Results of cycling accident

One of those odd stories that, whilst it starts with cycling, goes somewhere very different.

Hope it holds some interest.

I woke up unable to speak English

By Beth Rose

Hannah Jenkins speaks English in the morning and German in the afternoon. It's not a routine she chose to adopt - but something her brain requires her to do. It all started with a cycling accident.

Her partner Andrew Wilde was halfway up a mountain in the US state of Montana when he received a baffling text from Hannah.

He understood only two words - "dog" and "hospital" - but knew instinctively something was wrong.

The text was in German, a language Hannah had grown up with, but Andrew didn't really understand. They only ever communicated in English.

Rest of article here:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/disability-45804613

Nice story! OK bad accident for the lady but really interesting. Maybe I'd better get cracking on my fourth language then? Or wear a helmet?

My GF and I speak 4 languages between us - she doesn't speak a word of English and I not a word of Basque, our common languages are French and Spanish. She learnt Basque recently (last 10 years?) because, although it was spoken by her parents, de Gaulle didn't want it taught in school. Franco neither... I taught myself better Spanish than the stuff I learnt in bars using Duolingo (which I strongly recommend as a learning tool). I once was top of class in English and am mostly bi-lingual in French - spoken no problems, written depends on the way the wind is blowing... My written English has taken a big hit since I started thinking in French.

Over to you Woosh - your written English is a bit like my written French

I think that this sort of problem is not all that uncommon, a friend of mine had a stroke, one result of which was that he lost the ability to speak English and could only speak Welsh.

He grew up in Wales in a bi-lingual home, school etc., so both languages were his 'Mother tongue'

After about 6 months, his English began to come back.

It was very trying for his wife who only had a smattering of Welsh.

Maybe I'd better get cracking on my fourth language then? Or wear a helmet?

I think she was wearing a helmet, they'd no doubt have made capital out of her not wearing one. The article says her only physical injuries were to a shoulder and leg, so the brain injury probably through a helmet contact with the other cyclist she hit, bruising the brain inside the skull.

Either that or polystyrene is more dangerous than we thought.

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I think she was wearing a helmet, they'd no doubt have made capital out of her not wearing one. The article says her only physical injuries were to a shoulder and leg, so the brain injury probably through a helmet contact with the other cyclist she hit, bruising the brain inside the skull.

 

Either that or polystyrene is more dangerous than we thought.

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Another case of helmet efficiency in action! Brain damage yes, nasty external bruising and bleeding no...

Head injuries can be funny things - I got into them at school after banging my head on a radiator in the gym when playing handball and got concussed. At the bus stop on the way home I noticed while I could see cars in general I couldn't tell what make each was. Similar thing happened again a few years later after a thump to head and going to a friend's house I could see she had fluffy toy animals but for the life of me I couldn't what type of animal each one was. Each time my whole perception of classification went awry.

Studied Psychology and memory and read Oliver Sacks who wrote marvellous books which delved into both the technical aspects and humanity of people with neurological disorders.

Then I fell off a ladder head or hands first into a flowerbed from 3 stories up thankfully missing a patio, bashing my bonce. For a few days I had short term memory loss and kept asking every 30 minutes or so who was prime minister and asking if my motorcycle was okay (as I thought that was how I'd ended up in hospital with broken wrists.). In the end the staff pinned the answers to my repeated questions to my gown for ready reference. My girlfriend at the time was a junior doctor there at the time and I thought she was only vaguely familiar! I remember bursting into tears at the simultaneous knowing and frustration of what was happening to my memory and not being able to do anything about it. Thankfully my head got better and coincidently a few years later I ended up working on the same ward I'd stayed on as some of the staff recoginsed me as the PIA patient!

These experiences led me to work with a chap who'd had a bad head injury which had profoundly and permanently damaged the language part of his brain leaving him unable to speak or read - he could just about comprehend speech. To fill this gaping void he absorbed himself in music esp classic music and opera particularly Pavaroti.

Hence why I wear a helmet!

Edited October 18, 20187 yr by Wicky

Another case of helmet efficiency in action! Brain damage yes, nasty external bruising and bleeding no...

Not stirring here

But it’s also amazing how many people wear them incorrectly like not adjusting them properly and I’ve seen people not even doing them or just plainly not fitting properly full stop .

Also there’s a lot more technology in a helmet these days with mips etc but many people ride around with straight polystyrene which is better than nothing but not great compared to newer technology .

But as already said the brain is a funny thing and responds in different ways to impact with or without a lid .

But it’s also amazing how many people wear them incorrectly like not adjusting them properly and I’ve seen people not even doing them or just plainly not fitting properly full stop .

Kids especially, like the little girl at the front of this photo:

Kids especially, like the little girl at the front of this photo:

[ATTACH=full]27296[/ATTACH]

Perfect example.

