A regular Sunday 30 miler turns into a fellow rider taking not a spectacular off but enough to break his Femur… This was 28 ish miles in and not too far from the hostelry we were all fighting the wind to get to..

Things I have learnt today;

Emergency blankets are a very good idea…
Knowing quite precisely where you are when you ring 999 is also a very good idea
A first aid course is also a VGI…
The daftest of falls can really hurt!…
Also …A different order to put swear words into.
oh and…The UK emergency services are outstanding, we had an amazing response which was incredibly reassuring.. thank you.

We take for granted doing what is an extreme sport, according to insurance companies, and get the odd knock or cut but a big one is a bit of a leveller.. healing vibes to my mate… mad old ride today.

Ooh. Healing vibes to your mate.

How was his bike?

Being no stranger to crashing I now carry all sorts of crap that most people would laugh at. Like you say even a fairly ‘soft’ crash can land you in a lot of trouble if you fall awkwardly. Well done for having your schizzle together.

Edit: BTW you can admit it – you did a laugh, just a bit, didnt you?

Remember kids….you have to go to work tomorrow.

Hope your mate is OK.

That’s why I always ride on my own……..ahhh I see your point 😳

Last time I saw a bad ‘un was the first day of an alpine holiday, about 40 mins into the first day, guy got a drainage ditch wrong, and bust his ankle. My nervous (then) GF went very pale…

The emergency services were equally bloody ace out there as well.

Ouch. Agreed about first aid, I recently found a st johns app that guides through most situations giving first aid, it’s very good. They also have a cyclist specific one which is useful. Both good as a reminder during stressful times prior to emergency services getting there.

it’s why I donate to the air ambulance by DD, well worth a donation

I hope your mates ok and sounds like all involved did av good job

Hope your mate’s alright. Maybe worth sticking a GPS co-ordinates app onto your phones now? I’m trying to find one for Android atm.

Femur? Hope hes good/ok 🙂

Blokey when you read this, heal smile and ride in August happy 😀

@thestabiliser…. yes there was a bit of giggling but only once the control had been given to the Ambulance guys and girls…. We also have a crash of the year award presented in front of all and sundry within our local MTB club so the standard has truly been set with this one today.

Gas and air looks good and so do helicopters close up…

@rocketdog.. like that idea after today.

Thanks all for kind words.

Hope your mate heals well.

I have had need of air ambulance myself , some years back in a watery sport environment. They are a godsend. Have given often since.

GPS apps are alright as long as you have a phone signal. What you really want for true peace of mind is a Spot Gen 3 Tracker.

Mountain rescue and air ambulance are fantastic.

Bolton Mountain rescue where far more professional than the nhs when I bust my femour and pelvis.

I also hope your friend heals quickly but I can’t resist…

…nice chopper mate 8)

None of the GPS apps on my phone need any sort of phone signal?? Will even get a fix from indoors or in the car.

Will even get a fix from indoors or in the car.

Reported to Strava.

http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/cedric-gracia-and-every-riders-first-aid-nightmare

@ thestabiliser 🙂

To the OP . Hope your mate gets back to riding ASAP. Healing vibes from someone who has had more crashes than most but so far has avoided serious injury. I guess you can get good a falling if you practice enough 😉

I dunno if it’s still the case but I have heard stories in the past of emergency call operators being totally mystified when given GPS co-ordinates rather than an address

Seems like a somewhat excessive course of events to just avoiding having to buy a round………. 😉

Seriously though, Tell your mate to heal up well and get back out on that bike ASAP!

+1 on the UK services being A1.

It’s for situations like this that I always have the Garmin on the bars, instant map position and co-oordinates when required.

I walked into A&E when I broke my femur. But I will make allowances for people less brick-hard (*) than me

(* or incredibly stupid. OK yes it was that one)

Well done though!

Right, question- I’m a mapreading incompetent, I can’t do grid refs or anything and any attempt to summon help I ever make will go something like “We’re up that wiggly path near the goat track, where there used to be that big tree but it blew down”

But like most folks I have GPS on my phone. what’s the quickest and simplest way to get a usable location off a phone? My old Compass app provided a lat/long but the new version doesn’t… Ideally, something that we can do while panicked because our mate has just **** himself up, or having just **** up ourselves.

Any update……..on the bike.

The latest…. he’s stabilised (stoned on some nice Morphene probably) and will be hopefully pinned and plastered tomorrow…
Bikes is fine too :0)

I had to ride to the house at the end of the lane, to find out where I was that the Emerg. Svs. would be able to use, although I think with a mobile conversation they can triangulate your approx position .. or have been watching too many films?

it’s why I donate to the air ambulance by DD, well worth a donation

same here – but only Surrey, if I crash at Swinley it is a different one…

Phone GPS will indeed work without a signal, although slower to lock on (as the lock is usually assisted by network data to gather initial satellite info quick).

However if you need to get a reference to where you are you need an app that also works offline. Cached / downloaded maps etc.

Also, check the GPS has locked on and not just pinpointed the nearest cell as a lot of phones will do before they get a proper lock. Nearly made that mistake when giving location to someone calling an ambulance and realised was looking at the wrong place.

Other thing is if you’re tracking with Strava etc, you’ll be draining the battery. Need to consider a useable phone for emergencies. Part of the reason why I track with a Garmin now and the phone has everything disabled to maximise battery life for when I need it.

I had to ride to the house at the end of the lane, to find out where I was that the Emerg. Svs. would be able to use, although I think with a mobile conversation they can triangulate your approx position .. or have been watching too many films?

Not as easily or quickly as you see on TV, and definitely not as precisely. In a rural area you might be lucky if they can limit it to a 2 mile radius.

Don’t need a GPS or Phone signal.

https://www.uepaa.ch/#!/app

I walked into A & E with a broken back……tell your mate he’s a pussy!
Healing vibes, hope he’s back on the back soon!

g, we had an amazing response which was incredibly reassuring.. thank you.

Oh we’re good. Cheers though the thanks is appreciate.

I dunno if it’s still the case but I have heard stories in the past of emergency call operators being totally mystified when given GPS co-ordinates rather than an address

That’s never been the case, even more so now with the tech we use to find casualties.

I ride on my own and don’t have a mobile phone;-)

Duuuuuuude! You’re awesome.

Drac, do emergency services have a preferred format for location data? I normally work with os grid but I know some folks don’t Luke it.

OS Grid is fine, Air Ambulance like Longatude and Lattitude but can use OS too.

Does strava give either of the above?

This isn’t having a dig, but what would the first aid course have given you?

I always carry an emergency Bivvy bag thing, it’s very small, weighs next to nothing.

This isn’t having a dig, but what would the first aid course have given you?

Not make silly mistakes.
Be able to have half an inkling what is happening.
Be able to keep an eye out for properly life threatening issues that may develop.

Glad you pal is going to be fine.
As some of you may know, we had a friend a few years back who ‘took a tumble’* on Helvellyn. He is here today only due to me carrying useful first aid kit, having some people who knew how to keep an airway open and managed (docs) out riding with us, a SeaKing close by and the Glenridding MRT already on full call out locally, who came straight to us within 20 mins or so.
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* ‘tumble’ may be a slight understatement. Face first into rocks at @35mph when your front wheel rips out the QR from the dropouts is closer to the mark.

Hope the healing is quick and itch free.

MountainBikeSOS is a free Android app that can send a text to a predefined number with a set message that also appends your gps location. Basic map reading is handy though for the unexpected. I’ve crashed owell enough to smash the bar mounted computer, luckily in a tail Centre.