Can't believe I just did that..

NJMX835

New Member
I'm borrowing this from a great thread on mtbr (below)... I freely admit to putting a headset race in upside down, tires on backwards, stripping bolts where 1/4 turn less would have sufficed.

I don't own a roof rack because I KNOW I'll drive the bike into something, but I've taken the front wheel off to fit the bike in the car & gotten to the trailhead only to realize the front wheel is still in the garage.

One time I locked my keys in the car at the trailhead, no real biggie I'll just call my girl to bring me the spares, oh wait... the spares are in the car too... :D

Anyone got any they want to share?

http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=461181
 

THATmanMANNY

Well-Known Member
it was my wife's fault :rolleyes:

What did she do? Back up and run it over?

I admit I have mounted tires on backwards & also forgot my front wheel when I drove all the way out to Ohio to go to Rays with my new jump bike. It was a very sad moment. :(
 

Shaggz

A strong 7
she didn't read the height restriction warning when going to the drive up window at Burger King. Insurance paid over $6K (this does not include the deductible) for the bike, and damage to the car and roof rack, both of which were about 3 weeks old...
 

Shaggz

A strong 7
bike and rack were covered by homeowner's insurance. car was covered by auto insurance. fortunately the BK was scheduled for a makeover, and she wasn't the first person to do something like that, so they didn't come after us for the damage to the building.
 

bonefishjake

Strong like bull, smart like tractor
Team MTBNJ Halter's
yeah, i mean that last thing you want is that creepy king coming after you...or even worse, his partner in crime, the duke of doubt.
 

mwlikesbikes

Well-Known Member
she didn't read the height restriction warning when going to the drive up window at Burger King. Insurance paid over $6K (this does not include the deductible) for the bike, and damage to the car and roof rack, both of which were about 3 weeks old...

That's what you get for trying to eat that crap!!! :p

Excuse me now, I've got a slyder crave coming on.
 

mwlikesbikes

Well-Known Member
Once about 2 years ago I was heading down to Fair Hills by myself to meet up with a few peeps and I got out of the house later than I wanted to. As I'm heading down the T-Pike I get past exit 8A (got on at 9) I look in the rearview mirror and I see the hatch & tailgate are open on my truck. I also notice that there is NO BIKE !!!!
I quick pull over to the shoulder, run to the back of the truck and suddenly realize that in my rush to get out of the house I left the bike outside leaning against my gate :mad2: I felt like such a dumbass! Headed down to exit 8 to turn around. Called my buddies and said i "got up late" and I would be an hour late, pop out to the lot around then if you're near.
Got back home the bike was sitting where I thought it was. Flew back down the pike at warp 7 (can't believe that I saw no troopers on a sat morn) As I was gearing up the guys came out of the woods and all was right with the world again.

...at least till my next F-up :rofl:
 

dualfisted

Member
mine are weak comparitively

I once packed all my riding gear into the car to go to a trail, hop in the car to leave and as I'm backing down the drive, I look back up the driveway and see my bike leaning against the garage door. Duh!!! I remember actually thinking at the time "what's that doing there". What u think it's doing there sucka, u left it there.
I've gotten to the trails without my clipless shoes at least five times. Also, that windscreen for thule racks may seem like just extra bs, well, I've left my helmet (and gloves) on the car more than once and they were still there when I got home because of that windscreen, once after two trips up route 18 @ 75 mph. However, leaving the front wheel in a whole other state is a friggin classic, although I've nearly done similar several times.
 

NJMX835

New Member
Just remembered a couple more...

I was coming home from riding moto one day with my CR250 on trailer and was only a couple blocks from home when I heard a bang & a horrible scraping sound and look back to see my bike dragging by one tie down behind the trailer!

Luckily, I was only going about 20mph & the only real damage was bars, a ground down footpeg & some scratches on the plastic, but I used 4 tie downs from that point on, lol

Another time, I got home from a looooong day of riding up in CT, followed by a loooong drive back & was unloading the bike from the trailer.

