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US
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Edited Date/Time
4/29/2024 7:50am
This is the place to discuss mountain bike-related head injuries. Share your experiences, your symptoms and any treatment you've found helpful.
We hope this forum thread can lead to a united, supportive mountain bike community that doesn't ignore the potential long-term effects of hitting the deck.
Listen to The Inside Line podcast with Jeff Brines, Matt Thompson and Craig *Stikman* Glaspell discussing head injury and protection.
We hope this forum thread can lead to a united, supportive mountain bike community that doesn't ignore the potential long-term effects of hitting the deck.
Listen to The Inside Line podcast with Jeff Brines, Matt Thompson and Craig *Stikman* Glaspell discussing head injury and protection.
I can’t believe the UCI and other regulators are not enforcing strict protocols, both the NFL and World Rugby are facing law suits from former players. The ‘pro’ pool at World Cup level is pretty small, surely baseline cognitive testing can be implemented pre season for the elite level as a start.
I hope the people around these young riders are making informed decisions in the best interest of the riders. Steve Thompson won the Rugby World Cup in 2003, he now can’t remember the match and is facing early onset dementia at the age of 42. Pretty sure he’d trade that World Cup for his brain function.
World Cup level racing may be nominally professional (Pinkbike survey seems to indicate not too many people are earning a wage) but the way it is dealing with rider health is deeply amateurish.
However ten years later I started to forget where I placed keys, phone etc. It wasn't gradual, it just started one day. Doctors said it was a result of that concussion and it's typical.
Burnt once, twice shy I always try to limit the risk of this happening again. So I go for the best helmet that fits my head and train to be fit as possible to limit the number of crashes and their severity.
Lately I see quite a few pros using mouthguards, which are said to help reduce the risk of (the google research shows conflicting opinions/research):
- concussion
- long term effects on the brain of severe vibrations so common in MTB.
It also claimed that they improve balance by stabilizing the jaw.
My question is if someone is using them what brand and model they are using?
So far I haven't found one specific for MTB, and went for Shock Doctor Gel Max (Microgel, which looks more suited for MTB, is not available in EU)
Given their affordability and potentially marginal negative impact it's worth trying out.
Thanks
Note that you could still win a DH world cup a week after an unfortunate accident like the above but that sort of thing is probably the rarest of exceptions rather than the rule.
my latest concussion was in 2019 and that is the last time I have mountain biked. I had a bad fall riding trails with a regular half face helmet. I had to have surgery to fix broken bones in my face, and hit my head so hard it cracked the foam structure.
My recovery was 4 weeks or so and was spent almost completely in bed.
I started having mental issues 6 months or so after the injury, I didn't feel right, would get lost driving or walking in big stores, and had irritability issues. Any scans of my brain were normal even though I didn't feel right. I started seeing a psychiatrist and was put on medicine for mood stabilization and see a psychologist. This injury has definitely changed my life and I know I will have to live with symptoms for the rest of my life.
Please reach out to me if you have any questions about head injuries or my stories
It's a shame she has to retire. I wish her the best of luck in the coming years and wish her a full recovery soon.
Also, you can have a concussion and not get knocked out. If you hit your head hard, take some time off and see a doctor!
Looks like I joined the club, hopefully only for a short time.
Three weeks ago today I clipped a pedal, bodyslammed on my side on the ground after going over the bars, rotated, lifted my head and promptly got smacked into the side of my head (in the helmet, above my ear) by I I'm guessing was my flying bike (considering it got yanked from under me and was parked by the side of the trail lower than me after all was said and done - it was a lamp lit ride and nobody was tailing me close enough).
There was a flash of light from the impact and I was seeing stars a bit soon after (though, as I mentioned, it was a lamp lit ride and other people shone into my face checking if I'm OK), then °to 10 minutes after the impact my head started hurting slightly, but got better very quickly. By the time I walked to the bottom of the trail, I was basically fine. Still went to the ER, where they did a quick neurological test and did an X-ray of my ribs and shoulder (the victims of the bodyslam). I also took the friday off work as the shoulder and ribs were a bit too much of a pain.
In the following two weeks I was, for all intents and purposes, completely fine, the only slight issue being that I had to concentrate while driving on the tuesday, 5 days after the crash, which wasn't usual for me. Then two weeks later to the day (one week ago today as thursdays are group ride days) it was time for the first ride, as the shoulder and ribs seemed fine enough and a riding buddy had his 40th, so of course I was going! Straight from the get-go I wasn't quite right, I had a feeling of not being in my body, but slightly detached while going up and I had to concentrate to keep the line and so on. Going down wasn't fun, as going fast felt really weird and I was scared of crashing again, doing more damage. I was riding like a beginner basically.
