The snow and the train: Stories of the Noob

[eimaiosatanas]

Hello people!

Today it's a mighty fine day! However there's still snow/ice on the street so, if you're going out with your bike, be cautious!

Now, to the story part of this post. On my way to work, there's a rail crossing. Every time I'm being careful to cross the rails as vertically as possible, but today due to snow, before I could even notice it, my wheel got trapped and a moment later, I was laying on the cold ground. "F*ck".

..And then the bells start to ring. A train was coming. Quickly stood up and since the train was not yet visible, grabbed the bike and jumped out of the tracks.

...Took a few moments to regain my composure and then looked to see if the bike had any major damage. Appart from the shifters slightly getting ... slightly out of position (bent?), there was no apparent damage done to the bike. Then proceeded to ride the next 1km to work on the bike as usual.

So there! Overall, a pretty exciting start for a normal day, don't you think? Be careful today!

Cheers!

 

[GSAstuto]

I hate those, too! There are 2 crossings from my house to Shibuya, both are at angle so cyclist must swerve out, then back to cross at 90 degree and avoid this kind of mishap. I don't know why JR can't make proper crossing guards on their tracks, but it's very annoying (and dangerous).

 

[Tamir]

A similar thing has happened to me when riding on the sidewalk when wet: the raised yellow brail blocks can be mighty slippery when hit at the wrong angle.

Luckily, I didn't fall, but came close.