The Smell of Victory

I knew it was broken immediately. Mainly because I heard it snap. It was one of those weird times when you don't want to look, but I've usually only experienced those times when I cut myself in the kitchen. As I lay on my back in 7" of snow I was surprised that it didn't hurt, UNTIL 5 seconds later. The pain rushed from my leg straight through my entire body. I immediately rolled over because I was convinced I was going to vomit. The family rushed over and all I could say was "DON'T TOUCH ME". I think I laid in the snow for 10 minutes, at-least long enough that it looked and felt as though I had jumped into the lake with my clothes on. Being the stubborn man (dumb-ass) I am, I didn't want any assistance getting into the house. I hobbled in and got into my chair. The pain had come down and I had convinced myself that it was just a bad sprain. It began to swell, but not to big & it never really turned that awful black color that looks like you got frostbite from climbing Mt. Everest. I took some Advil, climbed the steps to my bed and fell asleep.

The next morning I woke up and realized I had a problem, off to the Dr. I went. An hour later my original thought was confirmed, broken. My GP handed me my X-Rays and I headed off to Ortho Memphis. (That part made me feel cool, kinda like Patrick Swayze in Roadhouse). Dr. Heck came in, looked at the X-Ray and gave me the good news. Broken fibula bone and more than likely I had torn all the tendons and ligament around my ankle. He told me it would be a week before we could decide if surgery was necessary. I selected my cast color, Livestrong Yellow. It wasn't called that, I just found it similar. 30 minutes later, I walked out with a Big Bird cast and crutches; first time in 36 years I had ever been in this position. A week went by and I went back, Big Bird removed and surgery was confirmed, Dr. Jameson would do the procedure 10 days later. So I selected cast color # 2 and headed home.



After ten days, I went in for surgery. 3 hours later I woke up in recovery feeling awesome. Another 45 minutes, and the nurse offered me a Otter Pop- I chose green- and told me to go home. I spent about the next 2 weeks high on pain killers and I watched every movie available on iTunes. It wasn't so bad. At this point, they had me in a huge splint. It was uncomfortable, really uncomfortable. I wore that splint for another week and went back for a check up. It was the first time I would get to see the results of my surgery. It was cool.



A 6 inch scar with 16 staples. I liked it. After a good viewing and then a wonderful alcohol swab scrub, it was time for another cast. I went black this time. But as an added bonus, they gave me a incredibly comfortable high fashion shoe to accompany my black cast.



I wore this high fashion accessory for another two weeks. It was completely embarassing, but at least I could walk. I marked each day on the calendar like a child waiting for X-Mas. On March 8th I woke up and ran down the steps and out the door. The day had finally arrived. No more cast. It was a moment that definitely ranked high on my list. They called me back and brought over the machine that still gives me nightmares.



Now you have to remember, this leg had not been bathed in two months. When the lady removed it she literally gagged, no lie. Then said, "Wow, that is ripe"! I thought, "Hell yeah it's ripe, but don't you see this everyday?" But I didn't care, freedom was so close I could smell it. Or maybe that was just my foot.

After another thorough alcohol scrub, I slid on my favorite sock and was ready to hit the open road.



Now I have to be honest, the only reason I posted a picture of the sock is because I hope someone from Swiftwick sees this blog and sends me a few free pairs. But I will say, they are the best socks ever. They are super comfortable and they never slide down your leg. I wear them in every situation, from exercise to wearing a suit. Oh, and if you're interested, they sell them at Victory Bicycle Studio. But enough of the corporate stuff.

That brings us to today, day 3 of freedom and training. Leg feels great. I rode on my trainer again tonight for 45 minutes. My resting heart-rate today was 75 when I began, I pushed it harder and had an average cadence of 98 and I burned 697 calories. I get tomorrow off, but I do have a big surprise waiting for me. My mountain bike arrived today, and I'm going to get fitted on it tomorrow at 2. I'll be posting pics very soon. We're going to the farm this weekend and I'll get to enjoy my first outdoor ride in almost five months. Hell yeah.