BROKEN COLLARBONE UPDATE, ALMOST 3 YEARS LATER

For a little collarbone-related peace of mind before I leave for Luxembourg, I saw Dr. Bergman yesterday. He's the surgeon who plated my collarbone in May 2010 when I Supermanned over my bike handlebars on the Boulevard Trail in Bellingham.

I'd been wondering if I should have the titanium centipede removed (see above X-ray shot yesterday) because a screw, or something, visibly protrudes. (See here and other posts throughout this blog.) And while it doesn't hamper or limit my mobility in any way, sometimes my collarbone aches and with such a protuberance (that's an upsetting word), I wondered if it was time to have it taken out.

But Dr. Bergman says no. The X-ray shows that the clavicle has healed well and there's no sign of a screw working its way out, which had been my concern. He prodded around a bit, said everything felt good and that the protuberance (there's that word) might just be bone growth atop one of the nine screw heads. "Whew!," say I. I was loathe to have more surgery.

In the above photo, please also take a moment to admire my first-ever Fu Manchu mustache. Or maybe it's a biker mustache. (What's the difference?)        

CANCELLARA AND ME

Sadly, Fabian Cancellara broke his collarbone in Sunday's Tour of Flanders. Looks like he dun it but good too. Check out his X-ray (above). There're four breaks. 

Here's mine from two years ago.

Wish I'd could've had the jaunty, Europey sling that Spartacus has.

BROKEN COLLARBONE UPDATE

Being that this is Valentine's Day I felt it was the perfect time to post an update on my collarbone break and subsequent surgery of almost two years ago. (?) Here's what it looks like today:

You can see a straight line (that's the titanium pin) and then a prominent bump which I presume is one of the nine screws. (Hopefully, not working its way out.) 

Here's a close-up:



(The top is a mirror shot; that's why it looks like they're opposite shoulders.) Admittedly, I'm sort of jutting my shoulder out a bit to make it more visible for the camera, but even when I don't it's still pretty prominent.

I never feel any pain or discomfort, I've got full strength and range of motion back, it never stops me from doing anything and I can throwing a baseball as hard as I could before the surgery (low 90s with good movement) but still ... there's something weird about the way it feels. The bone underneath doesn't feel straight; it almost feels like it's the shape of a spoon with a dip or divot in it. And right next to that is where the screw sticks out, which itself feels weird. I spend a lot of time just unconsciously touching it, tracing my finger along the weird shape, the way you unconsciously finger an earring after you've had your ear pierced. 

So, I don't know if I'd have surgery next time were I to break my collarbone again. I also don't know what the long-range effects will be of having a titanium plate in my shoulder. And though I know that I can have it removed--seems like that's what the pro cyclists do--I'm fairly loathe to have more surgery 'lest it's absolutely necessary.    

With that, Happy Valentine's Day!

LOOK WHAT I DUN

Inspired by Paris-Roubaix, I've been taking my old road bike out on dirt roads and rail trails. However, I forgot to decrease the tire pressure and yesterday, just after dropping Boonen and Cancellara on the Boulevard Trail (in my mind, that is), I hit a bump that sent my flying over the handlebars and sorta cleaved my clavicle in twain. (See above.) Everything is put on hold for now.  

In other news, click here for a vdeo I put together of me running the streets and sites of Paris.