'Interesting' training experiences ...

[LuckyPierre]

Do we have a thread for interesting training experiences?
I had my most interesting one (so far) on this morning's ride. I was heading out on the Uriarra - Cotter loop (it's up on bikely.com) and had just come out of Coppins Crossing when there was a 'bang' and something hit my bike, just as a car went past. Then I felt that my legs where wet - that's right, some turkey had thrown a bottle of beer at me as they went past. And the b*stards got me!
Fortunately, the hit wasn't enough to make me go off the road.
Unfortunately, it was enough to distract me for long enough to miss their registration number.
Double unfortunately, because I took enough glass in the back of my leg to have to abandon the ride and head for the emergency department. Most of the cuts were just shallow ones, but one was deep enough to nick an artery, so I've got three stitches in it and can't ride in tomorrow's (or Tuesday's) criteriums.
I'm sure that I've seen another post about the same thing - and in roughly the same place - on another forum.
Has anyone else had a fun experience on a ride?

[europa]

Doesn't sound like you have recently either. Takes all kinds to stuff up a world doesn't it. Glad you're (sort of) okay though.

Richard

[heavymetal]

Glad to hear that you are not injured worse than you are. This is typical behaviour nowadays.

I've been hit by an assortment of things, including a Kylie Minogue CD. I make sure that I wear industrial polycarbonate sunglasses in case of getting hit in the face by a glass bottle. A guy got hit with one in the face here some years ago.

[matagi]

......Then I felt that my legs where wet - that's right, some turkey had thrown a bottle of beer at me as they went past. And the b*stards got me!
Fortunately, the hit wasn't enough to make me go off the road.
Unfortunately, it was enough to distract me for long enough to miss their registration number.
Double unfortunately, because I took enough glass in the back of my leg to have to abandon the ride and head for the emergency department. Most of the cuts were just shallow ones, but one was deep enough to nick an artery, so I've got three stitches in it and can't ride in tomorrow's (or Tuesday's) criteriums.
I'm sure that I've seen another post about the same thing - and in roughly the same place - on another forum.
Has anyone else had a fun experience on a ride?

This is the thread you're thinking of http://www.cyclingforums.com/t368977.html I bet it's the same guys. I hope you reported it to the police. They'll give you the old "without witnesses, etc" line but if this is a continuing problem then they might actually sit up and take notice if they continue to get reports.

[LuckyPierre]

That's the one, matagi!
I was in pretty much the same place too.
Looking at my bike today (after I'd cleaned all the glass out of the cassette, rear derailleur etc.), they must have hit me pretty squarely on the seat stay above the derailleur. There's a couple of fresh, shiny nicks on the seat stay and some flecks of paint taken off.
The cops were interested, but there is very little that they can do without a registration number.
It is annoying that it happened on a route that I want to use most weekends. I've been through there about half a dozen times so far and it's the first time anything has happened, but I'd hate to think that they're the odds I'm facing.

[amattinson]

I had a similar thing happen to me a few years ago in Newcastle. The bottle, luckily, went through below my torso and between my arms and went harmlessly through me.
I was so enraged I dragged the guy out of the car through the window at the next set of lights. He was so scared I hope that it was the last time he did anything quite so senseless !!

[AUbicycles]

I had a similar thing happen in Sydney on Bobbin Head Road just riding out of the National Park on a Tandem. This was over 15 years ago and drunken (sounding) goons in a car threw a heavy stick at me which got me in the back. I think it was more the shock than pain which got to me and unfortunatelly missed getting the number plate.

This type of thing needs to be reported to the police, even if you don't have the rego. Might feel like a waste of time but the more reports that go in about this type of violent behaviour, the better this can be targeted or brought to public attention.

For a bit of emotion, attacking a cyclist from a car is cowardly and can cause injury and in the wrong circumstances death. What motivates a person to want another person who they don't know to suffer injury?

[Kev365428]

Hi all, this is my first post on these forums.

I was riding down the M5 between Campbelltown Rd and Narrellan Rd heading south, when a guy threw a half eaten bread roll at me. He missed, so no harm done, but I was quite angry at the time. Now I kinda laugh about it. Imagine rocking up to the emergency ward with shards of dough sticking out of your leg.

One instance which didn't happen while I was riding, but certainly got me thinking, happened while I was driving to work.

I drive from Ingleburn (in Sydneys south-west for those in other states) to Mascot each day at around 5am. On tuesdays and Thursdays I ride in if weather and pre-arranged social events permit. On this particular day whilst driving, a dope in a Beamer came flying up beside me doing somewhere around 130kph I guess.
I was in the right hand lane with a number of cars in front of me, and there were also cars in the left hand lane, thus his progress was blocked. Didn't worry him though, as he swerved violently into the breakdown/bike lane to go around the car in the left hand lane, past him and then veered right across into the right hand lane about three cars ahead of me, passed a truck in the left lane then cut back across into the breakdown lane to pass another group of cars before disappearing in the distance.
Apart fromt he usual thoughts of "you bloody idiot", the only thing I could think of was what if I was riding my bike up there at the same time. This dill would have had no way of seeing what was in that lane prior to cutting across two lanes of traffic.

Makes you consider if riding to work is worth the risk sometimes.

Cheers all and stay safe.

Kev.