looking good!!
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
Horse Camp
Trinity had her 2nd week of day camp at TEAD (the equestrian association for the disabled)last week. They have an integrated summer camp with disabled and able-bodied kids. It's a great camp and she loved it. She wants to do this camp 'every week of the summer"! She rode 'Marengo' both weeks. He is the biggest horse in the barn and also the oldest (26yrs). He's a gentle giant and she looks so small up there. I know some of the photos are blurry but it was difficult to get good shots in the arena and without the flash. Fun stuff for Trinity!!
Monday, August 13, 2007
Two Sisters
this is a cool shot of trinity's hand and jade's hand in the delivery room
the first pic of trinity holding jade shortly after jade was born. she was very proud to be the BIG sister!
notice how jade's hand is on trinity's hand. that was not set up, it happened on it's own
two sisters
the first pic of trinity holding jade shortly after jade was born. she was very proud to be the BIG sister!
notice how jade's hand is on trinity's hand. that was not set up, it happened on it's own
two sisters
new arrival
Jade Lauren Komar
july 27, 2007 @ 9:23pm
4080g (2 grams shy of 9 lbs!)
55cm long (21.5 inches)
looks like her dad but long and lean like her mom
Wednesday, May 02, 2007
Bad Pictures
Okay, so I promised back in the fall I would post some pics of my early cycling career. They are embarassing to say the least but I don't care, whatever. I used to be a cross country skier (first sport) so in the picture below you can see me with my Fischer skis sweatshirt on. Gawd, I was a deeb. I also didn't like tight fitting jerseys (still don't like 'em too tight) so used to like wearing a free flowing t-shirt when I rode. I was such a FRED. And where is the helmet??? Also, check out the bike, my first, mystery metal (made in mexico) Benotto!! I love the socks, I'm sure that's where Lance got his inspiration for the "halfway up the calves socks that look like crap" Nice shoes too huh, really effective, hey they're Nikes!! Now I know lance got the sock idea from me!! How cool was I??
The next picture you'll see I've progressed to wearing a jersey, although it's a really ugly one. C'mon, it was the 80's for crying out loud, at least it was more aero than the t-shirt and it had pockets!! It was the Collingwood Cycling Club jersey. I think it goes GREAT with the bug eye glasses!! At least I have a helmet on, even if it is pathetic. I think I may finally have clipless pedals here too, they were the first LOOK pedals. I probably have cycling shoes finally too, my first pair, Adidas - Eddy Merckx. I'm really dating myself.
I think I'm pretty brave for posting these pictures, but they are pretty funny.
I want to send out some good luck to the Colavita/Sutter Home p/b Cooking Light women who are racing in the southeast crits and Gila this week/weekend. Got get 'em!
The next picture you'll see I've progressed to wearing a jersey, although it's a really ugly one. C'mon, it was the 80's for crying out loud, at least it was more aero than the t-shirt and it had pockets!! It was the Collingwood Cycling Club jersey. I think it goes GREAT with the bug eye glasses!! At least I have a helmet on, even if it is pathetic. I think I may finally have clipless pedals here too, they were the first LOOK pedals. I probably have cycling shoes finally too, my first pair, Adidas - Eddy Merckx. I'm really dating myself.
I think I'm pretty brave for posting these pictures, but they are pretty funny.
I want to send out some good luck to the Colavita/Sutter Home p/b Cooking Light women who are racing in the southeast crits and Gila this week/weekend. Got get 'em!
Friday, April 27, 2007
Hey, it's been a long while since a post and I haven't been doing too much lately, especially not postingon the blog. Riding a bike is getting uncomfortable but surprisingly still doable. I thought the mtn bike would be more comfortable but it's not, the BLUE is just as if not more comfortable. Plus, road riding is much more interesting than the rail trail. I just have to watch my balance, I do not want to fall, plus the mixing with cars can be a little scary.
