This week has turned out to be pretty mellow on the training side. With the snow and some other stuff going on, my training was limited. But my body was real happy.
Tuesday I turned 29, another year closer to my 30th birthday challenge. Wednesday, we got to hear the heartbeat of our baby. Took them awhile to find it (scary), but the midwife came in and found it right away then.
Looking to do a 2 hr ride Saturday, 6.6 mile run Sunday, and then a swim. Starting next week, I'll be back to morning workouts and then an FTP test next Saturday. Right now, I'm coming in low for the CP30 test (~3.05 w/kg), but feel pretty good. I don't think I was too much stronger at Timberman, where I went 2:39 with a pit stop, rain, and a conservative ride.
Blog about my triathlon excursions.
Friday, January 28, 2011
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Fearless
After my accident, a great friend (and best man in my wedding) Ash recommended "Fearless", a movie with Jeff Bridges and how his personality changes after he survives a plane crash. His character feels invulnerable, able to survive anything.
That was me for a few weeks. After, reality settled in. I was not making the progress during my recovery I wanted. I had become fearful of what the future held. Would my doctor decide six months later I did need the surgery? Would it be another year after of recovery?
What if I had cut my main away? What if I would have done something? For three years, I replayed the accident in my head. Even though I had a world champion CRW Dog tell me "You survived, you did everything right", I still felt there was something different I could have done.
A year after my accident, there was a 100 Canopy Formation attempt. A long time CRW jumper found himself in a similar condition as me. He hit hard and was in the hospital for a few days, but he wasn't as lucky. He passed away four days after the accident.
I still have issues watching scenes with falling. Even video games get me. I no longer take big risks. I'm hesitant climbing, riding, and in general in life. I don't let fear control me, but I'm far from being "fearless".
This fear has kept me from telling my story, trying to get the special interest Kona slot. What if another group tells me "Sorry, we need video of you hitting the ground", and denies any requests I have. The media is quick to move on to the next story and I'm fearful of not necessarily being forgotten, but told "your story isn't interesting, we have nothing to gain from it".
That was me for a few weeks. After, reality settled in. I was not making the progress during my recovery I wanted. I had become fearful of what the future held. Would my doctor decide six months later I did need the surgery? Would it be another year after of recovery?
What if I had cut my main away? What if I would have done something? For three years, I replayed the accident in my head. Even though I had a world champion CRW Dog tell me "You survived, you did everything right", I still felt there was something different I could have done.
A year after my accident, there was a 100 Canopy Formation attempt. A long time CRW jumper found himself in a similar condition as me. He hit hard and was in the hospital for a few days, but he wasn't as lucky. He passed away four days after the accident.
I still have issues watching scenes with falling. Even video games get me. I no longer take big risks. I'm hesitant climbing, riding, and in general in life. I don't let fear control me, but I'm far from being "fearless".
This fear has kept me from telling my story, trying to get the special interest Kona slot. What if another group tells me "Sorry, we need video of you hitting the ground", and denies any requests I have. The media is quick to move on to the next story and I'm fearful of not necessarily being forgotten, but told "your story isn't interesting, we have nothing to gain from it".
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
My road to Chesapeakeman
My story is not well known. I made the front page of the local newspaper and did an interview for the local fox station. I had national news groups calling to do interviews, but there was one small problem. I wouldn't release footage of me hitting the ground. Why not? Well, for one, I didn't think it was needed, and two it didn't exist. No one knew I was in the mess, and our camera man was tracking down gear to recover. When I spoke to the national media, they said "Our viewers will not be able to understand the story without seeing you hit the ground". That ended it for me.
Kona is a triathletes dream. We all know the special interest stories they do. I was confident I could get a slot from NBC to celebrate my five years. I wish I could have been like Jordan Rapp, or others, back after a catastrophic accident in a year. But my body wouldn't allow it, and I used all my luck in simply surviving. I'm in amazing shape given my accident, and I wouldn't trade it for anything.
External circumstances (will post about later :) ) did not allow me to be in Hawaii for Kona this year, so I decided to do Chesapeakeman as "My Kona". I'd rather support a local race, which my family can attend, to celebrate my recovery and progress from the accident.
