Should I give it up?

[nomnomnom]

Hello KBers!

I have been a-pondering for some time (well about 5 months to be exact), whether or not I should give up my trail bike...

You will need to read a little to understand my knundrem.

Sep 2011 - I purchase a brand spanking new 2011 Forza 230F. Cheap option for a learner girl biker, it was everything I wanted/needed in a first bike, yes its a chinese import kinda bike, but Iv had no issues at all and LOOOOOVED riding it (please dont start a debate on chinese bikes :P )

Jan 2nd 2012 - I go out for a ride with an awesome bunch of people. Have a really stupid, slow motion, awkwardly angled fall (well like my 3rd fall for the morning) and end up stuck under the bike with my right leg pinned in a most unnatural position. After a visit to the emergency room, and some xrays and then 4 weeks later an MRI, results show I dislocated my kneecap, have torn my ACL and half torn my MCL. So basically my right knee doesnt have the stringy bit that stops the knee from turning around backwards....

I've been out of a knee brace and off crutches for about a month now, and have an ACL reconstruction surgery booked in on the 7th of June.... and then 9 months of recovery....

So im pretty much looking at 9 months of no riding.... :(

Its been really hard seeing my bike sitting in the garage unused and all my gears gathering dust. Most of my gear is brand new and has never been used (had heaps of stuff on order that arrived after my accident *sigh*). The bike has 8 hours on the engine, and still looks new and polished.

I have just bought a house, move in next weekend, and am considering selling the bike. I know i probably wont get that much for it, or my gears, but I also dont know if I can handle having it sitting there for 9 months unused, and then AFTER that 9 months have to spend big money on a proper knee brace for riding.

My older brother has had the same surgery done before, and he hasnt managed to get back into MX properly. He does downhill mountain biking and running etc, but has said that his knee is just not the same and he feels like he has to be really careful on it.... a bit of background on my brother = growing up I cant remember him NOT being in some sort of cast/brace/crutches for more than 6 months at a time lol. Hes not the type to wuss out on anything sport-wise. So I value his opinion. if he says hes not keen to ride again, then I dont know how I'd handle it!


So pretty much I want some advice. Has anyone had the same or similar injuries and come back into it with no problems? I love riding, and I would marry my bike if I could.... but I dont see the point in keeping bike and gears if Im not going to be able to go back to how I was before (accelerate hard and see what happens hahaha)

[ducatilover]

Keep riding :niceone: I've got nerve damage, a munted hip, rooted back and more boring issues that aren't worth crying about.
You only live once. :first:

[nodrog]

http://www.depression.org.nz/?gclid=CL7P3fvF_q8CFUdKpgodalxcDw

[L Rider]

Keep your bike & gear. End of the day if you truely can't ride then give it up then.
My husband has had full knee reconstruction - he rides. Should wear a knee brace but doesn't!

[p.dath]

I'd be tempted to keep the gear, sell the bike, and then in 12 months time or whenever your strong enough get another bike.

[unstuck]

Nooooooo, http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/showthread.php/149524-Never-EVER-give-up?p=1130317635#post1130317635. If I listened to all the stories the medical profession told me I still would not be walking properly or using my right hand( I hate wanking left handed). Just take your time, you will come right in time. :niceone:

[nomnomnom]

http://www.depression.org.nz/?gclid=CL7P3fvF_q8CFUdKpgodalxcDw

this will be handy after surgery, thanks! :D

[takitimu]

My take would be if you want to keep riding it'd be well worth investing in some training, cheapest way I know to ride safer, if you are going to ride again you have to change something or it'll happen again & I don't think it's solely knee braces, they are the ambulance at the bottom of the cliff, bike training & some real strength/stability work in the gym on your knees & core would be my theory.

[unstuck]

If you go out riding with a lot of thoughts about getting hurt, you are probably going to get hurt. I would suggest working on your mental strength as well as physical strength. But I'm :weird:

[nomnomnom]

If you go out riding with a lot of thoughts about getting hurt, you are probably going to get hurt. I would suggest working on your mental strength as well as physical strength. But I'm :weird:


In all honesty, I don’t really think about much at all when I’m out riding….. I take things as they come….i probably sound dense as right? lol I always go out thinking something like “wooooo, I hope I encounter some new terrain, something challenging or different that’ll test my balance, and ability to listen to instruction”… I ride straight into it and adjust as I feel needed… and am usually riding with someone experienced enough to tell me what im doing wrong and need to change.

I guess ill just use my 9 months of “recovery” time to get back on track with fitness etc. as you can imagine sitting around in a knee brace an stuck on crutches did not do any good for my gym routine!! Although having my membership on hold was great for my bank account :laugh:

So anyone want to buy my bike seeing as I wont be using it for 9 months :P never been dropped......:msn-wink:

[tigertim20]

hey.
My advice to you is to keep the bike, for multiple reasons, which I will list below.
1. psychological benefit- look at pro athletes, they have sports psychologists to help them focus on WHY the want to recover, a positive attitude has been proven to aid in recovery. Give yourself a reason to recover, and a goad to acheive.

2. Finances - it doesnt sound like you need to cash, so hang onto it, you have plenty of time, the bike isnt going anywhere. If you know you always have a bike in the shed, you can get back onto it in your own time, you can be careful, take one step at a time, and ride again when YOU feel ready.

3. You love bikes, Sell it, and youll regret it. If you were ready to get rid of it, this would have been a 'for sale' thread, not a 'what to do' thread.

