Clocking 68.9 km/hr on El Dorado
Last day in Montana. How do I sum it up. Some light, some dark, some good some bad. I’ve skiied nine days in succession, mostly blues, some single blacks. Skiing has been uneventful. Beautiful, still sunshine days. Haven’t broken anything. Only snowed once and then only lightly, which is disappointing, but the windless conditions are a compensation. I don’t think I’ve ever experienced such a long run of sunny, still days on a ski resort before. Gradually getting quicker – did 68.9km/hour the other day on one run. Nothing like previous adventures. I suspect the double blacks are beyond me now but I’m glad just to be here. Knee hurts sometimes, especially if I’ve been on steep stuff and going hard. Never mind. This time last year I was in a wheelchair, so I’m not complaining.
I wore a neoprene knee brace today for the first time but I don’t think it made much difference.
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- Dusk. Big Sky from my hotel room
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- Village Centre Big Sky Montana
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- Ski in entrance at rear of hotel showing hot tub. Big Sky
Leave for Ketchum at Sun Valley, Idaho tomorrow for ten days. Interestingly, that’s where Ernst Hemingway went for the last years of his life and where he committed suicide. He was one of my great literary influences as a teenager so I’m going to pay my respects. He is buried in Ketchum, where he went to live after a long self imposed exile in Cuba. So it’s not all about skiing.
Chipmunks have been great here. One came and perched on my ski the other day while I was sitting high on the mountain contemplating the view. Super moment.
Looking forward to the drive tomorrow to Idaho and a new resort. I’ve never done this trip before. Never skied Sun Valley. Drive goes past the Western side of Yellowstone National Park and it’s supposed to be beautiful.
LESSONS FOR THOSE RETURNING TO SKIING AFTER TIBIAL PLATEAU SURGERY.
- You can ski 12 months after surgery ie in the season following the one in which you break your leg but you will not come back at the same level as you were.
- It will hurt. There seems no getting away from this. It hurt my daughter Catherine when she came back two years after surgery and it hurt me.
- Don’t ski for too long each day, at first. Start with one or two hours and build up.
- If it really hurts …. stop
- Care should be taken to avoid accidents late in the afternoon when the knee becomes sore and you start favouring it by not putting weight on the broken leg when it is the downhill ski. The risk is it skates away in the turn and you lose it with a big fall.
- Have about every 5th day off. I skiied 9 days straight on this my first season back and I’m sore tonight. That was too much.
- Build up to it. Don’t try and ski on double blacks in the first season back. I think single blacks are plenty. It puts too much stress on the broken knee. First season back should be about finding out how much damage has been done and how you have recovered. It is here you will find out if you have done enough rehab and whether it was the right type. Start out working on coordination and regaining muscle and tendon strength and regaining confidence.
- Avoid skiing in bad light or in very icy conditions until confidence and strength returns. Your reflexes and co-ordination are not going to be as good as they were.
SKIING IS LIKE RIDING A BIKE. YOU NEVER FORGET. OLD SAYING AND IT’S TRUE. HOWEVER, WHEN YOU COME BACK AFTER SURGERY, YOU WILL FIND THAT ONE OF THE TIRES IS SLIGHTLY DEFLATED. YOU MAY HAVE TO PEDAL HARDER AND TAKE GREAT CARE.
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