A subtle gadget to consider to help mitigate risk when trying the ‘look mum no hands’ approach…
At the time of writing this small blog we are being fed multiple news snippets about the dynamics of the crash that Chris Froome has had. I gather from an account from Dan Martin who was in a car following the Team Ineos car and Chris that when it happened he thought that Chris could have been killed.
Obviously being one of the pinnacle riders of present time he will have received all the necessary medical and clinical support he needs to get himself back into shape both physically and mentally and I wish him well in his recovery. However, for us amateurs having an ‘off’ whether as serious as the one that Chris Froome has had or whether externally donating skin, the consequences can be just if not more impacting.
Those that know me and have read some of the previous blogs know that I have had a few off the bike situations and in the majority they have been caused by innocuously taking a hand off a handlebar to do something. It has caused a great number of laughs with my mates and I’ve ripped through enough quality apparel for it to have not only hurt the body but also the bank account…!
A runny or blocked nose caused Chris Froome’s crash where he felt the need to blow or wipe and thus hand off the handlebars for a split second. I’ve been in this actual situation before on the Marmotte last year on the 42km descent off the Galiber. On that occasion, I was holding on for dear life as speeds were approaching 55kmh & in places way above. Instead of taking action I chose to go with the ‘snot all over the face’ look. On the different occasion when I did chose to take my hands off the handlebars and factoring in that I was not concentrating fully when reaching down for a drink bottle I missed an approaching speed bump..! It was not pretty when I launched through the air off my trusted stead… it is that split second of circumstances that contrive to derail and detach you from your bike that always seems so daft on reflection.
On a positive note it is a potential marketing opportunity for Chris once passed his recovery phases, think Kleenex Tissues and how that link could be utilised..? Also think about previous Chris Froome descents (TDF 2016 Stage 8) and in particular that mighty stretch on the top tube hitting ridiculous speeds in a fashion not seen before in the Peloton and he stayed upright, was concentrating and it elevated him up the leader board. Risk verses Reward, he was focused, he had covered all the dynamics that he was in control of and relied on ‘Lady Lucky’ to bless him that day.
Take that concentration level off the 95 – 100% levels and unfortunately things will happen eventually…
A crash like Chris Froome’s can happen to any one of us no matter the cycling credentials… that is a fact. Based on this risk verses reward type nature in our sport are there opportunities to mitigate against the risks..?
Ordinarily there are marginal tweaks that can happen… ok, don’t ride so fast, don’t take your hands off the handlebars, avoid this and avoid that… but these things are attributed to the rider, the behaviour and own actions. Anyone considered what could be done with the bike or our clothing..? Air bags..? Motorbike guys have leathers and lightweight titanium protection, we have Lycra and skin… Hmmm, it is the sublime to ridiculous, think about it. Two wheel mode of travel using the same infrastructure, ok speeds are different but the same fundamentals… come off and you are hitting the same obstacles. It all seems a bit hit and miss with cycling protection but I guess over the coming year’s things will change. Thinking caps on follow cyclists for solutions…
For the here and now and for me, whilst accepting that as a rider of a bike I need to up the concentration levels and capabilities, I’ve had a little look at the bike and thought is there anything currently in the market that I can take advantage of to help the lessons learnt from my historic ‘off bike’ activity dynamics..? As a disabled rider that is dependent upon one hand I cannot realistically expect never to take my hand off the bars, so the need to mitigate risk in whatever capacity is going to be of a higher benefit to me than most.
Step forward my marginal ‘risk mitigation’ benefit tip for today… curtesy of Colin Donaghy’s ability to poach ideals from other bike disciplines… the ViscoSet Cane Creek damping headset…
https://blue.canecreek.com/products/headsets/viscoset
I have this on my road bike and am having this fitted to the track bike as well… fundamentally this gadget inhibits uncontrolled steering oscillation. For those that need a simpler description it is the opposite of assisted power steering on a car. It makes my handlebars harder to turn thus taking away the twitchy nature of rolling over B roads and country lanes. Let’s be honest most of the directional change on a bike is subtle leaning in the majority. However, this gadget allows a greater confidence that if I was to hit an imperfection that this wouldn’t allow the exaggerated movement come through the folks and handlebars. It is a subtle tool and to be fair you can set it up to be extremely restricted but you would then need the strength of a youthful ‘Arnie’ to be practical with its use.
I’d recommend this gadget inclusion to anyone and to be fair could conceivably become a mandatory piece of customisable standard equipment. It has restrictions on installation with the folk / steerer sizes and in these days where Cycle companies are looking at integrated steerer / stems fitting something like this is going to be harder. The ability to fit this gadget to a set up will ultimately affect what choice of any new bike I purchase going forward.
The two other aspects about a crash that we also need to factor in… 1) the mental aspect and 2) the financial impact… briefly
· Mental impact… Unless you have a Team Ineos contract (or similar) the physiological support is not readily available. The old school approach would be to ‘get out there and stop being a pu***’. The current ‘snowflake’ approach is to seek professional help… there is a business case justification for both I would add. My track crash smashed my body to bits because of a plonker falling off his bike. It has taken a fair bit of time and sucking it up to get back on a) the track itself and b) not having a mental disintegration episode whilst riding in groups of more than one rider. It does affect us all and we suddenly become aware of our own mortality and I still have these vivid mental imagines flash into my mind of what a crash would look and feel like when out riding. Bonkers I know but a consequence nonetheless… prior to the Legro’s Training Camp I had become a nervous descender giving those rim brakes a real hammering. With the help of one of Legro’s team leads, Tim Read (he doesn’t know he helped btw), I managed to find the ‘screw loose’ control and started to get my mojo back. Not as risk adverse but more confident and calculated but also faster.
· Financial… As a contractor if I don’t work I don’t get paid. Having a bad crash and sucking through a straw for a few week’s means no income. That’s what happened to me and the British Cycling membership was worth nothing for assisting to help resolve my lack on income. Insurance…? Expensive..!!! You can get insurance for a Motorbike easy, for a cyclist not so. The world of insurance assumes a high probability of coming off and because you only have Lycra and your skin for protection that there is a high likelihood that this is going to equate to a claim of some sort. The ‘outside world’ needs to embrace the fact that cyclists exist, there are comparable modes of travel out there that are catered for with risk mitigation across all aspects, it is about time that those areas caught up.
Anyway, back to the subtle adjustment to the bike and less of the rant, which when reading back just opens up so many business opportunities to follow up on. This intended to be a small write up on a steering damping gadget and it almost ended up as a motivation article on cycling business opportunities.
Risk mitigation… ViscoSet by Cane Creek. Never leave home without one..!!! Based on my experience something for everyone to think and consider as a customised option to safer riding.
Wayne
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