[Zark]

So on Sunday I took a nasty little spill at the end of uneventful ride. I was on a paved road section on my DH bike sprinting towards the peak when my jersey sleeve caught on something (brake lever, handlebar, I don't really know) and I was down before I knew it! Freakin weird crash!

So this isn't even the first time I've had a crash going uphill. 2 years ago I clipped a low hanging branch at head level while wheelieing up a short climb. (whiplash and a bruised tailbone) and 3.5 years ago I went off a cliff from a little wheelspin on narrow singletrack.

What's my deal? I crash and jack myself up more going up hill than I do DH'ing! Thats it I'm never climbing again for my own saftey

Anyone else care to share some uphill crash stories?

 

[robdamanii]

So on Sunday I took a nasty little spill at the end of uneventful ride. I was on a paved road section on my DH bike sprinting towards the peak when my jersey sleeve caught on something (brake lever, handlebar, I don't really know) and I was down before I knew it! Freakin weird crash!

So this isn't even the first time I've had a crash going uphill. 2 years ago I clipped a low hanging branch at head level while wheelieing up a short climb. (whiplash and a bruised tailbone) and 3.5 years ago I went off a cliff from a little wheelspin on narrow singletrack.

What's my deal? I crash and jack myself up more going up hill than I do DH'ing! Thats it I'm never climbing again for my own saftey

Anyone else care to share some uphill crash stories?

Ask Bluebug32 about her crashes yesterday.

But yes, it seems that most of the time, we crash on the easiest parts. I'm thinking that it comes from our lack of concern for such easy areas and letting our guard down.

 

[SkaredShtles]

Yep. I actually endo'd on an uphill section and my face met rock. It was a most bizarre crash. First and hopefully last time any crash like that happens.

 

[darkstar]

just last night i was riding with a few buddies in the OC hills and while i was hiking my bike up a steep section before the down i slipped and fell and shredded my right elbow
one of my friends remarked that i seemed to be more comfortable on 2 wheels than on 2 feet
at least there were a few other riders nearby to add to the embaressment!

 

[PonySoldier]

Absolutely..riding up ShingleMill in Buffalo Creek..was adjusting the straps on the camelbak riding uphill at a low, low speed and caught the front tire on something and crashed into a big ass pile of them Pink Granite boulders..all superficial but bloody scrapes and I felt like a complete moron.. :mumble:

 

[Polandspring88]

Its always one of those riding up something really steep sections, where at some point any momentum you may have had is gone and in an unsuccessful attempt to clip out you feel yourself toppling over backwards and then the tumbling begins...

 

[dh girlie]

My worst mtn biking injury was when I was on the easiest trail sitting still on the side of it...lost my balance, tipped over and broke my pinky in half...required MONTHS of pt, surgery and it STILL bugs me to this day (happened over 2 years ago)...it's also permanently shaped like Dr. Evil's pinky!

 

[OGRipper]

A friend of mine went for an easy ride one day, it was his first time on the bike in about three months after a back injury so he decided to take it easy. He said just getting back on the bike was the greatest feeling, until somewhere in the middle of the ride when he crashed on an easy climb and broke his wrist. Doh! Out for another two months at least.

 

[Westy]

This has happened to me several times. For some reason I don't hold onto the bars very well when climbing and sometimes my hands come off the bars. This is followed by falling chest first onto the bars and unclipping. I usually then start rolling back down the hill riding the bike backwards with the pedals beating the crap out of my legs. The only thing funnier that that is when I do it with people behind me and I end up bowling them over.

 

[dh girlie]

This has happened to me several times. For some reason I don't hold onto the bars very well when climbing and sometimes my hands come off the bars. This is followed by falling chest first onto the bars and unclipping. I usually then start rolling back down the hill riding the bike backwards with the pedals beating the crap out of my legs. The only thing funnier that that is when I do it with people behind me and I end up bowling them over.

y'all need to get this on video...sounds hysterical!

 

[Ciaran]

My worst mtn biking injury was when I was on the easiest trail sitting still on the side of it...lost my balance, tipped over and broke my pinky in half...required MONTHS of pt, surgery and it STILL bugs me to this day (happened over 2 years ago)...it's also permanently shaped like Dr. Evil's pinky!

Being hurt sucks, but the Dr. Evil pinkie is pretty cool. Tell people that you are into body modification and that you did it on purpose because you are eeeeeeeevil.

I crash all the time. uphill, downhill, standing still. I crash a lot. My most embarrassing ones are when I come to a stop and can't get out of my pedals, then slowly topple over.

