer for his bicycle for when he can swing a leg over the saddle. People are visiting and calling him. Feel free to do either.
Tamar
I also spoke to Maynard briefly last night, and he's doing well, all told.
It seems my last posts were strangely related, I did remark on the city worker cleaning up all the sand on the path, but I guess they hadn't made it up to Quebec yet. I know the underpass, and I'll probably forever fear it now, those are some chunky rocks down there.
If you want to send any get well wishes, address them to:
Maynard Hershon
c/o Salvagetti's Bicycle Workshop
1234 Speer Blvd.
Denver, CO 80204
They will make sure they get to Maynard or Tamar.
Or check out Maynard's blog: http://maynardnet.blogspot.com/
Labels: Bike Crash, Maynard Hershon
0 comment Thursday, October 2, 2014 | admin
*disclaimer* - This story does not involve bike commuting, but does involve a bike commuter, and the specific reason why he will be getting a ride to work tomorrow.
Yesterday, I raced in my first Xterra (offroad triathlon), and while it was a beautiful venue, and we had great weather, the race did not go all that well for me. The event was held at Wellington lake at 7700 feet, and entailed a mile swim, 20 mile off road bike, and 5 mile trail run.
So full of excitement at this point... if I only knew how I'd feel in an hour
I had an awesome swim where I was probably in the top 10%, and I started well on the bike leg. We went down a potholed dirt road called "Buffalo Plunge", and since the sun was still low in the sky, the pine trees shaded all the potholes and dangerous spots in the road with dappled sunlight. I made it through the first three miles of the plunge fine, I just felt like I was getting the hang of it when I hit a pothole that I didn't see, my left hand bounced off the bar, and I wiped out hard going about 17 mph downhill. I took most of the impact with my right forearm, and gouged it badly, then rolled onto my shoulder and helmet before stopping. After a few minutes of dazedness and getting help from a fellow triathlete who stopped, I straightened my seat and rode down to the ambulance station, where they bandaged me up (the first time).
I got mostly patched up, and told I probably needed stitches, but I felt alright, and decided to keep riding to see if I could finish the race. I took a moderate pace for the remaining 16 miles, and had a pretty nice time... considering.
After the bike leg transition, I took the opportunity to get new bandages before the trail run; I'd like to thank the Park County volunteer fire department at this time, their bandage work was very professional. I walked most of the trail run, picking up to a jog only on downhills and the last mile, the arm hurt quite a bit, and I didn't care to swing it much. Taking my time at the aid stations, I did get to see a guy puke up a quart of yellow liquid, I think he had it worse. I finally came in at about 4:30, an hour behind where I would have liked to come in, and second to last in my division (I hope the last guy had a good excuse), though I think I'll count it as a personal victory. I still have an unbroken record of finishing every race I've ever started, so I've got that going for me.
The conclusion of the event was much more anti-climactic, there was no "stick-to-itivenss award", and instead I had to fill out some incident reports. I got my wounds thoroughly cleaned by the EMTs, it hurt something horrid, and wrapped up a third time, with instructions to go to a hospital for professional cleaning where they could pick out any sand or gravel they had missed.
I was also there by myself, and after getting help putting my transition and gear and camp in my car, I drove over 20 miles of washboard, back to highway 285, and back to Denver. My sister took me to an urgent care, and after a little over two hours of cleaning, anesthetizing, and painkilling, they sent me home with a mummy wrapped arm and a big prescription for painkillers.
The gouge in my elbow - you could see my muscle moving at the apex of the wound.
Divot in shoulder.
Road Rash, worst I've ever had (and that's saying something)
All wrapped up.
I slid several feet on this.
The rest of the slide was mainly on this arm. The whole thing is a bit swollen at this point.
And in case you were wondering, yes, it hurts pretty badly.
Yesterday, I raced in my first Xterra (offroad triathlon), and while it was a beautiful venue, and we had great weather, the race did not go all that well for me. The event was held at Wellington lake at 7700 feet, and entailed a mile swim, 20 mile off road bike, and 5 mile trail run.
So full of excitement at this point... if I only knew how I'd feel in an hour
I had an awesome swim where I was probably in the top 10%, and I started well on the bike leg. We went down a potholed dirt road called "Buffalo Plunge", and since the sun was still low in the sky, the pine trees shaded all the potholes and dangerous spots in the road with dappled sunlight. I made it through the first three miles of the plunge fine, I just felt like I was getting the hang of it when I hit a pothole that I didn't see, my left hand bounced off the bar, and I wiped out hard going about 17 mph downhill. I took most of the impact with my right forearm, and gouged it badly, then rolled onto my shoulder and helmet before stopping. After a few minutes of dazedness and getting help from a fellow triathlete who stopped, I straightened my seat and rode down to the ambulance station, where they bandaged me up (the first time).
