maggot down?

this time it's me.

i was skiing a local popular BC spot earlier today and had just set a "personal best" on my time up the hike...my 2nd of the day.

i was 3 turns into my descent in variable conditions (/slushy), and one ski just got stuck in the slop -- i went down right away. didn't hear/feel/notice a pop. never had a ski-related injury, so i wasn't sure what an ACL/MCL tear would feel like....but my knee did hurt a bit.

i was able to stand up and make the rest of my descent (knee felt funky, couldn't really straighten in the whole way).

got to the road within a 1/4-mile of my car and started hiking back. the knee seemed OK-ish...until about 50 feet from my car. then i heard a little "pop" in the front of my knee toward my inner leg. i suddenly couldn't put pressure on it w/o great pain.

i hobbled/crawled back to the car, coasted home (down teton pass)...and here i am.

'bout to go to the clinic. we'll see what's up. i'm hopeful it's just a cartilege tear. it hurts to straighten my leg or put weight on it. it is not swollen, but it is very painful to the touch at the very upper part of the tibia (shin-bone, right?) on the inside of the knee.

wish me luck.

Good luck, UAH.
Sorry to hear this, hopefully it's not too bad.
Good thing you are getting yourself to treatment quickly.

damn, well, at least you got a full season in, right! heal up fast

that's what you get for soloing all the time (sorry, just had to).

That sucks man, hopefully it is something minor!

If you tore it it should have hurt right away and not been stable. Maybe your miniscus just slipped in an out. Good luck!

Good luck! Hope its just a funky meniscus thing. Happens to me in slushy snow sometimes.

ouch. sorry to hear that E.

echoing what other folks have said... hopefully it is something minor.

OH SHIT!

Damn dude, sorry to hear that. I'm hoping for the best that its not as bad as it seems. This year, three guys I know hurt their knees and thought their ACL was blown...2 turned out OK, but one not so lucky.

If it's tender on the medial aspect (inside), that is where your MCL generally generates pain. Hence the name. Medial Collateral Ligament.

But who knows. Internet medicine is dubious, at best. Go to the ortho doc.

Rest up, heal up fast.

Sux Mang ((({{+VIBES+}}))) At least it’s near the end of the skiing season.
I blew my MCL at the Village 5 years ago. It was a “pop” and instantaneous pain. The docs there in Jackson really know what they are doing when it comes to this type of injury.
Good Luck

Can also be a flap tear of the posterior horn of the medial meniscus. Let's hope that it's not ligament damage.

Damn sorry to hear that. Good luck at the doc. Who are you going to?

But on a positive note, nice work beating your personal best Glory time. What'd you make it in? For some reason that thing kicked my ass today. Grrr. I'm tempted to go back up and show it who's boss.

Heal up fast!

Doesn’t sound like an ACL to me. If it was you defiantly wouldn’t be able to ski slop all the way down. You would’ve felt the constant feeling of it giving way. But, what do I know…I’ve only done it once.

Ah, damn, man, I'm really sorry to hear that. And to have it happen on the walk back to the car...damn.

Let me know if you need anything, I'd be happy to help. Blew out my MCL a year or so ago, and it definately sucks. Also, be careful who you let do your knee; I've got friends who attend on the ortho surgeries here and there are some really good and really not so good docs in the valley.

And what's your PR on Glory? You might as well get a little end of season dickwaving in... (you too Sherpa, I'm curious how much slower I am... might have a go this evening when things are a little less slushy.)

+++++++++++++++ Healing Vibes+++++++++++++
4 U

Sorry to hear that man.

Not to be the bearer of bad tidings but when I tore my ACL in '94 I skied down from Four-Shadows afterwards and had no instability until I bent down to put quarters in the Rancher pool table that night.

MRI showed a clean tear. Good news is that Dr. Rork did a damn fine job putting it back together and it barely hurts more than my "good" knee and vitamin I takes care of that.

I highly recommend Rork as do friends I have at St. Johns. Good luck and get excited for biking season. The summer after my surgery was the only one I could seriously contend in local Mtn bike races.

Best of luck,man. Hope it's nothing too serious...

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Originally Posted by alpinepronghorn

And what's your PR on Glory? You might as well get a little end of season dickwaving in... (you too Sherpa, I'm curious how much slower I am... might have a go this evening when things are a little less slushy.)

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My best time this season was 38. Nothing too impressive. I kept meaning to take a light pack on a good, calm day and see what I could bust it out in, but it didn't happen. I'm thinking about doing a full moon run up there tonight if it stays clear.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by SherpaStyle

But on a positive note, nice work beating your personal best Glory time. What'd you make it in? For some reason that thing kicked my ass today. Grrr. I'm tempted to go back up and show it who's boss.

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So what are fast times on Glory, just curious.

What's the 'record'?

I've hiked it 6 or 7 times, but never timed it.

How many verts is it to the prayer flags.

Back on topic. I had a 2nd degree MCL tear that ended my season years ago, but it healed relatively quickly and hasn't been a problem since.