Basically, hang onto it, there is no rush, use it as a tool to keep you going. Know that there is a goal, and know in your mind that you can ride again. You might not be able to do big table top jumps and ride like jeremy mcGrath afterwards, but you will be able to ride, and enjoy the fun and exhileration of a bike.

Keep hold of it, and look forwards to when you ride it again.

Also, take this time to buy a cheap tool set, and do some basic work on it, you have time, to learn how to do basics like oil and filter changes, take the carb off (assuming it isnt injected) and give it a clean out and learn about it. take off the wheels and swingarm and give all the bearings a good grease, give the bike a bloody good wash.
This will keep you entertained when you would otherwise be out riding.

Keep the bike. Youll get back on it.

[Mungatoke Mad]

I rolled my ankle walking on a flat track just after I turned down a dub on the back of my m8's Yz 400 my ankle was swollen up like a soccer ball worse than a broken ankle /had 1 of them 2/ & had 2 stay of the bike 4 a year or so & stick 2 the Quad so the message is clear sell the bike get a Quad & Dont risk walking across a flat surface when ya M8 can offer you a lift instead :weird:

[CRF119]

If you cant ride two wheels at least get a quad. Even just to prove all the doctors wrong. Buy good knee braces and you will be sweet. Make sure you build up your knee before riding again

[Jay GTI]

Riding is an addiction, well it is for me anyway.

I have broken/cracked 3 ribs, lacerated my liver (internal bleeding), nearly lost a finger and have a permanent back injury that means I can't slouch on the sofa or I'll be in agony in minutes. I have been told to stay off the bike for 6 months and at one point gave it up completely. It didn't work. I know that, despite the injuries and potential for more, it is so much part of who I am, I just have to accept the risk.

This doesn't mean you'll feel the same, but before selling up, really think about what your life would be like without the buzz of riding. It costs a lot to give up only to find you want back in.

[EXCDirt]

Keep bike......
Get knee braces......
Wait.....
9 months isn't long.

[flyingcr250]

Keep bike......
Get knee braces......
Wait.....
9 months isn't long.

I was off for 6 weeks a few months ago...........i cried every day.....

[jt119]

I was off for 6 weeks a few months ago...........i cried every day.....

....and night

[Night Falcon]

Ive had my fair share of enforced riding breaks but looking at my bike parked up every day only whetted my appertite to get back on it. My advice is make your decision in 9 months time. That way if you decide you want to keep riding you wont have lost a heap of cash having to replace your bike and gear....then again buying a new bike and gear is always cool :shifty:

[cambocambo]

yeah and if you keep it for the 9 months you can still fire it up in the garage and pretend you are hooning it through the trails.

[Geeen]

I sold my bike once, took 5 LOOOONNNGGG years to get another one. I wasn't myself without one. Just sayn. Oh, watch a movie called "Love the Beast" by Eric Bana. Good movie about the relationship we have with cars/bikes.

[BoristheBiter]

My Other half come off her bike a year after we started riding.
She broke 3 ribs, split her liver and had a collapsed lung.

After that she could not do the dirt. We parked the bikes up for 6 years.
We got back into it 4 years ago after a 6 year absence but the bikes were never sold so when she was ready they were there for her.
Now I just can't get her off the bloody thing.

sell it and you will regret it.

9 months to save for good knee braces.

[Blagger]

Asking on a forum full of people who love bikes means that the answer is only ever going to be "Keep the Bike!" - This shows that subconsciously you don't want to give it up.

Your subconscious wants to keep riding and if you give it up you will be in conflict and literally hate yourself.

Obviously you have to keep the bike to retain any quality of life.

QED

[Subike]

My bike has survived relationship break ups, a business folding, unemployment, broken arms, depression, empty bank account...
It was the one thing constant across the years.
Even if for 3 of those years she traveled less than 1000 miles...
she was patient and waited for me to get right....each time
Then gave me back the thrill nothing else could provide.
Freedom.

[DVS ME]

Keep the bike! keep riding!
When I first started riding every time I got on the bike there was always a new bump bruise cut or injury worst being a broken rib and nose but its all a learning exercise every time you get better and better.
Rest up watch alot of bike dvds and youtube and you will be back on the horse!

[SpikedPunch]

Hey there, I am in the same situation as you! I had a little crash out at woodhill a couple of months back and found out I did my ACL. So I will be getting my ACL and previously ruptured PCL + damaged meniscus reconstructed whenever ACC get back to me. Probably be at least another three weeks before I even hear back, the waiting sucks. You might be able to get ACC to fund a really good knee brace for you. My surgeon Mr. Twaddle is going to try and organise it for me, he tried to get me one a few years back but they rejected it :( I think now I'm getting operated on and because this has been a recurring problem I will be able to get one funded, but the purse strings are pretty tight at ACC these days. Guess they could have saved themselves a lot of money giving me one in the first place huh...Then again, it is really my responsibility to protect myself and I should have been wearing a decent brace when it happened. You live and learn. If I can't get one funded I will be buying myself a good pair for sure before I get on the bike again.

I'm not conflicted at all about getting back to riding, I love it, and will miss it heaps while I can't, but my bike is set up just the way I like it, and it'll give me something to look forward to when I'm healed up. We are even planning an overseas riding trip next year :) Will just have to make sure to wear a good brace from now on! See how you feel after you are healed up, you're more likely to regret selling it and not giving it a second chance than the other way around.

[FROSTY]

I'm gonna go against the theme here. I'd say sell the bike and buy a quad for now. That way you can get back out there and ride now without the worry about the knee recovering.