Well, I some point I picked the trailer up off the ball hitch to turn it in the driveway & then set it back down on it , but forgot to lock it back down on the ball...

So, I undid the tie straps on the bike, stepped up onto the trailer to unload it & the whole thing tipped up in the air like a teeter, scratched the sh*t out of the rear door of my explorer and now I was stuck balancing on it with a 250lb moto bike...

Luckily, when I shifted my weight forward the front end of the trailer came flying back down & landed on the bumper (amazingly, without nailing the back door again on the way down), allowing me to hop back off safely with only alot of embarrassment & a $400 auto body bill to show for it.
 

NJ-XC-Justin

KY-DH-Freddy
I installed a new fork -- without a crown race -- and rode around the block. Kept wondering why the steering was so sluggish.
 

BiknBen

Well-Known Member
Anyone got any they want to share?

I had driven my car/bike into something...TWICE. I was still able to ride both bikes. Holy crap, I was lucky. I now have a rear rack. For those that think this is the dumbest thing you could ever do...It will happen to you!!! It is just a matter of time.

I destroyed the internals of a fork just days before a trip to Moab. Couldn't find the parts in time so I bought a new fork for the trip. That was a $500 home repair mistake. :eek: This was in the '97 when the top forks were that cheap. :rolleyes:

I left my wheel leaning against my car as I left the parking lot at Mercer County Park. I realized it when I got home. Thankfully I only live 5 minutes away. I drove back and found my wheel laying on the ground waiting for me. Had I pulled out of the parking spot the other way, I would have run over it.

I left my bike shoes at work the day before a 200 mile event. I lost one hour of sleep tearing my house apart looking for them. Then two hours driving to work and get them. :eek:

Unfortunately, I could go on and on. I've been doing this a really long time.
 

tommyjay

Not-So-Venerable Asshat
Drove from my job in New Brunswick to Hartshorne and realized that I didn't have my clipless shoes, or any sneakers. Wound up riding in my business casual work shoes (luckily they were lace-ups and cheap).
 

Maurice

New Member
In the same vein as helmet/shoes on top of car. On the way to Mount Snow, we stop at a deli for some sandwiches, approximately 2.5 hours into the trip. I look at the rear bumper and there's the digital camera on it, exactly where I left it before leaving.

Years ago, coming back from a race with my brother. I get off the car before he pulls into the garage, and watch him back up the car with the bike on top. A classic, except I still don't know why I just stood there watching.
 

davos

Member
been there done that....

yup left the front wheel on the ground at the top lot of Ramapo state forest after a ride. Too bad I didn't notice till I got home 40 mins away. Gave me an excuse to upgrade the wheelset though.

Not a bike trip but once forgot the ski jacket on a day trip to hunter. I was a poor college student so I wasn't going to buy a new one at the shop. I went to lost and found hoping to find something to ehhh.. borrow and all they had was a toddler's light blue jacket and a fur coat- no joke. Let's just say it was one of the coldest days on skiis I've had in a long time. One wool sweater and base layer didn't cut it.
 

MTB Aussie

Member
I am pretty good with forgetting to tie down the bike on the rack. Once when I had a BMW I put the bike on the roof (BMW factory rack), clamped the bike rack onto the seat tube and forgot to strap the wheels down in the channel. At 80mph on 287 the bike went airborn, flipped over the top of the rack arm and landed on the rear window of the car. Didnt break the window, didnt lose the bike, just scared the crap out of myself and my buddy. I used to drive with the moonroof open to see that it was locked down after that.

Last week I drove home from CR without strapping the bike down on the rear rack. Luckly i had put a tie strap through the wheels which stopped the bike from jumping off the rack onto 287 and into the path of a semi.

One time my bike jumped off one arm of a rear rack and was hanging from the remaining arm with the rear wheel dragging on the highway on every bump. When I looked in the rear view mirror I couldnt see the bike and my heart stopped. When I pulled over and found just minor tire damage I was very happy. That was two close calls for my Epic.

If you ever ride with me, make sure I lock the bikes down properly.
 
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