I fell in the canal with my bike!

In the dream I nearly bought them but realised just in time that they weren't such a good idea (purple will clash with my hi-viz jacket)

ha ha! quality....

glad youre ok....perhaps worth a trip to the Docs for a preventative check against canal lurgy?

I did this once when I was about 7. On the way to school and went the wrong way around a parked car and ran out of space. Went straight into the canal, but of course I chose one of the sections of the canal near where I lived that had been mostly filled in and landed in about 10 inches of water. Didn't have to wear school uniform that day which felt like a bit of a win though.

I have a seven year old boy - and have always been worried what would happen if he fell in the canal. I am too embarrassed to tell him it happened to me. He would laugh his socks off and/or be terrified. Depending what mood he's in.

But - good way to escape from the nylon hell of school uniform ...

ha ha! quality....

glad youre ok....perhaps worth a trip to the Docs for a preventative check against canal lurgy?

The canal water isn't that bad. All the canoe kids seem to survive frequent dips!

This guy is in my girlfriend's german class: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/ethicallivingblog/2009/jul/31/bike-blog-canal

Excellent. or should I say "ausgezeichnecht"

not fallen in but been in many times with my old work (laburnum boat club).
if you are down by the canal and see the kids kayaking, look for any with a neoprene spray deck on and ask them to try and find your lock for you. they love going over once they learn how to roll.

i would return quickly to where you went in, because boats moving past will churn up the bottom as the larger ones are often scraping along the bottom anyways, and the lock can move. if you go down in the morning of a hot day (before any traffic) you will find the water MUCH clearer.

I love cycling past Laburnum boat club as the kids are always having such a great time: even the girls with fancy hair and nails. Really cheers me up!

Thansk for teh advice on the lock and murky waters. My husband is trying again today with his Massive Magnet as he has immense pulling power.

My girlfriend railed her front wheel in a gap between the big concrete slabs that pave the path's in places along the canal. Inevitably decked it but luckily in the opposite direction of the canal. She was avoiding a hyper dog. It was funny seeing the owners argue over the dog having to go an a lead as the woman went mental at her husband in typical, "I told you so" fashion but the bloke was having none of it.

Go to sleep Nelaii!!! haha feeling any better?.

I also jammed my front wheel between paving slabs recently, totally bent my wheel and trashed a new tyre and inner tube.

It was another of my comedy accidents...

A couple I know went boozing one evening along the Thames. At chucking out time they left but only he had lights so she followed him. She noticed after a while that his lights were no longer there, so speeded up assuming he had gone on ahead while she wasn't paying attention.
He hadn't, he had fallen in, and although it wasn't deep, he was at the bottom of a 4 foot drop, in about 3 feet of water, and couldn't get out.
He started calling for help, but the only people who could hear him were on a narrow boat on the other side of the river, and had stopped for the night, and didn't know the area at all well. They called the police, who came to their side of the river (my mate was on the opposite side) After about half an hour the firebrigade found him and hauled him and his bike out, and he sheepishly started to cycle the remaining 3 miles home.
Meanwhile she had arrived home, and finding he wasn't there got really angry, assuming he had gone into town to a night club. He wasn't (of course) answering his phone.
When he eventually arrived home at about 2 30 she refused to let him in (he had lost his keys in the river) and he slept on the doorstep!

Failed to remove feet from cleat. Hit concrete path. Momentum took me into canal. Paniced that I would drown. Found my feet came out easily. Stood up. Went back under to get bike. Passed bike to the bloke I'd let past who had stopped to help. Climbed out. Cycled home cold and snivelling and considering Weils disease.

Not my finest moment.

Edit - hope you and bike are OK.

Yeah - that was me too - failed to remove feet from cleat then terrified that I would be trapped under the bike on the bottom. But my feet instantly escaped.

The utter hilaaaarious thing was I didn't realise the water was only 4 feet deep. I was desperately swimming to the side weighed down by my back pack, thinking it was 20 feet deep or something.

I could have just stood up!!

