It was a nice cool spring day today, great weather for a bike ride. During the week I usually ride on the road when I can steal a couple of hours from work. Apparently spring time is also insect-time, there where many insects to be "had" on my Irvine-Blvd--Santiago Canyon loop. I had them flying in my ears, face, legs and of course all around me. While climbing the Jamboree hill up to Santiago Cyn Road, breathing heavily with mouth open wide, I managed to trap a bee-sized insect. I got such a shock/fright that 100 milliseconds later I found myself on the pavement! My thoughts covering the next three seconds or so, went as follows: "Oh, that's a bee!", "It's going to sting me in the mouth, yikes!", "Oops, I swallowed it, it's going to sting me on the inside", "I have not been stung yet, maybe it died before getting the chance." I quickly emptied the remainder of one water-bottle down my throat, while waiting for a piercing pain from somewhere on the inside. Fortunately it never came, perhaps it wasn't a bee after all. For the remaining 20 miles home I could not believe how foolish/out-of-control I was to have been spooked of my bike in such a way. Rather a tame crash. Maybe next time I will respond more gracefully to the attack of a kamikaze insect.
Once I was riding and felt something go in my eye......it kind of bothered me for a bit but I continued my ride..... About 2 hrs later I got home and the eye still hurt....I rolled by eye around a bit and finally I found a nice dead squashed fly that had been stuck in the corner of my eye ......I always wear eye protection now.
Great story Grant. This weekend doing the Solvang Double we got hit with bugs all dam day long. I felt one in my ear and when I put my finger on it, it made this fluttering noise that just creeped me out. Looked down at my finger and the little bugger was half squashed but still fluttering away. I can't tell you how many I ate.
One time I was riding the main divide and hit a few bees and one got stuck in my helmet and stung me. It went something like ooo, aaaa, ouchhhhhhhhhh
Similar thing also happened to me except I was on my motorcycle than my bike. By the time I got to where I wanted to be I felt a stinging and burning sensation on my stomach. I lifted my shirt and found a huge semi-squashed yellow jacket with the stinger still attached in me. Pulled it and I was fine. I guess the yellow jacket must have gone through the neck of my shirt and got trapped inside.
