Poll (anonymous): how long did your worst injury prevent you from EUCing and what's your protection gear

[Mono]

I hope this is a useful poll to learn more about which protection gear forum members typically use and how serious injuries from EUCing are.

[Slaughthammer]

I couldn't ride for 3 weeks now, because of an older, non EUC related injury... two years ago I ruptured an achilles tendon, which didn't heal to well and rupture again, leading to surgery... put me out of playing badminton for 13 month. I started EUCing in October last year, and by mid/end of December I realized, that EUCing caused a mild infammation at that achilles tendon. So I put it down for some weeks. It's better now, let's hope it stays this way.

As for EUC-related injuries, I got a bruised knee. Didn't stop me from riding at all.

[Mono]

6 minutes ago, Slaughthammer said:

As for EUC-related injuries, I got a bruised knee. Didn't stop me from riding at all.

Then it's not you who ticked the last box in the first question?

[Slaughthammer]

Nope, that was me.

[Mono]

I see, but the first answer would apply to you, right? I guess I should have worded the first answer better. 

[Slaughthammer]

that depends on how you interpret things. That inflammation was EUC induced, well at least partly. But it was not caused by any form of an accident... So kind of sitting between the chairs, which led to me chosing the last option.

[Mono]

I see, not an injury but an EUC related pain condition. Didn't think about that one.

[OliverH]

Had two face plants on one tour at the time riding my old IPS. First face plant was over torque on a trail in the forrest (flat trail , good condition) with a sudden power cut. Second face plant on a sand trail. I had trouble to sleep for 4-5 weeks with this bruised ribs.

Vote for more powerful EUCs & safety in the future.

[Cerbera]

Interesting survey. I was able to answer honestly but the questions didn't uncover the moment when I forgot my wristguards just once, in 4 years, and then sprained both wrists falling down a disguised pothole down at dover docks. I was off work (session pianist) for 3 months, but it didn't stop me wheeling at all, so the survey didn't catch it, hence why this reply... No, btw - I have never not worn my wrist guards again - it was certainly an effective lesson

[Cerbera]

Actually I am just reminded of another fall I had  (Airwheel X5, crazy terrain) whilst circumnavigating one of the vast stoney valleys up at the top of Butser Hill in Hampshire. My wrist guards saved my wrists, but I still remember how painful it was to climb back on it and wheel myself home with loads of cuts and grazes all over my legs, and kneecaps. I started wearing kneepads as well after that one.

My next fall was about a year later, this time crossing a heavily rutted field at a funfair, in which I busted one of my elbows. That also hurt for months afterwards, but not enough to stop me riding or playing piano.

When I upgraded to my MS3 I was taking no chances with the bonier bits of me, and thought it was time to upgrade to an upper body pressure suit with back, chest, elbow, and shoulder padding as well. Annoyingly, I have never fallen off my MS3, so this remains gloriously untested. But I am one of those people who's head has never come anywhere near the ground in any fall I've ever had on an EUC, so I continue to labour under the probable delusion that I still don't need a helmet...

[Slaughthammer]

1 minute ago, Cerbera said:

But I am one of those people who's head has never come anywhere near the ground in any fall I've ever had on an EUC, so I continue to labour under the probable delusion that I don't need a helmet.

I am also one of the people who never banged their head to the ground.... yet. But I regard the helmet as the single one most important piece of protection gear! Maybe not the most straind, or the most likely to get tested, but the one piece, that if you need it and don't have it fucks you most. No wrist guards, ok, broken wrist, go on in 4-5 month. No knee protection, hey we're gonna fit you with artificial knee joints! No helmet, well, spend the rest of your days drooling in a wheelchair.

[Cerbera]

Yep - can't fault your logic  I even bought a cycle helmet on one of the days where I knew deep down I should probably have one, but I just don't wear it. I can be arsed to spend 10 minutes getting geared up in everything else, but the helmet seems a step too far - and I really hate having a strap under my chin. It's no decent excuse of course, but that is alot of why I don't do it for anything except off-road down-hill BMX trail riding, where I do wear a full Moto helmet, for then the risks are all too obvious. But just wheeling into town for a shopping run ? On paths I have ridden every day for 4 years, and at reasonable, non-race speeds ?

Of course I don't want to be drooling in a wheelchair before my time (it's coming to us all eventually !) but I am interested in why my brain won't recognize that as a real danger. Perhaps I need to watch a video where someone does injure their head on an EUC, but I have never seen one of those, which may have wrongly led me to believe that it doesn't really happen. In every fall video I have ever seen, and indeed in every fall I have ever had or witnessed - the arms come out and save the head, every time. Of course this is the perfect place to come to be corrected, so please guys, feel free to use whatever evidence you have to convince me that I really do need that helmet during normal town pavement riding !

