Peter_C

Well, I did what may well be the last ride of the season for me. The weather here in Ohio is turning cold, wet, and wintry. I did a whooping 27 miles, enjoyed myself though sweaty, and layered against the cold. Am glad I went, but it seems that no matter how easy I take it, my knees (both the new and the used) can't seem to handle it. Am very crippled up today with lots of swelling. Total miles (to date) for 2011 are 509 miles - so much for my goal of 1K, but I did get my hip replaced in June, so that ate up a bunch of riding time I guess.

Nightshade

Vision loss, hearing loss, TKR both knees, venous insufficiency in lower extremities,skin cancer on my back,diabetes, and PTSD but other than that I'm fine.

Chris516

While I have only done 1073mi. to date, in 2011, I am thinking the same thing. Because it has been really windy here, along with the rain. This year has been a big disappointment. I need to do better next year.

Glades2

I received my disability 8 months ago today - I've been with an indwelling catheter since and not sure if it'll be removed...

harry2110

Im glad Im not the only one doing this. Im really visually impaired (20/100 best possible correction 20/E in the other), have a mild CP, and ADHD. I mainly cycle as I cant get a license to drive and the state doesnt say i cant ive had doctor say not to but how else am i going to get around. My hometown doesnt have a bus system and some malls are 20+ miles away plus buses that start half way are too expensive at that point. I love cycling. Actuallly that is a understatement I meant LOVE cycling. Most years I AVG around >6-7k miles. I can pretty much eat whatever i want and not have to go to a gym plus on group ride I love smoking the road racers while on a steel bike(surly cross check). I do have issues at night becuase of losing all depth perception and being partly night blind but I run lights that make motorcyclist jealous( nitetrider pro 1400 and 2 magicshines and trinewt soon to be replaced with pro 3000 ). I would love to race and might be getting into tandem racing in the BVI category soon.

Chris516

Excellent!!!!

My vision is 20/40 in my right eye and, 20/200 in my left eye. I did get permission from the state to take the drivers test. But by the time(several years) I got permission from the state, I had done a 180(about face), coming to the conclusion that their are too many morons behind the wheel and I would not want to end getting killed from being trapped in a car I could not get out of.

So, I use my bike 99% of the time, to get around.

harry2110

Cool! Plus people dont realize how expensive a car is to own and run.

Im a college student with a part time job and I basically buy a new to me bike every year or so.
First was a Canondale rize 4 with 5.5in a travel and carbon rear end.

Second was a Kestrel evoke sl(4k) after the canondale was stolen.

third was while I had the kestrel I got a 2004 giant xtc team nrs air(gaints flagship racing bike with full xtr, sid, dt swiss wheels and thompson cockpit). This was my everyday and grocery bike. It wasnt too bad at 25lb for a full suspension mtb

forth was my current Surly cross check with a mix of sram rival and sram red(cranks) with carbon fiber everywhere possible and mavic equipe wheelset or american classic victorys.
I broke the kestrel evoke and now have a kestrel rt 1000 with sram red as a replacement as I put the parts on the cross check to replace its 9 speed 105.

So as of current my commuter is my 21lb surly cross check and 15lb kestrel for fun or longer commuting.

I luckily can volunteer at a coop and get access to the distributors so I can get all my parts and consumables otherwise those would eat me alive.


Whats your current stable like?

Chris516

stable?

If you mean my bike. I have had it since mid-2003. It is a Specialized Allez' racing bike. While I have had the:

1. Chain
2. Crank
3. Brakes
4. Tires
5. Tubes
6. Bar Tape
7. Lights
8. Locks

-All replaced over the years, I still have the same frame, derailleur and wheels.

Update: Back Wheel

Sixty Fiver

I took a bit of a header down my stairs before Christmas when the legs just decided they needed to go on strike so it has been a slow go of it ever since but am back to riding somewhat regularly (2-3 times a week) and am going on a St. Patrick's day pootle and pub crawl.

Was in Portland over Christmas and was riding a little more there since the weather was so glorious... when I got back to Canuckistan I figured I should be a little more cautious when the roads looked like ice rinks.

Am pretty much mated to a TENS unit to block pain signals in my legs (which are really in my back) and this has helped immensely and keeps me of the stupid pills and I'll be able to enjoy a pint today without my liver saying "Hey... stop that !"

Scheduled for some intramuscular injections and more physical therapy to my back to treat the MPS and am hoping this will offer me a period of greater mobility and less pain as I would like to chase my wife around...

Neil_B

Hmm. I don't know if I'll qualify as disabled once I heal from my knee replacement surgery. The deformity in my legs is corrected.

