Atomic Spatula » MTB

Thumb Update – Bad News

greg — Fri, 21 May 2010 19:47:13 +0000

I took an unremarkable fall on an unremarkable log crossing, and sprained my thumb, or so I thought. It turns out I did some damage that’s going to take the summer to heal up.

It’s called “skiers’ thumb”:

AKA Stener Lesion:

I go in for surgery and a cast Monday. The ligament that broke has moved up into my hand, so they have to pin it back on to the bone, on the other side of the first thumb joint. The doctor says there’s 2 months in a splint/cast, then another month recovery. So I’m out until September. It’s going to take a while to get my head around this. Mountain biking has been my major activity for a couple of years now, and I’m pretty much addicted to daily exercise. I’ll have to try trail running or something to keep me from loosing my mind.

The Magic of Opposable Thumbs

greg — Thu, 20 May 2010 20:07:07 +0000

They’re great, but I’m down one. I crashed on a log crossing, landed hard on my left hand and bent my thumb back farther than a 50 year-old thumb was meant to go. My plan of doing the 20 mi MTB race at Willowdale this Sunday seems doubtful. I’m feeling pretty good about my abilites, but I kind of need to hold on to the handlebars with both hands.

I did this Tuesday, took yesterday off, and rode on the road today. I did my 13.5 mi loop in 45 min – that’s 18 mph average. I felt really good (except for the thumb). I see the hand Doctor tomorrow – I suspect there’s no major damage, but then, I can’t lift a beer with my left hand any more, so it is something to be taken seriously.

Monday Night Ride

greg — Tue, 18 May 2010 02:04:16 +0000

I did the NSNEMBA’s Monday night “relaxed pace” ride. We had 16 riders – some regulars, and some new folks. I’m not sure how relaxed the pace was. I was riding as fast as I could the whole time. We did stop periodically to let folks catch up. I guess that’s the relaxed part. According to my gear, we did 9.7 mi in 1:47 – a loop catching most of the single-track around the perimeter of Willowdale. Adding in yesterday’s 2:05, 11 mi ride, that’s 4 hours at a good pace for the week, and its only Monday.

NSNEMBA Monday Night Ride

greg — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 14:25:31 +0000

We had a great ride last night. It was clear and cool, with the trails nicely dried out. We kept up a pretty good pace, except for the flat tire that happened just before the end.

The Log

greg — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 11:56:52 +0000

Some times a little pressure helps. On the Monday night ride Dan Streeter was taking pictures. I’d never made it across this log before – my best effort was about 3/4 of the way before I had to bail out. I came around the corner, saw Dan with camera ready, and gave it a whirl.

Green Riders Attack!

greg — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 20:06:28 +0000

Willowdale – West with MTBGuru

greg — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 15:59:02 +0000

This is my typical ride as of late. I’m trying out MTBGuru.com – seems pretty nice so far. The Trip Details link shows some nice stats. No heart rate, though – perhaps it needs to read TCX to get that?

Ipswich River Floods

greg — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 16:42:10 +0000

I rode down to the Ipswich River today. It’s still flooded. I suspect it’s going to take the rest of the week for the trails to dry out, perhaps the weekend as well. I was sorely tempted to ride the boardwalk that was about 3″ under water, but resisted. I did enjoy riding the closed roads – nice to be able to relax and look around.

Fun with Multiple Exposures

greg — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 17:33:09 +0000

Nope

greg — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 21:18:43 +0000

Nope, that last ride wasn’t the last of 2009. I cross-country skied a couple of days before Christmas. Then it rained, got warm, etc. Today the snow was gone, but last night it dropped below freezing again, and the trail had hardened.

I got some bigger tires – WTB Stout 2.3’s, and put them on today. They fit pretty well, although I get a bit of interference on the front derailleur that I hope can be fixed by bringing in the stop for the small chain ring. I ran 22 lbs in the new tires, and the bike is just unstoppable. Even though things were a bit slick as the top layer of mud was thawing, they just didn’t slip ever. They weigh a good bit more than the Maxxis Ignitors that I had been running (2.1’s), so I’ll probably switch back once things dry out in June.

I rode the whole way around Willowdale – probably about 15 miles, in two and a half hours. Tomorrow it’s supposed to be down in the 20’s, so I should be able to do it again then.