liveforphysics
100 TW
I know we have tons of threads here about broken spokes/wheels etc.
That means many of you will have some cool carnage pictures to share.
I will start. I did this today on deathbike, riding back carrying lunch in my left hand, putting along about 60mph, decide to see if I can make myself go WOT (wide open throttle), don't know if I got to WOT or not, back of the bike starts bucking and fishtailing wildly. I'm wearing a t-shirt carrying lunch, I did have a full-face helmet on. I just held on (to my lunch and the bike), did the counter steer dance and rode it out on the flopping bent sprocket teeth with the rim/tire just loose and bouncing/bucking in there. Not a scratch, and I ended up coasting far enough on the sprocket to make it clear to the front of my work where my co-workers were impressed but not surprised, and carried my lunch and helmet while I dragged the bike back inside.
I had really expected a high speed rear wheel failure would be harder to ride than that, or rather that a mangled sprocket with a rim/tire bouncing around freely would be more difficult to control at speed, but it was a kitten.
My rim doesn't even seem bent though, and only a single spoke is actually broken, the rest all failed by pulling through the garbage mild-steel washers I put in the rim's over-sized eyelets. 440ft-lbs of torque at the rear wheel lasted for about a year on that sketchy washer wheel build. I'm pleased.
I'm sure some of you guys will have better pics with wadded up rims, so let's see'em!![Smile :) :)](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7)
That means many of you will have some cool carnage pictures to share.
![Twisted :twisted: :twisted:](/sphere/data/assets/smilies/icon_twisted.gif)
![Twisted :twisted: :twisted:](/sphere/data/assets/smilies/icon_twisted.gif)
![Twisted :twisted: :twisted:](/sphere/data/assets/smilies/icon_twisted.gif)
I will start. I did this today on deathbike, riding back carrying lunch in my left hand, putting along about 60mph, decide to see if I can make myself go WOT (wide open throttle), don't know if I got to WOT or not, back of the bike starts bucking and fishtailing wildly. I'm wearing a t-shirt carrying lunch, I did have a full-face helmet on. I just held on (to my lunch and the bike), did the counter steer dance and rode it out on the flopping bent sprocket teeth with the rim/tire just loose and bouncing/bucking in there. Not a scratch, and I ended up coasting far enough on the sprocket to make it clear to the front of my work where my co-workers were impressed but not surprised, and carried my lunch and helmet while I dragged the bike back inside.
I had really expected a high speed rear wheel failure would be harder to ride than that, or rather that a mangled sprocket with a rim/tire bouncing around freely would be more difficult to control at speed, but it was a kitten.
My rim doesn't even seem bent though, and only a single spoke is actually broken, the rest all failed by pulling through the garbage mild-steel washers I put in the rim's over-sized eyelets. 440ft-lbs of torque at the rear wheel lasted for about a year on that sketchy washer wheel build. I'm pleased.
I'm sure some of you guys will have better pics with wadded up rims, so let's see'em!
![IMG_20120917_131113.jpg](/sphere/proxy.php?image=https%3A%2F%2Flh5.googleusercontent.com%2F-0mHWWPqtBLU%2FUFeuJQtUmqI%2FAAAAAAAABnk%2FSn5hLxQDcjw%2Fs720%2FIMG_20120917_131113.jpg&hash=a224e17408f68f446c100326f6de97cd)
![IMG_20120917_131137.jpg](/sphere/proxy.php?image=https%3A%2F%2Flh4.googleusercontent.com%2F-Q6j_8DeCpRA%2FUFet98Pl88I%2FAAAAAAAABnc%2FTk4q8IVKc7A%2Fs720%2FIMG_20120917_131137.jpg&hash=4d73c25d9e5d9bfc41f4fff495c39d6c)