Here you'll find more about me, my story, my training for Chesapeakeman. I'm hoping a few companies will support me during my triathlon season, and getting my story out.
Kona is a triathletes dream. We all know the special interest stories they do. I was confident I could get a slot from NBC to celebrate my five years. I wish I could have been like Jordan Rapp, or others, back after a catastrophic accident in a year. But my body wouldn't allow it, and I used all my luck in simply surviving. I'm in amazing shape given my accident, and I wouldn't trade it for anything.
External circumstances (will post about later :) ) did not allow me to be in Hawaii for Kona this year, so I decided to do Chesapeakeman as "My Kona". I'd rather support a local race, which my family can attend, to celebrate my recovery and progress from the accident.
Here you'll find more about me, my story, my training for Chesapeakeman. I'm hoping a few companies will support me during my triathlon season, and getting my story out.
The home stretch.
The first sprint of 2010 went well. I set back to back PR's in 5k races, along with a 5 mile road race. Columbia went well, finishing in 2:29 after not being able to ride for more than 20 minutes without pain and run more than 5 miles. After the race, my knees were in rough shape, but I decided to try KT Tape after seeing it on racers. I was able to recover quicker and started using it for long runs. This helped my accelerate my PT and allow me to get the long distance training in. I was able to do 10 miles on the bike, but my knee started acting up again. After a sprint race in June, I spoke to a massage therapist who diagnosed me with weak glutes and gave me some exercises to do. I also tried a knee brace and stretches for my biceps femoris, which allowed me to train with minimal pain. I had two months to train for Timberman.
After a great vacation in the UK, I had less then a month to get down to business. I survived a 100 mile bike ride, did a few 45+ mile bike rides and multiple 10+ mile runs. I was feeling great and ready for the race.
Timberman was perfect. My swim was ok, but my bike was great and my run was top notch. I broke 5 hrs with a finishing time of 4:58. I felt like I could have given more, but was happy with my progress. I got home, and decided to take some time off and rehab my injuries. I got a new bike fit, switched to compact cranks, and 165mm crank arms. This seems to have resolved my knee issues. I can now ride pain free without a knee brace. For the first time since 2005, I was going into the winter healthy. My wife and I got ourselves a computrainer for Christmas, allowing me to build my FTP with a guided plan and focus.
After a great vacation in the UK, I had less then a month to get down to business. I survived a 100 mile bike ride, did a few 45+ mile bike rides and multiple 10+ mile runs. I was feeling great and ready for the race.
Timberman was perfect. My swim was ok, but my bike was great and my run was top notch. I broke 5 hrs with a finishing time of 4:58. I felt like I could have given more, but was happy with my progress. I got home, and decided to take some time off and rehab my injuries. I got a new bike fit, switched to compact cranks, and 165mm crank arms. This seems to have resolved my knee issues. I can now ride pain free without a knee brace. For the first time since 2005, I was going into the winter healthy. My wife and I got ourselves a computrainer for Christmas, allowing me to build my FTP with a guided plan and focus.
Hitting my stride.
Training for Florida went well. I had prepped enough and hoped to break six hours. The non-wetsuit swim was rough, I pulled my hamstring on the bike, and my ITBS flared up on the run. It was a disaster that I would pay for the rest of the year.
Two weeks after, I won my AG at a local sprint, but had to hobble through the run. I decided to end my race season and try to fix my knee. My biceps femoris was extremely tight, and caused pain in the head of my fibula. It would take another year to heal and diagnose. Our wedding was that summer, with a great honeymoon in St. Lucia. A great friend of ours got us entries to a local half marathon as a wedding present. Disaster number two of the year. My ITBS was killing my training, and I made it six miles before I had to walk.
I ended another season on the injured list. Another season of losing a lot of my fitness. I couldn't ride or run from October until January. My ITBS got better, but my biceps femoris was still causing problems. It wasn't until February that I was able to do more than 10 minutes on the bike. We had registered for Timberman 70.3 and the Columbia Triathlon at the end of 2009, so I needed to get in gear.