More rest was required, but was it the bike, the act of balancing & co, or was it the general physical stress? Friday was spent tired (late night and the 40th celebrations took care of that) but generally OK, so was saturday, nothing out of the ordinary. On sunday I went for an hour long hike to test the physical stress theory. It definitely was not OK. The same feeling of detachment, almost like slight drunkenness was present the whole time. What's worse, similar feelings were present even through the afternoon to some extent (not horrible, but present), so I vegetated in front of the computer. They were gone on monday morning, but came back towards the end of the work shift, which meant I spent the afternoon/evening reading (didn't like bright lights, loud sounds and looking into a monitor), hoping it will be fine the next morning after sleeping. It wasn't. And work wasn't much better, so I spent the second half doing some menial, 'mindless' tasks to make it easier and took the next three days (yesterday, today, tomorrow) as sick leave.
I've spent the past two days basically sleeping or reading with the least amount of time spent on the computer as possible. The plan was to get in shape for work for the next week, but the head is still not in the right place. Walking around I still feel the same feelings of airiness even today (fired off an e-mail to my GP this afternoon, will see what the answer will be). Hoping for the best, but we'll see. I'm guessing no riding will be going on in March...
https://7messages.7mesh.com/lucy-schick-on-battling-concussion/
That's a bug step forward in our sport
There's one particular team that has bothered me with their 90s approach to head injuries and it's Commencal/Muc off. This year alone their 2 title contenders have ridden through (in my opinion) obvious concussions and even admitted it was to stay in the title chase. They even described concussion symptoms and treatment from crashes the day of the race. That's this year alone, last year Daprela hit his head hard enough to bite through his tongue and raced the next week.
The media also has some responsibility in this. They're talking out both sides of their mouth praising both riders that take time off for head injuries and the riders racing with concussions. They also avoid the word "concussion" like it's voldemort when praising those riders so they have to know what they are doing.
Sorry for the rant but it's driving me crazy that no one is talking about this.
https://www.gofundme.com/f/alicia-and-her-family-with-medical-costs
Clearing out the Youtube log, I came back to 'Let's Go Racing' season finale where Brian Cahal mentions his experience, including some methods of trying to get better. Surprise nobody has linked it yet considering it's Vital's content. Starts at ~29:00:
https://youtu.be/Y9OI4Jx9Ldg
I've found it quite weird that the "vélo rose" site does not even mention this incident nor the link to the "Gofundme", or have they ? She was working for them lately, right ?
Today by Chelsea Kimball, Organizer 10/4/22
Alicia still spends most of her time sleeping but stays awake a little bit more each day. She was able to eat a bit more today which is awesome and her Dad says her sense of humor is still in tact! Thanks for all your support, it means so much!!
Yesterday by Chelsea Kimball, Organizer 10/3/22
We are pretty excited Alicia has been able to answer some simple questions and even recognized her Dad today. She is still sleeping most of the time but the nurses have been able to wake her enough to feed herself which is a big step. Every small improvement adds up and we have high hopes for Alicia!
October 3, 2022 by Chelsea Kimball, Organizer 10/2/22
Alicia is still resting and showing minor improvements. Doctors say it’s best to limit stimulation so she can sleep and let her brain heal. Patience is key at this point. Thank you all so much for the support. I am doing my best to work with Alicia’s friends and family and we appreciate all of you so much.
October 2, 2022 by Chelsea Kimball, Organizer 10/1/2022
Alicia has made some improvements and is getting good rest and time with friends and family.
October 2, 2022 by Chelsea Kimball, Organizer 10/01/2022
Alicia is currently in the ICU in Bellingham, WA. She is in stable condition and has shown minor improvements since arriving yesterday but remains sedated.
Updates by Chelsea Kimball, Organizer of the GoFundMe page for Alicia Leggett
Today Alicia was moved to a brain rehab center in Colorado! This is a big change and we are excited about what opportunities it will bring for Alicia in her recovery.
Alicia is settling into her new spot in Colorado. She has her own room and is getting acquainted with the staff and her surroundings. During the week Alicia does multiple therapy sessions per day. This ranges from physical therapy to card games and other mental exercises. At this stage Alicia is trying to make sense of her thoughts, memories and knowledge. Consistency and simple routines can help make things easier. Alicia has a lot of recovering to do and she is doing her best every day.
For those who haven't already seen it, Alicia Leggett posted an update on Pinkbike: https://www.pinkbike.com/news/i-crashed-hard-a-post-injury-update-from-…
Still a life-changing injury but fortunately it sounds like it's not as bad as many people had feared.
