Happy Skier!

I finally came out of denial and had an MRI on my knee last week and will go get the scoop from the doctor on Monday. So, what have I been doing lately? SKIING!! Maybe the MRI was like a major magnetic therapy session, because the knee isn't bothering me too much, even after skiing the last couple of mornings. Yippee!

I hurt my knee while wake boarding over the summer. It hurt to walk for at least 3 weeks, but eventually felt better. Unfortunately, it would flare up throughout the fall, when I tried to do fun things, like hiking. I really wish I had dealt with it back then. But I didn't. I was in denial. In December, once we had gotten a bunch of snow, it was time to go skiing. It was the Saturday before Christmas, and Homewood was going to operate the brand spanking new lift. The ski area had been open, but not the upper part of the mountain. This was a big day, and I've got pictures of the new lift below. Well, it only took 3 or 4 runs before I started to feel pain in my knee. As I continued to ski, it got worse. It hurt me to walk (a lot) for the next two weeks! It wasn't the walking thing that upset me so much, it was the fear that my ski season was already over. That was when I realized that I had to do something ASAP! I really don't know what's wrong with it, but the doctor suggested that it is likely to be a torn meniscus. With that in mind, Tim and I went skiing yesterday, because I just had too. Well, it hurt on the first turn, which was depressing and worse than the first time I went skiing. Then I started to play with how I made my turns, keeping track of how and when it hurt. I figured I could at least relay this to the doc on Monday. I realized that it hurt when I unweighted my ski, which is consistent with a torn meniscus catching. So, I tried to stay low and not straighten at all. Problem solved, but thighs burn. It felt a little stiff the rest of the day, but no pain that wasn't overcome by the 4 ibuprofen tabs I took when I got home (just to make sure). When it still didn't hurt this morning, I took more prophylactic ibuprofen and went skiing. My knee is no worse and my thighs are working extra hard. Of course we were only out there for an little over an hour. When you have a pass and only live a few blocks from the hill, you don't ski all day. There is no way I could ski powder, bumps or anything very challenging, but at least I can get out there and have a little fun.

I mentioned the new chairlift earlier. It is really quite comfy and very fast. It is even roomier than before. They replaced the old "Quad" chair with a new high speed lift, which they oddly named the "Old Homewood Express". I have a few pretty pictures below: