injuries suck...

[6balls]

May have ended my best season last night given it's fall in MN. Caught the outside of 3 ball on a very early 38 pass coming in...ski hopped, then bit and I torched my right ankle. Thankfully came out but came out hard. Just looked at my xray and thankfully no fracture, but on crutches...pretty hard sprain.

No tourney Friday now, hoping for Skiwatch in a month though will have minimal practice if able to make it. Going to start w/PT/athletic trainers right away.

The bummer was I found s'thing that worked really well last night. I run PP classic and the 28 opener came in 16.82 (it felt slow, and I must have been light on the boat). Driver took 10 lbs out for 32 off and ran 16.81. If I'm skiing that light...something is right. Ran a couple 16.85 35's and feeling great took the crack at 38 with a great 1,2, early to 3, edge change a little too soon but thought I was ok and would come right off the back of the ball. Caught the back of the ball just enough for the ski to hop and the rest is history. GRR.

Well, at least it's not early or mid-season!

 

[The_MS]

lots of ice. You will be back in a few days.

[ral]

They do suck. As I mentioned in a previous post, for me a good skiing day is when you can ski the following day. The only way for a ski day to be bad is when you get injured.

 

Heal fast!

[skinut]

Did you have water filled Buoys? Do you thing a Goode Power Buoy would have prevented the injury?

[jipster43]

Last year I tore my rotator cuff at the end of June - out until mid August. This year I broke my foot on July 6. Out until mid August. Montana summers are too darn short to lose a month. Good luck with a speedy recovery!

 

JP :)

[6balls]

Thanks all for the well wishes. Skinut, it was a standard buoy. Not sure if anything else would have helped. Not going to sweat it too much as this is the only time I've fallen this way. We could probably weight the balls a little deeper...each has a sand filled milk jug at present.

Starting PT today...ice, elevation, naproxen, gin and vicodin were life savers last night!

Jipster...I'll stop complaining...you had it far worse.

 

[Horton]

If I had video of my face plant on a slippery swim step Sunday .... It would make everyone feel a little better.

[Chef23]

I ruptured a disk in my back in early June and started skiing about two weeks ago. After two weeks of skiing and one tournament I am in pain and thinking I will have surgery in October. It has been a wasted summer for me (but not for my kids). Hopefully I will be good to go next year because our summer is over in Mass.

[Rup]

Still not skied since I damaged my ribs 5 weeks ago.....

[RB]

"Getting hard to brush my teeth"

 

Been dealing with this for a few weeks, bicep tendinitis. Joy.

 

 

[Horton]

@RB I just take drugs for that.

[thager]

6balls,

 

Hope you're feeling better soon!

[jipster43]

I gotta' believe the power vest is only gonna' get more popular.

 

JP :)

[Razorskier1]

Hey brother -- since compression and cold help with soft tissue injuries, and since your binding is tight and the water is getting cold . . . seems like skiing will turn out to be the perfect therapy!

[Ed_Johnson]

Did the same thing hitting a water filled buoy that was a little loose two years a go. Replaced our buoys with the Goode's and everyone has hit them numerous times without one incident. Mostly because they have no fear of them.

 

Get better soon, ED

[6balls]

Physical therapist/athletic trainer thinks I may have ruptured my posterior tibialis tendon. Wants to work on me daily this week then decide whether to MRI. I'm thinking partially torn but not gone so going to ride it out a bit. Looks pretty gnarly today.

[Than_Bogan]

Bah!! I was looking forward to your report of running -38 at a tournament!

 

Next seasons, perhaps. The closest thing I have to advice is: Don't rush to get back. Do everything to get to 100%. Us Men 3ers have lots of seasons left if we're smart!

[Klundell]

Injury's do SUCK! I hope you heal soon. I'm a huge advocate for bubble buoys I think they have made the sport safer. You can still get hurt hitting a bubble buoy but the ski definitely doesn't get crazy airborne off of them like a standard buoy.

[Wish]

If ya cant afford BB (and I can't) water buoys are the way to go especially on a float course. I know it saved my a.. more than once along with many other body parts. I ski at a buddys place with air filled and forgot it was air filled. Juuuuust caught the tip and blam. Would not have happened with water filled IMHO. No injury though. Oh ya, I will still take anyone's old faded buoys. Non waterfilled obviously. I'll pay shipping and a bit more. Look at it as a trade in program where ya make a few bucks for something u were gonna toss.

