I got away with it… until I couldn’t any longer.
Life had to teach me a lesson.
One of my only hobbies outside of gym life is mountain biking. I love the physical challenge of the climb while being out in nature. The rush of the downhill. Cruising through the trees and getting into the flow as the wind rushes past my face.
As wonderful as it can be, it does have it’s dangers.
Just like with cars, mountain bike crashes happen every day.
We were recently away on our summer vacation near Salmon Arm, BC which has one of my favourite riding trails just outside of town. I make sure to do it at least once every time we’re out there. It’s the most technical and challenging trail I do all year. This year it had a lesson to teach me.
In short, I crashed.
About one quarter of the way through the downhill section I hit a root which sent my front tire sideways which sent me off the narrow trail into the trees where I had to bail out. My knee came down onto what must have been a sharp rock and gashed it wide open. It looked bad and I knew I had to get down, and right away. I was by myself and no one was coming to save me.
I made it to the parking lot and it was there I noticed that something didn’t feel right in my big toe on my left foot, it was starting to throb. Also, I noticed that my left hip was hurting and I’d ripped a hole through three layers of clothing. My biking shorts, my padded undershorts, and my underwear. I was afraid to look at either of these.
I drove straight to emergency and checked myself in and then was joined by my wife shortly thereafter.
We proceeded to spend most of the day in the hospital. Lots of waiting, X-rays, freezing, stitches in my knee, more freezing, morphine, having my big toe put back in place (I thought it was broken but it turned out to be dislocated) more X-rays, and we were on our way.
I share this not for sympathy but rather to share the epiphany I had.
It’s that all of this pain was completely avoidable.
Some common equipment in mountain biking is elbow pads, knee pads, and biking shoes.
I’ve never wore any of this and especially thought that the shoes were quite a ridiculous marketing ploy, I mean really, why would one invest $200+ dollars in shoes when all they do is stay on the pedals? Surely any shoe would do the trick just fine.
I learned the hard way that they are more for if your feet come flying off the pedals (like mine did) and you end up in the trees. The sole of the shoe is rock hard and protects your feet and especially your toes from impact.
Had I made the investment and been wearing the proper gear when my crash happened, I more than likely would have dusted myself off and rode away with a few scratches.
Missing those few key pieces caused me a lot of pain. I didn’t learn the lesson in the near misses from the past or minor crashes so I had to have a major one. I got away with it until life inevitably made it so I couldn’t get away with it any longer.
Lesson learned. Equipment shall be purchased and worn on every ride from here.
It makes me think how hard we make things for ourselves because we tend to need a major catastrophe to happen before we dare think of making change and taking the action that would have prevented it from happening in the first place.
Having no clue and eating like crap for years until something major happens (heart attack, diabetes, chronic pain/illness). We get away with it until life makes it so we can’t anymore. A price must be paid.
Excessively drinking alcohol until that DUI, car accident, broken relationships, organ failure, etc. We get away with it until life makes it so we can’t anymore. A price must be paid.
Being inactive, overweight/obese, physically weak and out of shape until depression/anxiety, injury, chronic pain, and lack of confidence make it so we can’t anymore. A price must be paid.
My advice for you is to learn the easy lesson before it turns into the hard lesson.
Examine your daily habits, everything from your self-talk to what you’re physically putting into your body and mind every day.
If you have things that you know are leading nowhere good (and we all do) pick one and take some small positive step today.
This could be as small as going for a walk around the block or drinking a few cups of water.
It could be making an investment in your health, fitness, or mindset.
It will look different for all of us but one thing I know is that making a few small adjustments today can save you from a world of hurt tomorrow.
We never think it’s going to happen to us until it does.
The right shoes could have saved me the experience of screaming and weeping in front of my wife as the doctor tried to put my big toe back in (truly one of the most painful things I’ve ever been through).
Knee pads could have saved me the huge gash in my knee and stitches that followed.
I wouldn’t be walking with the limp I am now and currently unable to live a life of freedom.
This equipment was available to me ever since I started riding seven years ago. I ignored it until it could be ignored no longer. I paid the price for my lack of action in pain and I’m still paying it right now.
So my questions for you are:
1) What have you been avoiding that you know you shouldn’t be?
2) What favourite excuses of yours is it time to dispose of? (too expensive, don’t have time, etc.)
3) What are you waiting for?
Take action to avoid catastrophe.
Learn the easy lesson before you have to learn the hard lesson.
Embrace the pain for freedom from pain
(ie. in my situation embracing the pain of having to part with $600 for the proper equipment would have freed me from all the physical pain I’ve had to experience instead).
Ride on,
Matt
