Learn from my mistake

[EFS4LIFE 0]

The story.

Couch Freaks 2011. After doing an awesome head down coach jump with Kiwi Hamilton, one of SkyVenture CO guys, had a normal deployment. It was windy and turbulent. Guessing wind was probably 15 mph or so, and bumpy. Just like EVERY Couch Freaks seems to be. Coming in for landing I opted for my normal set up and approach which was finishing with a 90 degree front riser turn. I am just a baby swooper lol. BTW canopy was a Samurai 136 at or around 1.45 or so. I went to deep brakes, hit my initiation window, and started on double fronts to get her diving like I always do. After maybe a couple of seconds I hit a bump. I am guessing it was turbulance, or a fucking air gremlin, I don't know, but that is when the risers tried to rip out of my hands. Of course, my reaction was to not let that happen as I was mid-dive about to start the turn, so I pulled down a little harder to fight it. That is when I felt it. A little twinge in my left shoulder. I finshed the turn and even got a decent swoop for the strong winds I was landing into. I felt a slight burning sensation runnin down my left deltoid. Now on a scale of 1 to 10 I would call the twinge and burning a 2. It really didn't seem bad. I was 32 years old, fuck it I just pulled or strained something. I will be fine. Well the past month or so I have been waking up at night with pain in my shoulder. It really hasn't bother me too much except that. I finally say fuck man it was a YEAR ago maybe I should go to the doc. Well now I am scheduled for SLAP tear surgery on October 30th. I tore my biceps tendon partly away from where it attachs to the labrum in the shoulder. I will be in a sling and off work for 6 weeks. I will not be able to skydive for at the LEAST 3 months, maybe up to 6. The bright news is at least I will be rehabing over the winter up here. I guess my winterly trip down to FL is in the crapper though.

Lesson to be learned. Hell, I guess if it is bumpy don't front riser? You can always swoop another day. I guess I shouldn't have resisted the pressure when I hit that bump. Maybe if I would have been further in my canopy progression on a smaller canopy with less riser pressure it wouldn't have tore. Of course then I would probably have been in over my head. Hell a year ago I KNOW I would have been. I don't know. Maybe some of the upper jumpers can lend their thoughts. It really sucks that I have to go through this shit. I have heard shoulder surgeries are HELL.

Anyway not even sure there is anything to learn here, but I figured I owe it to the community to see if there is.

I am an asshole, but I am honest

[SEREJumper 1]

There is always a lesson to learn no matter how small.

There is always another day to jump if the conditions are not ideal, if something is not right with your body get it checked out ASAP, and no matter how safe you are, you have the chance of getting hurt or worse on every jump you make.

Hope your surgery goes well and you are back in the sky soon.

We're not fucking flying airplanes are we, no we're flying a glorified kite with no power and it should be flown like one! - Stratostar

[EFS4LIFE 0]

Here is an image of the type of injury I sustained

I am an asshole, but I am honest

[EFS4LIFE 0]

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Hope your surgery goes well and you are back in the sky soon.

Thanks SEREjumper. I can't believe I have been doing tandems with this injury, and just making it worse. I honestly didn't think it was this bad.

I am an asshole, but I am honest

[SEREJumper 1]

We all do stuff like that time to time, but we really have to listen to our bodies. It can be hard though when there is money to be made. The few hundred bucks and the jumps that you get while injured, will catch up with you at some point.

Follow the docs advice on the healing process and the physical therapy/ rehab to be ready for next season!

We're not fucking flying airplanes are we, no we're flying a glorified kite with no power and it should be flown like one! - Stratostar

[EFS4LIFE 0]

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we really have to listen to our bodies. It can be hard though when there is money to be made. The few hundred bucks and the jumps that you get while injured, will catch up with you at some point.

Excellent point SERE. In the back of my mind I knew something wasn't quite right, but just shrugged it off. I just got my TI rating and the money and jumps definitely influenced that. More than the jumps and money though I was just loving taking people for the first skydive and teaching them about our sport. That is what I love most. I just figured I would heal and it wasn't a biggie. Apparently I was wrong.

I am an asshole, but I am honest

[sebcat 0]

Would you consider yourself to be a fit person? Do you work out regularly? How often?

If you do, well, shit happens. If you don't, I think that's the lesson to be learned.

[EFS4LIFE 0]

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Would you consider yourself to be a fit person? Do you work out regularly? How often?

If you do, well, shit happens. If you don't, I think that's the lesson to be learned.

Yes I do consider myself to be reasonably fit. I am 6 foot and 185 lbs. I don't work out as much as I did when I was in the military for sure, but am by no means some lard ass. What gives you the impression I am unfit?

edited to add: I probably run once a week, sometimes I definitely skip a week though. Don't lift weights however, which I could see wearing out the tendon in question possibly contributing.

I am an asshole, but I am honest

[JohnMitchell 16]

I tore the rotator cuff and partial bicep tendon 3 year ago on my right shoulder. Surgery and 6 months rehab before jumping again. Last year I did the same to the left side, surgery and 6 months rehab.

While they were in there each time they took care of some bone spurs that were making me susceptible to that type of injury. Now, almost a year later, I've had a great Summer of jumping; tandem, AFF, freeflying, wingsuiting and FS, the works.

Follow their instructions, be diligent in doing all the excercises in rehab and you'll come back as strong as ever. Good luck.

[sebcat 0]

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Yes I do consider myself to be reasonably fit. I am 6 foot and 185 lbs. I don't work out as much as I did when I was in the military for sure, but am by no means some lard ass. What gives you the impression I am unfit?

I am not under the impression that you are unfit. However, stronger muscles reduces the chance of having these types of injuries. Working out (strength training) a couple of times a week is a better risk mitigator for this particular injury than swooping less is.

[EFS4LIFE 0]

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I am not under the impression that you are unfit. However, stronger muscles reduces the chance of having these types of injuries. Working out (strength training) a couple of times a week is a better risk mitigator for this particular injury than swooping less is.

Ya I hear you. However this injury is common in athletes that participate in a lot of overhead movement. Baseball pitchers, weight lifters, and apparently skydivers lol. I read somewhere that the majority of people over fourty develop SLAP tears from normal wear and tear. I also read though that in those cases PT helps strengthen the surounding muscles and aleviate symptoms, so that would coincide with your point. Fuck it shit happens I guess. Next time it is bumpy I will save the swoop for a better day.

I am an asshole, but I am honest

[EFS4LIFE 0]

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Follow their instructions, be diligent in doing all the excercises in rehab and you'll come back as strong as ever. Good luck.

That's the plan John. Thanks.

I am an asshole, but I am honest

[JohnMitchell 16]

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Next time it is bumpy I will save the swoop for a better day.

Probably not a bad idea for many reasons. Turbulent conditions are tricky.