I have been out riding with trinity, who got a new bike a few weeks ago. I'll have to post a pic. She loves it. It's a mtn bike with suspension forks, hand brakes and gears. She did a sprockids introductory program last weekend and loved it. After she said "maybe I will be a bike racer...then a horse racer...then a vet." ha ha, cracked me up. She loves to ride in the woods and get muddy, hey me too!!
other than that I've been busy with volunteering in a grade 7 french immersion class, they are really great kids! I'm loving being in the school. I'm also doing some FitSpirit presentations next week to high school girls, that should be fun too. I get tired easily so that's why I've had a lack of blog posts. I do have pictures to post eventually.
So, today was Freaky Friday at Trinity's school so she wanted a freaky hair-do. She wanted braids then last night I got this idea to braid in pipe cleaners so they would stick out and be bendable. Below is the result. pretty freaky.
I have been out riding with trinity, who got a new bike a few weeks ago. I'll have to post a pic. She loves it. It's a mtn bike with suspension forks, hand brakes and gears. She did a sprockids introductory program last weekend and loved it. After she said "maybe I will be a bike racer...then a horse racer...then a vet." ha ha, cracked me up. She loves to ride in the woods and get muddy, hey me too!!
other than that I've been busy with volunteering in a grade 7 french immersion class, they are really great kids! I'm loving being in the school. I'm also doing some FitSpirit presentations next week to high school girls, that should be fun too. I get tired easily so that's why I've had a lack of blog posts. I do have pictures to post eventually.
So, today was Freaky Friday at Trinity's school so she wanted a freaky hair-do. She wanted braids then last night I got this idea to braid in pipe cleaners so they would stick out and be bendable. Below is the result. pretty freaky.
Tuesday, December 12, 2006
Try this!
I found this via another blog (told you I've been reading). It turns out there are 738 Susan Palmers in the US. There are 8 Susan Komars. There are no Susan Palmer-Komars. So, I guess I'll keep the name hyphenated even though it's a bit of a pain in the butt. There are also no other Trinity Komars in the US. Now, I don't know if it's a true count cause they may calculate the probability using the frequency of the first and last names separately. Whatever, it was fun.
| HowManyOfMe.com | ||
|
halloween pics
okay, better late than never. so i haven't been blogging lately. I've found that reading other blogs is far more interesting and a lot less work than writing my own.
Sorry about the sideways picture.
Trinity scored lots of candy. it helps that there's a candy factory just a few blocks away where they make fuzzy peach, sour patch kids, cherry blasters and licorice. they always set up a huge display and kids go through and get handfuls of candy. Half of her candy came from there. there is still candy left but she hasn't really been eating it the last 3 weeks, thank god.
Sorry about the sideways picture.
Trinity scored lots of candy. it helps that there's a candy factory just a few blocks away where they make fuzzy peach, sour patch kids, cherry blasters and licorice. they always set up a huge display and kids go through and get handfuls of candy. Half of her candy came from there. there is still candy left but she hasn't really been eating it the last 3 weeks, thank god.
Thursday, November 02, 2006
I Think I Can?
The Little Blue Engine
The little blue engine looked up at the hill.
His light was weak, his whistle was shrill.
He was tired and small, and the hill was tall,
And his face blushed red as he softly said,
"I think I can, I think I can, I think I can."
So he started up with a chug and a strain,
And he puffed and pulled with might and main.
And slowly he climbed, a foot at a time,
And his engine coughed as he whispered soft,
"I think I can, I think I can, I think I can."
With a squeak and a creak and a toot and a sigh,
With an extra hope and an extra try,
He would not stop - now he neared the top -
And strong and proud he cried out loud,
"I think I can, I think I can, I think I can!"
He was almost there when - CRASH! SMASH! BASH!
He slid down and mashed into engine hash
On the rocks below...which goes to show
If the track is tough and the hill is rough,
THINKING you can just ain't enough
Shel Silverstein from Where the Sidewalk Ends
love that last line, Shel rules!
Halloween pictures coming!
Friday, October 06, 2006
Wheels for Wellness
So, one week after getting home from Worlds (don't ask, so I had a bad day - actually remember that song 'so you had a bad day' - they always played it when they got rid of a potential american idol - well, anyway, that song keeps playing in my head...). So, enough about that, one week after worlds i found myself at a charity event called Wheels for Wellness to raise funds for the Humber River Regional Hospital. It was great fun and thankfully they only wanted me to do the 60km, not the 100km. whew.