A couple I know went boozing one evening along the Thames. At chucking out time they left but only he had lights so she followed him. She noticed after a while that his lights were no longer there, so speeded up assuming he had gone on ahead while she wasn't paying attention.
He hadn't, he had fallen in, and although it wasn't deep, he was at the bottom of a 4 foot drop, in about 3 feet of water, and couldn't get out.
He started calling for help, but the only people who could hear him were on a narrow boat on the other side of the river, and had stopped for the night, and didn't know the area at all well. They called the police, who came to their side of the river (my mate was on the opposite side) After about half an hour the firebrigade found him and hauled him and his bike out, and he sheepishly started to cycle the remaining 3 miles home.
Meanwhile she had arrived home, and finding he wasn't there got really angry, assuming he had gone into town to a night club. He wasn't (of course) answering his phone.
When he eventually arrived home at about 2 30 she refused to let him in (he had lost his keys in the river) and he slept on the doorstep!

Hah ha that really is Frank Spencer. Priceless.

But a bit mean of Betty not to let him in the house!

Did yo swollow any water?

Sorry to laugh but that was funny, glad your fine may be time to put some oil in the frame and check the threads don't get rusty.

Didn't swallow any water - though there was water inside my frame which then drained out through some tiny holes.

Hoepfully, I won't now get inner rust.

Or what if a fish egg got inside and in six months time a massive pike comes bursting out when I am half way round Old Street Roundabout.

If I am thinking about it: Would I be given the choice between hitting the deck on solid tarmac, maybe with with glass splinters and gravel on it, and the somewhat softer canal, I know what I'd choose.

How about a game of "Would You Rather ..."

Would you rather be run over by an ice cream van going tinkle-tonkle or a one of those electric mobility floats they have in Hyde Park?

Excellent. or should I say "ausgezeichnecht"

"ausgezeichnet"

Loved first splat posting about falling into the water, and then chompy posting about getting nibbled by a pike.

"ausgezeichnet"

Thanks. My typing and German is pretty rubbisch

Ha, indeed. 'Tis the one that was harder to notice.

I was cycling home along the Canal oop North (Chester) when a load of joggers and dogs came the other direction. One blind old lab decided to run right in front of me resulting in a "It's me or the dog moment". I like dogs, emergency stopped, I went over the handle bars, over the top of the dog and the bike then bounced into the canal.

I jumped up and grabbed it by the back wheel just as it was starting to go in. The lady whose dog it was then apologised and said "I'm so sorry, that is the second time he has done that" and my reaction was "Well how about keeping it on a lead" seemed to bemuse her.

I jumped up and grabbed it by the back wheel just as it was starting to go in.

You saved your bike. Nice one!

my bike would probably benefit from a good wash in the canal.

It certainly got that was, it was the air in the tyres I think that slowed the bike from sinking under as was a fairly heavy mtb.

It certainly got that was, it was the air in the tyres I think that slowed the bike from sinking under as was a fairly heavy mtb.

Having done and still doing a lot of canal boating with this group http://www.narrowboattrust.org.uk
you see all sorts of things.

SORRY TO SHOUT BUT THE NEXT BIT IS IMPORTANT.
There is a very nasty disease carried in the urine of infected rats.
It is called WEIL'S disease or leptospirosis
Please have a look at this site www.leptospirosis.org
Regards
Barry Adams
Crewing co-ordinator for the Narrow Boat Trust

Having done and still doing a lot of canal boating with this group http://www.narrowboattrust.org.uk
you see all sorts of things.

SORRY TO SHOUT BUT THE NEXT BIT IS IMPORTANT.
There is a very nasty disease carried in the urine of infected rats.
It is called WEIL'S disease or leptospirosis
Please have a look at this site www.leptospirosis.org
Regards
Barry Adams
Crewing co-ordinator for the Narrow Boat Trust

Thanks - I will do. feel totally fine 72 hours later - so fingers crossed.

this is why i hate using the canals on a bike! never happened to me though, glad you and your bike made it out ok splat! makes for a good story, it's made me smile

Friend of mine used to live on narrow boat near Little Venice years ago.

He told me that once he saw a dead dog in the water and reported it to the Waterways people.
Some Waterways bloke comes along and fishes out the dog, then puts in a black binliner, adds a couple of rocks and chucks it back in!!

Chatting to a lovely lady whilst we were cycling home (by the Wapping canals), she told me how she'd had to cycle into the canal (nr Stoke Newington) to avoid someone coming the other way - and this was in January!

The other cyclist helped fish her and the bike out, but she waited until they'd left, so she could jump back in and save her favorite woolly hat that had drifted over to the other side!

Not sure I'd want to jump back in - even for a Rapha hat!