What have you injured?
Discussion
I have ridden a bicycle on and off for about half a century with never so much as a scratch.
All that changed a few weeks ago when I lost it and face planted onto a gravel path during an innocuous ride from the office. So, the butcher’s bill:
Stitched up forehead, gashed shoulder, dislocated AC shoulder joint (now with permanent slight deformity), skin scraped from back, and a ‘popped’ rib where the rib detached from the sternum. Amazing the damage only a slight flight over the handlebars did!
So what self inflicted damage has cycling done to you?
All that changed a few weeks ago when I lost it and face planted onto a gravel path during an innocuous ride from the office. So, the butcher’s bill:
Stitched up forehead, gashed shoulder, dislocated AC shoulder joint (now with permanent slight deformity), skin scraped from back, and a ‘popped’ rib where the rib detached from the sternum. Amazing the damage only a slight flight over the handlebars did!
So what self inflicted damage has cycling done to you?
I managed to break my hip (clean break of the femoral neck) aged 34 whilst cycling along at around 15mph and hit a patch of black ice. Ironically I was following advice for rehabilitation following an ACL retightening (having had ACL surgery 4 years previously.
I was prodded and poked by every junior doctor for miles around and my recovery was heavily documented!
I was prodded and poked by every junior doctor for miles around and my recovery was heavily documented!
Christmas Eve 2000 - cycling home from near Old Street (London). To the Isle of Dogs. being the City, and when the exchange closes you go to the pub … (so around midday ish onwards)
So 5-6 hours later - cycling home via Brick Lane/Old Montague Street - minicab comes out of a side road amd hits front of the bike, throwing me into the kerb/gutter on opposite side of road. At this stage injuries are a dislocated shoulder/bruises and scrapes.
Pick myself up. And see driver looking like he was going to drive off … thought f
k that - so went to go kick his passenger door …. Ended up to my thigh through the passenger window as adrenaline/several pints of lager I’d aimed too high going through the window - car now moving and me hopping along next to it.
Thankfully he stopped at this stage, Got out accused me of damaging his car …I called police/ambulance (not far from Royal London)
Police beat ambulance, my wife (a nurse whom it was her 1st Xmas not working) also beat the ambulance. Police at this stage had put me in back of their car and gave me a massive absorbent dressing for my leg (which I’d not realised I’d damaged).
The “safety glass’’ in the car window had sliced back Of my calf open from just above my ankle to below my knee - 3 parallel deep cuts ….. with blood pouring out quite quickly./filling my trainer.
In short ended up having a plastic surgeon stitch my leg back together under local anaesthetic in A&E as I was not spending Xmas/New Year in hospital (only reason he was in A&E was to look at 2 separate bartenders who’s both managed to put their hands/fingers in blenders ….
he asked a nurse to take what felt like a scrubbing brush to clean out the cuts without ant anaesthetics at that stage - most painful thing I’ve ever had in my life.
TLDR; pissed, minicab, dislocated shoulder bruising, made far worse by me then kicking passenger window in and slicing my leg open, then getting it all stitched together so I could be home for Xmas/New Year !!
So 5-6 hours later - cycling home via Brick Lane/Old Montague Street - minicab comes out of a side road amd hits front of the bike, throwing me into the kerb/gutter on opposite side of road. At this stage injuries are a dislocated shoulder/bruises and scrapes.
Pick myself up. And see driver looking like he was going to drive off … thought f
k that - so went to go kick his passenger door …. Ended up to my thigh through the passenger window as adrenaline/several pints of lager I’d aimed too high going through the window - car now moving and me hopping along next to it.Thankfully he stopped at this stage, Got out accused me of damaging his car …I called police/ambulance (not far from Royal London)
Police beat ambulance, my wife (a nurse whom it was her 1st Xmas not working) also beat the ambulance. Police at this stage had put me in back of their car and gave me a massive absorbent dressing for my leg (which I’d not realised I’d damaged).
The “safety glass’’ in the car window had sliced back Of my calf open from just above my ankle to below my knee - 3 parallel deep cuts ….. with blood pouring out quite quickly./filling my trainer.
In short ended up having a plastic surgeon stitch my leg back together under local anaesthetic in A&E as I was not spending Xmas/New Year in hospital (only reason he was in A&E was to look at 2 separate bartenders who’s both managed to put their hands/fingers in blenders ….
he asked a nurse to take what felt like a scrubbing brush to clean out the cuts without ant anaesthetics at that stage - most painful thing I’ve ever had in my life.TLDR; pissed, minicab, dislocated shoulder bruising, made far worse by me then kicking passenger window in and slicing my leg open, then getting it all stitched together so I could be home for Xmas/New Year !!
one eyed cat said:
I managed to break my hip (clean break of the femoral neck) aged 34 whilst cycling along at around 15mph and hit a patch of black ice. Ironically
Pretty much what happened to me, Jan 2015 came off on some ice, broken neck of femur, 3 canulated screws now hold me together. 6 weeks non weight bearing then had to learn how to walk again. Left clavicle proper shattered - plated & 6 screws
Actual brain damage from concussion.