 

[ncrider]

Monday I was riding a newly made line at a DH spot near my house. At one spot of the trail there is a steeper section followed by a short off camber uphill roller/turn. Well on the little uphill section I lost traction and slammed into a bush. No carnage, but I felt stupid.

Noah, it's probly a bit late to ask, but whats your schedule like this weekend. Any SB riding perhaps. My GF is in Vegas and I don't think I'll be going up to Mammoth so I'm looking for something else to ride.

 

[Ciaran]

Monday I was riding a newly made line at a DH spot near my house. At one spot of the trail there is a steeper section followed by a short off camber uphill roller/turn. Well on the little uphill section I lost traction and slammed into a bush. No carnage, but I felt stupid.

Noah, it's probly a bit late to ask, but whats your schedule like this weekend. Any SB riding perhaps. My GF is in Vegas and I don't think I'll be going up to Mammoth so I'm looking for something else to ride.

I might be up for a little crashing in SB, too!

 

[Zark]

Noah, it's probly a bit late to ask, but whats your schedule like this weekend. Any SB riding perhaps. My GF is in Vegas and I don't think I'll be going up to Mammoth so I'm looking for something else to ride.

Conrad, cruise on up and lets do some rides man! My only plan is to ride my bike, and not crash going uphill You got my number right?

EDIT: Mike, feel free to cruise up too!

Some awesome stories guys, hilarious stuff!

 

[stinkyboy]

 

[Polandspring88]

One of my most spectacular crashes...

As you can see, neither my hands nor feet have touched the ground yet...my testes took the majority of the impact.

 

[BigMike]

No uphill crashes, but I can relate to the tree branch thing. Yesterday night I was riding across a ledge, and hit a branch, got a little squirrly, and almost fell ~20' to concrete off the ledge. Instead I pulled left and dropped 4'. Not good times

 

[bluebug32]

i suck on the uphills because I don't know when to just give up, unclip, break and walk the bike up. Yesterday at Stewart I actually fell down 2 embankments because I couldn't get up the hill and then there was nowhere to put my feet

 

[stinkyboy]

One of my most spectacular crashes...

As you can see, neither my hands nor feet have touched the ground yet...my testes took the majority of the impact.

Good thing the Pinkbike logo was there to cushion your fall!

 

[oly]

Anyone else care to share some uphill crash stories?

Ive crashed 2 times standing to pedal uphill by hooking my baggie shots on my shifter paddle. It jerks your bar to that side so you over correct, then the shorts release, but with your bars are turned to compensate it sends you off the trail. Once it happened where i just went into the hillside, but another was off the trail down an embankment. Good thing I wasnt going too fast.....

I think i once also tripped and fell pushing my bike uphill, but that probably doesnt count....

 

[H8R]

Most of the uphill crashes I've had are on tricky ascents where I go to lift the front wheel over something while pedaling hard in a granny gear. I would always end up on my back.

It's really funny if you do that and pop a full camelbak.

 

[ncrider]

Conrad, cruise on up and lets do some rides man! My only plan is to ride my bike, and not crash going uphill You got my number right?

EDIT: Mike, feel free to cruise up too!

Some awesome stories guys, hilarious stuff!

Sweet! Pretty sure I'll be charging up there then. Oh, your PM box is full Noah! Clean it out man. Anyway, I'll call you later for the details.

 

[urbaindk]

A couple of weeks ago when the heat index was in the 100's I was riding XC with a group of friends. We were grinding up a long granny-gear fireroad climb when the girl in front of me just fell over into a ditch - with no attempt to unclip. She just ran out of gas and toppled over. She wasn't hurt but she couldn't get up either because her bike was still attached to her. I had to untangle her and help back on her bike.

Ah. Heat exhaustion. It's a wonderful thing!

 

[Zark]

Sweet! Pretty sure I'll be charging up there then. Oh, your PM box is full Noah! Clean it out man. Anyway, I'll call you later for the details.

Just cleared it out. I know, what a noob

 

[Ciaran]

Sweet! Pretty sure I'll be charging up there then. Oh, your PM box is full Noah! Clean it out man. Anyway, I'll call you later for the details.

Frikkin n00b!

 

[bluebug32]

A bizarre fall last night on a steep uphill....

[/IMG]

 

[Polandspring88]

A bizarre fall last night on a steep uphill....

I hate you for winning that stupid Trek Lucky 7 game.