[jwr]

Hurt my back pretty good in april. Found out i have scoliosis, kyphosis, spondeolosis, three vertebrae out of place, two bulging disc, inflamed si joint, and inflamed facet joint. Nuerosurgeon said i could ski if i could tollerate the pain. He does not believe im doing any damage, even jumping. A lot of physical therapy and supplements and i was able to make regionals and nationals. I didnt ski great, but i skied and placed. Injuries suck because i was skiing really good and expecting a good year, before i got hurt. Worst part is i didnt even get hurt skiing, i was dicking around the house. Taking off the rest of the year to try and heal and strenghthen for next year. Hope you get better soon. Maybe see you at ski watch. Im not skiing but will go help out.

[Ham_Wallace]

Horton,

Everyone gave me s#%t about my balance bracelet. I swear by it. It broke the last outing before Nationals. Everyone said it was a crock. I then proceeded to bust my %ss on the platform. I put it in my board shorts pocket where it remains today. Needless to say, I have been wearing the same shorts for a month. No more %ss busting on those micro Nautique platforms either.

As for 6balls: 1. Ibuprofen, 2. Beer, 3. Don't take up jumping, 4. Ibuprofen, 5. Ice, 6. Did I mention Ibuprofen? ( For once, MS is right)

[lbow]

7 weeks since i fractured my fibula - still haven't really even though about skiing. I believe there is at least a partial tear in my ankle as well.

[6balls]

I will be at skiwatch regardless even if I can't ski. Already have tickets and Razor1 will be skiing. My guess is I can shove it in a boot by then, just not sure I will be able to ski hard.

I'm stuffed full of naproxen and vicodin, been icing, doing range of motion exercises and hobbling around on crutches. Back to work today. PT later this a.m.

Wish, tell me more about filling balls w/water. How much water? Half the buoy? 3/4?

 

[Wish]

There is a good thread on this site. But on my phone so no search option. About half yes. Thread says how to do it. Just to put it in perspective, we used an iron railroad plate (16lbs I believe) to hold the air filled ball half way under the water. Not sure on the physics but to me it would take double that to sink it. Water filled now, we use a little red brick with the three holes in it. Under water it ways almost nothing. They just move out of the way or go under when hit. Perfectly safe? No. Better than air filled? Yes, by a long shot!! Other bonus is very little cord tension so far far less buoys come off.

[Razorskier1]

OB -- last time my right shoulder felt like that I had a torn labrum. Sent me to PT. I asked my PT if it would get better -- NO, but it will be OK if you don't ski. Went back to the surgeon. On MRI (with contrast injected) it showed as about 20% torn. In reality it was 80% torn (tough to get good MRI). Repaired in the fall, skiing in the spring.

 

Water buoys. Hmmm. I have hit my fair share of buoys on my course, which is a portable in a public lake with no weight on any ball. They displace (position-wise) immediately, and that has never been a source of injury for me. Maybe I just hit them harder than most people!

[Wish]

Razor, your basically mimicking the water filled by not weighting them down. Almost no cord tension and the buoys have a better chance of moving out of the way if struck. I ski a course in MN (when visiting in July) with that exact set up. However, they are leg slappers. And being so high out of the water, they can displace lower body parts not just ski parts IMHO. Just think, if u filled them 1/2 or a bit more with water, they would do the exact same thing only much much closer to what u see at a tourney. No need to change your set up, just change your balls. :-) Oops off topic. Aaaaah.. Was out for 4 weeks in July/Aug after being folded in half the wrong way. Took more than two hours after the hit just to take my first deep breath. Ok that's not that bad. :-/

[Razorskier1]

Wish -- I do take all the buoys off every fall and basically pop em and throw em out because they are so faded. They also have the typical lake scum on the bottoms. If you want them, I can keep them and send them to you. Let me know. The balls do float high, and it can be optically odd when I go to tournaments where the balls are really pulled down after skiing my course at home. I have slapped a lot of buoys off of the legs.

 

OB -- if it is torn, get it fixed. Mine has been great ever since.

[6balls]

Any on of us can hit a ball and have the ski pop out, re-catch and be injured, eve if it has not happened yet...first time for me Monday night. A buddy of mine has hardware in both of his ankles from skiing buoys. It's part of the risk we take doing what we do. If it's not difficult and a person has the time, I'm all for making buoy adjustments to lessen risk.

