Surfing Injuries?

ed's picture
ed started the topic in Tuesday, 8 Mar 2011 at 1:05pm

I recently dislocated my shoulder surfing the local break. Dumping surf conditions, wrong place, wrong time! I managed to pop in back in at the shore, now looking at minor surgery to tighten it up. Just want know if any other any other surfers are injuring themselves out there...

logger's picture
logger's picture
logger Wednesday, 9 Mar 2011 at 1:16am

frequently - my injuries for 2010 were a grade 2 tear of my MCL - out of the water for 6 weeks, then a slow return.

end of 2010 - a shattered pinkie and complete rupture of tendon, resulting in 1 op, 1 op declined, heavy scarring and an end to my rock climbing days, or at least the harder routes!

its tough out there,

hope you have a speedy recovery!

more's picture
more's picture
more Wednesday, 9 Mar 2011 at 10:55am

funny to see this thread tonight, just corked my leg really well today...have had this injury before while playing league but never surfing, I have been so lucky with injuries while surfing...broke my nose as a grom surfing but nuthing else really, not too bad for 24 years of surfing.... this happened today while surfing a new finless board, it is not easy and I think it is a sign to get back on some more standard shapes.......maybe....

www.moresurfboards.com

stunet's picture
stunet's picture
stunet Wednesday, 9 Mar 2011 at 9:55pm

I copped a cork to my thigh riding a 10'6" mal a few years back. The board was shaped in 1964 and weighs 30kg (bit waterlogged, I think). I nosedived and bailed off the side, it ploughed underwater and then recoiled straight into my thigh. Fuck it hurt.

I haven't had many injuries lately. Last year I busted an eardrum (fourth time) but before that I had a couple of years where the worst thing was a sea urchin. In my early 20's I had a six month period where I got over 100 stitches (fella flicked a board as I was duckdiving hitting me in the side of the knee, got scalped by my own fin, fucked up a crucial jump off).

Have never had a serious injury though, like a knee or shoulder reco and hopefully I haven't jinxed myself by writing that.

jaffa1949's picture
jaffa1949's picture
jaffa1949 Thursday, 10 Mar 2011 at 11:40am

Partial tear right medial knee ligament, 3 x broken nose knee to face on strong re-entry.
Torn plantar fascia, minor cuts and contusions, completed with multiple bruised egos.

Craig's picture
Craig's picture
Craig Friday, 11 Mar 2011 at 2:05am

Ah my perfect thread!

Had some unlucky injuries ranging from a broken jaw to tearing my MCL twice.

The MCL and related chuck of cartilage being ripped off the bone has caused me the most hassle.

Been in and out of the water for the past 6 months or so.

The first time I did it I think it was fatigue.

Sunday, hungover, had an initial 2hr surf in 2ft Manly and headed home. Room mate wanted to go for a surf so I decided to go down for a second session with only about half an hour between each.

Was having a ball on these small rights and snapping away, when on one snap I hear a loud bang/pop noise while at the same time it feels like something punched me in the leg (as stupid as it sounds at first I thought a Dolphin or big fish had jumped in to me).

I tore off a chunk of cartilage as well but I didn't realise this till after.

So I was on crutches for a week or so and then slowly got better, and I was back surfing a longboard within 4 weeks, and then I progressed to the shorty after about 6.

The knee was feeling good, I was surfing just as well as I was before and then before work one day I did it again! Fark!!

I couldn't believe it and this time I had a MRI to check out what was going on.

There was a 9mm diamater piece of cartilage floating around and the MCL had a grade 2 tear.

So again I was on crutches and had to let the MCL heal, but al the while noticing the bit of cartilage floating around when I bent my knee to 90 degrees.

I had an operation just before Chrissie to remove the cartilage and also get the hole where it was ripped out of chiseled to stimulate regrowth.

Now it's been 2.5months and I'm slowly building the quad muscle back up and taking it easy by surfing the longboard and also Pod/bodysurfing.

