Tour of the Valley of the Sun

Well this weekend I participated in my first true road race and stage race. The race put on by the White Mountain Cycling club here in AZ consisted of 3 stages - a 22km TT, a 41 mile road race, and a 25 lap criterium.

The first stage - the 22 km TT took place early Friday morning in a tiny little town called Buckeye Arizona, about 50 miles west of Phoenix. In an attempt to avoid having to get up at 4:00 in the morning to get there on Friday morning tired and stiff, we decided to head up to Phoenix the night before and grab a hotel room on the edge of town so we could get a good nights sleep. My race number was 719 and my start time was 9:27:30.

We arrived at the race site at around 8:20 am - after a 25 minute detour to starbucks !! Thank god for GPS. When we got there there were already several hundred of cyclists set up along the cross street from the start line setting up their bikes and warming up on trainers and rollers. It was an amazing and indimadating specticle. Most of the riders were on state of the art carbon bikes, and dressed in prefectly matching team uniforms. A little intimidating to a guy doing his first bike race and wearing a mismatched uniform with NO logos. YIKES !! Think I may be out of my league here !!

Nervous and scared about racing on my TT bike for the first time since my accident 4 months ago, I quickly got changed and began to warm up ASAP. I managed to get about 25 minutes in on the trainer between running to the porta potty and jumping off to get something I forgot or thought i needed (like gels - which i carried in my back pocket but never in a million years risked taking my hands off the handle bars to try and get out of my back pocket).

I arrived at the start line about 10 minutes early to ensure I didn't miss my start. As I stood in line watching each successive rider go off in 30 second intervals I began to feel a little better as many of the riders were also doing thier first road race.

As I lifted my bike up onto the start ramp, I kept reminding myself to start easy and build into the race. Unsure how hard to go on such a short ride with no run to follow, I started off focusing on keeping my cadence high and turning over the pedals at around 100 RPM. My legs felt great. With a slight tailwind and only a slight incline on the way out, by mile 2 I was flying and already reeling in the riders ahead of me. By the turn around I had caught 4 riders and was feeling good. I made the turn for home, looked up the road at the rider about 500m ahead, put my head down and dropped the hammer. Unfortunately it was a lot tougher catching riders on the way home and managed to just pass my 7th rider about 500m from the finish line. I crossed the line in 35:43 - 7th in my division and 1:30 behind the winner. And as usual, after finishing and checking the results an hour later, I wondered if I could have gone a minute faster if I knew I would win ... sure I could have... but as the old saying goes, if I could have, I would have. Regardless, I was happy with my results.

The next day was the road race which took place a little closer to home in Casa Grande - about an hour and a half from home. We left home shortly after 5:00 am and arrived at the race site around 6:30 am. Even before the sun was up - and it was FREEZING !! In fact it was soo cold, despite having plenty of time, I bypassed the warmup on the trainer to sit shivering in the SUV with the heat on full blast.

The New Machine

Well its been 3 weeks since I finally got my new machine - and I have to say I am in LOVE. I figured after breaking my hip I needed something lighter and more responsive to compensate for the extra weight of the added hardware in my hip and the trauma that has weakend the muscles around it. I thought of getting a titanium bike to match my hip, but decided instead to go all out and get the full carbon Kuota Kreedo Ultra(with Carbon bars and everything baby !!) all decked out with Sram Red, and all the extras. I even managed to get Ti Speedplay pedals !!

So to say this machine is light and responsive is a mild understatement. It rides and climbs like a dream, and fits perfectly. I was a little worried at first as I had ordered a size larger than my Giant - but it was definately the right decision. The seat has taken a little getting used to - needless to say the seat looks better than it feels.

The Comeback Starts NOW !!

Well its official, the comeback has begun.

Today i ran - ok jogged - for the first time since my accident. It wasn't pretty - i have to admit. My form and stride length looked like many of the 16+ hour finishers in Hawaii after swimming, biking, and cramping at about mile 20 !! As amazing as it is to be back running, given how poor my form was before the accident, it should be interesting to see what my form looks like in 6 months.

As usual, i probably over did it, and will pay for it tomorrow. But regardless it was definately worth it. So despite my overwhelming fear of my hip snapping off mid stride I managed to run a 6 times 5 on and 2 off on the treadmill at a blistering 13:45 pace. Thats about a 7 hour marathon !! Well I guess it can only get better from here.

This is about how I felt by the end of my 50 minute JOG !!

I CAN WALK !!! AND RIDE !!

Well I saw the orthopod again this week, and finally got the OK to start walking on my new titanium reenforced hip. needless to say, I wasted no time getting rid of the crutches which i quickly traded in for a snappy single point cane. its really very stylish. i think it will be the in thing this season. and as usual i will be leading the trend. NOT. at least not after about a week. as for the crutches i plan on burning them or smashing them into a million pieces.

So there is the good news. the bad news is that he doesn't want to repair the hernia in my IT band, and wants to wait 2 more months before fixing it - removing the locking screws at the same time. he feels the screws are sticking out too much and that they will EVENTUALLY cause a problem. in the mean time, i am stuck with this thing growing out of the side of my leg, which at the moment is really the only thing that is hurting. the hip itself is still very weak, and i walk like i have been shot in the ass (as i lack any stability in my core ) but for the most part it is pain free. the only thing that really hurts the hip is trying to stand on one foot to put on a pair of pants or shoes. a fact i find very annoying.

the knee however hurts all the time - especially when standing on one foot. on the positive side, both my knee and hip are pretty much totally pain free while biking - even climbing. I have managed to go biking the past three days straight - and today managed to bike 3 solid hours, although not at my usual pace. i started out strong but quickly faded when the road turned upwards. none the less i was VERY happy to be outside and on my bike again. now all i need is a nice new shiney bike !!

guess i have no excusses to stay off work any longer - and just when I was getting into daytime TV !! I will fill you in on all the fun and teasing I get when I start back next week. should be fun !!

