Hey all! First time posting here, hopefully I don’t bore you.
I’ve had a decent hardtail for a while now, but just recently started riding seriously. On my ride today I thought I would be able to clear about a foot and a half drop off of a stone wall. Well I didn’t. In the air I knew it wasn’t going to be pretty, and braced myself for my first real fall on the trails. I went right over the handlebars, head and shoulder into the ground and then flat on my back. My bike ended up about 10 yards into the woods. Luckily only had a few bumps, bruises, and scrapes. I shook off the cobwebs and hopped back on my bike to finish my ride, after I had to put in a new contact because one fell out on the fall!
I luckily yanked on my rear break (mechanical disk) and it wasn’t working properly. I fiddled with it a little and it just seemed the lever was out of position, and it worked fine the rest of my ride. I looked around my bike tot check and make sure everything else was working properly, and it seemed to be.
I’m no mechanical expert on how to fix anything on a bike (hopefully just for now) and my question is "What should I be checking after a fall to make sure my bike is functioning properly and I don’t end up on my back again?"
I’ve learned a lot of valuable information since joining Singletracks, and I’m hoping someone will be able to direct me to a post that covers this, or, if this is a new topic, help a beginner learn some added safety precautions!
Thanks!
Dan