My Story and Booboos

Alright...here's the rash:

The not so bad part...

is my elbow.

The more painful part....

is my left leg.

My hip has a bit of bruising and rash too but it's on a part of my hip that I don't really want to make front page news -if you know what I mean...

So here's the story:
I was having a great night and the guys I was riding with (Mark H, Michael C and Jerry) asked me to pull when we reached chambers and 81. I was glad to do so - I've been riding strong lately and I was feeling confident. We headed up 81 and when we got to New Morn, no traffic was coming head on so I proceeded to turn left. As I was doing so one of the other riders yelled "clear, up" but I thought I heard "car up". For those that don't ride, "car up" typically means there is a car up ahead coming towards you. As I turned, I remember being afraid that a car was coming at me along 81 so I looked to my right to see. The next thing I remember is looking back in front of me and realizing that while I was looking, I turned too wide and the shoulder of the road was quickly approaching. My front tire went of the right shoulder and I reacted by pulling back towards the road. When my tire caught the pavement again, I lost control. I hit the ground and with my left foot still clipped into my pedal, I slid with the bike on top of me. Mark H was behind me and I opened my eyes to see him sail across the top of my body in the air and go head over handlebars into the dirt. His mountain biking skills came in handy - he attempted to bunny hop me but his back wheel landed on my back tire and ran over me. He still swears he isn't hurt but I get the impression he wouldn't tell me even if his skull was broken.

After rushing over to make sure I was okay, the guys poked and prodded and bent my bike back into a "rideable" condition and I decided to finish the ride.


What?! gimme a break.... I was pumped up w/ adrenaline.


There's another side story here...I think I freaked out Mark H's wife - I won't go into detail but let's just say I have diarrhea of the mouth disease and I said something stupid. It happens to us folks who long to be funny but lack that filter that tells us when it is and isn't okay to make comments... She says it's okay but I feel like crap about the whole thing.

I had a good ride although I now know that when wind blows on fresh road rash - it hurts like hell. By the time I got back to the shop, I was shaking like a leaf. As we barreled down Mt. Carmel Rd, A-2 (or whatever the people who fall off the back of A group are called) caught up to us and we finished the ride as one big group. Somewhere near the end I remember hearing someone ask Mark why his jersey was so dirty...I think it may have been Scott because shortly after I pulled to a stop in the parking lot, he pulled up beside me, pulled my arm up to take a look and kind of visually "alerted" everyone to my injuries. Suddenly I had 5 guys and a girl standing around me spraying me down with bactine and rubbing my limbs with alcohol wipes... It was a little overwhelming - I had to focus b/c David H. (OR coordinator at Henry Medical Center) was giving me first aid advice and telling me how to treat my "abrasions" and "contusions"!

I picked up my bike today - when I went down I kind of went handlebars first and then to my side before sliding. Apparently, the impact caused me to bend the fork where my carbon meets the aluminum. I'm glad I don't ride a bike w/ an aluminum fork - if I did I'd need a new one about now. My wheels were bent but are now mostly straight. The fork took a little "rigging" but Mike got it in order until I can decide if I want to purchase a new one.

So that's the story...my pride is hurt as badly as my body. Accidents will happen when riding a bike but it stinks when you cause another rider to go down with you - it really makes you feel like bad.