Jhb JUMA ends cycling for me ...my rant

[MTB0007]

I've been in Hospital since last week Sunday ...

Its been a pain filled morphine and other drug whirlwind ..

I've been reading all the rants re JUMA..

I had been in training to do a good 94.7... Sadly I won't.. Ever race again..

 

I take full responsibility for my choices I ride at least one race every 30 days with my wife. We chose MTB for the safety and ability to do different tracks ..rides etc.. She loves cycling almost as much as I did...

My biggest problem with JUMA..is not that it was technical or different but ... It was a good mountain bikers challenge... And herein lies the problem

Why on this green earth would any event allow a person who just purchased a bike to ride the same route seasoned cyclists struggle with but enjoy as it challenges their skills..

Its exactly this simple little detail that caused bottle necks and the chaos

Here in this Hospital 19 serious casualties 3 like me broke hips 2 broken elbows ..the list is scary.. Patients were sent to other hospitals Sunday as casualties here was put under presssue from a bike ride???????

My ride ended as I passed a lady who decided to stop dead while doing the storm water drain section ... She was obviously nervous and I had 2 choices hit her or Vere into the green stream

My choice ended cycling for good for me... I hit a hidden hole went skywards

Downwards and crack...end of left hip... I was unable to move as the ball had snapped off and lodged between the hip socket and now seperated femur..

I cooked there for 4 hours under the sun while other cyclists were guided past me, to avoid them hitting the same hole ..by my wife and a marshal...before getting to hospital, the medical team were brilliant but overloaded, far too few for the carnage they were managing...

OK ..

I can't ride again as one to many fall is just that....

I believe MTB race organizing has become a money spinner with little care for safety... There should have been 3 courses at least and qualification would be required and seeding to get starting blocks .. Our seeding was questionabike this would be a single track of flowwing pathways at best no technical stuff....

One for people who think mountain biking means owning a sort of off road bike

Two for mountain bikers who have done at least 5 25km races the course would offer single track etc.. Basically the 25km of Sundays without the heavier technical stuff.....

Third the proper one ..as it was...

 

In my humble opinion too many people were on a course at once causing the congestion as fear stopped those less technical riders passing an obstacle

Forcing people of track into bad lines and danger and stopping the flow ..

It was a numbers game in my opinion ..more people meant more entries .

No time was spent pondering how Joe Soap on his Hypermarket MTB would be able to ride... The proof is in the number of accidents we saw from this one fun event

I end my last ever cycling rant as a ex cyclist lying in hospital pissd that I'm not out in the tracks now …....

[VicanZA]

Sorry to hear, I was keen to do the juma but when I saw all the hype posters etc, I knew the event would be busy, thats a skip for me.

[DR ◣◢]

Really sorry to hear what happened to you. Speedy recovery dude. When we passed you it looked like you were in a lot of pain. Hope it all works out for you.

 

I do feel the need ot comment on something you said. The course was not that physically challenging. I wouldn't call myself a seasoned rider and I had no problems on any of the technical sections. In fact I found the whole route to be easy and a lot of fun. It was honestly my own fitness that ended my race prematurely for me at the 45km mark.

 

The race had it's problems. They did accept too many entries and there were issues with water points etc. However it was still an adventure and not a race so much.

 

People entered at their own risk and should have been prepared. The organisers did call it a challenge. Most entrants however didn't know how to negotiate the most basic of obstacles. I blame dirt road riding being called mountain biking for this. People lack the most basic skills and this caused the accidents.

 

This was most likely the most technical race of the year. (Not talking about the marathons here. Im sure the S2C, J2C and B&B has more technical single track etc).

 

The JUMA was an urban assault, an adventure and a challenge. Preparation should have been made. With 5000+ entrants a few casualty ward visits was to be expected sadly.

 

Again, I am truly sorry for you. I've been to the ER this year and I ended up in hospital with spinal surgery thanks to mountain biking. Two crashed and an incident with a car left me properly broken. Today I'm back on the bike and truly thankful for that. Speedy recovery.

[Edition 507]

Hey man, aweful, sorry to hear, sincerely wish you a full recovery.

[rudi-h]

devastating to hear, all the best and I hope through some miracle that you will ride again.

 

as for the course, I think you would have to agree that you were very unlucky in terms of the severity of  your injury i.e. breaking your hip.  I didn't see it happening, but from the explanation it doesn't sound that you were going very fast and it was pretty much a standard "over the handlebar" crash.  I would guess that if you were to take the same fall a 100 times, 99 of the 100 times you would have come off with minor injuries or at worst a broken collar bone.  Not sure if the course should take all the blame, but it doesn't make your situation suck any less

 

good luck and hope you recover well!

