The past 6 weeks went slightly different than I had planned heading into the season. Upon returning from Europe I crashed wheel training in Lake Placid. My right leg took the grunt of the crash, and at first I thought/hoped my injuries were minor enough to rehab with the help of the sports medicine staff here in Lake Placid. But after two weeks of not a whole lot of change we went ahead and got x-rays and an MRI to see the full extent of the damage. I partially tore my MCL, meniscus, and a small crack on my tibia where my PCL attaches. On September 28th I underwent arthroscopic surgery to repair my meniscus, which is the only damage that won't repair itself. It was a very difficult decision for my to make and I struggled with it for a few days, but I believe it was the best decision. I was able to start sliding just 2 weeks out of surgery with A LOT of help from my teammates (Thanks!) Although I had to limit the amount of runs I have taken so far, I have about 1/2 the amount of my teammates, I already feel back to where I was last year sliding wise. And feel very comfortable on the sled. I am almost 4 weeks out of surgery and I just got cleared to be off my crutches. We are leaving tomorrow for Park City and I am hoping to be able to really bump up my run count each day as long as I can keep my knee happy, healthy, and with minimal swollen. The good thing about training in Park City is that we have double sessions so I will be able to rest and recover in between, and not have to take all my runs in one session.
Some positive things that have happened this fall. I was able to go home to Maine for a week, see family and friends, and mostly just relax and enjoy a good Maine fall. Bengt Walden, Ashley's husband is finally an American citizen, just this past week he took his oath and applied for his passport. It is a big relief off of their shoulders and I am very excited that he is now 100% a part of our team. We had a coming to America party and introduced him to all of America's finest gifts.