Two weeks after, I won my AG at a local sprint, but had to hobble through the run. I decided to end my race season and try to fix my knee. My biceps femoris was extremely tight, and caused pain in the head of my fibula. It would take another year to heal and diagnose. Our wedding was that summer, with a great honeymoon in St. Lucia. A great friend of ours got us entries to a local half marathon as a wedding present. Disaster number two of the year. My ITBS was killing my training, and I made it six miles before I had to walk.
I ended another season on the injured list. Another season of losing a lot of my fitness. I couldn't ride or run from October until January. My ITBS got better, but my biceps femoris was still causing problems. It wasn't until February that I was able to do more than 10 minutes on the bike. We had registered for Timberman 70.3 and the Columbia Triathlon at the end of 2009, so I needed to get in gear.
So it begins.
January 25, 2008 wasn't a normal birthday for me. I was going out to dinner with family and friends, playing rock band and living life again. I also had my first date with my wife to be. She was also getting into triathlons, which was great. We started swimming together on Sundays, riding on the weekends, and doing some runs together.
My first race was survival mode, but I did it. A few days later, I decided to do the same course in two weeks with my dad. He couldn't do the original race with myself and Uncle Greg, so I wanted to be there to support him with my "new pro knowledge". That race went much better and I had caught the bug. A few weeks later I bought a tri-bike and was off. Another sprint race was in the bag for the summer, then we did a metric century. Near the end, another rider was zoning out and went off road, did a flip and landed on his head. I pulled over to stop and help him, but a group behind was not watching and I got t-boned. My right leg never made it out of the pedals and I suffered a severe sprain. A break would have been better as far as healing times. From mid August until November, I could not run or bike.
This was a huge let down emotionally. Again, the fitness I had built up was gone. But I was enjoying this sport. My dad and I decided to attempt a 70.3 in Florida. Hey, the course is flat, how hard could it be? To end the year, I got engaged, which helped me not focus on triathlons and just enjoy them.
My first race was survival mode, but I did it. A few days later, I decided to do the same course in two weeks with my dad. He couldn't do the original race with myself and Uncle Greg, so I wanted to be there to support him with my "new pro knowledge". That race went much better and I had caught the bug. A few weeks later I bought a tri-bike and was off. Another sprint race was in the bag for the summer, then we did a metric century. Near the end, another rider was zoning out and went off road, did a flip and landed on his head. I pulled over to stop and help him, but a group behind was not watching and I got t-boned. My right leg never made it out of the pedals and I suffered a severe sprain. A break would have been better as far as healing times. From mid August until November, I could not run or bike.
This was a huge let down emotionally. Again, the fitness I had built up was gone. But I was enjoying this sport. My dad and I decided to attempt a 70.3 in Florida. Hey, the course is flat, how hard could it be? To end the year, I got engaged, which helped me not focus on triathlons and just enjoy them.
From there to triathlon
Recovery and rehab was draining physically and emotionally. It took two weeks to find a doctor locally who accepted my insurance, then he just wanted to do surgery. The hospital discharged me saying I did not need to wear a neck brace, but my neck fracture was my worst. From November 2006 until February 5, 2007, I was getting checkups and hoping things would heal. My last checkup in February was with a new doctor who was great. He reviewed my case and got me in PT right away.
The next three months I was building up my core strength and regaining my flexibility. I was rock climbing again and making progress. Everything was going great, until July 3, 2007. I bent over to pick up a computer and pulled something in my back, but the pull was a pinched nerve. I could not move much until November, stuck sitting in a lazy boy with back pain. It was over a year since my accident and I lost all strength and flexibility gains, setting me back to square one.
December 23, 2007 I got an early Christmas gift. My doctor had discharged me, saying my neck was good to go. I just needed a follow up in six months. At this time, my dad had started talking about trying a sprint triathlon. His brother (my Uncle Greg), had been doing them for years, missing Kona by minutes in the 90's. We agreed on a sprint locally and training started. With my trusty 12 speed Schwinn from the 1980's, I was ready. Biking was new to me, but I had grown up a swimmer and had done a 33:50 5 mile race in college. But I was starting from scratch, I had lost anything after the accident.