Hopefully back on the shorty in a month or two :)

pauly's picture
pauly's picture
pauly Tuesday, 15 Mar 2011 at 11:05pm

Bloody hell i recon i've been pretty lucky. all i've copped is pulled muscles, scun knees/ legs from reefs etc thats about it.

freeride76's picture
freeride76's picture
freeride76 Tuesday, 15 Mar 2011 at 11:49pm

Just landed on some hand foiled fibreglass fins yesterday. Not quite a Parko but still felt fucked when I put the fingers into the gaping hole.

Thanks very much to old mate who helped me off the rocks and other old mate who drove me to the docs.

20 internals and 20 externals.

Likely out for a month.

Comes on top of dodgy lower back that has curtailed water time for a couple months.

thelostclimber's picture
thelostclimber's picture
thelostclimber Tuesday, 15 Mar 2011 at 11:59pm

Got a bit careless as I could hear waves crashing from the carpark (about 200m from beach) which means its pretty big. So I wasnt watching where I was going and stubbed my big toe on a tree root?
Does that count? Looks like the toe nail will come off eventually. I still surfed.

Otherwise I have banged my head on the shallow sandbank a few times recently. One time even drew blood.
Regular stretching seems to help avoid straining muscles and tendons, as I havent done that in years.

rushy's picture
rushy's picture
rushy Wednesday, 16 Mar 2011 at 3:02am

On Boxing Day I wiped out onto my right shin bone across the rail of my board. Hurt at the time but kept surfing for another hour or so. When I got out, my son-in-law said "look at all the blood on your foot". Skimmed a 4cm piece of skin right off the bone. Thought I could just pull if off - nah, was a hunk still well attached. Took about 8 weeks to fully heal. My first surfing injury! Didn't notice until a couple of weeks later that the rail had a crack and shatter in it from the hit. Now all repaired.

pepe's picture
pepe's picture
pepe Friday, 18 Mar 2011 at 10:38am

Squashed testical.

I've busted the old nose and have that 'brain-like coral' scarred into my lower left love handle from a Maldives reef, but the squashed testie was the most 'memorable'.

It was nothing injury (if you can called it an injury). Just duck dived and sorta brought the board up under me too quick. The testie was in the perfect spot to flatten out, give me one fuck of an unexpected fright and then get all the other symptons that go with it (sick in the guts, feel like ya gonna vomm, then die, pissed a bit of blood that night, didn't go near the mrs for, like, a week; no morning glory - just terrible).

Surely it's gotta to be the most common?

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scoopmaster Monday, 20 Jun 2011 at 5:16am

i hyperextended my back taking a late drop on the boog at a local reef several years ago, i'm no contortionist and i got my legs bent way further back than they should have been. For at least 3 months my lower back would hurt if i lifted weights above my head (e.g shoulder press), i never had any scans to see exactly what damage i had done though. Other than that just a few DIY sea urchin removals and plenty of minor cuts and grazes.

Does sunburn count as a surfing injury??

evo62's picture
evo62's picture
evo62 Wednesday, 22 Jun 2011 at 3:16am

Right MCL a few times, split my glabella when I copped a lip to the head and went face first into the reef, various cuts, slices and grazes, strained my SIL too many times.

More noteworthy,

I speared my mate in the bum with the nose of my board when I was a grom, and then witnessed him cut off his left nipple with a self inflicted fin chop the very next surf he had. We never found the nipple....

lashclone's picture
lashclone's picture
lashclone Friday, 24 Jun 2011 at 12:01pm

Ruptured left eardrum twice. Once from the board and the second from just water pressure from the lip hitting it on the right (or wrong) angle.
Numerous oyster cuts, and got cleaned up on my moto going for a quick late arvo surf check = broken arm. Sydney drivers are shit!

mozzie's picture
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mozzie Saturday, 25 Jun 2011 at 10:58am

1)Broken nose
2) Split lips (upper and lower) stitches in both.
3) Fin slash to the ankle
4) Annoying wife to the ear

ANY others lads??