[SteveS]

Jeesh dude sorry to hear. Hope you recover completely. What I can't understand is why did it take them them 4 hours to get you out of there? Its not like you were in the middle of the wilderness. You were in Parkview.

[Sepia]

MTB007, listen and read carefully.

YOU WILL RIDE AGAIN!

Why I say this is because exactly the same thing happened to me!

Pins and plates, septicemia the works and I am more than likely older than you. Needless to say I ride almost every day, to work, have a jol and race events. I purchased an IDT trainer when I was released from hospital and was on it 4 days after the op - 2 mins at a time was progress! I have subsequently ridden to Cape Town 6mnths after the op, had the pins and plate removed after a year and have done Fickburg to East London unsupported as well.

 

I know where you are coming from. My ball was also out of the socket and floating around. I also had to make a decision hit a walking cyclist or fall off a cliff. Luckily, I chose the former and am riding again. Do it slowly and you will get there.

 

You are welcome to my IDT trainer but only if you promise to use it!

All the best and a speedy recovery. I like cycling too much to just give up.

[Plentipotential]

I sincerely hope that you heel well and recover enough to get back on your bike. Good luck to you.

 

Hope the organisers read this and sort it out for future events they are involved in.

[MTB-BFK]

I've been in Hospital since last week Sunday ...

Its been a pain filled morphine and other drug whirlwind ..

I've been reading all the rants re JUMA..

I had been in training to do a good 94.7... Sadly I won't.. Ever race again..

 

I take full responsibility for my choices I ride at least one race every 30 days with my wife. We chose MTB for the safety and ability to do different tracks ..rides etc.. She loves cycling almost as much as I did...

My biggest problem with JUMA..is not that it was technical or different but ... It was a good mountain bikers challenge... And herein lies the problem

Why on this green earth would any event allow a person who just purchased a bike to ride the same route seasoned cyclists struggle with but enjoy as it challenges their skills..

Its exactly this simple little detail that caused bottle necks and the chaos

Here in this Hospital 19 serious casualties 3 like me broke hips 2 broken elbows ..the list is scary.. Patients were sent to other hospitals Sunday as casualties here was put under presssue from a bike ride???????

My ride ended as I passed a lady who decided to stop dead while doing the storm water drain section ... She was obviously nervous and I had 2 choices hit her or Vere into the green stream

My choice ended cycling for good for me... I hit a hidden hole went skywards

Downwards and crack...end of left hip... I was unable to move as the ball had snapped off and lodged between the hip socket and now seperated femur..

I cooked there for 4 hours under the sun while other cyclists were guided past me, to avoid them hitting the same hole ..by my wife and a marshal...before getting to hospital, the medical team were brilliant but overloaded, far too few for the carnage they were managing...

OK ..

I can't ride again as one to many fall is just that....

I believe MTB race organizing has become a money spinner with little care for safety... There should have been 3 courses at least and qualification would be required and seeding to get starting blocks .. Our seeding was questionabike this would be a single track of flowwing pathways at best no technical stuff....

One for people who think mountain biking means owning a sort of off road bike

Two for mountain bikers who have done at least 5 25km races the course would offer single track etc.. Basically the 25km of Sundays without the heavier technical stuff.....

Third the proper one ..as it was...

 

In my humble opinion too many people were on a course at once causing the congestion as fear stopped those less technical riders passing an obstacle

Forcing people of track into bad lines and danger and stopping the flow ..

It was a numbers game in my opinion ..more people meant more entries .

No time was spent pondering how Joe Soap on his Hypermarket MTB would be able to ride... The proof is in the number of accidents we saw from this one fun event

I end my last ever cycling rant as a ex cyclist lying in hospital pissd that I'm not out in the tracks now …....

You and all the others with injuries that went wholly unattended by race officials have a VERY strong legal case to sue for negligence/gross negligence on the part of the organisers.  You may even consider suing Hollard, as they splashed their name all over the thing.

 

The telling thing for me in all of this has been the attempts to defend how this race was organised and run.  Even in this very thread.  The only word from the organisers was to offer some lukewarm warm drivel about how they will have some more water points next year, and that they will try to reduce bottle necks.  They have NEVER offered the smallest apology for the very obvious mistakes they made resulting in a complete shambles, nor do they acknowledge in any way the inadequacy of their EMT service which resulted in multiple events of either completely unattended or materially neglected injuries.  You and all the others who suffered at their hands should sue the $#it out of organisers

 

Doubt this race will happen again - can't think any anyone stupid enough to want to put their name on it.

[goya-goya]

Dude... I hope you get better and I hope you will be able to feel the wind in your face again

...

Dangerous and unsafe does not make anything technical... It makes it dangerous and unsafe... 

 

I guess if one person rode the route alone and took all the designated lines it would have been "safe".  

 

This is not a new concept... in america it is off the charts!... injuries? google yourself. 

