I was riding to work yesterday in what turned out to be a mini ice storm. A 30 mph crosswind caught the bike and sent it skating one way and me another. I landed pretty soundly on the ice. Nothing is broken, no blood, just some bruising and pain in the muscles around my tailbone. Sometimes the muscles spontaneously spasm (or I cough or sneeze) and it hurts, other times I lean back too far, or get up too fast and it hurts. When I say it hurts, it means I say some things that may make a sailor blush, but by the time I’m through with my expletives so is the “sensation.” As long as I don’t “irritate” it, it doesn’t ache much and I can sit and walk normally, etc.
I have a big ride (Solvang Century, my first century) this weekend and I’m travelling from Kansas to do it. I’m looking for advice on what I can do to make this go away. Ice? Heat? Stretching (how?) Sleep? Anti-inflammatories? Anti-depressants
I knew I’d get the “don’t solicit medical advice from random folks on the internet” warning… but I posted anyway. I know you’re right… but it’s taking random advice, not collecting it that’s dangerous.
I’m just looking for suggestions…
Thanks for pointing out the hazards.
Sorry Meg… but, the biggest part of being an active person is suffering the consequences of injuries. The biggest jump in athletic maturity is realizing that injuries take time and proper care to accomodate success.
Your best remedy is to get an evaluation by a doctor… once the problem has been determined, then you can make informed decisions about your next action. - race or recovery. Until your certain about what is wrong, you shouldn’t do the century. Only a physician can determine the extent of your injuries.
Doing the century and potentially ruining your whole summer (or, at least the first half) or forgoing the century and having the next few weeks/months of recovery may give you a whole summer of fun and activity. Hmmm…You make the call. If it was me, I’d see a doctor. Then, decide the fate of the century ride. Remember, your in this thing for the long haul, not just for a weekend.
After you get medical clearance, and if there’s still time, the one thing I would recommend is a massage by a good sports massage therapist. It’s generally not a good idea to get deep massage right before an event, but in this case it may help release some of the stuff that’s causing the pain (again, if the docs don’t find anything).
Even if you can’t ride, I hope you can come out to CA anyway! The weather in Solvang should be in the 60s-70s this weekend.
The ride was fabulous–hot baths, ice, and ibuprofen seemed to do the trick. In the end my crazy boyfriend on his fixed gear was more sore than I was. Maybe next year I’ll manage to keep up with him.
Can anyone tell me how the Solvang century compares to the Wildflower long course?
