St. Patrick's Day 2016. Won't ever forget it! Headed out to the local off road park by myself after work, anticipating a fast run before a Guinness for the holiday. Beautiful Florida day! Put on my lightest biking shirt and went out on a fairly fast and level section and made it only 3/10 of a mile out before tires washed out coming out of a left berm. Never fell at such a speed on such a hard surface. Knew it was happening and turned the back of my shoulder to the clay and expected to roll right out of it like I had many times before. At impact I knew my left AC joint was cooked. Put my hand atop my shoulder and felt my collarbone jutting over the acromion. Called my wife, then called the orthopedist, before leaving the park. It was a ***** trying to put my bike on the rack one handed.
I went to urgent care to verify no fractures. Looks like a Grade 3 to me. Heading to the orthopedist in an hour or so.
I am a physical therapist and pretty much know how this is going to go down, but reading all of the stories here has lifted my spirits so much. The initial thought after falling was that I spoiled a great day to ride. The second thought, reinforced after looking at my deformed shoulder in the urgent care, was that I have irreparably changed the anatomy and biomechanics of my shoulder.
However, after seeing how you guys have willed yourself back to the activities you live for, I am much more upbeat. I especially am thrilled to read about returns to swimming and surfing. Thanks for posting your experiences.
A blurry iPhone pic, but you get the idea...