I raced Donner this weekend. Am scared to death going down that 3 mile, windy, curvy, 8% slope. Last year my bike started to vibrate so I said this year
I am just going down slow holding the brakes. I had a guy in my AG fly by me big time and just said to myself, I will catch you on the run buddy.
Even though my bike time sucked, I made it to T2 in one piece, and then had fun running past all of them. :o)

After my getting hit by a car at Vineman, I promised the wife no more swim, bike, ambulance races. So getting hurt on the bike is just something if I can avoid,
even if it means my bike times suck, I will live with this.

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Dave Campbell | Facebook | @DaveECampbell | h2ofun@h2ofun.net

Boom Nutrition code 19F4Y3 $5 off 24 pack box | Bionic Runner | PowerCranks | Velotron | Spruzzamist

Lions don't lose sleep worrying about the sheep

Thank you for sharing. You're the best. Good message.

There was another "spectacular" crash on the first loop of the Keene descent, towards the back of the pack. I came out of the water around 8 am, relaxed transition, flatted before the first mile, and started losing air pressure in the same tire by the upper lake on the Keene descent, so I was pretty well back at the time. Raining good, so even though we were on the newly paved section across from the two lane uphill section, I was in cruise mode at about 35 mph, biding my time to get to the Keene aid station and some bike assistance.

Well, two yahoos (and I use that term with endearment) came whistling down the hill in the coned off lane, my guess at about 50 - 50+ mph. One of them, a big guy in a red rain jacket and maybe a small backpack, let out a whelp of joy just as they were passing me a couple of others. The next instant, something happened, he either drifted to close to the other fast guy and overcorrected and then clipped a cone to his left or maybe even clipped the guy. In any case, he went down, falling to his right. He landed on his right shoulder/side, head going first downhill. Us slower people had a NASCAR moment trying to pick a lane through the smoke. Fortunately, he and his bike stayed in the coned off lane. As the road was wet and brand spanking new smooth, the guy ended up outsliding his bike by at least 100 yards. It took several seconds to catch up to him on the ground and pass by, as he was still sliding. I figured he probably found the best place and time all year to pull this crash off, and I thought his injuries would be pretty minor, mostly road rash wear his shorts gave up the ghost.

My first thought on this thread was this was the guy I saw go down, but IM Roycer81 was miles ahead and probably already at the hospital by then, and most unfortunately, went down on a rough section of road. Speedy recovery to both.

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

Nice Blog OP.

I know exactly where you're talking about. I trained on that descent in early June before they re-paved the road. It was a nice day and myself and two friends had just come out of the super fast section...I hit a bump going around 30-35 mph. My rear wheel at the time was super flexy (wheels are now gone) and nicked off my frame sending me into my first experience with speed wobbles all over the place @ 30+ I sat up clenched the frame between my knees and hit the brakes until I got the bike back in control. All I could think of is going over that guard rail on the right into the river/chasm!!! To make a long story short the next day did the double notch climb in VT, Stowe to Smugglers/Jeffersonville and back...I think those speed wobbles were still in my head, hit the brakes hard on the descent back to Stowe hand slipped off (sweaty from the long climb) crashed into a ditch headfirst at 38.5 mph and broke my back in 3 places, my nose, and 2 fingers. Ended my LP hopes in June. Will be heading to Tahoe to try my luck there instead (50$ transfer).

I hope you heal up quick for Tennessee, know the feeling of loss and disappointment that comes with a crash like that. Although my crash was the next day and not in Placid, it happened in an instant and I had no chance to be terrified. Those Keene speed wobbles I still hate to think about.

Be well,
Nick

Another stupid I saw someone doing at Donner. As we are going down a slight hill to the turnaround, I look ahead and see 2 guys crash. One guy is taking the turn and some other guy thought he would cut
sharper to the inside on the 180 turn and took them both out. Was it worth it to try and save a second? Again, if you do not get into T2, what difference did it make?

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Dave Campbell | Facebook | @DaveECampbell | h2ofun@h2ofun.net

Boom Nutrition code 19F4Y3 $5 off 24 pack box | Bionic Runner | PowerCranks | Velotron | Spruzzamist

Lions don't lose sleep worrying about the sheep

Very sorry to hear about the fall, it definitely sucks. I went down 3 weeks before placid and was only able to start swimming about a week and a half before the race with Tegaderm. I'm sure that by now you figured out how bad showers are, the Band-Aid spray that somebody mentioned should work pretty well to ease that pain (I wish I knew about it a few weeks ago!). Another good thing to try for some of the smaller spread out wounds is NewSkin Liquid Bandage, that stuff works great at not only covering it but as an antiseptic.