Are cycling helmets the wrong shape?

The cadets at my sailing club wear some sort of helmet that fits properly and does not perch on top of the head.

Contrast helmets for sailing, snow boarding, horse riding and so on, they all fit around rather than on top of the head.

Are cycling helmets the wrong shape?

The cadets at my sailing club wear some sort of helmet that fits properly and does not perch on top of the head.

Contrast helmets for sailing, snow boarding, horse riding and so on, they all fit around rather than on top of the head.

Lots of bike helmets also 'fit around' the head.

However if you were to wear one of those on a racing bike, then many people would find:

They overheat

The more severe bend of the neck when looking up from an aero position would mean the back of the helmet hits your neck.

So the question could be be, 'are people buying the wrong helmets for the type of riding they do'.

Are cycling helmets the wrong shape?

The cadets at my sailing club wear some sort of helmet that fits properly and does not perch on top of the head.

Contrast helmets for sailing, snow boarding, horse riding and so on, they all fit around rather than on top of the head.

I wear an “enduro” style helmet which gives a good balance of protections vs overheating

Plus I’m bald so less of an issue !

Not this one but very very similar

https://www.on-one.co.uk/i/q/HECAEND/carnac-enduro-mtb-helmet

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I am of the opinion ,that it was a very strong marketing opportunity to sell crash helmets back in the day they first appeared, I do not believe most are of any use in an accident, but if the fashionista of cycling think that they do offer protection, all to the good!

By the way I do Not wear one, perchance it will hasten me to my next reincarnation?

I am of the opinion ,that it was a very strong marketing opportunity to sell crash helmets back in the day they first appeared,

Probably true, but the UK cyclists didn't need any selling to, they were willing adopters. At the time of helmets introduction virtually all cycling in the UK was sporting in style, as it still is today, and wearing a helmet fits that image perfectly.

By contrast, in The Netherlands where 99% of Dutch cycling is utility for transport, they didn't start wearing them and still don't.

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Probably true, but the UK cyclists didn't need any selling to, they were willing adopters. At the time of helmets introduction virtually all cycling in the UK was sporting in style, as it still is today, and wearing a helmet fits that image perfectly.

 

By contrast, in The Netherlands where 99% of Dutch cycling is utility for transport, they didn't start wearing them and still don't.

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Each to their own

But I’ve had three nasty accidents which were all unpredictable and not remotely my fault

In each case I am 100% convinced that my children still have a dad due to helmet

I find the dead rarely post about how much they wish they'd worn one

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But I’ve had three nasty accidents which were all unpredictable

This is where I disagree, they were all predictable possibilities, maybe even probabilities. Clearly your cycling circumstances need you to wear a helmet, mine don't, but we ride on similar roads in the same country.

I find the dead rarely post about how much they wish they'd worn one

Because they largely only exist in helmet proselytisers imagination!

Year after year of around 14 deaths per annum in London, virtually all were wearing helmets, often every one. Over the last decade plus most were crushed to death by heavy vehicles running over their bodies with their heads not involved, the accident frequently their own fault.

And the great majority of the circa 110 deaths per annum nationwide were of cyclists wearing a helmet since they felt their cycling needed one. But obviously wearing one didn't help them where different actions could have done. We all know how inadequate the secondary safety of helmets is as these deaths prove, so clearly the answer is not to have the accident in the first place, primary safety.

Accidents don't just happen, they are caused and it often takes two to cause them.

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This is where I disagree, they were all predictable possibilities, maybe even probabilities. Clearly your cycling circumstances need you to wear a helmet, mine don't, but we ride on similar roads in the same country.

I’m amazed you have managed to live your whole life predicting accidents and never having them

You are truly blessed I mean that sincerely.

I’m amazed you have managed to live your whole life predicting accidents and never having them

You are truly blessed I mean that sincerely.

If only that were true, but sadly it isn't since I have had accidents, but not on two wheels.

In adulthood I've hurt myself three times in accidents at home, two of them head injuries, one of which left me streaming with blood. All three were my fault and avoidable.

I've had two falls while walking in rough country, both times injuring myself with some bleeding. I played a big part in those because both were due to overtiredness due to doing more than was sensible.

And I've had one work accident when I was ejected from a high loading platform onto a hard concrete surface, hitting the back of my skull hard enough to lose all eyesight for a few minutes due to the brain's optical centre being bruised by the impact. That wasn't in any way my fault, but nonetheless was avoidable if I'd made a more sensible prior choice.

Clearly I'm not blessed or I wouldn't have suffered those accidents and injuries.

But in all my years and many miles of cycling and motorcycling I've never hurt myself in any way while obviously not being blessed or anything so mysterious.

