Orange Crush
Posts:4499
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| 01/03/2022 09:07 PM |
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We exited the Christmas break deep freeze so got the first ride of 2022 in, 79kms. Also got the first crash of 2022 in on account of ice hiding underneath surface of a very large pool of water. That pool is always there it is unavoidable so we always take it at speed, water is about shin height deep. This time slid out. No damage but my right side got completely soaked including right glove inside and out as I put my hand down. Then of course had to wade the rest of pool so left foot got soaked too. Good test of heat retention properties of my winter gear, all passed with flying colours the final 10k home remaining relatively comfortable. It’ll remain around freezing mark this week so treacherous conditions are expected to persist. Other than that the ride featured an impressive array of bald eagles using wind and sun to dry up from hailstorm a bit earlier. Fun times. |
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6ix
Posts:485
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| 01/05/2022 08:51 AM |
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Oh man, let's hope 2022 isn't 2020 too!! Ugh. 2021 felt like a nasty hangover from 2020 and just got worse and worse. Things aren't starting out too awful well.
On the flip side, maybe you got your first - and hopefully only - crash knocked out for the year already with the only damage being a damp ride. |
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 01/05/2022 09:43 AM |
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Oh man, let's hope 2022 isn't 2020 too!!
FYI, today's date is March 676, 2020.
I'm starting the year on IR....had to get a cyst removed from a......ummmmm....."sensitive area" on NYE. Had a saddle sore that healed with a lump and made riding the trainer uncomfortable. Was OK outside, but required lots of weight shifting inside....and since that is where I'll be for at least the next 4 months, figured now was the time to address it. *shrug*
Whole process was a total pain...was originally supposed to be with a dermatologist, but when he saw the location, he punted to a general surgeon. The surgeon said he would normally do it with a local, but given the location and how I would have to placed on the table (prone with at least one leg in the air), he said he wanted to do it under a general anesthesia.
Was scheduled for Dec. 28, but as they were getting ready to wheel me in, my INR came back too high and my blood was still too thin for surgery.....so it was rescheduled for NYE.
Follow-up appt in on Jan. 17, so hopefully back on the bike later that day. *fingers crossed* |
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6ix
Posts:485
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| 01/06/2022 07:28 AM |
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Oh wow, CK, had no idea. What a mess! Did they put you on a Lovenox bridge in preparation for the procedure?
I recall Boonen having this same surgery back during his racing days. I guess at some point you just have to go the nuclear route and have it removed. Did you try cortisone injections early on to see if that would dissolve it? I came really close myself to having a procedure to remove a saddle-sore cyst couple years ago but it eventually went down after repeated injections.
Wonder when we'll ever throw in the towel and just get an e-bike recumbent? |
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 01/06/2022 09:10 AM |
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Did you try cortisone injections early on to see if that would dissolve it
No, both the dermatologist and surgeon said injections wouldn't do anything to resolve the issue.
No Lovenox bridge either...stopped the warafarin on Xmas eve and then resumed it this past Monday. INR was 1.7 on the original surgery date, but down to 1.1 on the rescheduled date.
Still some swelling....but I have been pain free since I went home, so I am happy about that obviously. |
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Orange Crush
Posts:4499
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| 01/06/2022 09:18 AM |
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| Yikes CK. Hope you heal well. Are those crazy distance trainer rides to blame? |
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 01/06/2022 09:21 AM |
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Are those crazy distance trainer rides to blame?
Nah....it was a saddle sore the developed in October, before I got back on the trainer. Just healed poorly.
Doc said the lump was ~2cm once he pulled it out. 
Again, it really wasn't an issue outside, but inside it was not great. Probably could have gutted through it (it was becoming more tolerable by the time the surgery came around), but I didn't want it to flare up in the season and put SBT GRVL at risk. |
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Dale
Posts:1767
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| 01/06/2022 10:23 AM |
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Pic or it didn't.... oh, heck no!
2cm? Dayum! |
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 01/06/2022 10:53 AM |
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yeah, no one wants of pic of that!!
I'm not certain if he was referring to the incision or the lump, TBH. It certainly didn't feel that big before removal and I could get a pretty good grip on the thing all around. I would have estimated it closer to ~1cm. But he told my wife ~2cm. *shrug* |
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79pmooney
Posts:3180
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| 01/06/2022 11:42 AM |
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Rather off topic but a "lesion" of similar size and fun story.
Young woman at one of the very first Seattle Kaken hockey games. Sitting with her mom behind the visiting Vancouver Canucks bench. She's going to go to med school and has spent a summer as a nurse assistant volunteer. Notices a mole on the back of the neck of the Canuck equipment manager. "Looks just like the malignant melanoma moles we were shown. I need to tell him."
