This is just an FYI for anyone concerned, as news travels in nyc cycling. I took a tumble on 9W on Sunday ride, with Rich. It was a lovely ride, Rich was looking good, throwing down some watts on River Road and then we were in the middle of a sporty state line sprint when my chain slipped mid-sprint. It was a hard impact but it was as graceful a fall as I have ever experienced -- almost no road rash but my head / shoulder absorbed all of impact. I cracked my helmet big time and screwed up my shoulder.

Luckily Rich was ahead of me and wasn't affected, aside from attending to me after the crash. No broken bones but I'll be in a sling for a while and racing will have to wait a couple more months. (just when i was about to start!)

I still have to get an MRI and follow up with Orthopedist, to see if anything is damaged inside the shoulder. My bike wasn't seriously damaged either, so after sitting for a bit and letting the adrenaline subside & convincing Rich that I was ok, we rode back to brooklyn. I've been knocked out before and separated the same (left) shoulder before, so I knew what those sensations felt like but I appreciate Rich's reticence to let me get back on my bike. I would have approached the situation the same way. I know head / neck trauma can be a bit tricky to assess on the spot.

These helmets do their job!