Sport Today

by **Marti Rijk** » Thu, 27 Aug 1998 04:00:00

Last weekend I was unlucky enough to break my wrist while windsurfing.
I was planing when I lost control. When the sail hit the water, I was
still in the harness and holding the boom, and I was smashed against
the boom. It was much like hitting a concrete floor. But perhaps it was
the harness hook doing the damage, I can't quite reconstruct what
happened. Anyway, thanks to other helpfull windsurfers I'm safe at home
again, recovering well.

Bad luck, but I guess these things happen. Although in my case lack
of sufficient technical skill was part of the cause.
But untill now I considered inshore windsurfing a safe sport. This
accident, however, made me wonder if the are such things as "common
windsurf injuries". If this is the case, then I am even more curious
about ways to prevent them.

Come on, don't tell me I am the only guy who had to miss part of the
season because of an injury :-( Tell me your stories...
--

( >__< ) URL: http://www.natrix.demon.nl/

by **Mpur** » Fri, 28 Aug 1998 04:00:00

Busted right Femur two years ago. Hit a reef down in the Florida Keys! Was
back on the board six months later with the help of two pounds of stainless
steel holding the leg together.
Basically, just dumb luck. New to area and unsure of the depth( very
clear H2O). I stepped off the board in what I thought was going to be shallow
water. Turned out to be 3-4" botom. Reached for the botom hyperextended the
knee when I came to a sudden stop. Throw in a slight twist from holding onto
boom and very little forward speed( Force=Mass x Accelaration) and OOPs!
T-boned into some c***rocks on the bottom.
Now, that I have a boat I really appreciate how easily it is to run
aground down here. The water is so clear that you can be in 30 feet of water
and clearly see the bottom. Luckily there were other surfers around and I now
wear flares, whistle, c-lights when I head out to sea.
Other than that not a single scratch or injury in years of shredding.

Mike

by **JBlumhor** » Fri, 28 Aug 1998 04:00:00

As a chiropractor, I get asked for free advice on the beach all the time....

Probably the most common thing I see is lowback sprain from beginners using bad
biomechanics to uphaul the sail.

I've seen many mild to severe finger joint sprains and a few completely
dislocated ones. Typically, these injuries occur when the sailor jams his/her
finger against the sail during a fall. I've seen so many that I now carry
finger splints in my gear bag, along with the usual assortment of compression
bandages, athletic tape and instant ice packs..

I've also seen a number of shoulder impingement problems from using an overhand
grip on the boom for the forward hand.

Judith Blumhorst, DC

Fix my URL to reply.

by **Jan Be** » Fri, 28 Aug 1998 04:00:00

Quote:

> Busted right Femur two years ago. Hit a reef down in the Florida Keys! Was
> back on the board six months later with the help of two pounds of stainless
> steel holding the leg together.

Kinda did the same thing in Tobago keys uhhmmm.. 10 yrs ago? flew into a piece of
the reef w. my left shinbone. Chipped the bone or something (still a divet where
a piece is missing).
Was on Guiness and dramamine for the whole day to kill the pain :)
OTOH, a good WS usually *cures* any physical or mental anguish I have :)

by **TomBuckO** » Fri, 28 Aug 1998 04:00:00

Quote:

>Busted right Femur two years ago. Hit a reef down in the Florida Keys! Was
>back on the board six months later with the help of two pounds of stainless
>steel holding the leg together.
> Basically, just dumb luck. New to area and unsure of the depth( very
>clear H2O). I stepped off the board in what I thought was going to be
>shallow
>water. Turned out to be 3-4" botom.

Know of two other cases just like this - don't get off until the board has
stopped completely and the captain has turned off the seatbelt sign.

Tom O'Brien - Chicago

by **skip schot** » Sat, 29 Aug 1998 04:00:00

*** ankle break when I got swiped bottom turning on a wave.

Sucky spring injury!

by **Bruce Speddi** » Sun, 30 Aug 1998 04:00:00

Quote:

>Subject: Common windsurf injuries? (ouch, broke my wrist)
>Date: 26 Aug 1998 23:18:40 +0200

hyperextended knee = flat landing + straight knees = knee bent backwards =
weeks on crutches

Quote:

>Come on, don't tell me I am the only guy who had to miss

part of the>season because of an injury :-( Tell me your stories...

Quote:

>--

> ( >__< ) URL: http://www.natrix.demon.nl/

Bruce Spedding
Check out these sites ....
wiNZurf - Windsurfing and Surfing in NZ http://www.winzurf.co.nz

NDTA - Non Destructive Testing Assn http://www.winzurf.co.nz/ndta
NZ Gateway to Government - http://www.govt.nz

by **Marti Rijk** » Sun, 30 Aug 1998 04:00:00

Quote:

>I've also seen a number of shoulder impingement problems from using an overhand
>grip on the boom for the forward hand.

