It'll be a while...

[MadXX]

until I can race again.  Ended up tearing my right quadriceps above the knee and bending my forks at the last Blackhawk.  The forks are replicable but the knee is very unhappy.  The worst part is that the crash was avoidable if I had done a couple of minor things differently.  Unfortunately hindsight only shows you what not to do next time.  

I will be out again next year with a healthy bike and body and plan on continuing the slow trek to improving my understanding of road racing.  I am too addicted to this sport to give it up for something that can heal.  

[tigerblade]

That doesn't sound fun.   :(

Heal up quick!   :)

[EM JAY]

   Next year???   :o   There are still two Blackhawk dates plus others man!!   You've gotta at least do the last Blackhawk right???  I've been lucky enough not to have hurt anything too bad to call it quits for the year, if you need a bike (and I haven't crashed it) I will have no problem lettin you use the SV while I take out the MZ man!  Don't count yourself out so quickly, last Blackhawk....Dave was riding with a broke wrist,  Chef is still healing and was racing.... ;)

[CCSRacer114]

....  The worst part is that the crash was avoidable if I had done a couple of minor things differently.  Unfortunately hindsight only shows you what not to do next time.  
...

Do tell, to tell

[MadXX]

I will see what ortho says tomorrow but for muscle tears, it usually takes a few months before you can use it hard.  Its been over a week and I cant bend my knee past 45 degrees without some serious burning.  Since this is a hobby and I dont want to mess my leg up worse (among other reasons) it ended up that I am done for the year.  I may be out cornerworking at least one of the blackhawks though.  Race weekends are just too much fun.

For what I did:  

In the TB race on saturday I was riding behind/in the pack for the first 2 laps. Doing pretty good as far as I was concerned.  I hit the kink before 7 and the guy in front of me hit the brakes sooner than I expected.  I ended up braking while leaning to avoid hitting him and started to lose the front,  stood it up and went down instantly in the grass in 5th gear.  Bouncing and rolling was actually kind of fun until I stopped and realized my knee hurt and was out of breath.  Felt what I thought was blood running down my knee and thought nothing of it.  Got the bike on the truck, rode it to the pits, and pushed it to a parking spot.  When I took my leathers off I finally noticed what appeared to water baloon under the skin around my knee.  

What I learned from the whole experience:

1.  Its very important to stretch.  Martial arts, yoga, or doing it yourself.  Just do it.  Muscle tears hurt a lot and can take a long time to heal but are generally avoidable.

2.  Get comfortable in traffic.  I was getting really smooth by myself on the track; however I am not by myself on the track.  Have someone ride next to you in practice so you can learn to adjust your lines.  That was the worst part of the deal.  If I had adjusted before braking I could have easily passed the guy I was following.

3.  learn to brake while hanging off.  If I had the bike more upright then I wouldnt have had a problem braking in the kink.

This whole thing was a learning experince and I will be back.

[Steviebee]

That sucks chad,   Get well.

FYI, sometimes i brake at the apex of the kink, while leaned over.  You might need to adjust your setup for some more stability.

Usually I think i dont brake till after the kink

[KBOlsen]

Dang, Chad... that really sounds painful  :(

Get well soon!!!!!