what a waste of time writing this article......

there is no way to crash well.....

so many ways and so many causes that happen in a micro second....

best prep is not to crash.

Good luck with that

almera90:

What a waste of time writing this comment.

And thanks for stating the obvious.

Of course it's better not to crash!

But hey, why bother doing fire drills, after all, it's better not to be caught in a fire, and since it all happens in seconds, it's an utter loads of bollocks!

I read in one of the Armstrong training books that you should practice crashing. How do you do that? Every time I have crashed my mind is filled with one big expletive and then I am on the deck before I know it thinking 'how the f*** did that happen'.

I think what almera90 was trying to say was that when a crash actually happens, there is no time to think about the best way of avoiding injury; it just happens. You can of course practise crashing until it all becomes second nature, but, as likewoah so aptly put it, "good luck with that" :)

"Practice crashing"

I don't think he means absolutely hoon it and try and tip yourself off - but from playing rugby, one of the first drills is pretty much drop and roll - all the above about landing on your shoulder and rolling through, do help.

When you roll, it takes some of the energy out of the impact - and that reduces the force going into your body (don't correct me on energy/forces etc - I'm working in layman's terms for a reason!) - hence the comments about the sack of spuds drops being often pretty damn painful.

I can't help thinking that they are being a bit pedantic writing this article, much like the MTB for begginers article which made everything really complicated when actually all you need is a bike.

How about a demonstration video? Perhaps by the BikeRadar staff? ;)

over the bars rather than rolling you can step off and though though watch you don't get hit by the back wheel...

When I was a lad I used to do Judo. Hours of practicing how to land. It's stayed with me all my life: to the extent that things like the 'over the bar' rolls become instinctive. But I don't believe that reading an article can help: if you don't practice you won't have time to remember this in an accident.

It's not impossible to practice crashing: you can use soft grass, thick carpet, thick mat and you don't need to involve a bike while you're practicing....but I guess you'd feel a bit of a berk actually doing it if you weren't involved in something like a judo class!

The one thing that judo really helped me with was learning how to deal with impact. In rugby, football, cycling etc etc, learning how to fall properly has saved me from a lot of grief...

Falling comes with instinct. If spent your young years rolling around, play fighting or park hour then you'll know which way to take the momentum. But it's certainly something that never crosses my mnind when I do crash.

After crashing, broke my collarbone, met a tired doctor who didn't do his job well, result, after 17 months still in physio. Do you think it would have made a difference if I had read this article before?

I like Bike radar you're doing a real good job but with this ... makes me wonder!

Have you ever crashed with a bike? It happens so fast ... do you seriously think anyone would remember how to do it properly?

Has anyone actually managed to do a high-side on a road bike?? You'd have to be going seriously quick around a corner to have enough momentum during the slide to manage it...

I know teams that have run crash avoidance practice in controlled environments on grass.

I HAVE seen someone high-side coming around a corner on a mountainous descent a car pulled a u-turn in front of him. Not pleasant.

surprises me the number of people who are seeming to say 'you dont know when your going to crash" makes me wonder if i must have esp or something as i reckon 90% of the time i know i'm goin to crash, sometimes its a fraction of a second sometimes longer and knowing how to roll really does help.

apart from bruises the the most serious injuries have occured in those 10% of crashes i didnt see coming. for me they've usually been high speed front end wash outs where i've hit the ground before i could react.(mx and mtb)

so for thse that are scoffing at this the rest of us wont be thinking of you sat in A&E

x

This is rediculous, not to mention what or who is going to run over you after you do this stunt roll, perhaps we could train to slide over car bonnets like Bodie and Doyle.

Best learn to look further ahead on the track or road and wear brighter clothing, not the broadcast black I see on the roads these days.

Good luck guys !!

To state the bleeding obvious:

You can practice falling. It's called Judi, gym, AIkido etc. I trained myself to tumble roll as a 12 year skateboarder after I broke my wrist, It's pretty basic really. Falling off a lot helps with falling off - nonsense for a road rider but no one can become a better MTB rider without falling off a lot and getting used to doing it. Being more confident falling makes you ride better!