It also turns out that the policeman (Vernon) that escorted our 60km group knows my brother Doug. I know, big deal, he knows my brother BUT it seems every where I go somebody knows my brother!! He's famous, I swear. too funny, it cracked me up.
below are some pictures from a great day for a great cause.
It also turns out that the policeman (Vernon) that escorted our 60km group knows my brother Doug. I know, big deal, he knows my brother BUT it seems every where I go somebody knows my brother!! He's famous, I swear. too funny, it cracked me up.
below are some pictures from a great day for a great cause.
Serving up some smoked salmon on bagels pre-ride to the 60km riders. yep, this was a high class event. Actually, a dental surgeon has a side business in smoked salmon so he generously donated some to the cause.
The local law enforcement, myself and Sharron (the organizer extradinaire). These guys were our escorts for the ride. Thanks guys!!
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
No Wonder!
So, just a short post. I've discovered why the batteries in the camera are always dead when I take it somewhere...
Trucks and Trombones
What do trucks and trombones have in common? Well, you will see. While I'm pedalling my butt of all over here and there, my husband chris is holding the fort (and paying the bills) at home and work.
So, just last week he delivered his longest load ever, some 104 ft long joists for an extension of a automaking plant in Windsor. He didn't have an escort just fellow driver Scott up ahead with the same joists leading the way. Apparently it took Scott 5 tries to get into the jobsite and it took chris 10 tries. It's crazy anyway. The thing is, these things are so long you could never get them on a regular tractor trailer. So, they have special trailer called a 'trombone', which can be extended to accomodate these longer loads. No music involved here. Although, when you think of a trucker you think country music, losing your wife, house, truck and dog right? well, at least i do. Anyway, I cracked up when chris told me last week that sometimes it's so loud in the truck that he listens's to country music because it's the only kind he can hear above the noise of the truck. ha ha. that's what happens when you're desperate ( I apologize to those who genuinely like country music, including my mom).
So, just last week he delivered his longest load ever, some 104 ft long joists for an extension of a automaking plant in Windsor. He didn't have an escort just fellow driver Scott up ahead with the same joists leading the way. Apparently it took Scott 5 tries to get into the jobsite and it took chris 10 tries. It's crazy anyway. The thing is, these things are so long you could never get them on a regular tractor trailer. So, they have special trailer called a 'trombone', which can be extended to accomodate these longer loads. No music involved here. Although, when you think of a trucker you think country music, losing your wife, house, truck and dog right? well, at least i do. Anyway, I cracked up when chris told me last week that sometimes it's so loud in the truck that he listens's to country music because it's the only kind he can hear above the noise of the truck. ha ha. that's what happens when you're desperate ( I apologize to those who genuinely like country music, including my mom).
below is the proud trucker. with him in the picture you can get an idea of the scale of these things, they're huge.
above is a closer up picture. That centre beam in the trailer's underbelly is the trombone part but at the front end of the trailer (this is the back end above, front end pictured below).
Green Mountain Fun
So, labour day weekend we set off to vermont for the Green Mountain Stage Race. It was good apart from the abyssmal start.
I wanted to leave on thursday when chris got home form work so we could drive a bit, get a hotel and fish the drive in the morning. But, Chris didn't get out of work until 9pm or so and then the van didn't start when he came out. He boosted it and got home but we decided to take the car so that created some space issues. So he got home at 10pm, we/he packed until about midnight then to bed and up at 4am. yep, 4 hours of sleep. Great! then sit in the car for almost 10hrs, bloody traffic through the dinkiest towns in NY state. anyway, we get there about 50min before my start. I got ready quick and felt okay warming up. I remember thinking "well, I don't feel that bad.." whatever. sometimes you don't feel good at a start and you ride into it. well, that day I felt good at the start and rode out of it!! oh well. things improved throughout the weekend and it was a ton of fun. I really like vermont, it's so pretty.
while we were there, trinity got busy with some of her toys and stuff. She likes to draw and she was playing with the Playmobil bike race set when she got an idea! It was pretty cool and I apologize for the low picture quality, i had to use the cell phone camera.