Favorite Things to Do While Sidelined With a Fractured Hip

1. eat - my activity level may have dropped off, but not my appetite
2. watch movies - preferably tour de france or IM videos (and imagine being there!!)
3. watch TV - little tip : reality TV SUCKS !! and daytime TV is even worse !!
4. waste time on internet - read others blogs, slowtwitch forum, cycling news, ...
5. shopping - see above.
6. read - magazines, books, newspapers, flyers, ads, ....
7. eat more
8. sun tan
9. sleep / nap
10. clean appartment
11. play tour guide to my parents who are visiting
12. eat even more
13. ....

Rehab Update

Well its hard to believe, but it has been 3 weeks since the accident and surgery on my hip. and although it feels like it just happend yesterday on one hand - on the flip side it feels like i have been on these crutches and unable to walk (OR DRIVE!!) for months. to say i am sick of using crutches is a mild understatement. i have 38 steps into and out of my appartment, so getting around has proven to be more work than i ever imagined.

i am happy to let everyone know that things are slowly starting to improve. I am still off work but hope to be able to return to work with modified duties in about a week. i have been riding the stationary bike everyday for an hour, as well as stretching, doing pool exercises and water running, and some light upper body weights. I have also done a TON of crutching all over tucson and SW arizona. As fate would have it, my parents had planned a trip to visit me right after returning from Hawaii. The initial plan was to go up to Utah to see Bryce Canyon and Zion national park. Unfortunately that has been put on hold as a result of my injuries. we have however managed to see just about everything in the Tucson area. We have been up Mt Lemon, and Medera Canyon, and through Gates Pass. We have been to the desert museum, the botanical gardens, and to the Biosphere (and just a tip - i don't recommend doing any on crutches). I have also watched more movies and TV in the last 2 weeks than I probably did all last year.

I also managed to finally get in to see an orthopeadic surgeon here in tucson for a follow up appointment this week. It was a tough day to say the least. He is a really great guy, I really like him. But he pulls no punches and gives it to you straight. He took xrays and reviewed them with me. He pointed out the fracture which was much worse than Dr Chang had made it out to be when I was in Hawaii. It was a spiral fracture that radiated into the head of the femur, which is why she had to use 2 IM nails and not a simple plate and screws. He was really pleased with how nice the surgery went - felt the nails were placed very well. But because of the severity of the fracture he is VERY concerned with the possibility of me developing osteonecrosis of my hip (same thing Flyoid Landis had). Unfortunately because of the nails, he can't order a contract MRI to measure blood flow to the hip, and will just have to monitor things via xray every 3 months for the next 2-3 years. He also said that the surgeon had to detach my piriformis and glut med to insert the screws, so he really isn't sure if I will ever be able to run again like I did before. To make matters worse, he wants to be very conservative with my rehab to make sure everything heals before putting too much weight on it. so I allowed no more than 20lbs until he does more xrays in 2 weeks - at which time I hope to be at least up to 50% weight bearing.

On the bright side, the giant fluid filled mass on the side of my leg where the surgeon put in the locking screws has stopped getting bigger, and he feels it isn't an infection like I thought, but just a cyst like pocket of intersitial fluid that he PROMISES to drain next visit. I wanted him to do it right then, but he wants everything to heal before risking possible infection by lancing it and draining it. Unfortunately it is the most painful part right now when I try and put my foot down with even 20lbs. At least I hope thats all thats causing the pain.

As for my shoulder, xrays showed a grade III separation - which he points out will hurt like a bitch in the short run, but which he feels shouldn't impact me too much in the long run. He has ordered an MRI of my shoulder to rule out any possible rotator cuff tears, or what he thinks is more likely, a complete tear in my trapezius muscle along the spine of the scapula. Not really sure what he would do for that - i forgot to ask. but I'm hoping it will just need some really deep massage after is scars down, and some really specific strengthening. I'll let you know after I get my MRI results.

I will update things after my next visit when i hope to have some more good news to share about how well things are going. In the mean time, I want everyone to send positive thoughts and prayers to a fellow Canandian Tara Norton that was also injured in a crash in Hawaii, but who is still struggling with pain in her back, arms, and ribs. God speed in your recovery. All of us are pulling for you.

Hawaii Continued

Well its been 10 days since my accident, and a hellish 10 days it has been. That being said, I have to thank everyone for their patience and assistance with everything. Everyone has been soo gracious and helpfull i can't even begin to tell you how much it has meant. To say this accident has rocked my world is a mild understatement.

And getting around on crutches while on vacation has proven to be more difficult than i ever imagined. I tried to do as much as I could so that I wasn't holding everyone back or causing them to miss things on my behalf. I know that plans were altered to accomodate me, and I want to thank everyone for that, and for not making me feel like i was in the way. and I am glad to say that things have gotten better each day. I am now able to get down stairs on the crutches, get dressed on my own, and even shower without assistance. baby steps, baby steps, .... its amazing how much you appreciate the little things after something like this.

Things have not been all bad. I am happy to report that the snapping pain in my hip has gradually continued to improve, and now only really snaps when I try a straight leg raise (which i still can't do. not really sure how all these old people manage to do it at work !?!?!) I have also officially started my rehab program even before leaving hawaii. While there i used the stationary bike in the workout room at the condo complex and managed to get on the stationary bike for 40 minutes (on the lowest setting). I was also able to get in the pool to do some AROM exercises with gravity eliminated.