Sunday I had some friends participating in a triathlon near where I live. I found a place where I could ride the bicycle and then stand and cheer. I was looking for a place where I could safely stand out of the way, hopefully had shade and the participants could use some moral boost. Sunday I rode my bicycle to this predetermined place. Some of the ride was on closed road because of the triathlon. It was almost 5 miles from the house, a nice short ride among the hills.
Since I would be cheering for a while I decided to take a captain's chair or a camp chair. One of those chairs that has a bag and you sling it over your shoulder. On my way to this predetermined spot I struggled with the chair. I had trouble finding a "sweet spot" where it was out of my way and not causing me trouble. It would bump my knee or leg while pedaling and on one occasion it came around in front of the steering column and was riding on top of the tire. I contemplated turning around and taking it back home, but just knew I would need it to sit down while cheering.
Once I made the predetermined spot I had fun cheering for my friends and the other participants. Many of them seemed to appreciate the support and smiled or waved back. I drank my water and ate my cliff bar. When the bicycle traffic waned and most of the participants passed I mounted the bicycle to return home. I didn't want to get in the way of the participants and there were hills which I have struggled with.
That's the last thing I remember. At some point on the ride home I fell off the bicycle. When I think of the "fall" I actually perceive myself flying off the bicycle. Some of the race support staff found me unresponsive and called for an ambulance. I had worn my new fancy helmet. It did it's job in protecting my head. There is an imprint in the foamy soft portion from where I hit the ground. I vaguely remember laying on the ground and standing up to get into the ambulance after help arrived.
At one point in the venture an EMT was preparing a piece of gauze and said, "You have an abrasion on your cheek. We are going to treat it." I responded, "That's not an abrasion, it's a zit." EMT in his smooth all knowing demeanor said, "No, your zit is back here." I replied, "OHhh." It's hard to know exactly what hurt, but the part of me that I remember hurting was the lower back quadrant of my ribs. I told the EMT's to take me to a particular hospital where my doctor has admission rights. Eventually they did. They took my bicycle to the triathlon store that was a major supporter for the triathlon. I am not certain they knew the chair was with me, because it was not with me in the ambulance or my bike. By the time I drove the route where I had cheered the chair was gone. Good riddance!!
Once at the hospital they put me in a neck brace and took me to x-ray. They say I had a concussion since I hit my head, have no recollection of the fall/wreck and was non-responsive. No long term brain injury and no broken bones. Still I feel bumped and bruised up pretty good. I actually feel like I've been hit by a Mac truck, but I'm pretty sure it was not anyone who hit me. I feel certain the chair is the culprit. I won't be doing that again!
Since Sunday I've been staying with a friend. The first 24 hours I needed someone to make sure I was not talking out of my mind any more than usual, developing a fever or anything else. I have needed help getting dressed and changing the bandage on my shoulder. I have an abrasion on the top of my shoulder that is about 3 inches in diameter. It's relatively superficial. My neck and shoulder feel like they took the brunt of the impact. I have been to see the chiropracter twice. He was a participant in the triathlon. Today I went to see my primary doctor who reset all my buttons (really). Muscles have reset buttons and he hit the muscles reset buttons.
Saturday I leave to visit family in the New Orleans area. I have been looking forward to renting a bicycle and taking it out on Tamany Trace, a rail to trail system there. I am excited about getting back on a bicycle, but I do not think it will be for a couple of weeks. Maybe I'll take my newphew out in the stroller. For those of you who have never been on the Trace, it's one of my favorite places. Parts of it are along a creek bed and most of it is tree covered. It's 31 miles long so there are often groups of bicyclist. The bicyclist are much friendlier than those in Austin. The person upfront politely announces themself, which side they are coming on and how many of them there are. I've tried to do the same and it is hard to do without scaring the walker/runner.
In the last week I have said I would not go to NOLA to visit unless I could dress myself. I may have to burn the bra!! I do not want to be more trouble for the family than help. They have a two year old and another one due in November. I plan on helping them lay electrical fence to keep the "puppies" in the yard and weather stripping in the Airstream. I'll be playing and keeping the nephew busy so R can finish the wedding dress she's been working on. I will be going down with R's mom. We haven't worked out the smaller details. I am looking forward to getting away from work and sitting at a computer all day. Since the fall I have not been able to work too much.
CAM and I picked up the bicycle on Monday. I really didn't know what to expect. As you can see from the photos the fork is pretty bent. It needs to be replaced. The headset also needs to be replaced. The tires are relatively bent, not as bad as I envisioned. I broke the brake cables and housing in the process. Repairs to the bicycle will run approximately $100. CAM suggests I might be able to ride it through winter while saving money for a newer bicycle.
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