Crash crash pop pop - wasn't me....

I had just finished getting my classwork down when I came downstairs to my wife receiving a phone call. Her mom had crashed her bike, and needed a ride. (Well, my mother in law, and father in law both.)

I put the bike rack on the back of the car, and head over to pick them up from the park near the crash. (It was on a part of the bike path, but I don't know where. My wife claims to know though. I just rode the path today... anyways...)

I lifted up my mother in law's bike and walked straight up (ok, an angle) the very steep levee hill and directly to my car. I had to put my mother in law's bike in the back of the car, wheels off, since she didn't have the converter on it today. My wife would have had a heck of a time with that.  My father in law had also crashed (Which was not conveyed to me before I left. I still don't know how or why he crashed.) and was walking with his wife around the path to the park, partly because the rear brake had stopped working.



After I drove them home, I brought their bikes into the house to see what was going on with them. Both had low tire pressure, my mother in laws was the worst for air pressure. I swear I have told them a dozen times to always make sure there is enough air in the tires, and use a freaking tire gauge. (When at home, of course. My CO2 pump doesn't have a pressure gauge, but I know what close enough is, their tires were not near close enough.)

My mother in law, who got hurt in the crash, has a fully ridable bike. (Well, after I air up the tires.) I would (other than it being a women's 7 speed cruiser) feel safe riding it, the dérailleur is just a hair off, but not worth fiddling with. A half turn of the limit screw is all it probably needs, but she doesn't use that gear anyways. (And, since she broke her collar bone, it is a rather moot point.)

My father in law's bike seemed at first like the brake cable had snapped, or came loose from the lever. (rear brake) They still functioned when I pulled the cable under the top tube, which made it stranger. After about 5 minutes of staring at it, I discovered the lever itself had snapped into two pieces, inside the lever's housing. I have bent a few of those in my day, but I have never seen one snap like that. Personally, I'd try to fix it myself if it were my bike, but I have never done that before, so it can go to the shop he bought it from. (Hey, at least that shop has cheap water bottles. That makes the trip worth it for me.) Would I ride it with just a front brake? Perhaps. It got scratched up from the crash, but nothing too bad. (Other than the brake lever, of course.)
 

Suddenly though, with these two bikes in the house, I think we have hit the saturation point of bikes in the house. I really am thinking I might need to get rid of the Cannondale that I have a whole 8 miles on. I swear that thing hates me. That, or I need to find a way to organize them all better.