First bicycle crash

Yep, I crashed, but it was a little-old-lady kind of crash. I have a couple of nasty bruises and a raked shin -- no harm done.  The worst thing was its stupidity (my stupidity).

I had entered one of the narrow little bridges crossing the canal and stopped because a young girl, large dog, and toddler were sprawled out right in the middle of it enjoying the view. When they saw me, they all scrunched over to one side, and the right move would have been to walk the bike past them. However I was into wrong moves that day. I tried to ride past them, got too close to the railing, going so slow I started wobbling, grabbed onto it to steady myself. I was soon reminded that while I was moving, the railing was not -- duh! I fell over in a heap just past them, whacking my head (thank you, helmet!) and becoming rather intimately entwined with my bike.

About ten minutes before, I had watched a car run over and demolish my dropped water bottle. This was not going to be my best bike ride. However, I kept going and am glad I did. The weather was abnormally perfect for February, low 80's, and I managed to do 12 miles before dark sent me home.

Thanks to the weather, I had never before seen so many pedestrians (and one golf cart) in the canal underpasses, which I normally whiz through at terrifying speeds approaching 20 mph. I also had several awkward moments involving indecision at sharp turns onto sidewalks. Can I make the turn? Yes! No! Last minute stops almost in traffic. I was not at my best. I recall the previous ride, sailing along smoothly, making good decisions. Clearly I was rattled by the crash. I'll try again today.