Anyone in here know if theres a distributor for hit (head impact trauma ) in nz?
British Cycling says: "If in doubt, sit them out"
https://www.britishcycling.org.uk/about/article/20230306-about-bc-news-…
Link to British Cycling's Concussion Guidelines (pdf)
Link to "Concussion: A quick guide" infographic (pdf)
Link to "Concussion Awareness" elearning module
Okay, I want to talk a bit about my situation. There's a little more background and stuff on the interview Spomer did (https://www.vitalmtb.com/features/Carlos-Matutes-Executive-Director-of-…) but TL;DR is that I incurred TBI from a hit and run in 2016.
I raced a couple of very low key local enduros over the last month, and was just... not 100%. The first was on trails I wasn't familiar with, and I rode the last stage blind. I chalked up my slowness to unfamiliarity, but the last race was on trails I was quite comfortable on. I had some decent times, but nowhere near what I thought I'd have considering race pace.
I really struggled with my results, and my wife brought up the slower reactions, visual deficiencies, and overall lack of processing speed as a potential issue. As much as I don't want to think about it, maybe my TBI has affected my ability to ride downhill fairly fast.
That sounds frustrating potentially disheartening and I'm sorry you're going through it. I imagine it's very hard to talk about so thank you for doing so publicly, we need to normalize conversations like this so folks feel more comfortable if/when they decide to share similar experiences.
Thanks for that. Yeah, it's a difficult thing to admit to oneself. I know that if this had happened earlier in my life, I probably would have tried to force the speed which would have inevitably caused a major crash.
Mountain bikers, like a lot of other athletes, tend to build so much of our identity into our riding- how we ride, what we ride, what kind of riding we do. /when we're young, we think that will never change. As we get a little older, we think that, while maybe things will slow down, it will happen gradually.
The idea that things can change suddenly- that who we are as cyclists, as people, is impermanent, that's a tough pill to swallow.
Just wanted to share that Apex Brain Center here in Asheville NC has done work for years assisting people with neurological injury. There are World Champion MMA fighters like Matt Hughes & many others who use them . Across the Country, most know the basics. But in so far as I know, Apex is doing high level stuff & they don't advertise a ton but are well worth a visit.
Brian Cahal did a pretty great video recently about concussion recovery, lots of seems like lots of good information.
https://youtu.be/JuyEmq6c3aY?si=sadrbMS8ZMjsKw5S
^^That video is a gem, full honesty, dude knows what he's talking about. No junk. Should be a Vital featured video + a monthly 'safety segment' video showcasing (pressuring) helmet/safety gear companies to do better, highlight the ones that do the absolute best.
Lets get fucked up healthy. Now. Repair damaged nerves, regenerate your brain...its ON. Front page news. Everyone shares in this unspoken 'blemish'...what a disservice to an otherwise intelligent, forward thinking crowd to not have this be more figured out/spoken on.
Verified nerve repair, the mineral-rich herbal/mushroom way;
[To be tonically consumed daily, in pills, hot tea, alcohol extracts, anyway possible, all organic]
, elk meat, vegan b vitamin supplement) 
rose hips)
Astragalus
Cayenne (in pill caps is the best I've done to become superhuman on my recovery times from any injury)
Ginger (fresh)
Magnesium (from trace minerals)
Zinc (trace minerals brand blue pill bottle is nice complex multi-vitamin, super natural ocean minerals)
Ashwaganda
Lions mane (big time)
Tremella
Reishi
Turmeric
Oat straw
Algal oil (DHA/Omega 3) (specifically the 'vegan' omega-3 supplements, aka Algal oil super nerve recovery)
Feverfew
Moringa
Passionflower
Chinese skullcap (American skullcap is just a Canfield bike, BIG truths)
MSM (big time)
B vitamins (cooked shiitake
Vitamin E (wheat germ oil)
Vitamin K1/K2
Vitamin C you literally cannot consume enough natural vit.c, never stop (amala fruit, parsley, acerola cherries,
R-ALA (should be r-ala, not s-ala--R=natural derivative)
Acetyl-L-Carnitine
Inositol
N-Acetyl Cysteine
Amanita Muscaria (muscimol only extract--this stuff has been studied to show repairs to the central nervous system of the brain--pretty dope!)
Limk1 and cofilin (experimental)
Each one teach one. You're set free
I'm lucky not to have any serious injuries.
I had a concussion and hematoma. I had to go through a pretty long treatment. Fortunately, I could contact my doctor and get all the needed equipment via dotmed customer service online. It was that case when I realize how unsafe I'm when riding a bike.
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