I’ve become aware that I am in fact growing old. I am not as light, strong, fast or as quick to heal as I was even ten years ago. When I retired I figured I would finally have time to get back to cycling. I knew for a fact I would never again be as fast as I was in my late twenties and at my peak as a late bloomer in my thirties, but I figured I could build my aerobic capacity, drop some weight and at least feel fit enough to function. Injury and danger did not enter my mind at that point. For some reason my brain and I think the brains of most folks don’t keep up with the age-related diminished abilities and capabilities of our bodies. I think this is particularly true for those of us who spent careers sitting in front of computers in cubes or at relatively sedentary jobs. Anyway, I managed to get serious over the last year or riding, or more accurately after my 2024 accident where I broke several ribs in several places. That incident set me on a course to better fitness and health, quitting motorcycles and buying a new bicycle.
And then nearing a year into the new bike ownership and riding, I crashed again. This time much more seriously. I laid unattended on a bike path for about ten minutes before a couple stopped, rendered aid and called 9-1-1. From crash to ambulance seems to have taken about a half hour in total. Short ride to the nearest ER with trauma unit. My cycling kit was cut off me, I was washed down and scrubbed with saline solution, scanned and x-rayed. Some pain meds were added to knock the pain levels down to where I could be moved without too loud of involuntary moans. Shuttled upstairs to a surgical trauma ICU that had room and facility to monitor my quite amazing array of sensors, tubes and feeds.
The cause of this crash lay in the shadows back up the trail in the background of that first photo. The EMT could not see any indication of it from where he stood in that photo as he says on camera. (hence the photo is a screen grab from the onboard Cycliq video).
Below is another screen grab from the video prior to my crash.
And a closer look,
I had ridden up this trail the previous day. I do not remember seeing this damage. That day I would have been riding out of the photo to the left side above the “CYCLIQ” logo. On the day of the crash I hit that large crack to the right of the dashed centerline.
Two nights in ICU to get me to where I could with pain meds negotiate stairs with a railing and cane. There are fifteen stairs from the ground to our living space above the garage and laundry. The concern of those stairs led to the second night.
As I type this I’m in the midst of recovering from the accident. I’ve managed about two weeks of self managed PT using a smartphone app as guide from my health insurance. I’ve not been on any narcotic pain meds since about two days after I left the ICU. My range of motion and strength of increased to where I can brush and tie back my own hair. I can dress myself and shower and shave without help. I plan to begin walking outside to a nearby coffee shop probably by the weekend. I have not needed the cane since my orthopedic doctor visit two days after getting out of the ICU. I am plenty steady on my feet. I can mange the stairs easily enough I made my first coffee drink today. My espresso machine and grinder live on my workbench in the garage since the kitchen is so small.
I’ve managed to drive to Velo Pasadena and drop off the bike for a look. what a fantastic shop. These folks were on exactly the same page as me and how to proceed with the check and what all I needed doing. It remains to be seen what my so called insurance does. I’ve yet to hear a peep from them after both email and two phone call messages. I am not impressed.
My physical recovery is progressing. I have better range of motion in the shoulder and less pain day by day. The first casualty to be resolved is my dead Apple Air Pods Pro 2. They were in my jersey pocket when I crashed and post accident would not pair to my phone. It turns out after a visit to the Apple Store and Genius Bar, the case and right side pod were dead. The case would charge the pods through the case, but the diagnostics through the case could not see the right pod and the case would not show charge status or pair. So, I have a new pair of Air Pods Pro 3’s.
The ambulance service sent me an online satisfaction survey, I responded I didn’t remember anything about the ambulance from the time the paramedics said they were ready to load me onto the gurney to when someone counted down, 3-2-1 and I was shifted from the gurney to the bed in the ER. There is audio of the couple who stopped to help and call, speaking to me and my slow, slurred answers don’t sound at all like myself. I don’t recall anything of the actual crash beyond seeing my left hand fall past the left handlebar and brake/shifter.
I am in good spirits. I’m beginning to at times feel a little bit antsy to get going. I’m not yet solid enough in my shoulder to support a stationary trainer workout. I can once in a while tie my own hair back. I can brush it and wash myself, though I need a bit more time than usual. I’m very much more careful in the shower. Doing things that require pushing or pulling with my left hand/arm I have to figure out how to not do that and manage with my right. For about ten days I couldn’t cut my own bagel or hand grind my own coffee. I finally have enough flexibility with both sides of my body, I am able to isolate these activities more easily to the right side for the muscle demands leaving no pressure being put on my left shoulder.
The visible damage to helmet, the imprint of the paved trail.
The slide damage at the back of the helmet.
Then the bike, the left shifter/brake/bar
The left pedal damage,
The end of the thru axel,
Lastly the seat damage,
Velo Pasadena will determine if there is any further damage and let me know next week. The Wahoo Element Bolt was ejected off the bike by the impact with the pavement defect and launched ahead of me down the track. This resulted in only a few scuffs I’ve not taken photos of yet. The unit was still working after I was settled in the ICU so, I figure it must still be good. I didn’t see any damage to my sunglasses or my Polar HRM or strap. No damage to my gloves.
I’ve got about a month and a half to my next Orthopedic doctors check the end of December. I’ll know more about my next steps in this recovery process after I meet with him. I think if I am loosening up by then and I get released to ride, I’ll begin a month or so of light rides of around an hour round two with very little stress on my upper body, with likely some light weigh training to begin rebuilding upper body strength. I don’t expect to be fully back to my level at the crash until summer. I think the key to this recovery is to not be in a hurry. Patience is rewarded with steady improvement. That is much better than meeting an arbitrary distance or speed goal. My doctors have told me there is every reason to expect a full recovery. recovery is my only goal. I don’t have any restriction on timeline. I am committed to listening to my doctors. At present I don’t have an indoor cycling trainer My Wahoo KickR Snap wheel on trainer is loaned to a neighbor and I have not yet found the thru axel adapter for it for my bike. When I have that piece then I could begin indoors.
Along The Way 