[Rhodes22-list] Ouch, That Hurt!

[Wally Buck]

Roger,

Get well soon!

Wally


>From: "Roger Pihlaja" <cen09402 at centurytel.net>
>Reply-To: The Rhodes 22 mail list <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
>To: "The Rhodes 22 mail list" <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
>Subject: [Rhodes22-list] Ouch, That Hurt!
>Date: Thu, 26 Jun 2003 17:43:59 -0400
>
>Hi Everybody,
>
>This morning, there were thunderstorms in the forecast.  The night before, 
>my wife & I had ridden on our 10' inflatable sport dingy to a restaurant 
>about 3 miles down the lake & back.  We had gotten back after dark & the 
>inflatable was still tied to our dock.  I went down to our beach to pull 
>the inflatable up onto the custom made storage rack I built for it on our 
>beach.  This storage rack is my own design, made from pressure treated 
>lumber & boat trailer rollers.  The inflatable self launches off of it & 
>1-man retrieval is almost as easy, except for today.  I reached down & 
>grabbed the inflatable's bow lifting handle with my left hand & started 
>pulling the bow up onto the 1st set of guide rollers, an operation I've 
>done literally hundreds of times before.  I didn't even pull very hard, but 
>something went seriously crooked this time because I felt a "snap - pop" 
>deep inside my left elbow, followed by a searing pain up the outside of my 
>forearm from the elbow almost to the wrist!  I dropped the bow lifting 
>handle & instinctively bent the elbow.  As I did so, I felt the elbow joint 
>shift internally & go "pop" again.  It turned out I had dislocated my left 
>elbow joint & then popped it back into place myself!  The inflatable was 
>starting to float away, so I grabbed the bow line with my right hand & 
>pulled it back.  I was able to pull the inflatable up onto the storage rack 
>with just my right arm.  I didn't bother locking it down or putting the 
>mooring cover on it.  The swelling & pain were already starting in my left 
>arm.  I made a splint out of my day planner book & drove myself to the 
>MidMichigan Medical Center Emergency Room, about 20 miles away.  The X-rays 
>showed the joint was back in place, but I can't support the weight of my 
>forearm & any sort of rotation of the forearm really hurts.  The hand, 
>wrist, & fingers seem to be OK.  I'm currently typing this 1-handed as my 
>left arm is in a splint.  The hospital has me on a heavy dose of ibuprofen 
>to control the inflammation & industrial strength pain killers so I can 
>sleep.
>
>This is really stupid!  I just got back from backpacking on Isle Royale, 
>where I spent 8 days clambering over rocks with a heavy backpack, without a 
>scratch.  Now, I dislocate my elbow on my own beach pulling our inflatable 
>onto the storage rack?
>
>Roger Pihlaja
>S/VS. Dynamic Equilibrium
>__________________________________________________
>Use Rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org, Help? www.rhodes22.org/list

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