Accidents are unwanted falling. People generally avoid them if they can and their ability to do so will be dependent on experience. And then there's traffic and ice.

The article is a *bit* ridiculous - but if it makes people think about learning about falling then it's good...

Are You Serious?

total non article- how about concentrating on the tactics to avoid what causes crashing in the first place.

Ha! I rounded a corner at 40 or so, hit a fence that was strung across the road and had precisely f**ck all time to stop my collar bone snapping and skin leaving me by the yard. If I had known how to fall, I imagine that it would have done me no good whtsoever, but next time I will try to do it properly. Aye, right.

the helmet will save you.

I'll try and remember all this in the fraction of a second before I break my arm (again).

Hey i'm a dummy.What a brillant artical.Now i can't wait to go out & practice!

Actually there are good ways to crash, or some are certainly better than others. I've flipped 6'0" in the air coming off my bike in a race (apparently) and just came away with a shredded jersey, small rash on my aching back and cuts, but I didn't break anything, even though I landed stright on the tarmac, 1/2 a metre away from the grass. I've also hurdled handlebars in training to avoid crashes and gambolled off my bike onto verges to save my body.

Basically, what I'm trying to say is that in a crash instinct kicks in (some peoples are better than others) and you do things you didn't think you could do. These techniques are the best for minimising injury and are good advice (unless you can unclip, fiht off another rider, hurdle your handlebars and land on your feet at 19 mph :) ).

There is actually more time in a crash to think than you would expect, so knowing what to do is very helpful. I have crashed a couple of times and knowing what to do has saved me a lot of pain and possibly even my life. I think the article is pretty helpful especially for beginners, because let's face it, if you are going to ride hard, you are going to crash. Might as well know how to do it.

This is a worthy topic. I've hopped a down bike & rider. Even pulled off a miracle crash a few years ago in winter. Had two riders down on a descent w/ do gooders blocking the entire road in front of me. I swung the bike out to far left, planning to go into the leaves on the that side (vs rock wall on the other). Layed the bike down going off the back onto my back, knowing that I had a Camelback on for shedding cold weather gear. Remembered to tuck chin in to not hit back of head (from ice skating) rolling into the leaves.

I was riding my very classic '85 Team Olmo, beautiful pearl blue & white. Didn't scratch or ding the bike, didn't tear or shred any clothing. Yes the impact hurt, but the "plan" worked exactly as planned. I remember it vividly, larying ih the leaves not moving, wondering what I should move first. It wasn't race speed and the Camelback Mule took the shock and tough enough too not even notice.

When I started riding seriously, nearly 30 years ago. I discussed this topic with experienced riders. The two things I always think about, don't stick out your and try to "get onto your back". I've had some very painful wrist injuries (don't stick out your hands). I work with computers and need the fingers. Do your best to tuck and get onto your back.

I hope all you can have a perfect crash, it feels like you experienced a miracle.

I also feel I should mention that I tried to stop a rider on Brasstown Bald with a front end problem. We were walking up to the parking lot, he was riding down. I thought about it too late, on a 12-14% grade he was gone in a instant. Sadly, it was his last ride. So, it is serious business, take the time to help when you can. And yes, these are both true stories.

This article is definitely worthwhile. There sure are a lot of haters on here. Rolling out of a fall has saved me from a lot of injuries I would have otherwise sustained. Most of the time you do get a chance to react.

IMO, the best way to learn how to fall is to take up mountainbiking. You'll fall more for a variety of reasons, but the predominant ones are that speeds are generally slower and the surfaces to fall on are generally software. i.e. you'll get away injury free more often from a crash on a mountainbike.

In Belgium, up and coming cyclo-cross riders are taken to Judo lessons to learn how to fall and land correctly. They also take the bike and learn how to jump and land correctly.

Ademort