Of Good Friends and Nightmares: A Weekend

Gravel Ground

A wet and cold weekend greeted us after a high 60's and sunny week. Mother Nature's sense humor reminds me of Peter - bad taste and poorly timed (rim shot). gRant and Parker came out for some Highland Rim wet and cold road ride fun with me on Saturday. It was a bad day of riding for me but just the kick in the pants I needed. I'm not sure if it was the lack of sleep or the stress levels, but I was far from on my game. Lame excuse? Let me back up.

A bright and sunny Friday found me happily hanging out at work programming after a nice surprise afternoon lunch and chat session with Monster McConnell. Rides were shaping up and life was good. Then I got the call. The one I've been fearing since August. JD had jumped the fence and was hit by a car. H. was with him and on the way to the vet. Hang up phone, heart sinks. Expletives shouted. Stuff kicked.

As I sat in traffic trying to get the F out of Dodge (there is no F which is why it's so difficult), H. called with an update: Broken femur and broken pelvis. Three options given wherein at the time only one seemed feasible and it involved cutting the top off of the femur. Moderate success with dogs under 40 lbs, dogs over 40 (like JD's 75lbs of puppy) not so good. Yes he'd be alive and mobile but prone to lameness, pain, and slowed activity. Dammit.

JD's right femur cap and pelvis are broken. They are the ones on the left of the image.

The option of leaving him in a kennel at the vet or keeping him at home with limited activity for the weekend until surgery could be scheduled was a no brainer: pup comes home. I slept out in the front room on my camping pad and bag to keep him from trying to get up into and out of the bed as well as monitor him for signs of shock or abdomen issues. He was moaning in pain and drooling all over the place, but we managed to squeak out a few hours of sleep.

Closer view.

He was unable to get up and out to potty, so I'd have to get up and carry him out a few times over the night. The good news was he was able to go and no blood was in either, both good signs. By morning he was doing a little better and trying to walk some, but still lethargic and unable to find a comfy position to lay in.

Morning came early. The guys arrived and we rolled out about an hour late due to my road shoes giving up the ghost and me having to quickly track down and swap out pedals. Then 1/2 mile down the road I realized I didn't check saddle height with the new pedals and shoes and eventually 2 stops were made during the course of the ride where I had to futz with my saddle height.

Several ill fated hill mailbox sprints, attacks, and shenanigans quickly shut my down and I limped back with the fellas with a measly 42 miles in for the day.

New Gravel Discovery. Also almost the new gRant's tomb. Shimmy Shimmy Shake.

Sunday found JD and I more rested and me actually ready to ride, albeit an hour late. This time it was the damned spring forward's fault. Actually I arrived at the meeting location 15 minutes past my anticipated arrival. I'd even gotten up early to make H. a special breakfast, but still, I hate being late. Parker and gRant were back for more (I still owed them 20 miles) and OldGreg was ready for more off the couch fun. A cold, gray, wet March day is the perfect gravel grinding weather.

Broken in just right.

I had spent a few hours the night before prepping my Rigor for gravel. Swapped out tires, repaired 3 tubes, put my replacement saddle on, the new cages, gearing swap, etc... About 3 miles into the ride I had to stop. Dammit. I thought I had a flat rear, but it ended up just being low pressure. gRant lent me his pump and I aired up both tires. I'm beginning to think it's a Parker thing. I'm usually mechanical issue free on rides and every time Parker's been around I've had issues: flat tire, broken shoe, saddle adjustments. I'm beginning to suspect sabotage.

New SS King cages

The ride rolled on from there with little issue aside from turning around at mile 4 to go the proper direction. We explored a new to us gravel road option then headed into our normal loop. I felt better on the mtb. Not sure if it was the sleep or just the fact that I'm more comfortable on it, but it was a much better riding experience. We motored on with the typical jackassery that accompanies these rides until OffTheCouchGreg and gRant pulled the plug at the top of Kitten Holler.

Also broken in just right.

I gave them my map and confusing instructions on how to get home, gRant gave me his pump and we went our separate ways. Parker and I continuing on. The next loop of gravel was wetter and stickier than the first. Not sticking to your tires sticky but slowly sucking away your forward movement sticky. Still it was good to be out and not be soley on pavement.

Downward facing dog. I guess it feels better on his hip?

By the time I got home JD was feeling better. He wagged his tail from his bed when I came in. Jeanie soon came over with some treats for him and he actually got up and greeted her (sly dog). Then he decided he'd make himself a little more comfortable and sat up on the couch.

Tomorrow hopefully we'll know more about surgery options and further prognosis. The waiting and not knowing the plan is killing me, but I'm trying my best to be patient.