Back On The Bike At Last :: 21st April, 2012

Two and a half weeks since the accident and I finally managed to get back into the saddle. I'm sure the Venge missed being taken out for a run and I don't think she was too impressed with the manner in which she was returned to duty. However, I'm sure she is happy to at least still be in one piece and unblemished. As for me, I still have a lot of work to do as the ride this morning put the sting into both knees so I still expect to suffer for another one or two weeks before I can begin to rebuild the form I will have lost.

It will only be form lost as I sense my fitness is still there which I can definitely attribute to the activities I have been keeping up during my time off the bike to help expedite my rehabilitation. I had a good chat with Brad on Thursday night and he will be working on completing my return to form as and when I can begin placing the usual load requirements back on the knees. I am so looking forward to getting back into his programs again and suffering in a far more appropriate manner.

I could barely sleep last night as I was keen to know how I would go getting back in the saddle and on the road, so when the alarm woke me at 6am I'd totalled just 3 hours of sleep but that was not going to deter me from getting the bike down to the shop for the morning's ride. A nice cool morning for the return so it was going to be tough not being able to get the HR up enough to keep warm.

From the moment I got on the bike and rode around the car park for a while I could tell that it would be a definite Group 7 effort with Nick. Not easy to see everyone else lining out in Group 1 and not being able to join them but keeping my rehabilitation plan on track should have me back there in a couple of weeks.

Nick kept a nice gentle pace for the duration of the short ride out to Mt Henry Bridge but our young companion was suffering a little and they decided to turn back and head for home. I rode with them as far back as Canning Bridge but then crossed the bridge for the second time and headed out for the Shelley Loop on my own to see how the legs would handle a longer ride.

For the most part, the ride was uncomfortable but not constantly painful. There were a few times where a bit of effort was required to keep forward momentum and this seemed to cause the most pain around the knees. Thankfully this was not internal or structural pain and was merely a result of the remaining wounds being over stretched slightly and forcing me into a much easier gear to help reduce the load.

I made my way along Berwick Street toward the shop when I was collected by what was left of Group 1 who had clearly had a good, fast run. My only thoughts at the end of the ride was would I be able to get off the bike and how would I feel in 30 minutes or so? Thankfully getting off was straight forward and 30 minutes post ride resulted in a happy bike and happy knees.

For the next few weeks I will continue to get out for some walking/running but mix it in with rides of increasing load each time. All going well, I will be getting my lost form back and hitting the hills again with a Vengeance!