She writes two sentences on her phone screen highlighting three words. At the end of the game, she goes down behind the plexiglass, waves to get the manager's attention and holds up her phone to the glass. "The mole on the back of your neck is possibly a malignant tumor! Please see a doctor!" Equipment manager thinks this a little strange and brushes it off, but when the team arrives home, he has his partner look at it. She agreed. Should go to the doctor. Doc takes a look, operates, sends the mole to the lab. Just a few cancer cells but melanoma. Doc removes more surrounding tissue and send it on. Clean.
In deep gratitude, the manager asks the team to see if they can track down this young woman. Twitter to the rescue. New Years day, the Canucks were back in Seattle. She was at the game. They were formally introduced and she was presented a check for $10,000 from the two teams to help with med school.
This woman comes across as totally unassuming. This was just the right thing to do (though she did spend some time after second guessing herself as to whether approaching a stranger like this was appropriate). |
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Orange Crush
Posts:4499
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| 01/06/2022 12:56 PM |
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Posted By Cosmic Kid on 01/06/2022 10:53 AM
yeah, no one wants of pic of that!!
I'm not certain if he was referring to the incision or the lump, TBH. It certainly didn't feel that big before removal and I could get a pretty good grip on the thing all around. I would have estimated it closer to ~1cm. But he told my wife ~2cm. *shrug*
Metric units being used? Of course this sounds more impressive (bigger) in cms. Read the story about the Kraken fan Ben; she must have been eagle eyed to notice that. Good stuff. |
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 01/06/2022 01:10 PM |
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Metric units being used? Of course this sounds more impressive (bigger) in cms
I'm lighter in KG, faster in KM and my excised masses are larger in CM.
Metric system for the win. |
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 01/08/2022 11:11 AM |
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Oh jeez….and now the bruising has arrived. This is not a pretty sight…..and I’ll spare you the details of what I needed to do in order to actually see the bruising.
Don’t think I am getting on my bike anytime soon…..*sigh* |
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Orange Crush
Posts:4499
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| 01/08/2022 11:16 AM |
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| I just need to look at our cat to imagine what you just did LOL. Speedy recovery. It’s a good time of year to get this out of way. |
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Dale
Posts:1767
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| 01/08/2022 03:45 PM |
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About the same number of hours as 2020, fewer miles total, more hours on the mbt and gravel.
Annual physical week after next and the doc sent a questionnaire.
Since I’m over an age a bunch of the questions seem to be specific to retirees, which I am not.
“Have you fallen in the past year?”
Fook yes, have you seen my knees and arms? These scars didn’t come from sitting on the couch drinking cheap beer, eating nachos, and watching football!
I earned every single one of those falls and wear the results of them with pride.
2022 goals? Ride more, work fewer hours, and if Covid lets up do more races.
Trip to Norway that was canceled last year is supposedly on for July- Santana Adventures tandem cruise up the coast of Norway for a week and a half. |
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79pmooney
Posts:3180
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| 01/08/2022 05:27 PM |
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"Have you fallen in the past year?" I did really well and as I recall, I never did. (That recall bit is also getting a bit shaky.) Those spills take a lot bigger toll than they used to.
CK, the bruising. After my casing boot (abdominal hernia mesh) everything seemed to be progressing just fine. Week three or so, I pulled off the bandages which clearly weren't needed anymore and took my first look. Wow. Black and blue for miles. Next day - just as bad but different! Then yellows and reds got added to this ever changing Van Gogh. In something of a panic, I scheduled the first available slot to have it looked at. Go in, get undressed. Nurse takes one look and exclaims "That's beautiful!" "Exactly what it's supposed to look like." |
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Orange Crush
Posts:4499
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| 01/08/2022 06:07 PM |
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The Diverge and Search got worked on this week so they’re ready for 2022. The road bike and commuter had work done last year so still good for another season. Proactively bought some parts in case supplies run low again just need to do a rubber tally.
I don’t think I crashed in 2021. Maybe a silly spill mounting or dismounting.
First major trip may be my 18 year old and his girlfriend down to California for some scramble peaks. They get our CRV we get her old Civic as a trade. I am giving them my southwestern US hotsprings book. Bought it in 92 to find remote Eastern Sierra springs with my first GF. Now everything is on google maps and presumably those springs much more visited. The CRV is deluxe for these guys, in 92 we had an old Tercel with bare tires and got stuck in snow at one of the springs. Some funny parallels are developing. |
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smokey52
Posts:493
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| 01/08/2022 10:47 PM |
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I've fallen over a couple of times over the years from the bike for un-properly un-clipping, but my big crash was August 1, 2011. Apparently I wiped out on some gravel a rain storm washed into the road under a railroad overpass. I concussed, and my whole left side was a huge bruise (the old joke: I was all right).
