Yesterday I got a lot accomplished, I guess. I like to multi-task and that is pretty much what I did all day. The results didn’t turn out as good as I had hoped, but it could be worse.

First of all, I drove my Honda Insight over to downtown Denver to have a new hybrid battery installed. That part went pretty well. It was supposed to take around 2 hours and it took closer to 3, but that was fine. During the waiting period, I had my bike with me and I rode over to a coffee shop and tried to get a hip x-ray scheduled. That took a while. I had an order for an x-ray, but it seems that most places have rules about walk-ins. I finally got ahold of a nice woman over at Cherry Creek Imagines and she said no problem.

So, I rode over there and it didn’t take any time at all. Maybe 20 minutes total. I left with a disc of the x-rays. I then rode back to the car repair shop and they needed another hour, so I went for a ride. I just rode on a bike path up along the Platte River past Commerce City. I am really good at riding bike paths now. I’ve done it more here than I have ever in my life. The flat bike paths, along waterways, are very good for not climbing.

So, I had nearly 30 miles by the time the car was fixed. I drove the car back to Vincent’s in Arvada and got over 60 mpg, so the battery helped a ton. Then Vincent spent a half hour trying to open the x-ray. It takes special software, which I don’t understand. Eventually Vincent got the 3 images to open. It didn’t look so good to me. My hip seemed to be pretty healed, but there is a knob at the top of the hip that seemed to of moved. I remembered asking my doctor in Iowa about that a month ago and he said that they don’t mess with that and it would heal itself.

So I was stressed and sent off a few pictures to my Iowa guy, Matt, and Stacie from Louisville. I didn’t hear back for a little while, so Vincent and I rode over to Golden to spin. Eventually Matt texted me back and said what he had said before, that he wouldn’t fix it and that I’m going to limp around for a while longer because of it. My hip has hurt a lot recently. Like enough I can’t sleep again. That is why I got the x-ray to start with. I guess I’m glad it isn’t something worse, but am bummed that the knob, (officially tip of the greater trochanter) moved over. I guess it’s never going to be in the right place. Seems like there should be some bone glue to just stick it back into place.

Anyway, it is what it is. I’m broken still. I guess I’ll just keep doing what I’m doing. The doctor said that my hip abductors insert in that area, but “the bone is NO way structural or compromises the integrity or repair of the hip”. That is good. It doesn’t help with the sleep, or walking, or riding, but it is good.

I’m going to drive up to Steamboat Springs pretty soon. Guess I’m going to try to ride with Kent and Katie. I hope they can find a flat road to ride on there. Hint, hint. I climb pitifully, at best now.

Original x-ray.

Picture now.

Close up.

Honda hybrid battery area.

Pretty good mileage so far.

Text from Matt.

I drove up to Steamboat yesterday and got there just in time to miss a day of rain. I showed up at Kent Eriksen Cycles just in time to suit up and go for a great ride up the river. I’m still kind of shell-shocked about my upper trochanter hurtin’. The lack of sleep is getting bad again.

Anyway, I love to ride, but would not ride some if I thought that the thing would heal faster. I have had contact with my surgeon, plus Stacie, and now Eric Heiden. They all assure me that this isn’t an issue, but I have a hard time understanding why it wouldn’t be. My abductors muscle connects to the top of this bone and I can’t see how it didn’t rip the top of this bone off and if that is the case, why the use of the muscle wouldn’t make it nearly impossible for the thing to attach. I guess I have to believe what I hear, but it is challenging for me.

Anyway, it is approaching noon. I woke up this morning after an all night rain here in Steamboat. Kent lives up in the woods by the hot springs here in Steamboat. He works until super late, like after 1 am, but was up at 8 this morning when I got up. I didn’t sleep much between 2 and 5, so I thought 8 was late.

I like hanging out in the morning with Kent. We don’t get to talk so much, so it’s nice. He was a little worried about the rain and some beaver ponds he has down below his land. So, we loaded up Bromont and headed down to the Beaver ponds with shovels. I never imagined that would be a task for this morning.

It was a little more of a massive project than I had anticipated. I’m limping around, at best, so was sort of worried about helping much. Kent got down in the pond as we dug a spillway off the end of the lower pond. Last week it was 4 feet from the top of the dam and today it was overflowing. Kent has a million projects going on here, all at once. He needs a full-time guy around here doing the odd jobs.

Anyway, Bromont got to romp around in the woods for an hour while we worked. I only have one pair of shoes with me, since I drove the Insight and can’t really walk much. They are toast now, which is alright. It is so strange not worrying about getting sick or repercussions of things I would normally stress about while I’m racing. Strange in a nice way.

I’m heading down to town soon to eat lunch with the crew that work at the shop. Katie’s mom makes lunch for all the guys everyday, so the set an extra place setting for me. Bromont is completely wiped out from chasing ducks and running around, so he’ll be fine sleeping all afternoon. It is supposed to rain all day, so looks like it will be an inside day.

Having some morning coffee with Kent. The phone rings pretty constant in the morning.

A new pole barn Kent built recently. Not completely done yet.

Kent doing a temporary fix, lining our spillway with plastic.

Bromont getting led around by a mother duck.

All wet and happy.