Sunday, April 4, 2010

And Then My Spring Racing Was Done...



...keep reading and it will make sense.

Thursday after work we all kicked back with some chow then watched Sherlock Holmes; Jake and I liked it, but the rest of the crew didn't really care for it. Spent a little time getting the gear together for Fridays mtb'ing.

Friday morning Ira and I loaded up early and made our way down to Lake Leatherwood (Eureka Springs), AR for some mtb'ing on new trails (to us). I was looking forward to my first mtb singletrack of 2010. 10 minutes into the ride and I go down (not only to the ground, but off/down a 4ft ledge to a solid rock bottom) landing on my shoulder and elbow (and a little hip). Initially I was ticked at the fact that I was wet (as it was a small creek area), but after a quick check of the bike (which was fine as it landed on me) we were back ready to ride. I felt a little pain in my arm and after grabbing a little break with my right hand I knew something was wrong as my stomach got that nauseous feel as sharp pain shot through my lower arm. Ira kept asking if I was ok, but I wanted to ride so badly that I kept telling him it wasn't too bad and just keep going... LIAR! After 2 hrs, several downhills ridden with only a left hand, and a few streaming tears (that's right, I said it - TEARS) I called it quites. Ira went on for another hour while I jogged down the trail to the site of my spill to take a couple pics.



After Ira returned we did a little hiking to a pretty cool looking rock (Miner's Rock) and goofed around a little bit (ok, he goofed and I watched). ***In the below right picture is the pose I maintained pretty much the rest of the day for my right arm (bent and palm down)***



As the day continued the swelling and pain grew leaps and bounds. By the time we got back to Bolivar I was ready for the Urgent Care facility. After a couple xrays and uneventful time at the UCF it was given the news I broke my Radius and would need to get a cast Monday morning; until then I was fitted with a temp splint. Deb stayed with me the entire time and we ended up having an absolutely fun time laughing at various events of the evening (evident in the below picture). She is the best! ***Below Xray: of the two bones below the elbow take a look near the top of the upper bone; there is a faint white line just down from the super white highlighted end - that is the compaction/break***



SUCK!!!!! There just went Syllamo Revenge, Tour of Hermann, two regional mountain bike races, and the fitness I built over the past months of training. The good news... if cycling is the worse part of this then I have a pretty good life and am truly blessed.

Saturday was great weather outside. Jim A. came over in the morning and got my tile down (thanks a ton, Jim). We did some outside goofing around before heading over to Stockton to chow down on some SqueezeInn burgers. We took a leisurely drive home south of Stockton Lake to take in the sights of everything turning green and blooming. The rest of the evening included Ian and I watching the NCAA games while Jake and Andie went to the movies and Deb and the Appleby's played some games.



Sunday morning I grabbed a cup a coffee and watched Flanders; FC is a monster and Hincapie does what he does best - come close. Everyone made it to Sunday School on a beautiful spring morning before we loaded up for a run down to my folk's farm for the day. The kids participated in a huge Easter Egg Hunt at mom and dad's church; it is HUGE.





I'll openly admit that Sunday morning I was focused on 'my' things and did not set my heart to celebrate the rise from the dead of my Lord. It was his sacrifice and overwhelming power over death that provides me eternal life and hope for each day. I am disappointed in myself...

Lunch was grilled burgers and the rest of the day was kicked back, fun, and relaxing. Kites were flown, baseballs and Frisbees tossed, and a lot of laughter.





The rest of the evening back home was pretty casual with Amazing Race, Settlers of Catan (Deb and I are getting better and better) with Jake and hanging out with the boys.

So Deb and I are shutting down last night and my first comment was about what a great three-day weekend we had. She goofily looked at me and I instantly remembered I had BROKE MY ARM (pretty significant), but the cool thing is even though it dashed my spring racing for which I had worked hard it didn't come close of overshadowing how much fun and love I have in my life.

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