Goose bumps, and humbling ride in So Cal (Orange County)

[54ny77]

Was out for a long ride today (Santiago Canyon Rd. in SoCal) and caught up with a guy who'd done a loop of the route earlier in the morning. He said a really bad accident happened between a woman on a bike and a car who pulled out suddenly. Don't know the details or circumstances, but all he said was that when he passed by she was lifeless and blood all over the road, it was awful. It happened 5-10 minutes before he went past the scene. Ambulances and Fire Dep't and cops everywhere. I got goosebumps on the arm and felt like the wind taken outta my sails hearing him talk about it.

At that particular stretch of road, if you're hauling you can easily be at 40+ mph. It's about a half mile before the Cook's Corner motorcycle hangout.

Today, when I got to the beginning of that downhill stretch, it was eerie and I was feathering brakes constantly, coasted along at 16-18mph, tops.

Rode past an area where there was remnants of flares all over the place, and a dark maroon area on the ashpalt. More goose bumps on arms.

Of all the ironies, simultaneously a car almost pulled a left turn in front of me just as another car almost pulled out to turn right. I was mainly focused on the car about to turn left (I waved my hand so they'd see me) and out of corner of my right eye I saw a silver sliver of a Honda that was somewhat hidden by large shrubbery, and waved my hand at them so they'd see me.

Was not close at all to getting hit by either car, thanks to going as slow as I was and the reaction time allowable. However, moments later I realized that had I been going full tilt along that stretch, there's a very good chance one of those cars would've tagged me.

Moral of story: be safe out there. And my thoughts & prayers go out to the woman who was in the bike-car accident, whoever you are.

[Louis]

Whether you're in a car or on a bike, your life depends in large part on the decisions made by others. It's especially true while cycling, and one of the scarier parts of the sport.

Sounds like the woman was doa. That sncks.

[HenryA]

There are places you can legally ride that you could choose not ride.
Something to think about.

[Fivethumbs]

I find myself riding with the expectation that every car is going to pull out in front of me. I am right way too often.

[benitosan1972]

Ride defensively, assume the worst

[Gummee]

Ride assertively, assume the worst

Fixt for what works for me. YMMV

M

[Bob Loblaw]

Whoops! Wrong date!

[veloduffer]

I saw something similar skiing. I was going downhill fast and saw blood all over the snow. I slowed down immediately and when I got to the bottom, I saw that a skier looked like he broke his nose somehow. Still..pools of crimson red fluid scares the bejesus out of you.

[MattTuck]

I can only speak for myself, but unless it is a very open road with great site lines and good asphalt, 30-35mph is about the fastest I am comfortable going. Bicycles, despite being much lighter than cars, seem to have worse braking performance especially on downhills.

I try to keep my speed at manageable but still enjoyable rate on downhills. This is a result of a bad crash during a downhill in which I overcooked a corner and almost killed myself, and also just plane old experience and decisions I make on where I want to take risks.

Not suggesting that speed was a factor in the accident mentioned, as I don't have the facts. But bombing down a descent at 40mph+ when cars could be coming on to the road or leaving it, and you don't have good visibility, not safe, IMO.

[CaliFly]

I know this spot from the OC Gran Fondo in 2010...similar experience even with tons of riders on the road at the time. Some drivers just refuse to pay attention...sucks that we have to do it for them.

[ofcounsel]

This is so sad to hear.

Streets are so dangerous these days. Honestly, it's a big reason why I sold my street motorcycle, and now only ride my motorcycle on race tracks. It's also why I do a lot more mountain biking these days.

[54ny77]

South Orange County, Calif. has gotten far worse over the years. The crap that happened to me on the road while on bike over a period of ~2 weeks was unbelievable. Road rage everywhere, pissed off uptight drivers of all socio-economic strata (though more often than not the assaults came from folks in nice cars, which just might be a function of the area).

If I didn't have pretty good bike handling skills, I'd have been flattened on the ground on more than one occasion. Craziest was getting a bottle thrown at me (passed in front of my arms, just missed going into front wheel), but a close 2nd was getting squeezed from the left into a parked car on the right. Thankfully, that took place at low speed (~10mph near a traffic light and busy corner). I kept cool, and the driver that did it had absolutely no clue they drifted clear into the bike lane and left me less than a handlebar width between them and a series of parked cars. They were texting, most likely. Also apologized profusely, so what could I do at that point?

Still a little rattled from that crash scene on Santiago. I sincerely hope the person is ok. Anyone have more info?

Oh yes, on one road I traveled on a couple of times, a sign on a garage prominently says, "Cyclists are the new hood ornaments." Way to stay classy, homeowner. :eek:

[rustychisel]

Oh yes, on one road I traveled on a couple of times, a sign on a garage prominently says, "Cyclists are the new hood ornaments." Way to stay classy, homeowner. :eek:


I'm not serious, but how about carrying an empty beer bottle and each time you ride past throw the bottle at the garage... ?

[tiretrax]

An old lady was coming around a corner where a house is under construction. She was so busy looking at the modern house that she didn't realize she was on the other side of the rode. She looked up just as she missed clipping me with her hood. I was watching her the whole way and headed onto the grass before she had a chance to get close.

[mgm777]

I've ridden Santiago Cyn many, many times. Scary story. A female rider from my old team lost her life on that same road last year. Tragic. I hope today's rider will be okay.

[Jaq]

I've never done Santiago. I usually ride Laguna Canyon when I'm down that way visiting family. Guys I know refuse to ride it, but I find it to be a really solid ride. The only problem is, on afternoons, the wind coming in off the ocean gets funneled through the canyons and it turns into a wind-tunnel in parts.

Honestly, I think that's why guys refuse to ride it, and site safety issues when you call 'em on it.

The one ride I'd absolutely love to do is Ortega Highway, but everyone says that's just death. On toast-points.