Well I doubt there will be a Stelvio in my future, at least not anytime soon. There will not even be much riding if any soon.
I had a CT scan on my neck yesterday and today had my Spine Surgeon review it.
Some backround: I have had alot of MX injuries over my life and quite a few surguries, but this work neck injury has kicked my butt. In june of 2010 I had a ladder twist a bit the spit me off at work while I was holding a sheet of drywall weighing about 90 lbs. This resulted in 2 blown discs. The disc between C5/6 and the disc between C6/7. After much therapy the decision was made to do a cerivical fusion with internal fixation {IE. a 2" by 3" Titanium plate with 6 screws and 6 pins spaning 3 discs and a completed discectomy and some synthetic bone in place of the disc.
The immediate results seemed very successful as the shooting arm pain and numbness and tingling in my lower arm and hand was GONE. Presto, fixed. Now just heal up and get back to living. As time went on and I started doing more and more {Dr. Approved activities of course} a new pain started. Kind of a tension or stress around the spine column like a vice on it and the that radiated up to the base of the skull which then feels like someone has the bottom of my skull in a clamp.
Months of attempts of medicating the pain away only to figure out that I am somewhat allergic to all narcotics, they make ITCH, I mean itch like a speed freak digging holes in my skin Benedryl or not. Then I get urinary retention, I do not me hard to pee, I mean not peeing for days and sometimes not until I stop taking the narcotic....NO FUN. Cathaters SUCK!
Well here I am at today, day dreaming of a new NTX, and my Ortho surgeon calls me over to his computer to look at my CT as he begins pointing how C6/7 have not taken the fusion and that one of the screws may have broken allowing the new fusion to move some, causing it not to heal....
"Well, what is the fix"? I say, he answers "You need another surgery as soon as we can get your workers comp insurance to approve the surgery.....and maybe you should not ride much in the mean time, just in case."
So here is sit, couch bound and broken hearted. It maybe months before the WC insurers approve the surgery {hopefully NOT} and then for sure at LEAST 6 months off the bike post surgical, likely longer, it could be a year or more before I will even feel the thrill of a grip in my palm, the rumble of horsepower under my berries, the rush of the lean into a turn while rolling on the torque and pulling hard through the turn only to flick it back the other way, the adrenaline bump as I blip the throttle and tap the clutch and stand my 600+ pound full bagger RT up on a wheelie so high it drags the plastic mud gaurd on the groud and dropping the jaws of ALL onlookers {Yes I can and do do that} and any other exhileration I get from riding a motorcycle....possibly forever.
There are a few choice words that are racing through my mind right now, but I have not sworn in quite a few years and have resolved not to do that anymore, but VERY tempted.
Anyway, it was nice to have met {virtually at least} you folks and thanks for the great input after a bit, but I think even visiting will depress me too much. I will say Hi sometime, but keep on riding and loving this great hobby and your beautiful Italian machines while you can because you never know when that may be cut short one way or another.
Rubber side down my new friends.
Kelly