The reason dates back to my earliest motorcycling and driving experiences. During that time I had three car accidents, all ruled as the third party's fault. Two were very minor paint scrapes but the third more serious when a driver coming the other way fell asleep and tried to peel the side off my car, spinning it round in the road three times.

Thinking about this later something odd occurred to me. I'd ridden many more miles on motorbikes than driving cars, same routes, same journeys etc., but had never even come close to having any accident. Nor on bicycles.

I realised then that the only different factor was me, maybe knowing how vulnerable I was on two wheels had changed what I did enough to avoid accidents. I won't bore you with all the details, but I acted then to make sure all my road usage was as safe as my motorcycling and cycling and have been accident free since over the bulk of all my road usage years.

As you see from my non-road accidents mentioned earlier, that behaviour only applies to my road usage mode. Clearly I haven't been much good at avoiding other accidents, though I'm increasingly improving that these days since the last thing I want at my age is broken bones.

My lifetime road experiences have demonstrated some things very clearly. First that we have far more control over having road accidents than most realise. Second how important attitude is, as in my knowledge that I play a part in every accident I might have. There is no such thing as being entirely blameless.

Third that we share the roads, with all that the word share implies. Fourth that truly sharing means impeccable good road manners on my part at all times. That others don't always respond accordingly doesn't matter. So long as I do the right thing for the circumstances, the two to make an accident don't exist.

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My lifetime road experiences have demonstrated some things very clearly. First that we have far more control over having road accidents than most realise. Second how important attitude is, as in my knowledge that I play a part in every accident I might have. There is no such thing as being entirely blameless.

I’ve got to disagree

Not every accident you have on the road has blame on both sides

For example 2 yrs ago I was driving down a street at 15mph in a steady flow of traffic when someone came straight out of a side junction and stoved in my passenger side front door

Where was I at fault there ?

And what could I have done to predict and avoid the accident in question apart from staying at home that day or leaving 30seconds later

Nothing it was 100% out of my hands

I’ve got to disagree

Not every accident you have on the road has blame on both sides

 

For example 2 yrs ago I was driving down a street at 15mph in a steady flow of traffic when someone came straight out of a side junction and stoved in my passenger side front door

Where was I at fault there ?

And what could I have done to predict and avoid the accident in question apart from staying at home that day or leaving 30seconds later

Nothing it was 100% out of my hands

I spent some time as a young child in Berlin. One of the things family trotted out ever after was that everyone in the area bore some degree of blame when there was an accident. Not sure now if it was 5 or 10%.

I spent some time as a young child in Berlin. One of the things family trotted out ever after was that everyone in the area bore some degree of blame when there was an accident. Not sure now if it was 5 or 10%.

So for arguments sake where was the blame in my accident

What could I have done differently to avoid that accident

As obviously according to your post I could have ?

I’ve got to disagree

Not every accident you have on the road has blame on both sides

 

For example 2 yrs ago I was driving down a street at 15mph in a steady flow of traffic when someone came straight out of a side junction and stoved in my passenger side front door

Where was I at fault there ?

And what could I have done to predict and avoid the accident in question apart from staying at home that day or leaving 30seconds later

Nothing it was 100% out of my hands

It's all in degrees. The blame is in the sense that there are small components in an accident that one is always involved in.

It's likely that blame is too strong a word, but better we think in that way which promotes caution than just insist we are completely absolved. We almost never are.

I can't comment on the accident you mention since I didn't see it and wasn't involved, but the second of the three early accidents I had was just that while I was driving on a major road. A driver of a Sierra came out of a side road straight into the side of my car, buckling passenger door and sill.

I'm not saying what follows to be awkward, but in all innocence I did play two parts in that. One could have been corrected on the spot, the other only by a different choice long before. Suffice it to say that it's never happened again in nearly fifty years since.

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Edited October 20, 20187 yr by flecc

Just what sort of testing do cycling helmets get?

Some, like the Enduro mentioned above seem to give reasonable coverage to the sides of the skull. but others just perch on top of the head and look as though they would be easily wrenched off in an accident.

I have fallen off a bike plenty of times.

Mainly it was my hands and knees that were injured.

The last time I fell off I landed on said hands and knees and then banged my right cheek hard on the road.

A crash helmet of cycling style would not have helped.

Also, no-one is mentioning velocity.

Generally I cycle at 12 mph.

US but EU test is similar:

https://cyclingtips.com/2018/06/new-independent-test-ranks-bicycle-helmet-safety/

Note: please fall on the top of your head! As you have tested side of the head is not protected with sit on top helmets full of holes. That is why I bought a bowl style skateboard like helmet.

The UK test was dropping a weight directly onto the top of the helmet, no other areas tested.

The test was to give protection up to 12 mph, no more.

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