Crashing is never fun

So.. 2 months later. Here I am. I am hoping to get back into regular blogging. Really hoping!

I have been really struggling this season to get my training done. Between battling with insomnia since the beginning of the year (which I think I have FINALLY figured out) and a knee issue that has been persisting since November, things have not been good. I train when I can, but until a few weeks ago, it was very discouraging and just not my main focus.

Then, I was able to sleep. (I may detail this journey in a different post). Then I started running again. Then I rejoiced! Maybe my season wasn't over! Maybe I could race the Keuka Olympic distance instead of deferring to next year or dropping down to the sprint distance. Maybe I could actually be competitive at Timberman in August! Life wasn't over yet!

Then, on my "long ride" (which was 2 hours) on Saturday, I crashed my bike 10 minutes from finishing up. I saw a pothole too late, tried to swerve out of the way but hit it anyways, lost control, and hit the pavement. I managed to stagger to the side of the road with my bike in tow (after checking the carbon frame for cracks, of course) and crawl onto the sidewalk, where I laid down. My right leg was killing me and I had minor road rash on my left palm and my right elbow. I think I was mostly just in shock. I sat up and tried to formulate a plan: how to get home. I didn't think I could ride the rest of the way home, and I didn't want to walk/hobble (it was probably 2 miles). So I called Kim (crying, obviously), who was the closest person to where I was, and left a voicemail. While I was waiting for her to call me back, I was trying to figure out who else to call, and then 2 cyclists stopped to help me. They were nice - they got me ice for my leg (which had immediately started to bruise and swell up) and offered to drive me home, and then Kim called me back and said she was on her way. She showed up 10 minutes later, drove me and my bike home, and helped me get it inside, where I then showered off the blood and started icing my leg.

Then I checked out my bike more closely and saw that my right aerobar was broken, so not wanting to waste time, I ran it to the bike shop so that I could get a replacement part ordered ASAP.

I had to take Sunday and Monday off from workouts. I couldn't run (I could barely put weight on my leg) and I didn't want to swim because I didn't want to get nasty pool water into my open road rash on my palm (which has turned out to be the worst of my few injuries). On Tuesday, I was climbing the walls at home so I got on my trainer and spun for 45 mins. That was the rest of my week.. 50 minute spins on my broken bike on the trainer. It went to the shop to get fixed on Friday and now I have it back!

It stinks that I am dealing with yet another setback, but honestly, I am SO thankful that I am not *really* hurt. People crash their bikes and they break their collarbones, pelvises, get hit by cars, or die. I have a hematoma on my leg and brush burn on my palm. No car ran over me while I was lying in the road, tangled in my bike. I didn't have to be picked up by an ambulance. I didn't even have to go see a doctor. So while I might be annoyed that I don't know what I am going to do about my race that is 1 week from tomorrow, I really am lucky.

About that race.. I have dropped from the Intermediate distance to the Sprint distance, but it's not going to be pretty. What's even more unfortunate is that I won this race last year. So it's going to be hard to go from winning by a 9 minute margin in 2011 to sucking in 2012. But.. I wouldn't miss Keuka Lake Tri for the world!