Baller ral Posted February 26, 2014 Baller Share Posted February 26, 2014 As background info, I broke my neck two years ago falling OTF from 4 to 5, had a C-6/7 cervical fusion, with a metal plate screwed to my spine. Last October, a plate screw got loose an had the plate and hardware removed. Yesterday, I went into the water behind an unfamiliar boat (6.0l MasterCraft 197, usually ski behind a 5.7 Nautique 200) with my mind someplace else after a stressing day. Not a quiet dock, so did not follow my usual focusing routine. In my opener at 22 off, got pulled out of position at 4, and had a nasty OTF at the wake. I heard my neck crack. No huge pain besides the usual after a yard sale, and no neurological signs either, but my neck did make a cracking sound. Long story short, X-rays today seem to show that no damage was made and the fused vertebrae and cage did not move. I pictured myself, though, selling my Quest and not because of getting a brand new Helix... Not a warm feeling... I think that some injuries at our age in slalom happen because of not having the right mindset and concentration, especially when something is unfamiliar (new material, boat, etc...). Hope to learn from my last 24 hours. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
klindy Posted February 27, 2014 Share Posted February 27, 2014 Glad you're ok @ral! Scary for sure! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Texas6 Posted February 27, 2014 Baller Share Posted February 27, 2014 Holy crap!!!' A broken neck via OTF?? That scares the crap out of me as much as that happens to me! I agree wholeheartedly that focus and concentration is key. I ski terribly stressed out which is why I prefer to ski before work. Glad you are ok Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Ed_Obermeier Posted February 27, 2014 Baller Share Posted February 27, 2014 Good to hear you're OK and getting back on the water @ral. Go slow and work back into it a bit at a time. Having done my own share of injury rehab, be patient and your patience will be rewarded. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Bulldog Posted February 27, 2014 Baller Share Posted February 27, 2014 Glad nothing is broken @ral. Stay safe. "Do Better..." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller MrJones Posted February 27, 2014 Baller Share Posted February 27, 2014 On the "glass half full" side... I am a PT. My thought is that you may have just had some stiff facet joints that needed a good manipulation. I would recommend a controlled and directed technique, but what ever works! Let us know if you range of motion is better:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DooSPX Posted February 27, 2014 Share Posted February 27, 2014 WOW! Glad your okay @ral . That's very scary... This can be a pretty dangerous sport. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller GaryWilkinson Posted February 27, 2014 Baller Share Posted February 27, 2014 Wish I could say that I broke my neck doing shortline but alas, it was a very old kids trampoline and a bad decision that resulted in my 5 cracks spread over C5, C6. I had paralysis and almost needed surgery before my arm strength finally started to come back. All this to say when it doesn't look good at -28 off or -32, I let go! I'm no hero and I'm not skiing in tournaments anymore. So no more "watch this, hold my beer" on the tramp or anywhere for that matter. Glad the 2nd fall wasn't more serious. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Gloersen Posted February 27, 2014 Baller Share Posted February 27, 2014 Concur. Each set requires the proper mindset, when the line tightens; game face on or get back in the boat. No pun intended, but 80% of this sport is from the neck up. The whiplash effect from impacting the surface often after an OTF landing square on the back of the shoulders takes its toll. Wasn't Jon Travers wearing some sort of soft sports cervical collar for a while? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller ral Posted February 27, 2014 Author Baller Share Posted February 27, 2014 @MrJones, now that you mention it, the range of motion seems a bit better... Although with sore neck muscles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller B_S Posted February 27, 2014 Baller Share Posted February 27, 2014 Scary stuff. I had hardware in my back due to scoliosis from '83 until end of '11, when I had to have it dug out becuase my body decided it didn't like it in there any more and made my life particularly miserable. Lucky for me my fusion zone is T3-T11, so no neck or lumbar issues related to that. With that being said, you do have to have a "screw loose" to participate in this sport like we do! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Skoot1123 Posted February 27, 2014 Baller Share Posted February 27, 2014 @ral - glad your ok. Thanks for the warning.....sometimes we loose focus and "forget" what we are doing and anything becomes dangerous. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Gloersen Posted February 27, 2014 Baller Share Posted February 27, 2014 sometimes cracking sounds upon impact can be hard to discern. Double check the Quest maybe it subtly cracked - could mean a big discount on a new Helix! :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller jhughes Posted February 27, 2014 Baller Share Posted February 27, 2014 FWIW running the boots back too far on the Quest has put me into death-leans before. The ski would behave normally other than that 1 single tendency. Running the boots 1 hole forward of the death-lock position completely removed the behavior. FWIW, YMMV, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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