Winter Riding Thread (December-February) Outside and Inside

[lauraelmore1033]

What a horrible, horrible ride/day we had on Saturday! We'd both signed up to do the Stinky Spoke rotten weather mtb ride, but I decided just to bring my recumbent and get in a long flat trail ride since I've lost so much ground, cycling wise, and I felt like I should get SOME kind of riding in. I set out in steady rain with hopes that it would ease up at some point. Dh set out on the event course on his shiny new Cannondale cyclocross bike. The rain never did ease up, and I arrived back at the van after a 26 mile ride and found that my phone had gotten wet and was dead. I was frozen and soaked and fired up the van to warm up while I waited for Dh to finish. I was surprised that he hadn't already finished, actually. I put the phone over the defrost vents, hoping it would dry out enough and dreamed of the bratwurst and beer that I would be having shortly after he arrived. I was starving! The phone did eventually come to life and a call from DH immediately came in. He had been trying to call me for a good half hour and was frantic. He'd clipped a tree in a sharp turn, snapping his collar bone and was pushing his bike somewhere along the course. He managed to tell me that he was at the watershed park at Novelty hill road before the phone went dead again. I had no idea how to get there, so I went back to the event start point, trying to find someone to give me directions (or perhaps dispatch a support vehicle?). Everybody was pretty blase about it, and most of the people I talked to mentioned that they too had broken a collar bone at some point. Finally, a guy drew me a map on a scrap of cardboard with a sharpie before pulling down the neck of his shirt to show me a neckline distorted by multiple breaks of the bone. Got to the park 20-30 minutes later, and there wasn't a soul in sight. Phone was still dead, and panic was truly setting in. How in the heck did we manage to do these things before everyone started carrying cell phones! I got out of the car and followed the signs out to the stinky spoke course on the off chance that he was trying to walk the 6 miles or so to the finish. I have never felt so helpless and lost in my life! Eventually, I encountered the event sweeps, who hadn't seen him, and a flurry of fruitless phone calling ensued. Brian wasn't answering his phone, and the list of numbers for the event director weren't getting anywhere. The sweeps decided they would just continue on and look for him on the way, and that I should go back to the start and wait for them. If they had to, they would call 911. Finally! Progress!
Long story short: Strangers had seen Brian pushing his bike down insanely busy Novelty Hill road and had taken him to the hospital. After an another hour of running around like a chicken with her head cut off, I was able to find this unfamiliar hospital and take him home. He was still wearing his muddy cycling clothes and had left a large halo of mud around his body on the bed. The nurses were fussing over him and petting him and marveling that his self diagnosis had been correct. I was wet, matted, stinky and starved and I burst into tears from frustration and relief. What a horrible day.

[Crankin]

That does sound horrible and poor planning by the event organizers. My DH broke his collar bone in 2014. It was a bad break, he had surgery, did PT, and is perfect now. He has a lot of hardware inside.
He was back to easy riding after 5 weeks, although the doctor said 12...

[lauraelmore1033]

Hmmm, he's thinking he'd be able to ride (my trike!) in a couple of weeks. He did say that the break was well aligned and surgery wouldn't be required. I'm glad to hear that your Dh is back to perfect now, Crankin.
I'm sure he must have been in shock, Emily, but my phone was cutting in and out, so the calls weren't getting through to me. I felt terrible too. I listened to the messages he left this morning and he kept saying, I don't understand why you're not answering me. That must have been a terrible feeling. The image of him trudging down the hill in pouring rain, pushing that bike haunts me. Thank goodness for kind strangers (who happen to be sag drivers for other events).

[OakLeaf]

Oh man, how awful. I'm glad you were finally able to track your DH down and that his injury wasn't worse, though. Hugs to both of you and quick healing to him.

[azfiddle]

OMG that sounds truly awful. Glad you found him! Hope there is a quick recovery.

As for my riding this week... after two great rides Sunday and Monday last week and then having my road bike stolen I didn't get any real miles in except for test rides until this morning. I rode the Surly 15 miles just up to Saguaro NP and back.

Happily- my new bike has been found and will be set up by Thursday!!!

[ny biker]

Good grief Laura, what a terrible experience. I'm glad your husband's injury wasn't worse.

Glad things are looking up for you, az.

[emily_in_nc]

Ah, how great that you have a trike. That would be the only bike your DH would be able to ride earlier than usual from this injury, I'd think, since he can't risk another fall until totally healed, and besides, putting any weight on the arm on that side is gonna be difficult for some time.

I should add that my DH is fine now too. His break was in a place that surgery was not recommended nor required, though he does have a bump on that shoulder now (it was way down on the shoulder end), and it bothered him for throwing (he played baseball back then) for quite some time. But he was super good about doing his PT and gradually brought it back to full functioning and range of motion.

[ny biker]

I did 45 minutes with the indoor trainer tonight -- I watched a TV show that I'd recorded, a British police show called Luther. I think I got a better workout when I was watching Sonic Highways, but all I really wanted to do was pedal for a while. So mission accomplished!

[rebeccaC]

that West Orange Trail looks like a really nice ride emily!!!!

Working on a proposal for a national science foundation grant this weekend I was looking at the wind blowing through the palm trees and the rain out my window today and decided I wanted to challenge the weather gods. 30+ mph wet winds were a tough challenge but just what I needed to clear my mind from working, for being in the moment of a hard ride and for getting out of my comfort zone. I rode the beach bike path south to be away from the roads and associated water and wind debris. Pounding high tide surf, very few other people and the feelings of just rolling with and through what the weather was doing made for a great 38 mile ride. When riding in this kind of weather on the beach bike paths there is more sand being blown onto the path so I had my zen time of cleaning the bike when I got home too. So now I’m revived from working all weekend, ready to start up again and thankful Mother Nature gave me a good mental break and worked as a catalyst for more productive work tonight.

…..plus I’m not going to be deterred by the Hyades sisterhood of rain nymphs this winter!!!!!

[emily_in_nc]

Damn, Laura, that is terrible! I can only imagine your panic. Was your DH not able to call you from the hospital? He may have been in shock, especially with that terrible weather, in which case, he may not have been thinking too clearly.

My DH broke his collarbone on a solo ride many years ago when he hit a bad spot of pavement, and I remember the panic of racing to pick him up and taking him to the ER. It was a bit of a fiasco as I had been working late in the lab and didn't have my cell phone with me, so he'd been leaving messages for quite awhile before I even found out what had happened, and of course he had to wait, in pain, on the road until I finally got the message and drove over to pick him up. I felt so bad!

I am so sorry you had to go through this and hope he will heal up quickly. I learned how to mow grass for the first time in my life as my DH healed from his, since it happened in the summer.