 

[Mono]

55 minutes ago, Cerbera said:

Interesting survey. I was able to answer honestly but the questions didn't uncover the moment when I forgot my wristguards just once, in 4 years, and then sprained both wrists falling down a disguised pothole down at dover docks. I was off work (session pianist) for 3 months, but it didn't stop me wheeling at all, so the survey didn't catch it, hence why this reply... No, btw - I have never not worn my wrist guards again - it was certainly an effective lesson

Sorry for all the lost sessions. You make a good point I didn't think about, but it makes perfectly sense. Hands and arms are really not necessary for EUCing, so their injury is not well covered by the survey.

[Mono]

23 minutes ago, Cerbera said:

Of course I don't want to be drooling in a wheelchair before my time (it's coming to us all eventually !) but I am interested in why my brain won't recognize that as a real danger.

That seems perfectly normal, we are mentally not well equipped to deal with small probabilities. In this case, we don't even know the probability, probably not even close. I would also assume it depends more strongly on your average speed, on your driving style and on your driving environment (in particular cars and obstacles) than it depends on wearing a helmet.

[Cerbera]

1 minute ago, Mono said:

That seems perfectly normal, we are mentally not well equipped to deal with small probabilities. In this case, we don't even know the probability, probably not even close. I would also assume it depends more strongly on your average speed, on your driving style and on your driving environment (in particular cars) than it depends on wearing a helmet.

Hmmm. Perhaps so. Also, the more I think about it, the more I think my confidence comes from the amount of effort I put into path choice and appropriate speed on my wheel, as you suggest. although none of that makes me immune from crashing of course... if my machine ever just craps out on me and folds, no amount of decent technique is going to save it...

[Mono]

 

1 minute ago, Cerbera said:

... if my machine ever just craps out on me and folds, no amount of decent technique is going to save it...

still you are not likely to suffer from a severe head trauma in this case given there are no obstacles in the way (path choice) and you haven't been going excessively fast

[Cerbera]

You see I agree with that - is that confirmation bias, or are we right ?! 

[Mono]

55 minutes ago, Slaughthammer said:

I am also one of the people who never banged their head to the ground.... yet. But I regard the helmet as the single one most important piece of protection gear! Maybe not the most straind, or the most likely to get tested, but the one piece, that if you need it and don't have it fucks you most. No wrist guards, ok, broken wrist, go on in 4-5 month. No knee protection, hey we're gonna fit you with artificial knee joints! No helmet, well, spend the rest of your days drooling in a wheelchair.

It turns out that the very same is true if you are a pedestrian or if you drive a car. 

 

[steve454]

18 minutes ago, Cerbera said:

if my machine ever just craps out on me and folds, no amount of decent technique is going to save it...

 

14 minutes ago, Mono said:

 

still you are not likely to suffer from a severe head trauma in this case given there are no obstacles in the way (path choice) and you haven't been going excessively fast

@Mono what speed do you consider is excessively fast?  I know it depends on age, athletic ability, experience, and many other factors, but that is a good idea for a poll.  You recently posted an excellent poll about injuries, I do not have the computer skills to do such a poll myself, but you do.  Please consider making one in the future, I think it would be very interesting to see other people's opinions on speed.  It could be broken down by age, which is what I am

[Cerbera]

For me, excessive speed is defined by the wheel I have under me (and its published 'safe max speed' as defined in the helpful  and much discussed chart on this very site) and the terrain I am attempting to traverse. Oh, and the amount of other traffic or people where I am trying to ride. On an MS3 (67v), bumpy pavements or places where there is any chance of an unseen obstacle get no more than 18 kph, on a busy walkway it's more like 10-12, and on wide open perfect surfaces with no traffic or pedestrians I go for speed bursts that don't usually top 32, which is the 'safe max' for an MS3. That strategy has worked flawlessly so far. I have never heard the 4 beeps, and never had it fold under me through overspeed.

[steve454]

3 hours ago, Slaughthammer said:

two years ago I ruptured an achilles tendon,

How?  I got achilles tendonitis once from running on pavement too much (I had just gotten in to jogging and was doing it everyday with poor quality shoes)  It would hurt when first getting out of bed in the morning until I got warmed up, and took about 18 months to heal.

[steve454]

17 minutes ago, Cerbera said:

. On an MS3 (67v), bumpy pavements or places where there is any chance of an unseen obstacle get no more than 18 kph, on a busy walkway it's more like 10-12, and on wide open perfect surfaces with no traffic or pedestrians I go for speed bursts that don't usually top 32, which is the 'safe max' for an MS3.

That's a little faster than I go, but the strategy is the same.  Except with the Ninebot, the speed bursts don't go over 15 mph.

[Mono]

32 minutes ago, steve454 said:

what speed do you consider is excessively fast?

as if I not knew this question was coming....regarding the risk of severe head trauma, I would say that above the speed you could normally run for a very short time, if your back or leg or... didn't hurt, etc., is excessive regardless. This is probably somewhere between 20 and 25km/h. This assumes there are no obstacles around one could hit when crashing.

[steve454]

8 minutes ago, Mono said:

risk of severe head trauma, I would say that above the speed you could normally run for a very short time, if your back or leg or... didn't hurt, etc., is excessive regardless. This is probably somewhere between 20 and 25km/h.

That is what I think also. 

[Flash]

I'm related to superman , I never hurt myself