CK: Hope you heal well and quickly. |
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 01/09/2022 01:35 PM |
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Quick update…..continued to get worse yesterday. More soreness and swelling. By last night I had a low grade fever. Managed to get an appt at an Urgent Care facility for 10 this AM (wait times in ER are currently 6-12 hours).
Woke up this am, still not feeling great. Pretty clear it was infected. Went to take a shower before the appt and my boxers were soaked in blood. Great….
Went to the appt, they bandaged me, gave me an Rx for antibiotics and seeing my surgeon again tomorrow for follow-up.
Don’t think I am seeing my bike anytime soon….*shrug*
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| Just say "NO!" to WCP!!!!
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Orange Crush
Posts:4499
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| 01/09/2022 07:53 PM |
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| Somewhat related I had some dental surgery done in December, now there’s a hole in my gums that is supposed to grow closed over time. Problem is food keep disappearing in it that I then have to pick out. Slightly annoying although not as bad as your predicament. Hope this turns around soon for you. For me the weeklong painkiller phase immediately after was interesting that was some wildly strong stuff. |
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smokey52
Posts:493
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| 01/09/2022 09:53 PM |
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| CK- guess you are doomed to the elliptical trainer for a while. That keeps your legs moving without sitting. Best of luck to you, and best of skill to your medical staff. |
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 01/10/2022 12:22 AM |
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| Thanks, smokey! |
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 01/10/2022 05:01 PM |
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Quick update….went to see the surgeon again today. I’ll spare you guys some of the details, but the bleeding was more “drainage” from the huge hematoma that had developed (hence the very dark color of the blood vs. bright red).
Options are to let the drainage continue and see if things right themselves or go for more surgery. I’m opting for seeing how things develop vs more surgery at this point. Doc “forced” more draining while I was there ( holy hell that hurt), packed it, gave me a stronger antibiotic and sent me home. Basically on bed rest for at least a few days…they don’t want me to do anything.
I was also given the option of using “pads” or Depends to help deal with the drainage. Seriously? FFS….
Surprisingly, I feel better already this afternoon. Fever seems to have broken, pain has been reduced and I am moving better. I think the forced draining the doc did helped a lot. Hopefully I have turned the corner… |
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longslowdistance
Posts:2881
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| 01/11/2022 11:02 AM |
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| Two pairs of riding shorts for a while after this settles down. Good luck! |
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smokey52
Posts:493
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| 01/11/2022 03:01 PM |
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| Disposable pet pads are an option for protecting linens or cushions. |
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 01/19/2022 09:17 AM |
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Thought I'd update you guys....things continue to improve. Still some drainage going on, but not much blood anymore. The last week has pretty much been trying to balance letting this fix itself vs. the need to get me back on blood thinners. Looks like there was no infection (cultures were negative) and the cause of the problem was my thinners causing the massive bruising.
Anyway, doc gave the the OK to get moving again....walking, light exercise, etc. Don't think I'll get back on the bike for a couple of weeks yet. Still need the hole to heal..*wince*.
But at least I am up off the couch and moving again. Back on thinners so the next few days will be important to see if it starts bleeding again.
But overall, moving in the right direction. Feel pretty close to normal, which is a big relief.
Onwards!! |
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Habanero
Posts:257
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| 01/19/2022 10:26 AM |
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| "2022 goals? Ride more, work fewer hours, and if Covid lets up do more races."
Same here! |
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Habanero
Posts:257
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| 01/19/2022 10:28 AM |
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| CK - glad to hear things are improving! |
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 01/19/2022 10:48 AM |
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| Thanks, Hab...always good to see you pop in! |
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Orange Crush
Posts:4499
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| 01/19/2022 01:29 PM |
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Good to hear things are improving CK.
