ouch, save the bike

I decided to go for a bike ride today.  One of my co-workers was running her first 5k.
I decided that I would get my exercise by riding out to the race site.  It was a last minute decision about running the race myself, but I didn't want to pony up an additional 10.00 for registering at the event.  So I settled on the bike ride.  It is an 11 mile ride in each direction. 
The ride out was good, but a little cold.  All in all I was happy with the ride.  I got there in plenty of time to look around and say hello to familiar faces.

Joy did good on her first 5k, she managed to run the whole race, no walking.  I told her she could do it.  As of last thursday, she was still contemplating doing a walk/run.  I told her to try and run, walk if she had to.  I know you can do it.  Her time was a little slower than she normall runs, but she did it.  As she crossed the finish line she yelled out for me to sign her up for the 10k race. 

So it's time to ride home, and everything is going well.  I'm about half way home, and riding in the bike lane on a pretty busy road.  I'm coming up to the intersection when some guy passes me in a truck and decides that he doesn't want to wait in line to make his right turn, and that the bike lane would be a good place to go so he could make his right turn without stopping.  Well as soon as he gets in front of me, he realizes he isn't going to make it between the curb and the car in front of us, so he hits his breaks.  This leaves me with no where to go, and I can't get stopped or unclipped fast enough.  I end up taking a spill, scratched up my bike, and managed to hit every hard part of my body on the ground except my head.  My knee, hip, elbow and shoulder all took their turns trying to break my fall and I tried to get myself between my bike and the ground.  All the time hoping that there were no more cars coming behind me getting ready to pop my head like a grape.  By the time I got up and asessed the damages to myself, and get over the embarassment, the light had changed, and the A-hole in the truck was gone.

Managed to finish the second part of the ride home while my joints starting to stiffen up. 

I hate having to ride on city streets.  People are such jerks.

Scott

Sorry Scott.   I'm glad you are OK man!  It's an unfortunate reality that we have to share the road with the knuckleheads behind the wheels. 

I know you probably weren't able to get his license plate eh?  

I didn't, I probably could have, but I was so embarassed about falling down, that I wasn't thinking aabout it.  It wasn't until about a block or two later that I started to really get pissed.  The more I thought about it, the madder I got, and realized I should have tried to get his plate.

It's all good now, just a little stiff, mostly on my elbow.

I stopped by Echelon bike store when I realized that I was missing the plugs from the end of the handlebars.  They gave me a couple freebies to replace mine.  I just found out about this place yesterday.  It's a multi-sport store right here in town.  The guy seems nice and spent over an hour just talking to me, answering my equipment questions.  He is going to be at wildflower too.
I was prepared to buy a new cage for my water bottle because it was a pain in the butt to get the bottle in and out.  I was so in the mindset of it doesn't work buy another one.  He just helped me reshape the cage and now the bottle is still held in place but I can get to it and put it back without fighting it.  I would have bought a carbon fiber cage from him.  He lost the sale, but gained a customer with that action.  I will deffinitely be going back.  I like to buy local when I can anyhow.

Wow, that really sucks. I hope you aren't too sore...