Sure, the iPhone can help you make calls and check your email and settle arguments in bars, but when was the last time it helped keep a stretch of skin on your leg from getting peeled off on a hot stretch of pavement? Not recently, I'm guessing. But that's just what happened to an avid cyclist who got a popped tire while traveling at about 25MPH.

In the instant just before executing my turn, something in the road punctured my front tire. In two places. 130 psi of traction and control were gone in an instant. I immediately went into an uncontrolled fall at 25 mph. Since I had already started my turn, the vertical stability of my bike gave way to momentum and gravity. I hit the pavement hard, sliding about 20 feet before friction brought me to a stop. Suddenly the pavement didn?t feel so good beneath me. I had a nasty abrasion on the outside of my right leg and right forearm, and a very sore right ?cheek?, which took the brunt of my fall. I stood up as quickly as I could to



take inventory of my faculties to see if I suffered any broken bones. Luckily, I hadn?t.

Once I gathered myself and my bike to the side of the road, I reexamined my injuries. I was somewhat pleased the abrasion on my arm was not as bad as it could have been, saved by the leather-palmed gloves I was wearing for such an occasion (which were now ruined, but a small price to pay for the protection they provided). And my leg could have been worse, too, had it not been saved by my?my iPhone. ?Oh no!?, I yelled.

Panic raced through me. Retrieving the iPhone from my pocket immediately revealed the screen had not suffered breakage, so I pressed the ?Home? button and the iPhone sprang to life. I was still about a mile from home, so I unlocked the display and immediately pressed the Phone icon so I could call home for assistance. The ringing sound at the other end was music to my ears; the phone still worked!

Sure, any phone could have protected him just as easily I'm sure, but could that phone then help you look up the surgery you're avoiding due to its protection? I think not. [Gantos]