Can't remember which pro-skier was doing a clinic and would not demonstrate short-line skiing b/c he felt dangerous with the buoys too high. Friend of a friend story.

Sunny warm glass here today...wish I could get out there!

[Marco]

Hang in there 6Balls. Could be worse. My summer of 09 season ended when I hit a buoy and blew out my achilles, resulting in surgery. My '10 season ended when my tail blew out and I went down in full reach, tramatically dislocating (and destroying) my shoulder resulting in surgery and a 9 month rehab.

 

OB- If your shoulder needs fixin, get it done ASAP so you are ready for next summer. I had to stay off the water for 9 months with my repair (torn labrun, torn rotator cuff, torn bicep tendon, 6 hour surgery). Jus started skiing hard a month ago, and twisted my knee last weekend playing with the kids. It sucks getting old!!

[6balls]

Very tough ride Marco....so you hang in there too! I definitely jerked the achilles as well. It's intact, but mighty sore at the insertion into the heel.

[clark]

I feel for you 6balls. After a good tournament result for me,1@38 both rounds. I figured it was time to put in more practice in at 38. On Monday after a few good starts, the season all came to an end for me. I tore a muscle in my abdomen, falling at 3 ball. Not sure what happened, thought is was going run it for the first time. Looks like I will have to wait until next year and that sucks!!

 

[Mbskier]

I tore my other achiles tendon on monday, 3 years and 3 days to the date of the previous (same injury occured on my other leg) injury. Same fall toe side turn at 35off. Both binding released, but not quick enough. Each injury occured in totally different binding systems. Goes to show you never know what binding system is safer! Good thing I have 7 months till next season and the same doctor putting me back together...

[Marco]

Man- Sorry to hear that! At least you know what you are in for, and it happened at the end of the summer. Tomorrow is the 2nd anniversary of my achilles rupture, and I was back on the water by May. Heal fast!

[Razorskier1]

Glad all of you get hurt too (just kidding)! My wife kept telling me I wasn't put together very well since I have had my share of orthopedic surgeries. Now I know it is just part of the water ski experience! Seriously, I was lucky with the torn shoulder labrum as it happened late in the season (August) and I just skied with it the rest of the year despite the pain. Fixed in October, 5 month rehab and I was skiing when the ice went out. Same thing when I ruptured the disc in my back (L4-L5) in late August of a different year. Between pain and weakness, I could hardly walk in September, but by February the pain was better and the weakness was getting better. With lots of PT time I was skiing again in April. Biceps tendon tear, not so lucky. Did that one in April. Missed the entire season. Still, better to rehab any injury/surgery correctly than to push it. I'd rather lose one season than all of them.

[Marco]

Razor- If you are going to do a shoulder, do it all at once to get it over with. I blew up my labrum, rotator cuff, and bicep tendon all in one fell swoop last October, and only lost half of this season!

 

Seriously, you are right on the money about taking the time to rehab properly and not push it. Speaking from experience, it is a lot harder to do than it is to say...

[6balls]

It's a screamer getting my foot/ankle into the leverage binding despite lots of soap. Once in, feels ok. Still limping around quite a bit in terms of walking. Was able to run 28's and 32's today w/out issue. Would still be trouble to forcefully come out of the binding or have the ski stall and get forward.

Maybe poke the blue line next week, the purple the following as will be on top of skiwatch tourney.

[hammerski]

Memorial Weekend getting ready for the first tournament of the year up here in the rainy and cold PNW. Shallowed my fin up just a little bit more to let it finish quicker on my offside. Went out on my opener at 28, went around 2 then just off the wake on the way to 3 ball, tail became airborne and passed up the tip of the ski. I thought in that ignasecond, hmm, that's a weird place for that to happen... Then SNAP!!! as the ski set down perpendicular to my travel. Broke the end of my tibia off, damage to every tendon in my foot.

 

Finally able to walk on it now, and working hard to get my calf and balance strength back. This sucks! I had rubber bindings. My buddy Mike Suyderhoud said he's been putting a little vaseline in the heel just for that reason. My heel lifted about an inch then stopped from coming out all the way causing the violent accident. I strongly feel if I'd done vaseline in the heel, I'd still be skiing. Mike said, "If your heel is lifting, you're in trouble anyway and you want it to come out easily" Makes perfect sense. Hope this helps someone else out there!