Best of luck.

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Originally Posted by lemon boy

that's what you get for soloing all the time (sorry, just had to).

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I knew that was coming -- I'm just surprised it took until the 4th post! :)

had an MRI - torn meniscus, but seems like it could be repaired. we'll know more tomorrow @ 3pm, when i go under.

thanks for the good vibes!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by alpinepronghorn

Ah, damn, man, I'm really sorry to hear that. And to have it happen on the walk back to the car...damn.

Let me know if you need anything, I'd be happy to help. Blew out my MCL a year or so ago, and it definately sucks. Also, be careful who you let do your knee; I've got friends who attend on the ortho surgeries here and there are some really good and really not so good docs in the valley.

And what's your PR on Glory? You might as well get a little end of season dickwaving in... (you too Sherpa, I'm curious how much slower I am... might have a go this evening when things are a little less slushy.)

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Well, looks like I'm out for the season -- was really looking forward to climbing, too. Hm.

Will have to settle for about 130-140 days on snow since t-giving...(not sure what the final tally was at)...i was hoping for about 30-50 more. d'oh! was a good year, but i won't get my high peak goals in.

today's time on glory was just under 27 -- including the time it took for me to walk back to my car after crossing the street because i forgot my poles! d'oh!

for some reason, i felt fast hiking this year, but skinning i always felt slow as molasses.

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Originally Posted by sar13

I highly recommend Rork

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Rork's the one working on me! Glad to hear this!!

I'm going to be back in no time. I'm psyched because this gives me a chance to work on some other projects, and I should still be able to work out the upper body & other leg.

Cardio might go to hell, though...

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Originally Posted by Trackhead

So what are fast times on Glory, just curious.

I've hiked it 6 or 7 times, but never timed it.

How many verts is it to the prayer flags.

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It's right @ 1,500 in 0.8 miles from car to the start of the descent.

I'm sure there are people out there that fly up it.

Right now it's "easy" because there's no trail-breaking and the steps are fairly firm.

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Originally Posted by upallnight

Well, looks like I'm out for the season -- was really looking forward to climbing, too. Hm.

Will have to settle for about 130-140 days on snow since t-giving...(not sure what the final tally was at)...i was hoping for about 30-50 more. d'oh! was a good year, but i won't get my high peak goals in.

today's time on glory was just under 27 -- including the time it took for me to walk back to my car after crossing the street because i forgot my poles! d'oh!

for some reason, i felt fast hiking this year, but skinning i always felt slow as molasses.

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27 minutes! You could probably smoke me without any ligaments in either of your knees. I think the standard should be hiking your age. I can just about do that.

Bummer about the injury. The consensus on Rork is that while he may be quick to cut, he's really good at cutting, too. He repaired my thumb about six years ago and it went fine. I think Scott Harmon is the best for PT, although I heard he had a falling-out with Four Pines PT and I don't know how that resolved. Heal up!

Damn. 27, eh? I'm going to have to step it up. My best is 35, but that was before the bros showed up :biggrin:

Yeah, Rork's the man, he did my MCL. I don't notice a thing except for the big nasty scar, but that's my own fault (sliced myself to the bone with a ski edge.) Don't let the bow ties throw you, you're in good hands.

(And Suit, the best time I've heard rumors of is Tiff at TM in 25. I'm sure guys like Romeo and Rob from SS can lay down sub 20's...)

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Originally Posted by upallnight

had an MRI - torn meniscus, but seems like it could be repaired. we'll know more tomorrow @ 3pm, when i go under.

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sorry about the injury, but hey - at least you had a great season. good luck with the surgery, dude.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by upallnight

had an MRI - torn meniscus, but seems like it could be repaired. we'll know more tomorrow @ 3pm, when i go under.

thanks for the good vibes!

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best wishes + prayers

Good luck with the recovery. This will finally give you some time to organize your nudy collection. Sweet.

Thanks for all the well-wishes. Got out of surgery a little while ago, and I am psyched!

The doc was able to repair the meniscus arthroscopically and flip the tissue back into position -- it had flipped out of place and was causing pretty severe pain over the last 18h and preventing me from moving my knee at all. That alone helped reduce the pain a tremendous amount.

Now, I'm absolutely psyched that there was enough tissue in good shape to do a repair. I'm told I will recover 100% with minimal long-term issues. I won't konw the target recovery period until Monday, but I am psyched and ready to work as hard as necessary (and reasonably, of course) to be back in the mountains ASAP.

Who knows? With this year's snowpack, I may still be able to get to the high peaks for a descent, and I should be able to get out for some climbs.

P.S. I'm sure my time on Glory was an aberration, because most often I'm in the mid-30s. I think it was just a rare combination of feeling good, some luck, and steps that were firm and perfectly supportable (and knowing which ones to avoid because I'd stepped/sunk in them earlier).

On a powder day, things would be totally different.

Don't the "big" (=fast) guys (Romeo, et. al.) do up to 6,000 vertical an hour? Wow. Staggering.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by alpinepronghorn

Damn. 27, eh? I'm going to have to step it up. My best is 35, but that was before the bros showed up :biggrin:

...

