Broke Da Foot
Well, I have been windsurfing pretty much full time for 29 years and I finally broke a bone doing it.
Classic tale: Was going out for a super high wind session and split a beer with my buddy Carter. Oh I was feeling pretty frisky out there in 25-30 perfectly set up on my high wind gear.
Beer has a way of making one overconfident. I was hitting every windblown lip I could find, and feeling like a hero.
However, what my happy beer influenced mind had failed to act on was the unusually tight back footstrap on my old high wind board. Well I sure noticed it when I went for a relaxing wipe out on a failed aerial landing and as I leisurely fell back, my foot which would have normally swiveled out of the back strap, just stayed there and I heard a distinct CRACK, CRACK, CRACK.
Ouch.
The worst part was having to sail in, and crawl up the beach like Tom Hanks.
So now I do my sail design from the beach for a couple of months.
posted by Jeffrey, Glenn and Tom at
2/16/2009 11:45:00 AM
13 Comments:
Jeff, I want to warn your doctor that with a waterproof cast you'll be out stand-up paddling until you can get back in the waves again. Heal fast brother. Bob
I did get a waterproof cast already and did a lay down paddle from Maliko Gulch to home yesterday. So I AM in the water, but no standing up...
Ouch - that hurts! My bro reckoned it was just a sprain, the six pins and two plates makes me think otherwise. Still, all healed now.
Get well soon!
Andy
yeah, blame it on the beer, and therefore carter's fault. nice.
oh, and you seem to have forgotten about me carrying you up the beach.... tom hanks style? yeah right.
Bummer.
Windsurfing definitely affects judgment when it's "ripping", as all manner of good sailors (me too) get caught up in the moment and overlook something that ends up jeopardizing their safety. I have a pretty long list of friends and acquaintances who suffered some pretty serious injuries because they got carried away in the moment.
Hard to say for sure if the beer played a big role, but likely so. Many of my sailing buddies drink beer while sailing, but I prefer to wait until I'm done sailing for the day. I have bad enough judgment as it is!!
Without knowing what you broke, the mechanism of injury typically can cause some types of fractures that don't heal well and can end up with poor outcomes when the patient uses their foot too soon. Be careful! And get well soon!
better a broken foot than a ligament!
should have had a doobie instead of a beer :)
heal fast my friend!
Jeff, heal as fast as it's possible! Sorry to hear that :( Mentally I'm with you :)
Actually, Jeff, the injuries of greatest concern are fracture / dislocations that break bones AND tear ligaments. The mechanism of injury you report is capable of that. These are what I think you should chat with your orthopedist about, so you have a good notion of how much you can push the envelope in staying active in your cast.
Again, heal fast!
Carter, I DID crawl up the beach. You grabbed my stuff in the shore break (Thanks) and then you helped me get to the house. But I did for sure crawl up the beach!
Geoff, Yup I know. I hope when this cast comes off that my ligaments are ok.
Hang in there Jeff! Sorry to hear about the injury. Just take it easy, even after you get the cast off. I fractured and tore the ligaments across the top my foot last year. Surgery, screws, external fixation (with pins), and 8 weeks on crutches. After that, it took me about a month or so before I decided to put my foot back in a strap. If you didn't have surgery, you should heal much faster, but just take it easy after you get the cast off. The foot takes a while to heal.
I looked like a dork, but when I got back on the water, I wore a thin, tight bootie on my foot just to keep things compact while windsurfing. Helped me mentally to, and then I slowly transitioned out of it.
Take care!
BrianM
advil drug of choice by olympians and joe six pack windsurfer!!
Just a question. I'm a planning a wedding in Maui. Do you happen to know if there is anywhere to rent a sailboat? - Adam Dunst
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