(ie technically it was just bad concussion, but the evidence is clear on my MRI. You don’t need a bleed to damage your brain).
Road rash on my right thigh after trying to go too fast round a roundabout
Actual brain damage from concussion.
(ie technically it was just bad concussion, but the evidence is clear on my MRI. You don’t need a bleed to damage your brain).
Road rash on my right thigh after trying to go too fast round a roundabout
Edited by Arnold Cunningham on Wednesday 13th July 07:22
dudleybloke said:
Scars on left shin from bear trap pedals.
Cracked ribs a couple or more times.
Smashed my left Distal Radius needing a plate and 9 screws.
Broken right Distal Radius needing temporary external fixings.
Various scrapes, bruises and bangs over the decades.
Hmm, I have a scar on my forearm from removing a pedal, and the jolt connecting my arm and a chainring. Nice little gash that was, but obviously quite deep.Cracked ribs a couple or more times.
Smashed my left Distal Radius needing a plate and 9 screws.
Broken right Distal Radius needing temporary external fixings.
Various scrapes, bruises and bangs over the decades.
Other than that, and a couple of instances of road rash, I've got away lightly.
Luckily despite various tumbles over the years,
- Knocked myself out after a failure on a BMX jump, lost a fair bit of skin when my mate went left across me when I was going straight...still have two (small) scars 40 years later. went across the bonnet of a car that "emerged" as I was filtering in France. That was a real smash - but in the end no breaks only bruised and a smashed up bike. Few cuts when the passenger of a car waiting in traffic opened their door (into the inside cycle lane) that was a good comedy crash, and not too painful.
So yeah, super lucky really given the miles I have done and all the stupidity.
All this talk of pins and plates.... ouch !
I’ve been mountain biking since ’85 and lost count of the injuries sustained over the years. No major breakages thankfully (apart from a broken pinkie) but I have cracked my ribs a couple of times, damaged both scaphoids, torn ligaments, various puncture wounds and skin abrasions, neck compression, twisted ankles, the odd dead leg and a about a million midge bites.
Three broken ribs, medial clavicle and punctured lung. I’m 3 months into recovery after having this installed, still very sore indeed.
I posted a few days ago asking if anyone had been through similar and didn’t get a response looks like I’ve found the right place now!
Any of you who have metalwork can you remember how long it was sore for? I’m still very limited, unfortunately it took a year for me to get surgery as I was misdiagnosed until I went private.
I posted a few days ago asking if anyone had been through similar and didn’t get a response looks like I’ve found the right place now!
Any of you who have metalwork can you remember how long it was sore for? I’m still very limited, unfortunately it took a year for me to get surgery as I was misdiagnosed until I went private.
Life long BMX'er & now also CX & roadie so lots of knocks. Nearly broke my leg last year hitting a bollard, although the front of my leg took the hit the bruising came up on the back:
A year or so earlier hitting a pot hole whilst only holding the bars with one hand meant I hit the deck
Then 5 years ago a daft fall from a BMX trick resulted in a mini stroke as its caused a blood clot a few days later, two night in hospital but full recovered. No photos of that one
A year or so earlier hitting a pot hole whilst only holding the bars with one hand meant I hit the deck
Then 5 years ago a daft fall from a BMX trick resulted in a mini stroke as its caused a blood clot a few days later, two night in hospital but full recovered. No photos of that one
Front teeth when I was about 9/10 trying to jump off a lorry loading bay
Shins are an absolute mess from pedal gashes
Broken collar bone at 16
Scars on my hips from coming off and sliding down and Alpine road
Plenty of other scars up and down my arms from various offs over the years
Countless un-diagnosed injuries that have had me limping about off the bike for weeks
Currently still suffering wrist/tendon damage pain from a crash in November
I rode downhill from an early age and have this ingrained need to constantly try and ride everything as fast as possible. Unfortunately the result is the above which could actually be a lot worse considering.
Shins are an absolute mess from pedal gashes
Broken collar bone at 16
Scars on my hips from coming off and sliding down and Alpine road
Plenty of other scars up and down my arms from various offs over the years
Countless un-diagnosed injuries that have had me limping about off the bike for weeks
Currently still suffering wrist/tendon damage pain from a crash in November
I rode downhill from an early age and have this ingrained need to constantly try and ride everything as fast as possible. Unfortunately the result is the above which could actually be a lot worse considering.
Cycling to university lecture one Friday morning (20+ years ago) the chain jammed as I shifted and I went straight over the bars.
Landed / rolled on my left wrist which quickly became the size of a melon. I managed to push my bike the mile or so to the University medical centre, where they called an ambulance and I got ferried to A&E at Leicester RI for a weekend stay. My wrist is still plated to this day and the messy scar (about 10cm) has never gone down - I think they had the YTS sew me up so everyone else could make last orders at the pub.
Landed / rolled on my left wrist which quickly became the size of a melon. I managed to push my bike the mile or so to the University medical centre, where they called an ambulance and I got ferried to A&E at Leicester RI for a weekend stay. My wrist is still plated to this day and the messy scar (about 10cm) has never gone down - I think they had the YTS sew me up so everyone else could make last orders at the pub.
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