Andy makes some great suggestions, i know this started as a question around hatchet injuries but i would push everyone to carry a minimal first-aid kit. I speak about this from experience, last year i was riding back from errands through a small park that included a wooden bridge crossing. There had been some moisture, the wood was slick and at an angle. I was sloppy, inattentive and the front wheel washed out from under me, i ended up hitting my forehead/temple onto the handlebar.
I'm pretty sure i had a mild concussion as i don't remember anything from hitting the bar to standing (yes, standing up, straddling the bike) a few feet away from bridge. Luckily i was wearing some beefy eye-glasses which took most of the hit, but i had a cut on my temple (it only took 5 stitches) that would not stop bleeding. By luck i had stopped for takeout on the way home and had a stack of napkins that i could hold to my face. But that required walking the bike about a mile home with one hand while holding the bleeding down. I now make a point to carry a first-aid kit on all of my bikes. I'd also suggest a few latex gloves, because even if you find someone to help you, it's a little uncomfortable to be presented with a lot of blood. On Sunday, October 19, 2014 5:24:01 AM UTC-4, ascpgh wrote: > > My new favorite single first aid kit item: > http://www.target.com/p/adventure-medical-kits-quikclot-sport-50-g/-/A-13945480?ref=tgt_adv_XSG10001&AFID=google_pla_df&LNM=13945480&CPNG=Health+Beauty&kpid=13945480&LID=17pgs&ci_src=17588969&ci_sku=13945480&kpid=13945480&gclid=CKaIrNiluMECFbPm7AodYi0A8g > > This is a wound care game changer, once limited to military and medical > use, now in public sale forms. Lots of brands and forms out there. Stop > nasty wounds' bleeding before the loss is concerning, not a substitute for > sutures. Just because you checked off "stop the bleeding" doesn't mean the > chores are over. > > For the rides beyond the commute and range of rapid higher level care > arrival: > > Bleeding stopped, but now you're looking at a wound (particularly cuts) > that requires more work, but you need to stabilize it for transport, or > dare say to ride out as is: > http://www.nexcare.com/wps/portal/3M/en_US/NANexcare/Nexcare/ProductCat/~/Steri-Strip-Skin-Closure?N=4326+3294631226&rt=rud > > Butterfly bandage concept gets its PhD. Used for much more than > description describes, replaced a super glue technique by which I once > swore. Longest possible, real world wounds are never clean and dry, more > often you need the extra to reach dry, intact surfaces to adhere. > > Obviously some gauze 2x2s and 4x4s, but my top dressing closure favorite > is: > http://www.vitalitymedical.com/coban-self-adherent-wrap.html?utm_source=google&utm_medium=base&utm_campaign=products&feed_special=google&gclid=CJ3DvLumuMECFTMQ7AodencAqA > > Beats tape by miles and since its always knees, elbows (bendy parts) that > get torn up first in a bike wreck. It closes up and holds your wound > dressing application so that it is rideable. Horse people, you know this as > Vetwrap. > > For when the incident result will need more than a bandage: > http://www.sammedical.com/products/sam-splint/ > > Useful to support for ortho injuries from a sprain to fracture. Takes > little space, weighs less, beats taking your hatchet into the woodlands to > harvest natural splinting for which you probably don't have binding > materials unless you start tearing your jersey into strips. > > These few things so very limit the number of items to have for immediate > care. Gloves and alcohol wipes for sure, and if you're likely to be afar, > some packaged cleansing agent-soaked gauze to get mother nature and road > debris out of any wound you hope to close. You're not sterile out there, so > a water bottle to do a quick pressure wash of debris before antiseptic > wiping is awesome (alcohol wipe the nozzle). > > Think ahead if you pack this stuff, if you don't feel like they offer a > natural series of steps to the sort of injuries you'll expect, they'll do > no one any good. Mentally rehearsing your response to wounds given the kit > you've assembled will help. Step one is always a silent "I can do this". > This has been true in my Scouting, military, and medical situations. > > Andy Cheatham > Pittsburgh > > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
