XENIA TWP., Greene County — Kettering resident John Horanyi is warning cyclists to be careful on the Little Miami Scenic Trail after a fall forced him to trade his bicycle for a pair of crutches.

Horanyi said he fell and cracked his pelvis when his bike slipped on new yellow stripes installed on a portion of the trail north of Xenia.

"It was all right until it rained, then it became black ice," Horanyi said of the stripes. "You can't go through without falling or swerving."

The Dayton Cycling Club member said several riders in his group fell during a trip to Yellow Springs Sunday. Horanyi expects to be on crutches up to two months and is considering filing a lawsuit.

The county parks department learned of the problem Monday and workers coated the striping with a fine-grained sand Tuesday to keep other cyclists from slipping, said James A. Schneider, Greene County parks and recreation assistant director.

"We were not aware of any serious injuries," Schneider said.

The stripes are made of "thermo-plastic," which can be slick if not properly coated, he said.

Kneisel Contracting Corporation, which striped the trail between Xenia and Yellow Springs earlier this month, should have coated the stripes with sand when it was installed, he said.

Other parts of the trail are striped with thermo-plastic and coated with sand and there have been no problems, Schneider said.

Each year thousands of cyclists and hikers use the Little Miami Scenic Trail, which runs 76 miles from Springfield to Milford near Cincinnati.

Contact the reporter at (937) 225-2342 or cmagan@DaytonDailyNews.com