Heal fast and get back out there stronger than ever!

Suggest replacing your base bar tape with skate board grip tape... its light years ahead in terms of grip, and makes a big difference to confidence in the wet.....
I did mine after a less than inspiring conditions at Challenge Forster last year... it has pissed down at EVERY race I have done this year FFS!!!
Its quite rough to start with but does wear slightly and or fill to less aggressive surface after a month or so.. Super good when braking hard with sweaty hands too..
Oh my base bar is the Brezza 2 so horizontal pursuit extension section... no lift up at its end.

Sucks about your crash - I did Placid as well and luckily I'd gotten caught in a few bad rain/thunderstorms in training so it wasn't as alarming for me - I was more concerned with the terrified riders taking up the entire road going down Keene. Figured there would end up being a few crashed due to this.


Agree with the Tegaderm or Duoderm - I crashed last year going around 21mph on flat road and the left side of my face hit the ground first so I ended up with road rash and some deep scratches from my face down to my thigh. I didn't want to go to work with Tegaderm plastered on my face so I used Brave Soldier Antiseptic Healing ointment during the day and washed with mild soap and covered with tegaderm overnight. It was practically healed within 1.5-2 weeks and no scars. All are great products.

Funny story - I was 8 miles from my truck when I crashed but luckily my bike was just slightly off skew with my front wheel off center so I was able to ride back with my handlebar sideways... no joke about halfway back there was a black bear standing in the middle of the road! We had a 15-20min stare down until he decided I was boring and moved on - what a day to run into a bear!

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Elisha
"Triathlon doesn't build character. It reveals it."

I second the Silver Sulfadiazine Creme endorsement. I crashed at 30mph training for IMLP 2012 and looked a lot like you did. Mine got infected and it was only salvaged by penicillin and Silver Sulfadiazine Creme. Get better soon.

I know exactly the guy you are talking about!!! My buddy and I were sitting on the hill by the fun corner in town watching the bikers come in. This guy walks by with his bike and bag (had a number on his bike so we knew he was a DNF). We chat for a minute and he says he hit one of the cones on the descent! His road rash wasn't as bad as I expected, but damn were his clothes torn up. He lifted up his shirt and half his bike shorts were gone. He was hurt, but didn't appear that he broke anything. He'll be sore for a week or so for sure. He had a positive attitude about it all, which was nice to see. If that was me, I'd be grumpy for a month.

For a fall of that magnitude you don't look to bad! Best wishes for a quick recovery.

Slick hands getting bumped off the bars is actually quite common. Of course if we were smart enough to wear gloves it would be much better, however I seemingly am nowhere's near that bright. The trick is to learn to have a tight grip while having soft elbows. I passed a lot of people in the rain going down that hill last year using that technique.

Sounds like you are in great shape . . . you'll be back at it soon.

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David
* Ironman for Life! (Blog) * IM Everyday Hero Video * Daggett Shuler Law *
Disclaimer: I have personal and professional relationships with many athletes, vendors, and organizations in the triathlon world.

I love this post for 2 reasons:
1 - It's somehow "Fred" for a triathlete to wear gloves in a race. Fine. But in those conditions, maybe one could not give a sh!t about how they appear to others for just one day? General comment, not addressed specifically to the OP or other posters.
2 - the "tight grip/soft elbows" thing is exactly what Mountain Biking teaches. Most triathletes could benefit from bike handling skills, and should consider MTB in the off-season, maybe even racing XC. It helps, I promise you. (plus it's fun)

"Most triathletes could benefit from bike handling skills, and should consider MTB in the off-season"
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You are exactly right! And, I wear gloves on the Mtn bike! My cycling skilled soared when I started serious Mtn bike riding. It also does amazing things for your pedal stroke.
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David
* Ironman for Life! (Blog) * IM Everyday Hero Video * Daggett Shuler Law *
Disclaimer: I have personal and professional relationships with many athletes, vendors, and organizations in the triathlon world.

My bicycle handling soared after I did the Superbike school at Sonoma.

Couldn't agree more. h20fun one of my favorite posters here!