One of us, probably both, should have broken something — at the very least, ended up in the river.

I just got home from a ride on the local trails and came ridiculously close to a head-on collision with another rider. I had a bell, he didn’t, but we’re both at fault. It was a bi-directional trail and at this particular spot, we were both heading downhill towards a blind corner. I was turning to the right, he to the left.

We reached the corner simultaneously and had little chance to react.

And once you lock up the breaks, you’ve lost your ability to steer. Still, had either one of us reacted otherwise, it would have ended far worse.

The fact that we didn’t collide and smash our faces together is astronomically stunning.

His rear tire slipped off the ledge. I skidded inches to the right of him, aiming straight towards the water’s edge. The only thing stopping me from swimming was a small tree that my body caught as I went over. It leaned almost sideways before propping me back up straight.

Had the tree been any younger, or much older, and this would have been a different story.

We helped each other back onto the trail as we laughed nervously at the chance encounter.

However unlikely, these things happen. And as fun as it is to take the trails with speed, it’s wise to hold back at times.