I fell flat on my face.
No joke. No play on words. Not just a clever way to tell you I bombed on stage or embarrassed myself while telling a story at a party.
It's fact. I fell flat on my face.
Sunday, while on a bike ride on a path I travel all the time, I hit a "new" bump (probably one that sprung up over the winter as the ground expanded and contracted ... or something like that). Usually, I can correct and keep riding as though nothing happened. This time, however, I didn't, and I was thrown over the front of the bike and onto the dirty, gravelly pavement, my head, face and shoulder taking the initial blow.
After a good amount of swearing, I checked my teeth, which were intact, and wiggled my jaw. It was fine. Then, I rolled up to a sitting position and swore again before gingerly feeling my face, having no idea what my hands would come across. I was bleeding, but from where, and how much?
Luckily, the trail was packed Sunday, and soon a middle-aged couple and a young family of three (the dad being an EMT), stopped to help. We decided that a 9-1-1 call wasn't necessary, and instead opted for "Joanie 9-1-1."
The couple helped me walk my bike back to a nearby gas station, where Joanie met me and took me to a local emergency room. I'll spare you the gory details, but I ended up with seven stitches close (way too close) to my right eye, two fractured fingers on my left hand, multiple cuts, contusions and abrasions on my face, two banged up knees and road rash in random spots across my body.
One thing I didn't have? A head injury. That was due 100% to the fact that I was wearing a helmet. When I fell, my head was the first thing to hit the pavement, and my helmet saved me from God knows what.
I don't tell you this story because I want attention or sympathy. And I try not to give unsolicited advice. But today, I felt compelled to share this for one reason and one reason only: we ALL need to wear helmets when we're cycling (bicycling or motorcycling). Not to be overdramatic, but that helmet may have been what saved me from something much, much more serious. And what I learned yesterday was that no matter how safe and prepared we are, things can--and do--happen in an instant.
I never lost consciousness. Never had blurred vision or dizziness. Never even had a bump on my head. And today, while my face looks like a lost a fight with a large angry cat, and my body is bruised and scuffed, I'm up, writing and feeling good ... and it's because of that helmet.
Thank you to the beautiful, generous souls who graciously helped me on the trail. And thank you to my helmet, which did its one and only job when I needed it the most. And as always, thank you Joanie, for always being there.
(C) 2024 David R. Haznaw
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