United Brachial Plexus Network, Inc.

trying to come back in running and biking competition after 7/14/01 tbpi. have completed 2 marathons since, first one in sling; not a picture of beauty and grace in the other one, either. any runners and cyclists with training secrets of the bpi?

I used to be a good swimmer. It's no fun now coz I can't go caning up and down the pool at speed, so I took up cycling. I have a bike with a twist-grip shifter for the gears, and the brakes linked to the left handlebar brake lever. I really enjoy cycling now, but I still haven't worked out a way to stand up on the pedals for really steep slopes. Any ideas ?

living and biking in a (relatively) flat place (texas) helps. i did try a foreboding hill a few months ago and it got me skinned and bruised as i didn't have enough power to top and couldn't uncleat before falling. another lesson learned. i guess you could fool with the gearing but only to a point. downhill is still fun. i want to get to the point where i can use the aerobars again but have no stability permitting this yet.

jacko-there's a guy who lives in my city (Christchurch NZ) who cycles using one arm (he's an amputee) people keep telling me about him but I've yet to meet him. He's got a kind of brace from the handlebars up to his chest so he can rest his weight on it when he stands up pedalling. If I track him down I'll find out how he does it, it will almost certainly be homemade (this is a country where people do things like construct a home made water turbine to drive a fridge when camping in the bush-that pioneer mentality is still very apparent) but maybe this might give you idea to make something like it yourself....

jsinclair-running is so bluddy hard with a bpi! Do you immobilise the arm completely? I'm very impressed.....have you got any pics of you doing this? We have a kind of gallery on the tbpi uk site of some of us doing stuff one handed, it's here http://tbpiukgroup.homestead.com/Community.html you can click on the links on the right to see them but we always need more......it gives the newly injured such a boost to realise they CAN still do things they used to, and even things they never did before...if you do have any I'd love to see them :0)

I have been putting a lot of thought into further modifying my bike, as well. Two ideas that I thought about was having 2 tires in front, utilizing a custom hub. Secondly, using hydraulic pressure to stabilize the left side (my defunct side) and using a pressure release valve to allow for stearing. As far as my gears, my grip contols the lower gears and then I have thumb controlled switcher for the higher gears.

BTW - You guys/girls are crazy for hauling down hill with one arm... I will stick to the flat ground. The combination of gravity and excessive speed have not been kind to me

jennyb - thanks for the kind message. there are sports photographers at all the marathons including the two i've done post-bpi (myrtle beach, south carolina marathon and dallas white rock marathon). but when i saw the proofs the last thing i wanted was a reminder of what a geek looks like running. stubborn pride triumphs once again. first one i did the arm was slinged up at my chest and hence completely immobile. last month in dallas i ran without the sling because i've enough control to keep it from full dead-arm. you can imagine though that it was not very happy with me in the later stages of the race. i fed it a beer afterward and all was forgiven. your posted stories are incredible and all those folks need to take a minute and be proud of their determination to grind obstacles under their heels. jim s

Jenny, thanks for the info. It's got the old grey matter starting to work now. I pride myself in my ability to adapt things, but I hadn't thought of the chest thingy.
Keep well

Well, i am not a great cyclist, i just do some weekend MTB on some sheep-walk with my daughter. But i find a tool that can be easy fit-made by an ortoh shop.It´s a bar of carbon, with a kind of a hook to push the wheel. http://www.geocities.com/paulo_go/bic2.html

Paulo

Are you still wearing a sling. I'd immagine your arm would get in the way when pedaling. I have my arm in a specialy made splint which can be moved into different positions. This also has the bonus of protecting the arm. The splint is also very light so if you have shoulder movement there should be no problem in lifting your arm.
The adjustments I made to my bike are puting both gear levers on the left hand side. (Well I actually use a grip shift for the back and a thumb shift for the front). Also have both brakes put into one lever. I'd be happy to hear any better recommendations.

I find going downhill a nightmare after coming off the bike a few years ago and breaking my other arm. (how clever am I!). Unfortunately where I live there are hills everywhere.