 

Next bindings? Something that completely releases, powershells for me next season.

[RichardDoane]

my right ankle is a little sore this morninghttp://ballofspray.static.vanillaforums.com/uploads/FileUpload/99/ad481a66056cdd557a6c2c35ec0aca.jpg

[Jim Neely]

How did it happen?

 

[6balls]

Wow Richard...that looks eerily familiar...almost identical to mine.

I'm two weeks out today. It's still a bit swollen, a lot less discolored. My primary problem now is achilles attachment into heel. The ankle itself coming around ok, the achilles has me limping big time.

Sorry about your injury. I am also curious as to mechanism of injury. Between the ice/elevation/ace wraps and drugs fill us in.

[RichardDoane]

Luckily one of the guys had some dexamethasone, some kind of cortisone steroid, so with ice, elevation, and keeping it wrapped I was able to still help out scoring, driving, judging etc. this weekend. Hobbling around at work today, headed to the dr. tomorrow to x-ray and to see about getting my own Rx. Sucked that it happened in the 1st round, but it coulda been worse......

[RichardDoane]

Jim - running late and fast into the 3 ball, felt the tail get loose, then stepped on the front too hard and buried the tip, came to an instant stop, overextending forward on my front foot, felt like I had jumped off a roof. Gave the achilles a good flex test, and luckily it passed. A good reminder to everyone to stretch before skiing.....

[Razorskier1]

Ouch! I hit a three ball this morning (I am RFF) really square with my lower left leg. Stopped the ski momentarily, but I just pushed the ski through and finished the turn and ran the pass (-35). Got lucky not to be where you are Richard! Good luck on the rehab.

[Jim Neely]

I hit the three ball 10 days ago. My rear foot (RFF) came partially out then slamed back into the ski, twisted my ankle and bruised the bottom of my foot. It's still too painful to ski. I was early and just turned too soon.

[RichardDoane]

no, there's not a single binding out there that releases through the bottom of a ski.. darn 3 ball...

[6balls]

Richard's on Strada's, I was on a D3 Leverage and RTP. Same result with same mechanism. I was on two crutches for 2 days, one crutch for one, then crutch free and hobbling. Did a good job w/ice, elevation, compression right away. X-ray the next day, and began PT with athletic trainer that day as well 3X/week. Initially some vicodin, now just naproxen twice daily.

Shoved big purple ankle into the binding with much discomfort and skied 6 days post injury just running 28's. I actually ski way better than I walk...worst part is getting in/out of the binding...and walking to/from the dock. Tonight 2 weeks post injury ran 28's and 32's. Feels fine as long as I'm skiing well, but wouldn't want to stop the ski or take any kind of fall that pushes foot up to stress achilles or strain the medial ankle ligaments. Wise ski partner refused to shorten to blue line for me.

Happy healing Richard and Jim. Richard, as the ankle improves don't push the achilles in therapy...totally backfired on me w/significant setback in ability to walk.

 

[6balls]

Oh yeah, forgot this part. In med school they taught us to remember the three tendons that come behind and then under the medial ankle as Tom, Dick and Harry for posterior Tibialis, flexor Digitorum longus, and flexor Hallicus longus. As they move forward in the foot they cross and the reminder unfortunately becomes Tom's Harry Dick. My buddy Tom the orthopedic surgeon recently reminded me of same.

[lbow]

Richard - i did the exact same thing last year at 2 ball - lff. Eventually I got an mri and had a partially torn something. Took many months until it was 100%. This year i made a similar move and the tail blew out and the tip hit first with even worse results. Your bruising is more impressive than mine although I think this is about an hour and half after i fractured it.

 

https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/lyVz8Qce3HQZroRR5Cc1pA?feat=directlink

 

I thought mine was just a bad sprain until the x-rays showed a spiral fracture.

[6balls]

lbow, yours looks way more like a fracture...that's a nasty picture. After the appropriate period of heavy breathing, I pulled my foot from the water hoping it didn't look like yours. Thankfully it looked like Richard's. Sorry about your injury.

[lbow]

I've had 3 surgeries on this ankle(only one from skiing) and then multiple sprains so I'm not sure what it is supposed to look like anymore. Thankfully i didn't walk on it too long before getting xrays - apparently if it would have slid any further i would have had to get hardware installed. Been considering any way to not have this happen again, but ultimately staying in the comfort zone is probably the only solution.