(And Suit, the best time I've heard rumors of is Tiff at TM in 25. I'm sure guys like Romeo and Rob from SS can lay down sub 20's...)

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Yeah, I'm sure sub-20s is possible.

For whatever it's worth, I hiked it with pack, shovel (metal), probe, beacon, 1st aid kit, extra layers, water, food, headlamp, digicam, gps.... so I wasn't going bare-bones.

APH: The new setup probably saves you, what, at least 7-10 pounds? Awesome! Did you do that full-moon hike?

Glad surgery went well! Yeh, 27 is pretty rediculous. Nice work. I bumped my personal best down to 36 today. That seems pretty slow compared to sub 30s. Now I only need to get rid of 13 more minutes according to The Suit...

I'm not normally timing it, but I'm happy with anything under 40 day-in, day-out.

How was the snow?

Hey- it could have been a lot worse- at least you didn't break yyour tibial plateau hours before planning on leaving on a 2 week cross country road/ski trip (what kind of idiot does something like that?)

Rork rebuilt me better than before. I blew out my ACL/MCL and PCL, all three at once. I had a rough recovery, but now that knee is in better shape than the 'good' one!
Best glory time, 34 minutes, full gear, full pack.
Sub thirty sounds....painful.
I remember sprint racing the flatter section to the summit just for shits and giggles...my buddy Chris and I ran to the cave at about the same time, there were twenty people or so milling about. We put on our race faces, and Chris got all serious, looked at his watch all serious like, and said..."I got twenty-two and eighteen...what did you get?"
I couldn't keep a straight face...

OK I've migrated here.

My first post is to tell you to heal fast!

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Originally Posted by Plakespear

Hey- it could have been a lot worse- at least you didn't break yyour tibial plateau hours before planning on leaving on a 2 week cross country road/ski trip (what kind of idiot does something like that?)

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Hey... That is a rough break...These things never seem to come at a convenient time, though, right? Sometimes it's hard to know whether to laugh or cry.

Ugh...Sending some healing vibes your way.

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Originally Posted by rideit

Rork rebuilt me better than before. I blew out my ACL/MCL and PCL, all three at once. I had a rough recovery, but now that knee is in better shape than the 'good' one!

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That's awesome to hear! I am already so psyched. I'm feeling pretty good, though I feel most bad for my little puppy who is cooped up inside b/c I can't give her a proper walk.

Can't wait for my Monday visit w/ Rork and get the full prognosis. I think I'm going to be back quick...and maybe even get to make a turn or two (in June?? :))

Quote:

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Originally Posted by rideit

We put on our race faces, and Chris got all serious, looked at his watch all serious like, and said..."I got twenty-two and eighteen...what did you get?"
I couldn't keep a straight face...

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That's awesome! Earlier this year, I was hiking the Headwall to get to Granite from the top of the Gondi late in the day (right @ 2p, just before they closed it). I passed a guy; as he stepped aside, I made a casual comment like, "This hike's always a workout, huh?"

His reply? "Yeah...this is the 13th time I've done it today."

I laughed & did some quick math in my head and realized that even if this guy was blazing (15 min 1st Gondi ride + 10 min/hike + 2 min at the top + 5 min down + 2 min @ the bottom...+ 12 more Gondi rides > 5h) -- which he clearly wasn't at that point -- it would have been impossible to ski top-to-bottom & ride the Gondi up 13 times between 9a & 2p. :)

Turned out he was hiking up and skiing the same boot track line back down to the base of the hike (a little odd considering there was great pow all over had he gone just another minute further).

I still wonder if that was an honest 13....but the bigger question to me was if you are going to bother to do 13 hikes @ 3-400' vert per hike, why not go somewhere interesting???

The real reason it made me laugh is that whenever I'm being passed by someone (and it seems like around here there is *always* somebody who will blow by you -- always humbling esp when feeling like you're on your best day), I have an urge to say, "Yeah, 5th time's a killer, huh?" :biggrin:

...just to screw around...

I don't race anyone else, but I often like to take a look at the time to see how I'm doing. I realized that I can't tell just by how I feel -- I have plenty of times where I "feel fast" but am very slow...or other days when I feel like I'm absolutely dragging, but my time is OK.

It's all about the fun of it; the timing's just a minor distraction.

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Originally Posted by upallnight

How was the snow?

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Not too great. I didn't get up there until late (7pm), so the top was refrozen, the middle 20 turns were creamy and the bottom was soupy due to 4 days w/o a freeze. Didnt make it out today...I was dissuaded by the am rain and had a pretty intense game of Truck Tetris going that took most of the morning. 7 pairs of skis, 4 pairs of boots, 2 bikes, a couple tents, sleeping bags and a lot of misc gear. Yep, its a good thing I got the HD.

I lost my watch awhile ago, so I hadn't been timing myself. I've found that I move a lot faster when I have something to gauge my progress on.

Good Luck with rehab, UAN.