 

[grundy]

I crash more often going uphill as well, usually on steep/technical terrain.

When climbing at extremely slow speeds, you just fall over faster than if you had more momentum.

Last week I was trying to clean a tricky spot on my 1x1. This was on a sidehill trail in a steep ravine, on a spot where you go up a short steep ramp, make a quick turn, and then go up a second short, steep ramp. I spun my tire trying to get through the turn, next thing I knew I was upside down. I got stuck in my pedals, tumbled backward, and ended up on my back, on top of a log, with my head hanging in the air (off the trail) and my bike still clipped into one of my shoes. Not my most gracefull moment, but luckily I landed just to the side of a nasty knot in the log, instead of right on top of it.

Later in the ride my damn bike just flew out from under me and landed me on my ass for the second time in one night. It's now a funky shade of blue.

 

[chicodude]

I am using a crappy pair of welgo clipless for my bike (Cause I got 'em free with some shoes, and now I know why) The damn tension on the pedal just randomly will not let me disengage so i fall over going up supersteep hills

 

[freeridekid]

my dad was goin about a mile an hour around an uphill switchback and he lost his balance and fell. unfortunately a sharp branch caught his fall and he got 17 stitches in his leg. it sucked because it was the beginning of the ride and we hadn't even gone downhill yet! that selfish bastard, wanting me to go all the way back to the car and get a first aid kit. sheesh! (it was at tolt-macdonald park i believe)

 

[ioscope]

Ive crashed 2 times standing to pedal uphill by hooking my baggie shots on my shifter paddle. It jerks your bar to that side so you over correct, then the shorts release, but with your bars are turned to compensate it sends you off the trail. Once it happened where i just went into the hillside, but another was off the trail down an embankment. Good thing I wasnt going too fast.....

I think i once also tripped and fell pushing my bike uphill, but that probably doesnt count....

I did that on a bike path at whistler. That's why STI is safer on pavement.

 

[Skookum]

A bizarre fall last night on a steep uphill....

[/IMG]

aha that's cool i've never seen anyone lose their shoe before.

 

[konabiker]

It has never happened to me, but I witnessed one of the craziest looking uphill crashes ever. It was at this past sea otter, we were shuttling back up the hill, and just got to that one really steep last uphill in the van. Some cross country guy just lost all his speed going up the hill, tried to unclip, rolled backwards for a while, fell off the side of the road, and tumbled for about 50 feet down a steep hill with his bike still attached to him.

 

[hooples3]

once fatigue sets in from climbing for a while I notice i start to get lazy and not pay attention to the rocks/roots/crevices etc. thats usually when i get myself in trouble. I have this way of laying the bike down on its side as i am falling and that helps me to unclip before i actually hit the ground

 

[Reactor]

A bizarre fall last night on a steep uphill....

The cleat wouldn't come out or the pedal? I had the same thing happen. It's amazing how long it takes to fall once you start...

 

[Reactor]

I had a touch of Physical therapy last month. The other guy they were working had been going to therapy for about a year, and had a couple of surgeries. He fell over at about mph going up hill. He hit just right and tore most of the tendons in his shoulder. He toild me he was switching to road riding..... at which point I told him why I'm in physical therapy.

 

[skinny mike]

My worst mtn biking injury was when I was on the easiest trail sitting still on the side of it...lost my balance, tipped over and broke my pinky in half...required MONTHS of pt, surgery and it STILL bugs me to this day (happened over 2 years ago)...it's also permanently shaped like Dr. Evil's pinky!

is your hand now like that wierd butler's from scary movie 2? my germs!

 

[JRB]

I hate you for winning that stupid Trek Lucky 7 game.

I thought the same thing.

 

[JRB]

aha that's cool i've never seen anyone lose their shoe before.

One night we were on a ride and I saw what looked like UFOs across a creek. It was my buddy crashing. He was on one side of the bike with a shoe still clipped in. He asked, "is my foot in that shoe"? I said no, and he said, "good cuz it's in a funky spot from the rest of me". Got him up, forgot to switch on my halogen bar light and I endoed on a rock. Quite a night, it was.

 

[PatBranch]

I can be clumsy without my bike. I am much better on 2 wheels than walking. I don't crash very hard dh or anything else; my crashes are usually low speed trips/ slips and look very clumsy/stupid although they can hurt.

When we lived in La Canada Flintridge (by the rosebowl) (or between glendale and pasadena) my dad came back from a road ride with blood and bruises. He crashed into a parked car going uphill. He said he was playing with his computer.