From: josh@Happy-Man.com (Joshua_Putnam)
Subject: Re: Whatcha get for Christmas?
Reply-To: Joshua_Putnam@happy-man.com
Organization: Happy Man Corp., Vashon Island, WA 98070-7399
Date: Tue, 29 Dec 1992 16:46:14 GMT


On Christmas -- a replacement derailleur cable, hot coffee, and a 
1/2-lb. chocolate Santa, all from the bike shop.  

The day after Christmas -- a 6-week break from cycling while I get 
over two broken arms and a broken wrist (sorry to spoil the mood) 
suffered in a mountain bike/dog accident.  On the bright side, 
Mavic should have sent my local shop a pair of 231 rims in 700c by 
then, so I'll have new wheels for my second ride after Christmas.  

Yesterday -- a better than expected prognosis from the orthopedist 
who re-examined my arms after the swelling had gone down.  The 
break in the right elbow has healed enough already that I don't 
need a cast, and the left elbow is also healing rapidly.  The left 
wrist is still bad, but it doesn't hurt and the cast is small 
enough that I can get a shirt on over it.  

When I get around to it, I'll also be getting a post-Christmas 
helmet replacement, since the shell is all that's holding together 
the foam in my Bell Image II.  I already picked up a replacement 
for the sheared-off bar end.  

All things considered, I feel good to be able to type, even if
it's slow and uncomfortable.  I'll be riding again soon.

The basics of the accident: coming around a corner at ~28mph, I
saw a woman jogging towards me in the traffic lane (there is no
shoulder on that side of the road, just a jogging path on the
other side).  She was leading two terriers on leashes, and moved them
off to the edge of the road as I passed at the center line.  Just
before I reached her, one of the dogs was startled by a car
engine starting.  The woman lost her grip on the middle of the
leash, letting the dog yank it to its full length of over 10
feet.  The dog ended up less than a foot in front of my wheel,
and followed me left as I tried to dodge it.  I ended up hitting
it amidships, about the bottom of the ribcage.

I was still going over 25mph at this point, and went two car
lengths through the air.  I made a good landing, elbows bent to
cushion my fall, and was happy not to break my collarbone.
Unfortunately, I had too much momentum to soak it all up that
way, and my elbows hit the pavement about the same time as my
helmet.

The aid crew checked me for head injuries, found the ID in my
helmet, and talked to the friend I was riding with.  None of us
noticed at the time that I had a limited range of motion in my
elbows, and my left wrist had not started to turn purple or
swell, so they let me go and I rode the two miles back to the
ferry.  My friend's truck was on the other side.

A couple of hours later, the health center finished their X-rays
and confirmed I had broken some bone ends in each elbow and
cracked one bone in my left wrist.


-- 
 Joshua_Putnam@happy-man.com    Happy Man Corp.  206/463-9399 x102
 4410 SW Pt. Robinson Rd., Vashon Island, WA  98070-7399  fax x108
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