I shattered my collarbone - and I do mean shattered, ~8 pieces - in a mountain bike crash September 2023. I went over the bars after the back wheel of my hardtail caught a berm. Landed on my head and shoulder and compressed it laterally inwards by about 2 inches.
Even with this mess, it was hotly debated for around two weeks whether I needed surgery. A good chunk of my collarbone was trying to push through my skin and the other half was fusing to my scapular and was starting to compromise nerve function. Even then, because the non-surgical route is now considered the standard, I was meeting resistance to have an ORIF. It seems that the about turn from surgical intervention has been so strong that getting ANY surgical intervention is a battle.
I eventually came across a surgeon who took one look at me (never mind the imaging) and scheduled me for surgery. ~18 months later I’m now on a waiting list to have the plate removed, and strangely have gone off cycling… Surfing has happily taken its place.
Also shattered mine mtn biking (2022), and the surgeon scheduled surgery as soon as he saw the x-ray. I broke it twice as a teenager, and went through the sling route for both of those.
The craziest part about the plate is how quickly the pain from instability was relieved. I could finally sleep and honestly could've used my arm at ~80% days after surgery. I still have the plate which causes some discomfort, but I likely won’t worry about it.
In light of the article, I wonder if the plate encouraged/allowed me to use my arm in ways I wasn’t aware of. Funnily enough, it’s almost the definition of a crutch but one that allows me to use my arm more than if I was just hugging my body in an attempt to avoid that sharp pain.
Never lost my fear of the mtb, just focus on the uphill and cross country more.
Do yourself a favor and don't wait too long to get rid of the plate: when you crash on that shoulder again, the collar bone won't be able to do it's job of being the predetermined breaking point that saves the shoulder ligaments from ripping. And the AC ligament, unlike bone, will never recover. Not even with the surgery that you'll then likely need to at least restore the other shoulder ligaments. Fractured collar bone is a feature, not a bug.
Yeah, I failed to get my plate removal appointment in time, then I got a plate replacement appointment on the fast track and the next removal appointment then happened to be almost the same day as the one originally scheduled (the plates for separated shoulder stay in much shorter, and they better should, because they aren't painless at all)
Shattered mine mountain biking as well (6 pieces). Ortho took one look at it and scheduled surgery for the next day. It wasn't a 'standard' break since it included my AC joint and coracoclavicular ligaments which needed a special type of plate. Ultimately it took 2 surgeries (ORIF, then plate removal). Total recovery was 9 months. My arm/shoulder is as strong as it was before, and it looks anatomically correct.
My shoulder immediately felt "better" after ORIF. I would suggest it if it's way out of whack... mine was drooping probably 2". I can't imagine how much it would suck if the bones healed that way.
Mine felt immediately worse after the ORIF. After two weeks getting comfortable in their new positions, all the ligaments really resented getting wrenched back into place.
Good illustration was that my run of the mill, 45 minute surgery ended up taking 4.5 hours.
It’s good to hear that everything felt good after your plate was removed. At 18 months post-surgery, I’m in a really good place where I can do most anything I want. Only occasionally experience discomfort if my son headbutts the plate or a backpack strap rubs on it. I was in two minds about having it removed as it would be a step backwards to post-surgical, but the likelihood of me doing something stupid again in the future means it’s worth it. Rather have the fuse that a clavicle is rather than fracture my sternum!
I should restate - mine definitely did not feel better post-surgery, the ORIF pain was worse than the break, but it felt good to have my bones secure with my shoulder in its anatomically correct place, and not have any more crepitus.
My plate was extremely uncomfortable, it was a "hook plate" which held my collar bone to my scapula. I couldn't raise my arm above shoulder height with it installed, it had to be removed after 6mo.
Plate removal was a bit tougher than anticipated (short term). I read accounts of it being a 'relief' but I was in quite bit of pain.
Ah, thanks for the clarification. That post-ORIF pain being worse than the break was my experience too. Even with the plate I became quite paranoid about shifting the screws because it provided so much immediate stability I was worried I was able to do things that may loosen the screws.
A hook plate sounds horrible! Mine is a simple straight plate, bent into a helix shape to follow the natural rotation of the bone. I've got almost full mobility, although that shoulder does seize up quite readily. Not sure whether that's the plate or just remnants of the reduced mobility post-crash and post-surgery.
