CRASH

My tri on Sunday was cancelled due to weather. I guess the site was in pretty bad shape, submerged roads and they had worries of rip currents for the ocean swim so it was right to cancel. Not that I was happy about it, at all. I was pretty upset when I received word on Friday.

So I took a few moments to be upset then signed up for another tri in Montauk, NY for this coming weekend. I am not too thrilled about not having the time to orient myself with the site or the race, and I still need to find a place to stay for Friday night. In any case I think it will be fun and it will give me something to put all my summer training towards.

Now for the story. On Sunday I went out for a leisurely 20 mile ride along the Charles. I just wanted to keep my muscles moving and practice some body position. There were a couple portages... I needed to pick my bike up to go up and down some stairs. Up, Down... Up, CRASH! On the second set of stairs I failed to notice I was coming up on the downstairs until it was too late. I didn't have much time to react and I was going too fast to stop in time (road tires are very slippery, especially when it's a little wet, as it was on Sunday). I figured my only chance was to try to jump them- the last thing I wanted to do was go over the front. So I do my best to get the front tire up... even so I landed the front tire first and it slipped out on me, then the back tire followed. Without a bike left to ride I ended up sliding to a stop on my side. My hip/buttocks took the brunt, the side of my knee got a hefty scrape and the rest was my back and shoulder. I got up, dusted myself off- realized somehow, by some grace I had managed not to break anything I really needed. Next I picked up my bike and it wasn't too bad either. The wheels still round and somehow still true- I think the slippery pavement helped save the bike. Both break levers still worked although somehow they both have scrapes on the front, the bike must have endo-ed after we parted ways. A dropped chain and an off kilter front break were the only real problems and I was able to fix both without even opening my tool pouch. I took a minute to collect myself, I was feeling a little woozy but I managed to make the rest of the route with torn up shorts and a bloody leg.