With snow gone, got my second ride of 2022 in last weekend and first go at big ring climbing, albeit involuntary. Had bought drivetrain replacement components for Diverge but was hoping to postpone work till end of winter. No such going, on a steepish part mid-ride the front small ring became unusable (I guess those few chipped off teeth are important LOL) and I was forced to emergency upshift to big ring. Barely kept rolling. Bunch of cursing. Someone latched on from behind but once I got momentum back up never saw him again. Some forced paperboying later in ride as the inevitable climb back home got rather ugly in big ring. Anyway, an almost metric century in January, not bad. Fun stuff. |
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79pmooney
Posts:3180
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| 01/19/2022 04:11 PM |
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| OC, my memorable big ring climb. 1977 Maine International. 106 miles. At 90 miles is a 2 mile hill that separates the men from the boys. I made the cut, barely. Another 10 miles of shorter but steep Maine hills followed. Next hill, I dropped the chain off the inside. (54/42 X 13-19) Just before I rolled to a stop and fell over, I got the chain onto the 54. (Middle cog in back.) Muscled my way back to speed and caught the leaders at the top, wasted to the core. (54 X 15 is pretty fast even when your RPMs barely qualify as plural.) |
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Orange Crush
Posts:4499
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| 01/19/2022 06:58 PM |
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| Ha Ben - mine wasn’t nearly as eventful as that. It will be forgotten in another week. Thanks for sharing. |
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Habanero
Posts:257
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| 01/26/2022 12:25 PM |
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| I punched out of bookface for good so I have more time to spend here! |
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Habanero
Posts:257
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| 01/26/2022 12:27 PM |
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| Ben - where in Maine was that race? There was an epic one that ran for many years around Buckfield and Hebron Maine. Those climbs are beastly! |
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 01/26/2022 12:33 PM |
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I punched out of bookface for good
Good....that site is almost-single-handedly fueling the pandemic now. |
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| Just say "NO!" to WCP!!!!
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Orange Crush
Posts:4499
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| 01/26/2022 12:46 PM |
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Posted By Hot Habanero on 01/26/2022 12:25 PM
I punched out of bookface for good so I have more time to spend here!
Haha, again! |
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79pmooney
Posts:3180
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| 01/26/2022 04:48 PM |
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Posted By Hot Habanero on 01/26/2022 12:27 PM
Ben - where in Maine was that race? There was an epic one that ran for many years around Buckfield and Hebron Maine. Those climbs are beastly!
It ran along 201 from the Quebec border, through Jackman, Binghamton (as I recall, 1/2 way prime), Skowhegan and smaller road through that 12 miles of hills, up a longer climb to high ground, then a 3 mile roll into Waterville.
No one hill was killer but I bet the total was 5000' or more. Long climb out of Jackman, a series of smaller ones hitting another every time we left the Kennebec River, bigger one to climb out to higher ground, then a break for maybe 30 miles, building climb to Skowhegan, a left turn from downtown up a 2 mile leg breaker starting the 12 miles.
I rode the race in 1976 as my first open race. Poured. Slow race. Everyone stuck together. Next year was sunny, perfect temp, 120 rider field (quite a few good Canadians) and fast! Never slowed down. Everyone that made the Skowhegan cut finished under John Howard's old record. Next rider was 10 minutes back. (I knew that when I looked over my shoulder 1/2 way up the breaker climb; wondering how far I could drift and stay with the leaders - if I didn't split the group. Next rider behind was 25 yards back and slipping fast! The wheel I was on was going to beat that guy by a ton. I had a choice. Hardest anything I have ever done. Was wasted the next 48 hours.)
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Orange Crush
Posts:4499
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| 01/26/2022 05:52 PM |
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| Always good to read about these racing adventures from when I was barely out of diapers Ben. OK, I was about 9-10 years out of diapers by then. Riding a Dutch bike on gravel forest trails behind our village presumably (we were clearly well ahead of our time). Building bunkers, playing war. Still 7 years away from getting first road bike. |
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longslowdistance
Posts:2881
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| 01/27/2022 06:39 AM |
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| A few more details about the Maine International Road Race. Route was US 201 from the border to Skowhegan, then Maine 104 to Waterville. Agree with Ben: the climb out of skowhegan was brutal. Starts steep then eases but drags on. The Junior race picked up the same route about 60 miles in before switching to a crit in 1976 or so. Tour of Mass was big in the 70s too. 3 day stage race. Two hilly stages west of Boston. Last day was two stages, a short TT in scenic Marblehead then a fun crit of a zilllion laps around Harvard Square. |
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longslowdistance
Posts:2881
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| 01/27/2022 07:37 AM |
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| One more tidbit: Waterville, ME is where Tony Soprano killed mob informant Febby Petrulio while college touring with his daughter in the first season of the Sopranos. One of the all time best episodes. |
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 01/27/2022 09:19 AM |
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One of the all time best episodes.
fact check: True. |
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| Just say "NO!" to WCP!!!!
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 01/27/2022 03:24 PM |
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Doc gave ne the OK to get back on my bike....but definitely gonna start out slow!
Will probably ride for 20-30 minutes tomorrow. |
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| Just say "NO!" to WCP!!!!
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