I've been told to expect two weeks of surgical healing and a further 4 weeks of babying it and avoiding impacts. I'm hoping your removal being tougher was due to the different plates. Would quite like it gone and to get on with my life now.
Nah do it, it added a whole new dimension to my life. You can mitigate the risk a lot, I ride fast and am definitely a bit too ambitious at times, but you can aslo ride more relaxed and safely progress your skills.
Jumping is anecdotally where most noobs bin it hard, you don't need to do jumps at all if you don't want. Many people ride around them.
Interesting. I shattered mine similarly while snowboarding, but back in maybe 2018. There was definitely no debate on the matter, surgery via ORIF was the recommended option. Then again, my doc was a sports medicine surgeon so perhaps that played into it. Either way, I was never too light with it and it healed very quickly. I was back at 100% about 2 months later.
Get it removed: the next hit will be much worse than a broken collar bone if the bone can't do its job of giving in before less restorable parts of the shoulder give in.
Functional outcomes seem similar, trough we have a increased rate of malunion, delayed or non-union with nonoperative treatment. We usually indicate surgery if it's an active patient.
Thanks! I've always been a surfer, but split my time with other activities. Post-accident everyone thinks I'm scared of getting back on the bike — maybe a bit? — but genuinely my first thought post-crash was how long I'd be out of the water. It was a clarification of what I truly enjoyed, and an excuse to double down on being in the water.
I'm now doing anything and everything to get in the sea and improve my surfing. Lengths at the pool for strength and endurance, free diving (and spearfishing) to reduce the anxiety of those big hold-downs. It's been liberating choosing just one sport to be good at.
I bought a 16 Pro after the camera on my previous iPhone stopped working. Despite being a camera-led purchase - and I do care about the camera on my phone - I would have bought this 16e in a heartbeat over the Pro.
Using fish shell has largely solved my gripes with complex commands. It’s not AI autocomplete, but it remembers the complex commands perfectly, so I only need to work it out once. It’s suggestions are also uncanny - the right command and just the right time.
My German peaked during an exchange, where after a few weeks of it "washing over" me I was using the language more naturally, even if still making frequent errors. Equally my French peaked when I was working around lots of French tourists, so I'm very onboard with this exposure-based approach.
Nuenki is pretty much what I was looking for - plus it's a good shove to make switch from Safari to Firefox (a change I've been meaning to make).
I've heard of Anki as a learning tool, but not tried it. What makes it miserable?
I'll be sure to checkout the Reddit and YouTube links too. Thanks for the help internet stranger!
> I've heard of Anki as a learning tool, but not tried it. What makes it miserable?
I'm a bit biased here. I used it prolifically for years in order to optimise my learning (school, not languages) so that I could compensate for a concussion. I heavily burnt out of it and I've not touched it since.
Nevertheless, if I were to say something more objective, it's that it's very dull. Other learning methods have you going over either somewhat-engaging content or intellectually stimulating learning (e.g. reading about the complexities of grammar).
Anki is just... word. think. click. feedback. repeat. repeat. repeat 200 times. repeat tomorrow.
You can do the whole thing with the space bar and 1-4 on your keyboard.
You can make yourself do that, but be wary of it souring you on the language or burning out.
> Nuenki is pretty much what I was looking for - plus it's a good shove to make switch from Safari to Firefox
I hope you like it! Let me know if you have any feedback etc.
I'd like to add Safari support, but Apple makes it pretty difficult to publish as someone who doesn't have a Mac or lots of money to spend.
There was a time about ten years ago I worked with a few people who had climbed Everest (one multiple times) and a handful more that were due to in the next couple of years. We worked in a climbing shop, and the regulars were all experienced climbers, working only to save enough for the next expedition.
The topic of oxygen had come up and almost everyone was all in favour of it until one guy explained he wouldn't be alive had he decided to use oxygen. He got cut off between two camps in bad weather, and were he relying on oxygen he would have likely run out; and subsequently passed out and died in the cold. As he was instead properly acclimated, he could ride out the storm as long as he stayed warm, which was relatively easy because he didn't need to worry about oxygen consumption.
Whether his story was true or not, it highlighted that it might be better to "be more" than "have more". The idea has stuck with me since, and whenever I'm faced with the choice between a shortcut past problem using some external resource or taking the longer, slower route of learning it/training properly I always go for the latter. It's not sexy, but has served me pretty well.