I got mostly patched up, and told I probably needed stitches, but I felt alright, and decided to keep riding to see if I could finish the race. I took a moderate pace for the remaining 16 miles, and had a pretty nice time... considering.
After the bike leg transition, I took the opportunity to get new bandages before the trail run; I'd like to thank the Park County volunteer fire department at this time, their bandage work was very professional. I walked most of the trail run, picking up to a jog only on downhills and the last mile, the arm hurt quite a bit, and I didn't care to swing it much. Taking my time at the aid stations, I did get to see a guy puke up a quart of yellow liquid, I think he had it worse. I finally came in at about 4:30, an hour behind where I would have liked to come in, and second to last in my division (I hope the last guy had a good excuse), though I think I'll count it as a personal victory. I still have an unbroken record of finishing every race I've ever started, so I've got that going for me.
The conclusion of the event was much more anti-climactic, there was no "stick-to-itivenss award", and instead I had to fill out some incident reports. I got my wounds thoroughly cleaned by the EMTs, it hurt something horrid, and wrapped up a third time, with instructions to go to a hospital for professional cleaning where they could pick out any sand or gravel they had missed.
I was also there by myself, and after getting help putting my transition and gear and camp in my car, I drove over 20 miles of washboard, back to highway 285, and back to Denver. My sister took me to an urgent care, and after a little over two hours of cleaning, anesthetizing, and painkilling, they sent me home with a mummy wrapped arm and a big prescription for painkillers.
The gouge in my elbow - you could see my muscle moving at the apex of the wound.
Divot in shoulder.
Road Rash, worst I've ever had (and that's saying something)
All wrapped up.
I slid several feet on this.
The rest of the slide was mainly on this arm. The whole thing is a bit swollen at this point.
And in case you were wondering, yes, it hurts pretty badly.
Labels: Bike Crash, Bike Racing, Road Rash, Scabs, Stick-To-Itiveness, Xterra
0 comment Saturday, September 13, 2014 | admin
First, a little business regarding an ongoing commuting nuisance and blog topic; the Wynkoop street Death-Curb has been retro-fitted:
Real nice guys, I'm going to make sure the USGBC takes a point off your LEED score for how you mangled our perfectly good curb.
Josh and I crushed it this past Sunday morning on a ride starting in downtown, up to Deer Creek and the aptly named "High Grade Road" by way of Chatfield, then up to Conifer, down to Evergreen, Morrison, and then back down the Bear Creek trail. After all the climbing, we forgot to take a picture until we got to this valve at Bear Creek:
What does this have to do with anything? Well first off, that beard is no longer attached to Josh's face, and I wanted to scoop everybody else on it. Second, when we were riding from Wadsworth up to the hills, two DougCo Sheriffs were driving the other way blaring "RIDE SINGLE FILE!" at all the cyclists. Now, Josh and I were staggered, but weren't riding the paint on this shoulderless road, so we got blared at too. But considering the road was clear for the mile behind us that we could see, and that we moved over for anyone who wanted to pass, I think this was just stupid on behalf of the Sheriffs, and if I read my Colorado laws correctly, I don't think we were actually violating any laws at that particular moment.
Which leads me to another outrageous incident on roads I used to ride often. Mandeville Canyon (I used to have an avocado connection about 2/3rds the way up) is similar to many of the mountain roads just outside of Denver in that it winds up about a thousand feet, and is a challenging ride. Unfortunately it also has a lot of very entitled people living at the top of it. I hope they lock this guy up, doctor or no, he nearly killed those two guys because he was having a bad day. I don't suppose the court would allow community justice of bike-chain whipping this horrible person.
I'm pleased that the LAPD is taking this as the serious felony it is. Cyclists have been making progress in asserting their rights, and the police are more likely now to side with cyclists in obvious road rage incidents instead of just calling them accidents (or it seems that way at least). Either way, stay on your toes, and don't let this happen to you.
Real nice guys, I'm going to make sure the USGBC takes a point off your LEED score for how you mangled our perfectly good curb.
Josh and I crushed it this past Sunday morning on a ride starting in downtown, up to Deer Creek and the aptly named "High Grade Road" by way of Chatfield, then up to Conifer, down to Evergreen, Morrison, and then back down the Bear Creek trail. After all the climbing, we forgot to take a picture until we got to this valve at Bear Creek:
What does this have to do with anything? Well first off, that beard is no longer attached to Josh's face, and I wanted to scoop everybody else on it. Second, when we were riding from Wadsworth up to the hills, two DougCo Sheriffs were driving the other way blaring "RIDE SINGLE FILE!" at all the cyclists. Now, Josh and I were staggered, but weren't riding the paint on this shoulderless road, so we got blared at too. But considering the road was clear for the mile behind us that we could see, and that we moved over for anyone who wanted to pass, I think this was just stupid on behalf of the Sheriffs, and if I read my Colorado laws correctly, I don't think we were actually violating any laws at that particular moment.