I wanted to leave on thursday when chris got home form work so we could drive a bit, get a hotel and fish the drive in the morning. But, Chris didn't get out of work until 9pm or so and then the van didn't start when he came out. He boosted it and got home but we decided to take the car so that created some space issues. So he got home at 10pm, we/he packed until about midnight then to bed and up at 4am. yep, 4 hours of sleep. Great! then sit in the car for almost 10hrs, bloody traffic through the dinkiest towns in NY state. anyway, we get there about 50min before my start. I got ready quick and felt okay warming up. I remember thinking "well, I don't feel that bad.." whatever. sometimes you don't feel good at a start and you ride into it. well, that day I felt good at the start and rode out of it!! oh well. things improved throughout the weekend and it was a ton of fun. I really like vermont, it's so pretty.
while we were there, trinity got busy with some of her toys and stuff. She likes to draw and she was playing with the Playmobil bike race set when she got an idea! It was pretty cool and I apologize for the low picture quality, i had to use the cell phone camera.
So the first one is the caravan (look at how many riders are dropped and getting back on) (sorry it's sideways - just turn your head), the second is the peloton and the third is the breakaway.
pretty cool.
snoop dog girl
Man, go away for a week and all mayhem breaks loose...
Trinity had some corn braids put in her hair at the Winona Peach Festival while I was away. They were pretty cool actually. She wanted them out after a week, man was her hair poofy!
Thursday, August 24, 2006
While I'm away...
Here I am in france for the plouay world cup on saturday, trying to type on a french keyboard. Just to demonstate the different key placement I'll type something as if it were an english keyboard...
ze zent for q long ride todqy qnd ze got rqined on qnd it zqs reqlly zindy
we went for a long ride today and we got rained on and it was really windy
so if thing begin to make zero sense, that is why. We are currently in the same place as last year before world's so at least it's a bit familiar. the other girls are over here until worlds sept 21-24 but I am heading back home on monday until the sunday before worlds, lucky me! I would definitely "lose it" if i had to stay here until then. phew!
actually, lucky trinity cause while i'm away she's up at my mom's house doing some fun stuff. she went to plunge, an indoor waterpark, lotsa fun. She has also realized her dream of riding a horse! well, it was actually a pony but whatever, more her size. Many thanks to Ashlee and Liza in helping her with that one! below are some photos of it...
she doesn't really look like she's achieving her dream here, maybe a little n
ervous or perhaps just in awe, could be. that's greystay she's riding. the equestrian helmet totally completes the look even though she's missing the neat jean jacket she bought for the occasion. she really wanted a cowboy shirt but we couldn't find a western styled shirt. oh well, the pink will have to do!
so, i did bring a camera here en france. now if I could only remember to take it with me when i may have a photo op, like riding or out to the cafe. so, hopefully i'll have some pictures to post after the race. I sure know where that backspace key is now that i'm using it all the time...
ze zent for q long ride todqy qnd ze got rqined on qnd it zqs reqlly zindy
we went for a long ride today and we got rained on and it was really windy
so if thing begin to make zero sense, that is why. We are currently in the same place as last year before world's so at least it's a bit familiar. the other girls are over here until worlds sept 21-24 but I am heading back home on monday until the sunday before worlds, lucky me! I would definitely "lose it" if i had to stay here until then. phew!
actually, lucky trinity cause while i'm away she's up at my mom's house doing some fun stuff. she went to plunge, an indoor waterpark, lotsa fun. She has also realized her dream of riding a horse! well, it was actually a pony but whatever, more her size. Many thanks to Ashlee and Liza in helping her with that one! below are some photos of it...
she doesn't really look like she's achieving her dream here, maybe a little n
ervous or perhaps just in awe, could be. that's greystay she's riding. the equestrian helmet totally completes the look even though she's missing the neat jean jacket she bought for the occasion. she really wanted a cowboy shirt but we couldn't find a western styled shirt. oh well, the pink will have to do!so, i did bring a camera here en france. now if I could only remember to take it with me when i may have a photo op, like riding or out to the cafe. so, hopefully i'll have some pictures to post after the race. I sure know where that backspace key is now that i'm using it all the time...