 

I am of the opinion that this race should never have taken place. 

 

The organisers should never be allowed to organise another race ever! (Like idiot cyclist who dope) - riders are not your lab rats... you can learn from your mistakes if you are the test subjects. 

 

I can not wait for law to change and then riders can legally take action against incompetent idiots!

[MTB-BFK]

Dude... I hope you get better and I hope you will be able to feel the wind in your face again

...

Dangerous and unsafe does not make anything technical... It makes it dangerous and unsafe... 

 

I guess if one person rode the route alone and took all the designated lines it would have been "safe".  

 

This is not a new concept... in america it is off the charts!... injuries? google yourself. 

 

I am of the opinion that this race should never have taken place. 

 

The organisers should never be allowed to organise another race ever! (Like idiot cyclist who dope) - riders are not your lab rats... you can learn from your mistakes if you are the test subjects. 

 

I can not wait for law to change and then riders can legally take action against incompetent idiots!

 

Fully agree with you - amateur hour that cost people dearly.  They then have the gaul to drum up a cheerleading squad of delirious sycophants to sing their praise on the basis that they will try harder next time.  No regard for responsibility to the people they are hosting in their death-trap event.

 

I did not sign an indemnity - did you?  Will be interesting to see the legal fall-out here.

[Peach.]

Fully agree with you - amateur hour that cost people dearly.  They then have the gaul to drum up a cheerleading squad of delirious sycophants to sing their praise on the basis that they will try harder next time.  No regard for responsibility to the people they are hosting in their death-trap event.

 

I did not sign an indemnity - did you?  Will be interesting to see the legal fall-out here.

 

If I am not mistaken you had to agree to terms when you entered.

 

I think it was pretty well organized for a first year, name 1 event that has ever been perfect in its first year.

 

As for greedy organizers, they capped it at 5000 total, without any previous races it was hard to know what the track capacity was, they could have easily allowed more entrants but they didn't.

 

They have always been referring to it as an adventure not a race. The route had countless hours of work done making it safe and rideable but there will always be something that will catch people out.

 

Even if they had said it was a hard technical route (which they pretty much did) I can bet all they noobs would still have entered because the average level of "MTB" races is riding on dirt roads.

 

I broke my arm on a "unsafe" jump in France, I didn't go sue the bike park or complain to them, no-one put a gun to my head and said I have to ride it.

It is a choice YOU make to go faster, try a new line or take it easy.

There is no need to try blame they organizers for not holding your hand along the route.

 

 

MTB0007, I am sorry to hear about your injury, I really do feel your pain. I have had 3 broken arms in the last 2 years.

I hope you do get back on a MTB even just for chilled rides. Heal up soon.

[Guest notmyname]

Positive vibs Bro. Stay positive and heal quick.

[Prince Albert Cycles]

If you really want to ride again you will.

People with worse injuries than your are riding again.

The choice is yours good luck .

[Thug]

Sorry to hear about your injuries. Heal up soon.

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

Sorry to hear about your injuries, 0007. Heal up properly and I'm sure you'll be back in the saddle in no time.

 

From what I read, the course was advertised as challenging from the outset. In addition to that, accidents happen, and your incident could have happened anywhere at any time. It's one of those things, unfortunately.

 

One thing I will say is that the EMS guys should have been there sooner, but they were most probably attending to other people. As you point out, there were 19 casualties, which takes time to attend to. I don't think the organiser could possibly have foreseen that level of incidents, and provided (contracted) the level of EMS that other events on average provided. Which is generally one or 2 units.

 

What I think we have learnt from here is that the skill level of your average MTB rider is bordering on pitiful. You can't blame the organiser for putting a technical race together, advertising it as a challenge, and then having riders who aren't proficient come and ride it.

 

Yes, going forwards there should be seeding both in terms of fitness and technical ability. If yiu can't do a certain set of obstacles you can't do a particular course, or you have to do the b lines.

 

However there is also an element of common sense in here. If you know you're not technically proficient, you shouldn't be hammering it or taking chances.

 

I also don't agree with BFK. You signed an indemnity when you entered. The accident was just that - an accident. You can't blame the organiser for that. At some point you need to realise that YOU are the person who had the off - the organiser didn't cause it. Therefore a certain bit of ownership needs to happen. We're not a nation of litigation seeking skelms, and if there is a legal action brought, it effectively ends the "technical" mtb event. Which is not cool. Maybe ask why the EMT'S took so long to get there. Maybe they were overworked. Was a call made to a normal ambulance service such as Net care 911? If there were 19 casualties then that would be the primary reason for the delay.

 

 

However. I wouldn't wish what you have had happen to you to my worst enemy, and it sucks hard. I hope you have a speedy recovery and get back on the bike asap. You can do it.