Crosswinds can be nasty and can affect a rider’s ability to control their bike. This was not the case on Saturday, 10/10/09, when Maria Parker went down from perhaps a slight loss on concentration on her part [link to her story—a MUST read].
Doug Burton says:
During our post-race discussion and download, we concluded that the discs had nothing to do with the incident. Now I’m afraid the word’s getting out that the discs were at fault, when really they made a big difference in her early blazing laps that covered us for time lost in our mishap.
I’m trusting I’ve done my part to help clarify any misconception that may have resulting from near real-time coverage of Maria Parker’s amazing feat. As a cyclist who rides a VK2 with a rear-wheel disc. I’ve not had a problem with cross-winds. That is just my experience. I do ride closer to the ground than many cyclist and that can make a difference.
Related links:
Hi Jim,
I wanted to again say THANK YOU for reporting on the record attempt. You did a great job. You are one of a very small number of people who have ever ridden on the yellow Silvio. Now its part of recumbent history!
Maria is sore today, but she got up this morning and sang with the music group at church. Regarding her fall, we spent a lot of time discussing it. I was driving, so I didn’t see what happened. I was concentrating on keeping my speed steady and listening for any instructions from others in the car like "slow down, a little faster, or keep it there". I heard her slap the side of the car and I reflexively veered left and stomped on the brakes. I threw the transmission into park, jumped out, and ran around the car, not knowing what I would see. Maria was standing there with blood dripping off her left arm and leg saying "I’m fine. I need a bike. get me a bike." After a moment of thanksgiving to see this wonderful woman alive and determined to continue, I asked Will for a water bottle. I checked Maria out (hey, I’m an M.D.), and used the water to irrigate her wounds, which were very superficial. Doug didn’t want to put her back on the yellow bike, at least not without a thorough check of the bike. Maria said, "get the other bike." So we pulled it off the rack and she took off on it.
Did wind have anything to do with it? It’s debatable. There were some crosswinds on that part of the course. But Maria had trained quite a bit with two covered wheels before, and had been in crosswinds before, and been passed by many large trucks before. She’s never had trouble controlling the bike with wheel covers in crosswinds before. Maria just posted a blog entry on cruzbike.com with her perspective of what happened. I think there were many factors involved with her spill including fatigue, inexperience, wind, and narrow (38 cm) drop bars. It’s a complex task to get supplied from a moving vehicle under the best of circumstances. We’re just very happy that her injuries were minor, and we have learned from the experience.
Best regards,
Jim Parker
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