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From Scorpion to Yard Sale: Ultimate bike crash guide

By Brian Fleming

As a cyclist, gravity can be your best friend. Nothing beats racing down some sweet single track, picking your line as you weave yourself over roots and rocks. Or if you’re a road cyclist, cresting that pass and zooming at breakneck speed around those hairpin turns. But best be careful, gravity can just as easily turn against you and stab you in the back.

What we’re talking about is that moment when your bike and your body have very different ideas about which direction to head. Whether you find yourself airborne over your handlebars, careening recklessly through trailside vegetation or sliding head-first across the tarmac, there are some cycling fails that are so spectacular that they even have names.

The Puddle Fail, Scorpion, Crayon and more – each of those comes with a risk of injury. Worse still, they come with their own humiliation factor that might see you inadvertently become a YouTube star, if someone was there to film the moment gravity had its way with you.

Every week we will publish two new fails, so in a month you will have our complete crash guide. Here are the fails (almost) every cyclist will at some point become familiar with (click the pictures for higher resolution).

Puddle fail, WeLoveCycling.com

Scorpion fail, WeLoveCycling.com

Do you have your own names for certain bike fails? Share them in the comments below!