Raising the Bar

I'm raising the handlebars on my bike. Well, actually the good people at Dedham Bike are doing it. They have to put on a different crossbar (which is the actual handlebar). That will get it up about 3" higher. Hopefully that will suffice. Otherwise there are other things they can do to get another inch or two but they will have to put on longer hydraulic cables and the bike won't handle as well. They have ordered the new crossbar and hopefully it will be in by Friday. This will run me one or two hundred bucks, depending on how much they have to do. I don't have much choice though. I can't use the bike the way it is.

Had my first session of Physical Therapy today for my neck. A nice massage, then an ultrasound massage, then they hooked me up to electrodes and I got 'zapped' for ten seconds every ten seconds for ten minutes. The zap felt like, uh, sort of like someone wiggling/pinching my shoulder muscles very rapidly. Not pleasant but not horrible either. Then they taught me some exercises and sent me on my way. It was a good experience altogether and I don't mind that I'm going back 7 more times.

Sidelined

I've been sidelined for a while with a very stiff and sore neck. After a month of great pain I finally went to the Dr who sent me to a Physical Therapist who asked me a lot of questions and then said I have to change a lot of things I've been doing (posture, work environment, etc.) but the main thing she said is to raise my handlebars and only ride on the road til I heal up. I was surprised that she knew exactly what the issues were relating to biking and to mtn biking in particular!

Riding on the road with a mtn bike is better than switching to a road bike cuz the fat tires and shocks would help protect my poor neck.

Hopefully I'll be healed up and back in the woods soon.

FYI: Here is a great article about Mountain Biking Injuries. Stats near the top. Scroll to the bottom for particular injuries and their solutions.