Back after a long hiatus

[Fast Eddie]

Hi all

I have been remiss in not posting to this fine site in quite a while. That's mainly because everything has gone so well that I hardly ever even THINK of the fact that I had OHS less than a year ago!

Last May I had an ascending aortic aneurysm repaired and had an On-X valve implanted. The surgery was May 15, and by July I was back on my bike trying to get back in shape.

I had registered to do a charity ride for cancer...the Pan Mass Challenge here in Massachusetts. Because the valve was working so well and my recovery went so smoothly I was convinced I could do the ride. It's a 2 day, 170 mile ride for the Dana Farber Cancer Instiitute.

But tragically, my cousin's 34 year old daughter died of a rare cancer...cancer of the adrenal gland the week before the ride. So I traveled to Pittsburgh to spend time with my cousin.

But I've registered again this year and plan to raise a lot of money on behalf of this brave young woman who was taken from us FAR too early.

And now it's time to get back in shape! It gets harder as we get older. I was out riding yestrday and today and my heart is fine. It's my LEGS that suck!

I'll try to be better about posting things to the site in the future

Fast Eddie

 

[WayneGM]

Hay, Fast Eddie. Welcome back. Glad to hear you are doing great, although sorry to hear about your cousin's daughter. Don't be a stranger.

 

[Philip B]

Ride?

Ride?

Hi Eddie,

Wondered where you've been, but figured you were on a bicycle somewhere.

I just registered for a late July 100 mile ride in Colorado. Hopefully, some of this snow we have here will start melting soon so I can get off the trainer and back on the road.

Good to hear you're doing well.

-Philip

 

[Fast Eddie]

Hi Eddie,

Wondered where you've been, but figured you were on a bicycle somewhere.

I just registered for a late July 100 mile ride in Colorado. Hopefully, some of this snow we have here will start melting soon so I can get off the trainer and back on the road.

Good to hear you're doing well.

-Philip

Thanks Philip

Good for you spending time on the trainer! I didn't do much exercise over the winter, so I have a LONG way to go to be back in any kind of shape. Hopefully we won't get much more snow so I can at least do some riding outside even if the temp is low.

100 miles in Colorado could be challenging. Is it a mountainous route?

Eddie

 

[67walkon]

Fast Eddie lives!

I haven't been around here either, for the same reasons as Eddie. My valve replacement, aneurism repair and maze procedure was on July 6, 2007. I'm doing a 150 mile MS ride in May, over 2 days, and then a week long ride across Georgia in June.

It's funny, but I rarely think about the surgery, even though its been less than 9 months. The top of the scar is still a bit tight, but physically, its as if it never happened. My heart works great, I feel good, I'm not on any meds at all, and I'm must going about a normal life. We're lucky!

John

 

[Fast Eddie]

Lucky indeed!

Lucky indeed!

Hi John

I feel pretty much the same way. Since I am dealing with warfarin because of the On-X valve, I still will have to deal with the inevitable situation(s) where I will either have to do bridge therapy with Lovenox or enter the hospital for what would otherwise be a simple outpatient procedure. So that will be my last real hurdle.

I will be doing the two day, 150 mile Pan Mass Challenge in August, and am finally able to get back on the bike. I was out today as it actually hit 50 degrees! But this is New England, and it's March, which means there is at LEAST one more nasty snow storm on the way. A few years ago we had 24 inches fall on April 1!

Good luck with the training, and thanks for helping out with the pledge.

Fast (Not) Eddie

 

[Philip B]

Mountainous Route

Mountainous Route

Yes, the Eagle River Ride is a mountainous route, but only requires one low pass. If it goes well, I'll be thinking about doing another more rigorous ride (Copper Triangle Ride) which will involve three major passes (Fremont, Tennessee, and Vail) at a later date.

Presently, I'm organizing teachers from my school district to do the Eagle River Ride with me. We've got a great fitness initative going with staff members. Team West Grand includes teachers of all ability levels from all building in the district. My high school's guidance counselor is planning to do the ride on his hand cycle. He has no legs.

The Eagle River Ride should be a fun, challenging event.

-Philip

 

[spartangator]

great to hear

great to hear

I apologize for being a bit off-topic here, but I had to write to let you guys know how thrilled I am to hear about your experiences. I'm about six months out and getting aggravated at the general sluggishness I'm still feeling. I know some of it is medicines I'll be off soon and some of it is just healing, but every time I see conversations like this one, I get that much more excited to get to the gym the next day. It helps me be patient and keep pushing. So thanks for that. I hope you'll let us know how the rides go.

 

[Cooker]

Eddie....good to have you back....sorry for the loss your family has had.....My sympathy to all involved.