The next three months I was building up my core strength and regaining my flexibility. I was rock climbing again and making progress. Everything was going great, until July 3, 2007. I bent over to pick up a computer and pulled something in my back, but the pull was a pinched nerve. I could not move much until November, stuck sitting in a lazy boy with back pain. It was over a year since my accident and I lost all strength and flexibility gains, setting me back to square one.
December 23, 2007 I got an early Christmas gift. My doctor had discharged me, saying my neck was good to go. I just needed a follow up in six months. At this time, my dad had started talking about trying a sprint triathlon. His brother (my Uncle Greg), had been doing them for years, missing Kona by minutes in the 90's. We agreed on a sprint locally and training started. With my trusty 12 speed Schwinn from the 1980's, I was ready. Biking was new to me, but I had grown up a swimmer and had done a 33:50 5 mile race in college. But I was starting from scratch, I had lost anything after the accident.
The long road starts here
I wake up and I hear whistles. We used these to communicate when it was time for someone to rotate. I'm being carted to the ambulance and give a thumbs up. I look over and see the helicopter. I wonder how long I was out for, how bad shape I was in. How did Skydive Arizona know to call for a helicopter? I found out that TR's wife Anne knew I was in the mess in the air, she knew it was going to be serious.
I was asked if I wanted pain meds, but I wasn't in pain. "That's not good. We'll give you some though. You should be feeling pain". I'm glad they gave it to me because I was. I tried to relax and enjoy the ride to Phoenix, AZ. As we were landing, I asked where we were, trying to explain "I work for a company in Flagstafff, I'm familiar with the state".
Off to the trauma center I go. This started my three day stay at the hospital. Initial MRI, CT Scan, and Xray tests showed I sustained fractures of C5 and C6 (chipped off the spinus process), T7, T8 and L1. These were fractures in my neck, upper back and lower back. But it was not life threatening. My neurosurgeon debated a fusion of C5 and C6 but wanted to make sure it was necessary. I was 24 and did not want a fusion.
The next few days went quick. Tests showed that I did not require surgery, but had a hip issue I did not bring up. I was given a walker and flew home to PA to start my recovery.
I was asked if I wanted pain meds, but I wasn't in pain. "That's not good. We'll give you some though. You should be feeling pain". I'm glad they gave it to me because I was. I tried to relax and enjoy the ride to Phoenix, AZ. As we were landing, I asked where we were, trying to explain "I work for a company in Flagstafff, I'm familiar with the state".
Off to the trauma center I go. This started my three day stay at the hospital. Initial MRI, CT Scan, and Xray tests showed I sustained fractures of C5 and C6 (chipped off the spinus process), T7, T8 and L1. These were fractures in my neck, upper back and lower back. But it was not life threatening. My neurosurgeon debated a fusion of C5 and C6 but wanted to make sure it was necessary. I was 24 and did not want a fusion.
The next few days went quick. Tests showed that I did not require surgery, but had a hip issue I did not bring up. I was given a walker and flew home to PA to start my recovery.
Don't F@#$ Up
Those were the last words my team said to each other before a jump. It's what was said before every C.R.W jump, so why should this one be different? It was the sixth round of the USPA 4-way rotation event in Eloy, Arizona. It was supposed to be a rest day, with 4-way sequential teams competing, but the cloud ceiling was too low. We got a call at 8:00 am to get to the drop zone and get ready.
"Don't F@#$ up", we said it and lined up to leave the plane. I was last out, and last in the formation. The jump was going well, and we hit 7 points. Just as time expired, Alan came in too fast. All I needed to do was "get big" and spread my legs/arms out, but instead, I went to grab his lines and get the last point...bad move #1. He came in too fast and I got entangled in his lines and his canopy wrapped me. "3,500 feet", a teammate calls out. We've got 500 feet to do something before we hit the "hard deck" of 3,000 feet. At that point, you don't screw around, you go to your reserve and land. I start working out and get the left side out, but I'm still stuck in the mess. "2,500". Alan cuts his main and goes to his reserve. I'm left wrapped in his parachute.
