Wintergreen Steve's speed wobble

I learned a new term today, “speed wobbles”. Just a few miles into a group ride (one of Cascade Bicycle Club’s free rides), a fellow rider pulled over with a mechanical. I asked the rider just behind him if he could tell what the mechanical was. Speed wobbles was the answer. I wouldn’t normally blog about something like this, I hear new terms all the time. But the term instantly grabbed my heart. Years ago on a Nordic Club bike trip, a felllow rider crashed in front of me. Amil’s bike wobbled back and fourth in front of me. I pedaled up to him and asked if he was ok. He said he was fine and the bike went back to normal. He pedaled faster than I expected, so I dropped back. Then his bike started wobbling again. What started out to be a tiny oscillation grew bigger and bigger until he was thrown off the bike. He slammed onto the road and rolled into the ditch. His bike flipped back, airborne. I swerved hard into the car lane to avoid it crashing down onto me. I had a split second to hope I wasn’t swerving into an oncoming car, but when something is flying at you every instinct makes you escape. It was an intense moment for me, but worse for Amil. He tore up his face, neck and shoulders. His jersey was but shreds. His bike needed some serious repair. He eventually went to the ER and suffered facial scarring he’ll have the rest of his life. We all struggled to figure out exactly what caused the crash. The cause is still unknown, but at least now I know what to call what happened to him, “speed wobbles”.