MICHBACHELOR

Hello! I had spinal cord tumor surgery in October 2011. Weak right leg/foot still but getting stronger through PT and exercise with leg weight machines and recumbant bikes 2x weekly at local gym. Hoping to get OT assessment of my driving ability in June 2012 maybe using a portable left foot accelerator--anybody ever use one? SSDI declined my initial application in march 2012, but I reapplied. I am applying for online tutor jobs and survey/legal work online too. Check out my bad luck/recovery story on the following link www.indiegogo.com/projects/93028

MICHBACHELOR

I have had a bad back too since my spinal cord tumor surgery in October 2011. Slow and steady recovery past 8 months. Riding recumbant bikes at local gym. Use ben gay and icy not on my back daily, plus generic advil and tylenol daily. Where can I get a free pizza? My story on link below. Cheers, Gary

www.indiegogo.com/projects/93028

maristrider

Cerebral palsy, epilepsy, autism spectrum, ADHDish, effects of multiple concussions and prolonged seizures in the past. Other minor annoyances. Currently, my knees hurt, but that's hopefully a temporary problem.

I relearned to ride a bike at age 40 last year. 3 months later I entered my first triathlon. I not only did not come last, I actually overtook people on the bike leg. Now thinking Paratriathlon World Championships (yes, that's a thing). My project of the moment, tho, is adapting my bike so I can effectively shift chainrings (my left side is affected far more badly than my right).

Wylecoyotesuper

I crashed on my dirt bike in October 2010, broke my back at T11 (Complete). Which makes me a paraplegic.

Right now I only drive (2008 VW GTI , with hand controls) and work.

I would really like to try a hand cycle. I have been in contact with a local rider/non-proffit who can get me a great deal on a new one for around $1600. I just need another $1550 and I'm there

runner pat

Wylecoyotesuper, if you have insurance, they might pay for a handcycle if your doctor will write a prescription. Worth a try.
I ride a handcycle so if you have questions, ask away.

Wylecoyotesuper

Thanks! runner pat

kayakplayer

I teach Adaptive Physical Education, and one of my students with CP has calf high lower leg prosthetics, low strength and mobility in her hip flexors and thighs. She tires very easily and uses a lot of upper body when walking to swing each leg forward. Yet she can nock off a bunch of push-ups with great alignment through her hips, knees, and back. I've suggested moving to a hand cycle since it will play to her strengths helping her grow more independent, but her Mom thinks the lower body work is too important to switch. Her daughter had the recumbent trike last summer with minimal progress. She had to use her hands to move her legs to move the trike, and makes very short distances as a result. But the social world is about to change dramatically for her as she moves to middle school.

My question for you is, what does it mean to you to be able to cycle? How does it affect your lifestyle, and what would it mean to you if that activity hadn't been made available to you? If you shared this already in another thread, please forgive me and point me there. But seeing your offer to help a fellow cyclist, I felt compelled to ask.

runner pat

It means a lot. I started running in 1976, ran cross country/track in high school and college and continued until 2004 when I was hit riding to work. The resulting injuries prevent me from running or riding a standard bike.
I would hate to have been unable to be as active as I was before and since we no longer have a car, being fit means being able to run errands with the handcycle(and trailer).

As far as your student, my opinion is that a handcycle would benefit her but she still needs to maintain some work on her legs/hips to maintain what she has. Does she use a wheelchair at all? You can get a towbar to haul a chair behind the bike.

tulip

I don't consider myself disabled, but I am blind in my left eye due to a retina issue that started when I was in high school (I'm in my 40s now). I use a mirror on my bike and never wear headphones, as i rely on my hearing alot. I'm not comfortable riding or driving at night due to poor depth perception, although I have no legal restrictions on my driver's license. I cycle alot and even raced in college. My racing career was very unsuccessful--hard to race crits with only one good eye! Time trials were better, however, but I found them boring. Now I just ride for fun, commute by bike, and tour.

In non-cycling life, I have few restrictions aside from not liking night driving. In my car, I set my driver's side mirror way out so that I have full coverage between my rear and side mirrors so I can see cars on the left without left vision. No problems working and supporting myself.

My biggest issue is the possibility of losing sight in the other eye. But I've already figured that I'll just get a tandem and sign up my friends and family to ride with me. In the meantime, I'm super careful with my good eye and always wear glasses to protect it.

harry2110

Im pretty much the same way I cant believe you actually did crits with only one eye. That must have been the most focused youve been in your life. I do have one solution for night riding is that I use a monster of a headlight right now its a niterider pro1200 soon to be the pro 3600.

How did you mount your mirror so its visible for the good eye?

Chris516

I agree with Harry. While my NiteRider 600 doesn't have the brightness of the NiteRider Pro1200, it is definitely bright. Brighter than anything I ever used. I have even been able to come home in the dark without the fear of hitting something that I would otherwise not see, if I were to use one of my cheaper less efficient bike lights.

