Catastophic Failure

 2024 River to Rail ride

3 of us joined up for the ride, 2 on diamond frame bicycles, and one on a recumbent

We had ridden with our friend on the recumbent numerous times previously and began to notice something that didnt seem right.

Look closely, very closely, at the rear wheel

See how it is tilted slightly to the  right?

Compare its vertical angle to that of the front wheels

We thought is was simply a matter of alignment in the frame and didnt mention anything about it to our friend.

20 miles into the ride, I stopped at an intersection to double check our routing

Recumbent friend pulled up along side me to the right on a slightly sloping road surface

Suddenly he tipped over to his right for no apparent reason

I felt terrible for stopping and causing him to topple over

Then we discovered . . . .

He didnt tip over due to the road surface . . . .

The frame had snapped in half just ahead of the seating area

Was that misaligned wheel indicating an issue with the frame?

We believe it was

Torque applied to the frame by the cassette may ? have induced a twist expanding a fissure in the frame ?

Had this happened while in motion, at speed on a downhill, there is a very good change the jagged end of the front frame member could have impaled him 

Jagged end of the aluminum frame hidden from view by the seat.

Since he was stopped, no harm done other than an abraded elbow

A call to the SAG support vehicle transported him and bicycle back to his van

Whew!  That could have been bad, very, very, bad

At Steve's insistence we continued the ride

Closer view taken later

Manufacturer honored the frame warranty and sent Steve a new recumbent!