Monday, August 07, 2006
charlotte
This past weekend the team met up again in Charlotte for the Bank of America criterium. it was great to see (almost) everyone ('cept dotsie and sima) again.
I almost didn't make it. When I left for the Buffalo airport friday afternoon I forgot to account for delays at the border due to it being Friday and a long weekend here in Canada. oops. I kept cool and parked the car quick and ran to the check in counter. I arrived about 25 minutes before departure. As I approached I wheezed out "can i make the 7:20 to detroit??" the agent said "oh yeah, no problem". Then as I started the check-in she said "oh, is that a bike?? Oh, I don't think you'll make it..." I literally threw the $80. for the bike charge at her and said "please!". they put it on an elevator and I didn't expect it to make it with me but it did! that was a relief!
The race went well. I didn't know what to expect since I hadn't raced in a while. It certainly was shock at first but I settled in. I didn't feel as fast as I felt in June but when there's a job to be done you gotta do it and see if you're still breathing when it's done. Of course, when you have such great sprinters like Tina and Gina (note to self, if i ever have another daughter her name must end in "ina" if I want her to win a lot of races - tina, gina, ina - very fast peoples, at the very least it must end in "a" - there are some fast lauras out there too) you just have to deliver them to the last corner and let them do their thing. I don't know how they do it but I have a lot of fun delivering them. Anyway, so that's what we did. Great job tina and gina! And extra props to gina for going out there and winning the mental battle against a race that wasn't so kind last year. you are a champ.
So, while I was away I missed my brother in law's graduation party. It was hard to miss that but congratulations andrew for graduating with 'high distinction' from computer engineering, hard work does pay off.
I also missed a great day that chris and trinity spent at christie's conservation area with a bunch of friends and their kids. and trinity, that's what camping is all about. trinity wants to go camping because a friend of hers was going this weekend and in trinity word's she gets to "do all the stuff you could ever dream of!!!" pretty funny.
and the 3rd thing I missed this weekend was a family reunion at my uncle neil's and aunt maddy's place. It's a fun time and congrats uncle neil for finally winning the games competition, it's about time!! My uncle bob and aunt sharon dropped by too with a boat that is pretty special. My dad refinished a 1956 Shepherd wooden boat back when I was almost a teenager and my sister, brother and I had a small hand in helping. We drilled the wooden plugs for the screw holes on the drill press for him, my brother helped glue and hammer them in. We had some fun water skiing with that boat and it's got tremendous sentimental value to me. shortly after my dad passed away my uncle bob (dad's bro) bought it and is using it now. I'm so glad he has it and is using it. I need to go visit him and have a ride and a ski. I haven't been in it since I was 15!!
anyway, enough sentimental rambling. today is a holiday here and I have an easy day then maybe we'll go fishing! trinity landed a big catfish last time, it was soo cool. here's a pic of her waiting for a bite.
I almost didn't make it. When I left for the Buffalo airport friday afternoon I forgot to account for delays at the border due to it being Friday and a long weekend here in Canada. oops. I kept cool and parked the car quick and ran to the check in counter. I arrived about 25 minutes before departure. As I approached I wheezed out "can i make the 7:20 to detroit??" the agent said "oh yeah, no problem". Then as I started the check-in she said "oh, is that a bike?? Oh, I don't think you'll make it..." I literally threw the $80. for the bike charge at her and said "please!". they put it on an elevator and I didn't expect it to make it with me but it did! that was a relief!