A wrap is very common in CRW, we review what to do each time. We had them in practice and they were uneventful (except for the crowd watching). Sonny had my canopy still in the stack and was directing me to the ground. He was going to guide my canopy to the landing area, and worst case I'd have a hard PLF. 2,500 feet I see my canopy take a dive and I'm thinking "W@#$@#$@#$. This isn't time to be doing any hard maneuvers", but when I looked up, I was met with my own canopy wrapping around me. Alan's canopy still, still wrapped around me, partially inflated and disturbed the air. For some reason, my canopy took a dive down and around me. This was the "OH @#$@" point for me, but things were going so fast, I had no idea what was going on.
At this point, I was out of Alan's canopy, but stuck in his risers and spinning to the ground. At no point did I think I'd hit it, I figured I'd pull something out, and then go to my reserve. During one rotation, I saw the ground...it wasn't that far. I needed to dump my reserve and get fabric out. I pulled my reserve handle without cutting away my main...bad/good move. I replay this moment in my head. "If I cut away my main, would Alan's have gone with it?". But we'll never know. What I do know is my reserve barber polled up my main. All I had was Alan's partially inflated parachute guiding me to the ground. I tried to pull his risers apart to inflate air...great move #1. By doing this, I was keeping my body parallel to the ground.
Another rotation goes by and the ground is close, another and it's closer. I still have no idea what's gonna happen. Then I hit the ground and let out a loud grunt. I lay there in pain, but I move my fingers and legs...I'm still alive...still breathing...still able to move. Then I black out. I'm one of a few people to survive a double malfunction.
"Don't F@#$ up", we said it and lined up to leave the plane. I was last out, and last in the formation. The jump was going well, and we hit 7 points. Just as time expired, Alan came in too fast. All I needed to do was "get big" and spread my legs/arms out, but instead, I went to grab his lines and get the last point...bad move #1. He came in too fast and I got entangled in his lines and his canopy wrapped me. "3,500 feet", a teammate calls out. We've got 500 feet to do something before we hit the "hard deck" of 3,000 feet. At that point, you don't screw around, you go to your reserve and land. I start working out and get the left side out, but I'm still stuck in the mess. "2,500". Alan cuts his main and goes to his reserve. I'm left wrapped in his parachute.
A wrap is very common in CRW, we review what to do each time. We had them in practice and they were uneventful (except for the crowd watching). Sonny had my canopy still in the stack and was directing me to the ground. He was going to guide my canopy to the landing area, and worst case I'd have a hard PLF. 2,500 feet I see my canopy take a dive and I'm thinking "W@#$@#$@#$. This isn't time to be doing any hard maneuvers", but when I looked up, I was met with my own canopy wrapping around me. Alan's canopy still, still wrapped around me, partially inflated and disturbed the air. For some reason, my canopy took a dive down and around me. This was the "OH @#$@" point for me, but things were going so fast, I had no idea what was going on.
At this point, I was out of Alan's canopy, but stuck in his risers and spinning to the ground. At no point did I think I'd hit it, I figured I'd pull something out, and then go to my reserve. During one rotation, I saw the ground...it wasn't that far. I needed to dump my reserve and get fabric out. I pulled my reserve handle without cutting away my main...bad/good move. I replay this moment in my head. "If I cut away my main, would Alan's have gone with it?". But we'll never know. What I do know is my reserve barber polled up my main. All I had was Alan's partially inflated parachute guiding me to the ground. I tried to pull his risers apart to inflate air...great move #1. By doing this, I was keeping my body parallel to the ground.
Another rotation goes by and the ground is close, another and it's closer. I still have no idea what's gonna happen. Then I hit the ground and let out a loud grunt. I lay there in pain, but I move my fingers and legs...I'm still alive...still breathing...still able to move. Then I black out. I'm one of a few people to survive a double malfunction.
Welcome
Welcome to my blog. I hope to be posting updates about my training and racing in 2011, as I attempt Chesapeakeman in September. October 24, 2006, I was in a skydiving accident in which I fractured vertebrae in my neck and back, along with a fracture of my femur. Recovery was a long road, but triathlon was a great way to stay in shape. After my first race, I was hooked.
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