Mmmm, I too was in an overhand grip as I broke my wrist on the forward
hand. Never realised this could impose a risk of injury. I thought it
was just a matter of preference.
Any more bad habits with such a risk involved?
--

( >__< ) URL: http://www.natrix.demon.nl/

by **BDSincla** » Sun, 30 Aug 1998 04:00:00

forward hand. Never realised this could impose a risk of injury. I thought it
was just a matter of preference.
Any more bad habits with such a risk involved?"
Cramming your foot in the straps up to the ankle comes to mind.
Re: wrist injury. Think on the bright side, if your grip was reversed you
would have torn your thumb off.
bs

by **Bret** » Mon, 31 Aug 1998 04:00:00

Broke my ankle last fall. I was sailing a rental board with the straps too
big. Went over the falls and my front foot got caught.

I suspect ankle and foot damage is high on the "common w.s. injuries" list.

Check your footstraps folks!!!

Brett USA-70

by **Glesh** » Mon, 31 Aug 1998 04:00:00

Quote:

>Broke my ankle last fall. I was sailing a rental board with the straps too
>big. Went over the falls and my front foot got caught.

>I suspect ankle and foot damage is high on the "common w.s. injuries" list.

My second hand knowledge of local injuries would be ankles and the footstraps.
Traveling to a new place, hitting an underground obstacle, and resulting leg or
ankle damage from sprain to break.

Also, had a local guy overrotate a front loop to some sort of hyper extended
knee problem.

Bob

by **Gil Wooll** » Tue, 01 Sep 1998 04:00:00

Quote:

>Broke my ankle last fall. I was sailing a rental board with the straps too
>big. Went over the falls and my front foot got caught.

>I suspect ankle and foot damage is high on the "common w.s. injuries" list.

>Check your footstraps folks!!!

>Brett USA-70

Brett,

You're breakin' my b...s. I broke my leg in the
Gorge in June in the same way. My front foot strap
was probably too large, I went over the falls and
I watched in slow motion as my foot was levered up
toward my knee. I knew it was going to hurt a lot
even before it did.

My bones are healed but the incision used to insert
a plate in the fibula (de small bone nex to de big
bone rite nex to de ancle) has not healed properly
yet. The ankle was badly sprained at the same time
and it is still painful to walk at close to normal
walking speed. Running is in the deep future.

Oldly enough, my break was in the lower leg, not
the ankle.

Gil

--
Lets put the humble back in IMHO.

by **Chuck Rhode** » Wed, 02 Sep 1998 04:00:00

Hi:

Join the club folks! I blew a jump off a wave last April here in North
Carolina and fractured the distal end of both my left fibula and tibia. My
foot got caught in a too loose forward foot strap and as I was thrown
forward the board submarined and torqued back. Ended up with a 5" plate and
7 srews in the fibula. Luckily I am back sailing again but much more
conservatively now and am carefully checking my straps so that only my toes
stick through.
Hopefully someone will come up with a practicle foot strap release system
that will eliminate most of these type of injuries.
Chuck Rhodes
Cedar Point, NC
"

Quote:

>>Broke my ankle last fall. I was sailing a rental board with the straps
too
>>big. Went over the falls and my front foot got caught.

>>I suspect ankle and foot damage is high on the "common w.s. injuries"
list.

>>Check your footstraps folks!!!

>>Brett USA-70

>Brett,

by **Chuck Rhode** » Wed, 02 Sep 1998 04:00:00

Hi:
Join the club folks! I jumped a wave last April, got out of control and
my left foot got caught in my forward foot strap as I pitched forward on
landing. Broke both the distal end of the fibula and the tibia. Ended up
with a 5" plate and 7 screws in the fibula. Luckily I am back windsurfing
again but much more conservatively. I am very careful now about checking my
foot straps so that just my toes stick through!
Hopefully someone will soon come up with some releasable straps to avoid
these injuries.
Chuck Rhodes
Cedar Point, NC

Quote:

>>Broke my ankle last fall. I was sailing a rental board with the straps
too
>>big. Went over the falls and my front foot got caught.

>>I suspect ankle and foot damage is high on the "common w.s. injuries"
list.

>>Check your footstraps folks!!!

>>Brett USA-70

>Brett,

>You're breakin' my b...s. I broke my leg in the
>Gorge in June in the same way. My front foot strap
>was probably too large, I went over the falls and
>I watched in slow motion as my foot was levered up
>toward my knee. I knew it was going to hurt a lot
>even before it did.

>My bones are healed but the incision used to insert
>a plate in the fibula (de small bone nex to de big
>bone rite nex to de ancle) has not healed properly
>yet. The ankle was badly sprained at the same time
>and it is still painful to walk at close to normal
>walking speed. Running is in the deep future.

>Oldly enough, my break was in the lower leg, not
>the ankle.

>Gil

>--
>Lets put the humble back in IMHO.