Bad fall yesterday

[jeprox]

I had a really bad fall yesterday and did not know the extent of the damage until I got home and took a shower. I was doing one of the jumps on the east side and did not pull the front wheel on time. I landed on the front wheel first and I went over the bar and landed on my stomach and then my head. The fall was hard enough that if I did not wear the helmet I was wearing, I would have lost some teeth and probably a broken jaw and some cuts on my face as well. I was lucky.

I decided to buy this helmet last year because a rider once said something to me and I did not understand what he was saying. His lips opened but not the jaw which looks like it was wired. He was wearing a full-face helmet. I checked the net why bikers would wear full-face helmet when doing XC rides compared to downhilling. I learned that some “simple” crashes can break the jaw like landing face first, or the head hitting a tree (or any hard object such as rocks) on very mundane slip-n-fall while riding. I would hate to see any of you guys hurt like that. Anyway, here’s the link. Large in black is on sale ($155 US):

www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=17687

[viking]

Glad to hear you were wearing the right protection. I guess the danger of MTB'ing is one of the reasons we all do it.

[merlin]

Hey Bong,

Make sure you inspect your helmet when you are in a bad fall. They are normally good for one good fall and needs to be replaced. Some helmet companies have a good replacement program. It is worth checking.

Seriously, I worn down helmet is as bad as having a poorly fitted one.

--Levi