Hi and Goodbye
 

Lo all.

I havnt been on for a while cause of a certain re-occuring illness that has been a result fof cycling....

Many of you know i was struck with epididymitis not to long ago and was on a 30 day riding stop per docs orders. I believed it was caused by an improper saddle angle and height. I had the LBS fit me and adjust everything and 20 days after i was riding again i found myself in the hospital again after a 20 mile training ride.

i was diagnosed with torsion... from cycling trauma.

The results were terrible and life altering to say the least. Needless to say i am now through with cycling. I will still lurk and everything cause the people here are amazing but i cant really hop on a bike again. Im keeping the bike i had just finished creating for fun and memories. Be careful out there guys (and girls).

Special thanks to Eddie B for all the help in cycling and more
Absntr and Dolface for all the knowledge.
165 and msngr for the giggles.
And everyone else who constantly rocks off socks.


I hope all of you the best luck in racing, riding, and life.

Drink up and ride hard.

this is sad. i'm sorry.

dude, that is aweful. have you thought of trying a recumbent? i know nothing of the ailments but it might be worth a shot.

I think I'd give up a testicle before I gave up cycling, but man would that suck. Hope you can find something to keep you on a bike in the future.

That sucks. I hope the pain went away. Nothin' else I can say.

this sucks big time, and i just had my wheels stolen. i can't even imagine not being able to ride anymore.
what about those saddles that are just 2 butt pads?

I say **** god, you will figure it out.

Sorry man.

edit: not that you mentioned god, but **** 'em.

For those of us (like myself) not famaliar with what torsion is, could you please explain what it is, some of the symptoms and what not.

torsions are quite possibly the worst thing ever... I had to have surgery to get mine fixed..is that not an option for you??? hope your boys are ok!

HR- it is when your nuts get twisted...like a self imposed tourniquet..painful to say the least

i'm sorry, sounds painful and frustrating to say the least. Maybe recumbent?

iirc, it's twisted nuts. not something I even want to contemplate.

This article is of the eMedicine site. So it looks to me like this condition is where the nut can rotate freely making the spermatic cord get tangled up and strangulated, occluded and engorged. The epididymitis is an infection epididymis. That little nub right where the sperm cord hooks to the nut.

that's really sad, i hope you can still find someway to have fun and i hope your pain goes away

Wow - Jamtastic, so sorry to hear that. Giving up cycling has to be one of the toughest decisions any of us would have to make. I hope that there's perhaps some hope or way for recovery. As mentioned, is a recumbent a possibility?

The torsion was attributed by the actual saddle? As opposed to a seat like a recumbent? Very interesting and something to now educate myself about. Thanks for sharing. And never say no!

jamtastic, so, ultimately, was the initial diagnosis of epididymitis incorrect? in my experience with fun testicular pain, i found that doctors, without even giving you a nice handjob, like to assume epididymitis as the cause of all testicular woes. i've heard of cases where epididymitis was diagnosed incorrectly for cancer, hernia, and, yes, torsion. of course, you'd damn well know it if you went 20 days with torsion, so you probably weren't, as it were, fully cut-off when you went in initially, but it might have been a little dicey. do the doctors think that the epididymitis somehow lended itself to you getting torsion, or do they just think that riding caused both the epididymitis and torsion independently?

i dont understand, what about going saddleless? i remember reading that after lance had the surgery he did 50 miles a day saddlesless. couldnt you just change your riding style? freestyle and mtb's usually are out of the saddle. it just seems like there should be a type of bike for everyone

Jam, sorry to hear about your woes. Consider the recumbent option. These too may put next to no pressue on the perineal area if that's the issue http://tinyurl.com/pptzd

be well brother

:eek: Sorry to hear of your illness and what must have been a tough decision. Your kindness in bidding farewell instead of just quietly drifting off honors this board.

I've had a Spiderflex saddle (http://www.spiderflex.com) on my shelf for the last year. I'm in Norman, like you, as I recall. PM me if you want to try it out. It's yours for somewhere between mega-cheap and free, especially if it gets you back in some kind of saddle.

In any case, it may not be goodbye forever. Maybe the johnnies will sort themselves out as you finish growing.

I like how they felt the need to tell us that "[t]esticular torsion affects males only."

dude, sorry to hear that. you're still the jam. don't let the man get you down

dude, sorry to hear that. you're still the jam. don't let the man get you down

Sorry buddy. I wondered where you went, you have been one of our most enthuisiastic members and I missed seeing Antoine Doinelle (?) every day. I too was diagnosed with epididymitis, but it was an incorrect diagnosis. Then they said I had a varicocele. Then a Dr. said, 'I don't know, a lot of men have pain down there caused by inflamation, take 6 (yes 6) advil a day over two weeks.' It did go away eventually, but still rears its ugly head once in a while. I still have no idea what happened, BUT it all started when I began putting more miles on the fixie. Because of this, and now your story, I think I am giving up the idea of long distance fixed rides (60+) and switching to road. It seems to me that cycling related problems (like numbness which I believe might lead to impotence) could be exasperated by riding fixed. Any thoughts? Also +1 on the recumbent, especially the one where you ride high of the ground--it looks so crazy.

You now have the most poignant avatar of all time.

That sucks big time.

But now you have an excellent opportunity to design and market a fixed gear, front-wheel drive recumbant. I'd buy one, especially if it is tracksit-able.

Cryogenics, man, Cryogenics. Just freeze those puppies and defrost them when we find a solution!

Man, I'm sorry to hear that. Maybe things will get better if you take a break from riding for a few months or a year?

Yowzers... Good luck. Let us know the next time your in H-town. You deserve a beer!

that's awful. i think i get twisted nuts from time to time but the pain generally subsides before i get a chance to call a doc. when you get full-on torsion, does the epididymis just eventually give up? man... i'm sorry. is there any chance that you can rehabilitate and eventually get back to anything you have to give up?

That's awful news. I hope you're feeling better. I know I'd check into the 'bent option.

Is anyone else having a little hypochondria problem now after reading eMedicine?

from wikipedia:

"A simple surgery will correct and prevent testicular torsion. It can be done in an emergency situation after determination that the testicle is cut off from blood supply or as an outpatient procedure for patients who have experienced frequent episodes with testicular torsion."

tell your lazy doctor to get off his ass and bust out the scalpel.

I've got a buddy who had some crotch woes after doing a cross country tour. He rides with one of those noseless saddles now, and says he likes it better than the conventional style.