Hitting the deck at 50 is not fun

[tuxbailey]

Went for a nice Sunday morning ride in the woods, weather was great, trail is not crowded and I was feeling great and having fun. On a flowy section I was having so much fun that I misjudged a tree splitting the trail. Clipped it with the bar end and launched myself ahead landing on the trail, after a few feet ahead of the bike pictured. Knocked the wind out of me as I laid there for a few minutes before gathering myself and pick up all the stuff from a yard sale situation. Also lucky I didn't land on rocks, roots, or stumps.

Luckily, no bones were broken other than scraped knee and elbow. Bike frame didn't crack either. limped my way couple miles to get home. And I even mowed the lawn afterward.

But two days later I was in a world of pain, and soreness. Lower back issue crept back up, pain in the right chest each time I roll on the bed, likely a bruised pectoral muscle. Probably cannot do any upper body workout for a while. So now is just ibuprofen, epsom salt bath, and ice pads. And a lot of mobility stretch.

When you are older, recovery just take much longer....

[marciero]

50 is young dude! Glad you are okay - if sore!

[AngryScientist]

Ouch!

Reading the title my mind immediately went to 50mph, glad that was not the case here!

Heal up quickly buddy!

[robt57]

Yeah, it gets 'not better'

We get too soon old, and too late bouncy I've discovered.


" And I even mowed the lawn afterward."

Ahh, a "did I screw myself up" test...

[Likes2ridefar]

Originally Posted by AngryScientist

Ouch!

Reading the title my mind immediately went to 50mph, glad that was not the case here!

Heal up quickly buddy!

I hit at 45mph once…amazingly didn’t break anything, and continued the stage race for 3 more days covered in bandages…permanently damaged my body though as I eye the mostly required compression sock on my left leg!

[NHAero]

Heal up, Tux, I hear ya at almost 69!

[benb]

I'm going to be 45 in < 3 weeks. I think about this a lot.

My percentage of rides that are MTB has been up a lot the last year or two because my son is old enough to like to MTB now. And I am riding really well on the MTB which does mean I'm moving faster and probably at greater risk.

I haven't had any crashes in a long time. I have had some joint injuries that maybe seem like they took longer but overall I'm real healthy. I had a period of my mid-30s that I felt a lot worse bizarrely enough.

Glad you are doing OK. Hopefully old age and treachery means lots of MTB experience and wisdom about when to send it and when to walk it.

Personally I've always been relatively allergic to catching air which helps a lot.

[tuxbailey]

Originally Posted by benb

I'm going to be 45 in < 3 weeks. I think about this a lot.

My percentage of rides that are MTB has been up a lot the last year or two because my son is old enough to like to MTB now. And I am riding really well on the MTB which does mean I'm moving faster and probably at greater risk.

I haven't had any crashes in a long time. I have had some joint injuries that maybe seem like they took longer but overall I'm real healthy. I had a period of my mid-30s that I felt a lot worse bizarrely enough.

Glad you are doing OK. Hopefully old age and treachery means lots of MTB experience and wisdom about when to send it and when to walk it.

Personally I've always been relatively allergic to catching air which helps a lot.

Yeah catching air is not something I want to risk even though it is a lot of. I go to the local skill park and ride around the pump track and I see people catch really big air around the crests of the bump and I just roll through.

I am not a good mtb rider by any means so I gotta be careful in going faster then I can react.

[tuxbailey]

Also, thank you all for the well wishes. Despite the fall, I will go back once I recovered.

While I was limping back I saw a group of riders doing a group ride led by a local bike shop. And most of the participants are my age or older, all ridging very nice bikes. So I think I will join that group.

[paredown]

All's I'll say is F=M*A

Most of us are larger than we were in our prime crashing years, so, yeah, we hit harder and take longer to recover...

Heal fast--sounds like you are on the right program.

[Mr. Pink]

I decided to drop MTB around age 50 after a week in Moab and a few close calls. And I ski a lot, with a decent crash or two every season. Just not worth it. Have to preserve the old body, although hip replacements are a dime a dozen these days.

[makoti]

It is even less fun at 64, as my recent experience tells me. It's a concern.

[donevwil]

Heal up Tux!

I just turned 58 so my wife and I celebrated with a long MTB weekend in Tahoe. First ride, 3 miles in she takes a spill, bloody elbow but wants to continue. 1 mile on I high side hitting my knee on a rock, bruise my hip and sprain my wrist on the way down. Finished the ride, but the rest of the weekend was spent in breweries.

I love mountain biking, but yeah, as primarily a roadie I may have to ditch the MTB.

[Marvinlungwitz]

Originally Posted by paredown

All's I'll say is F=M*A

Most of us are larger than we were in our prime crashing years, so, yeah, we hit harder and take longer to recover...

Heal fast--sounds like you are on the right program.

OTOH, after my last incident (61 at the time), I was thinking I’d be better off if I had some blubber to protect me.

[DfCas]

As I got into my sixties I made 2 mountain bike rules

1. Never mountain bike alone
2. Never mountain bike