Story for Gust of Wind: 1, Ryan: 0

Right now our family is visiting my parents for Christmas.  December has been a slow month for rides, but I was hoping this time away from home would give me a chance to get a few rides in since I wouldn't be thinking about doing work on the house.  Sadly, our first full day there the wind was blowing 20 mph with gusts over 30.  Nevertheless, I talked my dad into going for a short spin.

It was rough going from the start.  Heavy wind on open roads, and I was trying to lead most of ride since I spend a lot more time on my bike that my dad spends on his.  Even the back roads we got onto after a couple of miles did not provide much respite from the wind.  15 miles in with a couple of solid hills under our belt, I had picked up the pace on a flatish section to around 26 mph.  Then, dad fell off the pace, saying he had a cramp in his calf.  We slowed and turned onto a side road.  I sat up, took my hands off the bike, opened up some energy chews with salt, and held two out for my dad to help with the cramping.  
At that moment, a huge gust of wind came in from the side and slung my front wheel sharply to the left.  With my hands off the bike, I was helpless to stop the inevitable crash.  The bike and I slammed onto the road, back-first for me.  I took a rough hit to the back of the head, but the helmet did its job and kept me from any real injury.  I also smashed my hand and got some road rash on my hip.   

This was my first wreck, and all in all, it could've been worse.  It's the day after as I write this, and I'm not feeling any lingering pain.  The bike seems okay as well.  No damage to the frame, and the tape took the brunt of the hit on the drops.  Sadly, my cheap, wireless bike computer came off the bike, and the screen was destroyed.  Not too big of a loss, though, and maybe a good excuse for a new computer.  Hoping to get back on the bike today with better results.