The race went well. I didn't know what to expect since I hadn't raced in a while. It certainly was shock at first but I settled in. I didn't feel as fast as I felt in June but when there's a job to be done you gotta do it and see if you're still breathing when it's done. Of course, when you have such great sprinters like Tina and Gina (note to self, if i ever have another daughter her name must end in "ina" if I want her to win a lot of races - tina, gina, ina - very fast peoples, at the very least it must end in "a" - there are some fast lauras out there too) you just have to deliver them to the last corner and let them do their thing. I don't know how they do it but I have a lot of fun delivering them. Anyway, so that's what we did. Great job tina and gina! And extra props to gina for going out there and winning the mental battle against a race that wasn't so kind last year. you are a champ.
So, while I was away I missed my brother in law's graduation party. It was hard to miss that but congratulations andrew for graduating with 'high distinction' from computer engineering, hard work does pay off.
I also missed a great day that chris and trinity spent at christie's conservation area with a bunch of friends and their kids. and trinity, that's what camping is all about. trinity wants to go camping because a friend of hers was going this weekend and in trinity word's she gets to "do all the stuff you could ever dream of!!!" pretty funny.
and the 3rd thing I missed this weekend was a family reunion at my uncle neil's and aunt maddy's place. It's a fun time and congrats uncle neil for finally winning the games competition, it's about time!! My uncle bob and aunt sharon dropped by too with a boat that is pretty special. My dad refinished a 1956 Shepherd wooden boat back when I was almost a teenager and my sister, brother and I had a small hand in helping. We drilled the wooden plugs for the screw holes on the drill press for him, my brother helped glue and hammer them in. We had some fun water skiing with that boat and it's got tremendous sentimental value to me. shortly after my dad passed away my uncle bob (dad's bro) bought it and is using it now. I'm so glad he has it and is using it. I need to go visit him and have a ride and a ski. I haven't been in it since I was 15!!
anyway, enough sentimental rambling. today is a holiday here and I have an easy day then maybe we'll go fishing! trinity landed a big catfish last time, it was soo cool. here's a pic of her waiting for a bite.
check out the styling rubber boots! fishing is fun and we always do catch and release cause trinity loves animals so much she couldn't kill one. Now she's watching fishing shows on TV. scary.
well, that's all for now. sorry no pics of charlotte, hopefully next time.
Tuesday, August 01, 2006
Okay, this story is getting tiresome so I’ll be finished with it now.
So, after the first draining on the Friday (13 days after crash), I was feeling good and decided to do a local one day, 2 stage event on sunday. I did a 15km TT in the morning then a 60km road race in the afternoon. The TT went well, I was 2nd behind Merrill who is always strong. The road race was okay too. I got in trouble with my doctor on Monday as she said “riding is good but not intense riding and what if you crashed on it again, you could do some big damage” I was like “but there were only 10 people in the race and it was all left hand turns…”.
Anyway,the hematoma was filling up again so we decided to lance again on Wednesday morning. We did. Driving my mom home later that day I started to feel feverish. It kept getting worse and by the time we got to her house I laid down on the couch with 2 blankets and shivered (no, my mom doesn’t even have air conditioning). Finally I agreed to let my sister take me to the hospital and they checked me out and said “yep, it’s infected”. This doctor conferred with another and they decided the best thing to do was to “pack it”. That is, pack it with mesalt gauze to draw out the fluid and let it continually drain and not fill up. This meant daily visits to the wound care nurse along with 10 days of antibiotics. Fun stuff. I got used to the daily unpacking, irrigation and packing but it meant no swimming and no proper shower at first. I have a good dressing on it now that I can shower with. This dressing is something most cyclists would covet for road rash, it kicks tegaderm’s butt! Actually, most cyclists, if given the opportunity would pillage that wound care clinic, lots of good goodies in there!!
So, the up side to these happenings is I won’t have a growth hanging off my hip for a few years (if not forever) but the down side is I couldn’t go to Altoona because of the daily visits to the nurse. I also had to take some time off to let the 3cm radius pocket to close a bit. I took 9 days off and it did close a fair amount in that time. I would say it’s been a little slower healing since I started riding again. I’m down to 1.2cm radius now though and every 3 days to visit. I’m hoping to have only one or two more visits left.
