It was a beautiful mid-July afternoon in Pullman, Washington, and Denny Curran was doing what young boys do: riding bikes with friends and trying to squeeze every last bit of fun out of summer before school started.

Denny was biking down a small decline in front of his family’s old home, one they had just finished moving out of that day. The gregarious 6-year-old had ridden the same spot dozens of times in the past. But that day, for some reason, he lost control of his bike. His handlebar twisted, and its right end hit the pavement. Denny couldn’t halt his momentum, and the handlebar’s other end struck his abdomen, impaling him.

Paramedics were called, as were Denny’s parents, Keith Curran and Haiying Tao, who had been setting up Denny’s room at their new home. Doctors flew him 75 miles via air ambulance to Spokane’s Sacred Heart hospital. His iliac artery badly torn and abdomen lacerated, he was rushed into surgery. But his injuries were too severe, and Denny died the next morning.

Kids crash their bikes all the time, and typically walk away with a few scrapes and bruises. So what happened this time? Why was this little boy killed? Not too long before the crash, Keith noticed the end of Denny’s handlebar grips had worn, leaving the metal slightly exposed. He didn’t think much of it at the time. Most parents probably wouldn’t.

“Even with the hole, I tried to move that grip—it was solid,” Keith told Bicycling. But at some point, the grip had slipped down the handlebar, exposing even more metal. It’s unclear if that happened during the crash, or if the grip had slipped sometime beforehand.

Worn grips can expose a bike’s handlebar, which is dangerous for riders. dorioconnell Getty Images

Handlebar injuries are more common that one might guess. Nearly 900 kids were injured in 1997, the only year for which national data is available. In most cases, the child was riding at a low speed and lost control. Even when the child wasn’t impaled, the injuries—primarily splenic, kidney, liver, and pancreatic lacerations and contusions—were often severe.



Shortly after those numbers came out, Dr. Flaura Winston, founder and scientific director at the Center for Injury Research and Prevention at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, worked with a team of engineers to design a kid-specific, energy-dampening handlebar that would retract during a crash. The design never made it into mass production. (Attempts to reach Winston before deadline were unsuccessful.)

Seph Hatley, a mechanic at Bicycle Garage in Indianapolis and parent of a 10-year-old, told Bicycling that he sees worn handlebar grips all the time, on both kid and adult bikes. “It’s just everyday wear and tear, but over time, [the grip end] wears down,” he said. “You could go for a locking grip, but the caps sometimes fall off those as well.”

His advice? Parents should give bikes a visual inspection every few weeks or months, depending on how often the child rides. At least once a year, bring the bike in for a professional safety inspection, which are free at most bike shops.

If the grips are worn, you should replace them immediately or fit the bike with a handlebar plug—a small plastic piece that fits securely into the end of the bar, filling the empty space. Plugs are inexpensive (some sell for as little as $2) and readily available at your local bike shop.

Robert Annis After spending nearly a decade as a reporter for The Indianapolis Star, Robert Annis finally broke free of the shackles of gainful employment and now freelances full time, specializing in cycling and outdoor-travel journalism. Over the years, Robert's byline has appeared in numerous publications and websites, including Outside, National Geographic Traveler, Afar, Bicycling, Men's Journal, Popular Mechanics, Lonely Planet, the Chicago Tribune, and Adventure.com

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