Which leads me to another outrageous incident on roads I used to ride often. Mandeville Canyon (I used to have an avocado connection about 2/3rds the way up) is similar to many of the mountain roads just outside of Denver in that it winds up about a thousand feet, and is a challenging ride. Unfortunately it also has a lot of very entitled people living at the top of it. I hope they lock this guy up, doctor or no, he nearly killed those two guys because he was having a bad day. I don't suppose the court would allow community justice of bike-chain whipping this horrible person.
I'm pleased that the LAPD is taking this as the serious felony it is. Cyclists have been making progress in asserting their rights, and the police are more likely now to side with cyclists in obvious road rage incidents instead of just calling them accidents (or it seems that way at least). Either way, stay on your toes, and don't let this happen to you.
Labels: Bike Crash, Cherry Creek Bike Path, Ride Single File, Road Rage
0 comment Wednesday, September 10, 2014 | admin
Or at least that is what it seems like. Here's what I know from chat/email exchanges with Nick N. and Brendan:
Brendan: crashed into a car in an alley behind work on his Cross Check, apparently unharmed, but having buckled his downtube and putting large dents into the car.
Nick: got crashed into by a car and took a ride on the hood for a few feet before the lady driving decided to stop, also apparently unharmed. I don't know what happened to his bike, but conspicuously, it is a Karate Monkey.
Both incidents occurred on the same day, and taken together with my recent crash, I think we are blowing through mere anecdote, and now represent a growing epidemic.
I'll let Nick and Brendan describe the incidents in more depth (seriously, post something already).
This is in no way a slight on Surly bikes, which are quite popular among urban cyclists, and I have found to be quite utilitarian.
Brendan: crashed into a car in an alley behind work on his Cross Check, apparently unharmed, but having buckled his downtube and putting large dents into the car.
Nick: got crashed into by a car and took a ride on the hood for a few feet before the lady driving decided to stop, also apparently unharmed. I don't know what happened to his bike, but conspicuously, it is a Karate Monkey.
Both incidents occurred on the same day, and taken together with my recent crash, I think we are blowing through mere anecdote, and now represent a growing epidemic.
I'll let Nick and Brendan describe the incidents in more depth (seriously, post something already).
This is in no way a slight on Surly bikes, which are quite popular among urban cyclists, and I have found to be quite utilitarian.
Labels: Bike Crash, Surly
0 comment Thursday, August 7, 2014 | admin
This is a bit of a follow up
Though not directly about Denver, I feel it's important for as many people as possible to see the result of the naked aggression this driver meted out on two cyclists with his Infiniti.
Yep, that's blood from Ron Peterson's face. You can really see clearly where his head went through the rear window of the Infiniti. Also, apparently this driver was involved in another road rage incident against cyclists in March. More pictures can be found at LAist.
So whenever you see or hear a driver speaking in glowing bravado about running cyclists off the road, please refer them to this post so they can see what that looks like, and let them decide for themselves if they really want to turn another human into hamburger because they are annoyed at their mode of transit.
Though not directly about Denver, I feel it's important for as many people as possible to see the result of the naked aggression this driver meted out on two cyclists with his Infiniti.
Yep, that's blood from Ron Peterson's face. You can really see clearly where his head went through the rear window of the Infiniti. Also, apparently this driver was involved in another road rage incident against cyclists in March. More pictures can be found at LAist.
So whenever you see or hear a driver speaking in glowing bravado about running cyclists off the road, please refer them to this post so they can see what that looks like, and let them decide for themselves if they really want to turn another human into hamburger because they are annoyed at their mode of transit.
Labels: Bike Crash, Road Rage
0 comment Monday, July 14, 2014 | admin
I just learned that famous bicycling writer and friend of all of us ayobc bloggers, Maynard Hershon, was injured in a bike crash on Monday. Here's my source (Rod is my dad):
Rod,
This is Maynard's girlfriend writing, Tamar. Maynard was in a bicycle accident yesterday and had to have surgery for a fractured femur. He'll be home from the hospital in a few days but I'm not sure how soon he'll be on the computer. Just wanted to let you know about his lack of response. He'll be in touch soon.
Tamar
I'll update this post as I learn more, especially if I find out where we can send bags of premium coffee.
Maynard - so sorry to hear this news. If there's anything you need that we fellow cyclists can provide, please let us know. Get well my friend.
Rod,
This is Maynard's girlfriend writing, Tamar. Maynard was in a bicycle accident yesterday and had to have surgery for a fractured femur. He'll be home from the hospital in a few days but I'm not sure how soon he'll be on the computer. Just wanted to let you know about his lack of response. He'll be in touch soon.
Tamar
I'll update this post as I learn more, especially if I find out where we can send bags of premium coffee.
Maynard - so sorry to hear this news. If there's anything you need that we fellow cyclists can provide, please let us know. Get well my friend.
Labels: Bike Crash, Maynard Hershon