So, I am training again, lots. I have committed to going to worlds in Austria so that means I must ride. I don’t know what I was thinking when I made that decision but whatever. Two months left in my cycling career then a BIG party. I am struggling with a training prescription that calls for “double days”. I am waaaay too lazy for double days…
I guess I'll deal, only 2 more months after all then I can finally get all the things accomplished that I been wanting to do forever, or not. That's a big list. Anyway, in the meantime I've posted a picture from I don't know when (a few years ago, it could be anytime between 2001 and 2003). It's from the Plouay world cup when I was staying at the same hotel as Jaja and so was Catherine Marsal (who is a friend of his) so I got a photo with him. He was pretty cool and I have always been a fan of his, I'm such a groupie. Not really a groupie but it was pretty cool.
So, after the first draining on the Friday (13 days after crash), I was feeling good and decided to do a local one day, 2 stage event on sunday. I did a 15km TT in the morning then a 60km road race in the afternoon. The TT went well, I was 2nd behind Merrill who is always strong. The road race was okay too. I got in trouble with my doctor on Monday as she said “riding is good but not intense riding and what if you crashed on it again, you could do some big damage” I was like “but there were only 10 people in the race and it was all left hand turns…”.
Anyway,the hematoma was filling up again so we decided to lance again on Wednesday morning. We did. Driving my mom home later that day I started to feel feverish. It kept getting worse and by the time we got to her house I laid down on the couch with 2 blankets and shivered (no, my mom doesn’t even have air conditioning). Finally I agreed to let my sister take me to the hospital and they checked me out and said “yep, it’s infected”. This doctor conferred with another and they decided the best thing to do was to “pack it”. That is, pack it with mesalt gauze to draw out the fluid and let it continually drain and not fill up. This meant daily visits to the wound care nurse along with 10 days of antibiotics. Fun stuff. I got used to the daily unpacking, irrigation and packing but it meant no swimming and no proper shower at first. I have a good dressing on it now that I can shower with. This dressing is something most cyclists would covet for road rash, it kicks tegaderm’s butt! Actually, most cyclists, if given the opportunity would pillage that wound care clinic, lots of good goodies in there!!
So, the up side to these happenings is I won’t have a growth hanging off my hip for a few years (if not forever) but the down side is I couldn’t go to Altoona because of the daily visits to the nurse. I also had to take some time off to let the 3cm radius pocket to close a bit. I took 9 days off and it did close a fair amount in that time. I would say it’s been a little slower healing since I started riding again. I’m down to 1.2cm radius now though and every 3 days to visit. I’m hoping to have only one or two more visits left.
So, I am training again, lots. I have committed to going to worlds in Austria so that means I must ride. I don’t know what I was thinking when I made that decision but whatever. Two months left in my cycling career then a BIG party. I am struggling with a training prescription that calls for “double days”. I am waaaay too lazy for double days…
I guess I'll deal, only 2 more months after all then I can finally get all the things accomplished that I been wanting to do forever, or not. That's a big list. Anyway, in the meantime I've posted a picture from I don't know when (a few years ago, it could be anytime between 2001 and 2003). It's from the Plouay world cup when I was staying at the same hotel as Jaja and so was Catherine Marsal (who is a friend of his) so I got a photo with him. He was pretty cool and I have always been a fan of his, I'm such a groupie. Not really a groupie but it was pretty cool.
That's all for now. I have Bank of America in Charlotte N.C. this weekend. It'll be nice to see the team since I missed Altoona. I hope they remember me.
Monday, July 17, 2006
Things happen in threes, or do they???
So, with my thumb and crash on the Saturday in Rochester I figured I would get hit with one more mishap. Things happen in threes right? Or is it 3 X 3? I don’t know, I’m still counting. So, went to nationals and started the TT and things weren’t going too badly. I wasn’t winning but I was competitive and close to Erinne W and Felicia G at the one turn around. Then just before 3km to go I hear the sound of a flat tire. DANG! When I figured out which one it was I put my hand up and stopped. Chris came running with a spare and changed it but all I was thinking was “Dang, I can’t catch a break”. On the other hand I was thinking “okay, that’s number three and I can handle that, at least it didn’t involve bodily harm”. Oh, I forgot to mention that it started stroming with lightening, thunder and driving rain about 1km after my start. I was the last to start but I don’t count that because it affected some others too.
