Well, it’s been a very long three weeks since my accident in Italy, and while the forced rest period was nice, I have been suffering some serious withdrawal for a while now.  Today was the big day to head into the hosiptal and have the cast removed.  I have been excited like a boy in a candy shop for days now, and could hardly contain myself when I woke up this morning.

After a few x-rays and an MRI, it was time to see the specialist.  The first thing he did was to chop the cast right off.  As good as it felt to be off, I knew right away something wasn’t as I had seen it happening in my head countless times.  That’s when the doctor came back saying there was good and bad news.  The bad:  I have to remain in a leg brace for another 3 weeks.  This was devistating and completely unexpected, as everything felt so good for the last week and a bit.  There’s no point in trying to rush it though, so I am trying to just suck it up and get on with my time.

The good news is I can at least start some physio to regain some strength and mobility.  He’s going to allow me to bend my knee 15 degrees every week to stretch the muscles back out, and there will also be some strengthening exercies to build some muscle back.  I guess in hind sight I let myself get way too excited, even planning a short ride for this afternoon, and that just made the news that much harder.  I’m fortunate that I have so much time before my next important races – not until next year, so I can take my time and do things properly.  It’s important to see the big picture in a situation like this, and I know that I could do more damage from rushing things.  It’s just killing me to sit around and not be out on the bike!

Stay tuned for reports on physio and the healing process, as well as news about next year.  Hoping to have some exciting posts in the near future!

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