I do have weak peripheral vision, so I sort of know what you mean about vision problems. I compensate with my hearing, and turning my head.

tulip

I have a mirror mounted on my handlebars, not a helmet or glasses mirror. Those don't work for me at all. I have an old NiteRider TrailRat headlight that is pretty bright, but I have no interest in night riding.

I really sucked at crits. Partly because I was often the only woman in the field (very few women's races back then) and that was pretty intimidating. I mean, I don't think I was ever dead last, but I was rarely in the top half and had my share of DNFs. It was also partly because of my eye, but at 19 or 20, I wasn't too keen on acknowledging that.

rawly old

Well, I've had one leg shattered into 4 pieces above the knee and a dozen below. The other was ripped open to the bone from
the knee to mid thigh severing 2 tendons and shattered the kneecap. It's cool though. I've pedaled 3k+ in the last 2 years
without power assist. I'm old and fat. Still the thing I find most gratifying is putting my $15, 3spd old Huffy in 3rd ,and zipping
past some dude wrapped in day-glo spandex on a $2900 Bianchi up a hill. It's amazing what a 35cc kicker can add to one's
pedal power. That little 4 stroke wacker engine is a great equalizer.

qcpmsame 

These posts are truly great story's of overcoming adversity and disability. I held off from posting here because the prejudices against handicapped and challenged people are very real, as I have experienced many times.

A spinal compression in 1989 left my right leg paralyzed. I told the Workman's Compensation to go away and leave me alone after being treated like a faker for several years and having every thing the doctors told me was necessary turned down as not medically necessary according to their in-house experts. The local physicians were pretty angry when things came to a head in 2002. I had surgery in 2002, 2003 and 2004 for this and got things stabilized with 2 bone grafts and plates, cages and screws. Not on the WC carriers dime either. State of Florida WC board classifies me as disabled permanently, what do they know. I do not take any disability payments, these are for people that truly need help in that department. I am an engineer and can work in my field, successfully.

Freed up the leg somewhat but it is muscularly deficient, still, but a ruptured appendix in 2000 left me with abdominal scar tissue growth that is uncontrolled, 13 surgeries so far and I contracted MRSA while in hospital, I have had multiple fistulas in 2010, wore an ostomy bag for 6 months until they were surgically closed up. Still have an open wound that will never close, on my abdomen. I will need surgery regularly for the remainder of my life for the scar tissue problems.

The best recent thing I have done is to get in the care of a board certified Pain Management physician for my abdominal and back pain. The old method of prescribing Soma for these along with dilaudid was wrecking me mentally and making me stuporous at times. I hated what was happening to me. I did the research and worked to find a chronic surgical pain physician that would take me as a patient. Most of the P.M. specialist are there for back problems and use the injections to try and stop the pain. My pain is from the 13 abdominal surgeries largely and will never go away since the scar tissue literally starts regrowing when the surgeon goes in to clean it out and resection the small intestine. I finally found a P.M. physician last November and he has straightened out my prescriptions and found a combination that helps dull the pain to a 7 on the Wong-Baker scale from a constant 10. I am not groggy or loopy anymore, I can ride pretty well for someone with my surgical history and can think clearly enough to be readying myself for my national engineering examination. he works with my surgeon and primary care physician t make sure the pain meds don't interfere with the Renal Failure or other problems. Great doctor to work with.

After reading about the many members here I don't guess I can ever complain, but I can overcome, as they have. The 16 total surgeries and weak RT leg make it a challenge and I was diagnosed with Chronic Renal Failure on 20 July 2012, so my diet is super restricted, with this at Stage 3B. I am riding 10 miles daily minimum and have registered for my first metric century on 20 October 2012. Hope everyone can beat their challenges, you all inspire me to keep on when I feel like hanging up my bibs.

Bill

cruiserkb

I hope that you don't mind if I jump in on this one.

I have RRMS and suffered a transverse myleitis that has left me a paraplegic. I also have severe vision loss amd major cognative issues. I have been an avid runner and cyclist my entire life. When I finaly got the strenght to ride a handcycle I loved it. The sence of independance and personel accomplishment where what i was longing for. I love to ride as much as I can.

As for the young girl, I would recomend getting here into a handcycle. They need to understand that this is just an addition to an exsisting workout. The overall benifits to the body out weigh any small hang ups that might be loming in someones mind. I agree with runner pat that the leg workouts shout continue. I know of about 6 people who are able boddied that ride hancycles just for the core workout and the cardio, It's just like switching machines at the gym, you just work other areas of the entire package.

I hope this helps and remember, Keep Riding!