So whatever. The next day was the road race and I was less than enthused about racing. I had no desire to crash on the hip again and it was foremost in my mind. It was also raining and on a hilly city circuit I decided the risk wasn’t worth it. I remember the physio saying “crashing on it again would be bad...” So, I hung in the feed zone trying to at least be of some use to Audrey and Gina. After the race I was not feeling too good and went back to the hotel and went straight to bed. I developed a fever and eventually had it coming out both ends. I didn’t know where I was most of that night. The next day about noon I was feeling well enough to tell Chris to go to the pharmacy and get some pepto bismal and gravol, I just wanted to go home. I love Gravol, it just knocks you out. I don’t remember much of the 9 hour drive home either.
So just to lighten things up a bit I’m going to post a picture of Trinity goofing around at home. What a monkey!
So, the next week was full of appointments, especially with the physio. At $45 a visit, I was hoping I wouldn’t need too much physio. My neck was also completely out of whack and the physio worked on that too (it’s still out of whack, I think I need a chiro or osteopath). So, each day was like massage, ultrasound and ice on the neck then the hip and a little suction cup inferential thrown in for the hip too. So, I guess I was getting my $45 worth, it took an hour. But, I was going broke. I continued to ride because they said it would help. Whatever. The surrounding tissue was going back to normal size leaving a huge half melon hanging off my hip that jiggled when I rode. Other than the jiggling, it didn’t bother me or hurt me when I was riding. The jiggling was getting excessive though and finally, 13 days after the crash I decided to have the lump drained.
That was gross and you’ll be happy to know I don’t have a picture of that to share with you. First the doctor tried to draw out the insides through a syringe. That wasn’t working so he had to lance. Well, he got a load of stuff out, well over a cup of clotty blood. Almost 2 cups plus I got about a ¼ cup more out 4 hours later. It felt so good to have that extra-terrestial thing off my hip. I thought "I am on my way baby!! "
Ha, there’s more to the story but I need a break. To be continued again…
So whatever. The next day was the road race and I was less than enthused about racing. I had no desire to crash on the hip again and it was foremost in my mind. It was also raining and on a hilly city circuit I decided the risk wasn’t worth it. I remember the physio saying “crashing on it again would be bad...” So, I hung in the feed zone trying to at least be of some use to Audrey and Gina. After the race I was not feeling too good and went back to the hotel and went straight to bed. I developed a fever and eventually had it coming out both ends. I didn’t know where I was most of that night. The next day about noon I was feeling well enough to tell Chris to go to the pharmacy and get some pepto bismal and gravol, I just wanted to go home. I love Gravol, it just knocks you out. I don’t remember much of the 9 hour drive home either.
So just to lighten things up a bit I’m going to post a picture of Trinity goofing around at home. What a monkey!
So, the next week was full of appointments, especially with the physio. At $45 a visit, I was hoping I wouldn’t need too much physio. My neck was also completely out of whack and the physio worked on that too (it’s still out of whack, I think I need a chiro or osteopath). So, each day was like massage, ultrasound and ice on the neck then the hip and a little suction cup inferential thrown in for the hip too. So, I guess I was getting my $45 worth, it took an hour. But, I was going broke. I continued to ride because they said it would help. Whatever. The surrounding tissue was going back to normal size leaving a huge half melon hanging off my hip that jiggled when I rode. Other than the jiggling, it didn’t bother me or hurt me when I was riding. The jiggling was getting excessive though and finally, 13 days after the crash I decided to have the lump drained.
That was gross and you’ll be happy to know I don’t have a picture of that to share with you. First the doctor tried to draw out the insides through a syringe. That wasn’t working so he had to lance. Well, he got a load of stuff out, well over a cup of clotty blood. Almost 2 cups plus I got about a ¼ cup more out 4 hours later. It felt so good to have that extra-terrestial thing off my hip. I thought "I am on my way baby!! "
Ha, there’s more to the story but I need a break. To be continued again…
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)