It's been an interesting thought-experiment these past few months as the talk around AI has become deafening. I know I'll be on the wrong side of history eventually, but I still prefer to "earn my turns" to borrow a metaphor from backcountry skiing.
I'm not sure it works quite like that - you have to acclimatize to the altitude whether you are using bottled oxygen or not. Going without oxygen can be considered a bit antisocial as you're more likely to collapse high up and need others to rescue you, unless you are happy for them to walk by while you die.
I’ll confess to being ignorant on the science. For instance I know that many of the local guides don’t use oxygen, but attributing that capability to time at altitude (“training” for lack of a better word) or genetics (on the back of generations of “training”?).
The "local guides" work kind of splits into two parts. The vast majority of the work the Sherpas and Tibetans do is logistics, lugging tents, ropes, food and the like up to the various camps, and no one uses oxygen for that. Oxygen is pretty expensive, like $400 for a cylinder that lasts a few hours. The last bit guiding up to the summit, the guides are often westerners but even when they are locals they usually use oxygen for the summit. I had a go climbing and when you turn off the oxygen you don't collapse or anything but you can climb like 3x faster with it on, and you get a gradual body deterioration with it off, at the high altitudes - I got to 7900m.
The sherpas probably have a bit of genetic advantage having lived in the mountains for generations. And they probably also have some acclimatization and training benefits from spending all season at altitude and working really hard there. But I think past a certain altitude, it simply doesn't help enough. Your body just starts tearing itself apart and shutting down due to a lack of sufficient oxygen.
Genetics and training might help for a while but it won't help for long.
34 year old who grew up on Guernsey (small island south and independent of Britain but with very much the same values) and went to a state-funded Grammar school for secondary and can't relate to all of this, but certainly most. The details are different but I agree that the education offered is subpar and the "socialisation" argument is bullshit. School left me feeling more isolated and alone than I've ever been.
Hate to break it to you but this trend of selling people a system to make money where the seller is actually enacting the system they’re selling is older than the internet.
I can recall online versions in 2012 - that I’m ashamed to say took me for some money - were not just in existence but popular and fashionable the way indie hackers is now. Nothing new.
I'm talking about the specific SaaS starter kit trend of recent and that Cory's work predates it - specifically because of snark like yours, which has seen an uptick because of the recent trend.
I've been evaluating and building out small prototypes with all the usual suspects for backend Rust work. So far I've reluctantly agreed with the hive mind that Axum on balance is the best choice, despite being lower-level than I'd like.
Other contenders were Loco (but was TOO much like Rails) and Rocket (whose macros only started to bother me after writing more Rust).
Your framework seems to perfectly match my criteria of "batteries-included, but not too prescriptive". Great addition to the ecosystem!
This is a brilliant endeavour and incredibly well executed! I’ll certainly be bookmarking it to share with others.
I’ve recently decided to start adding to my website with just hand-written HTML, and slowly migrating the back catalogue. I love its directness, its ability for ad-hoc changes to a page and its robustness. After trying almost every system for publishing on the web under the sun; I’ve concluded HTML is the right tool for the job, even if it means a little extra work up front.
As a retired developer I’m happy to tinker with Rust or SQL or something embedded when the mood strikes, but when I want to write, I just want to write - and HTML kind of lets me do that. I think if more people saw HTML as a document to author rather than just a build target then we’d have a lot simpler systems. This mindset has resulted/allowed for a huge dumbing down of average computer/web users and huge headaches for developers. I can’t think who all the complexity we’ve brought into the world serves 99% of the time.
This resource might be one of the things that nudges us back on track.
Even with this mess, it was hotly debated for around two weeks whether I needed surgery. A good chunk of my collarbone was trying to push through my skin and the other half was fusing to my scapular and was starting to compromise nerve function. Even then, because the non-surgical route is now considered the standard, I was meeting resistance to have an ORIF. It seems that the about turn from surgical intervention has been so strong that getting ANY surgical intervention is a battle.
I eventually came across a surgeon who took one look at me (never mind the imaging) and scheduled me for surgery. ~18 months later I’m now on a waiting list to have the plate removed, and strangely have gone off cycling… Surfing has happily taken its place.