# beautiful bruises!



## athalliah (Dec 9, 2005)

I was talking with a colleague yesterday who would not stop staring at my legs (I was wearing a work-appropriate skirt). Yet another instance later that day in my office and I feel like I’m getting checked out. I was beginning to believe my colleagues were all perverts (or really lonely) and contemplating only wearing pants to work; when I realize they are staring at the big, dark purple bruises on my right shin; a relic of the weekend I had forgotten about. 

Anyway, I'm bored so why not start a thread? Ladies, do you ever get those “questioning” looks as a result of injury? The sideways glances at your SO while you're on a date with bruises on your arms? Random strangers commenting? 


*****disclaimer*******
I am in no way trying to make light of anyone having received an injury as a result of domestic violence or anyone who knows someone in that situation. This thread is for cycling related injury only.


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## djessc800 (Mar 29, 2007)

That would deffinatly be akward!!! When I first started mountain biking ( I'm kinda new so it wasn't that long ago) I lost my balance on a bridge (I'm also very clumsy) and I fell into a tree and got a big bruise on my arm. The next day at work, everyone was like omg what happened. It was no big deal to me but at the time I worked with a bunch of people who didn't really do a whole lot of physical anything. They were all shocked that I went and told me that I was crazy! It was an interesting work day!


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## TheotherH (Jan 21, 2004)

*I wear pants*

...to work when I get any nasty bruises. That way I don't get questioning or that "aren't you too old to be doing that stuff" look unless they notice I wince when sitting down or when banging my leg for the eightieth time on that darn corner of my desk. 

One of my best "eggplant" bruises. The whitish long area in the middle of the bruise? The imprint of another biker's handle bar that I landed on.


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## Merdoff (Jul 1, 2005)

I went over the handle bars on a downhill rock garden and landed face first. Teeth were rattled a bit (but were intact thank goodness) lip was split, suffered a concussion and within about 1 day whiplash set in. It was peak summer vacation time so I had to work. I work in a hospital and my boss felt I was scaring patients by my appearance. Needless to say I was able to catch up on much needed administrative work. 

Oh that bruise looks sore!! I can relate to the handlebar landing except I landed chest first. My breasts were black and blue for weeks and a huge hematoma to boot.

Man I love this sport!!!


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## itsdoable (Jan 6, 2004)

One of the riders in our group - petit (~5'1"), soft spoken, wears a suit dress to work at a major bank, did an endo (while on a road section!) and managed to get a chainring mark on her calf - 4 deep teeth marks on the back of the lower leg. She said none of her co-workers would believe she got that mountain biking, because they wouldn't believe she'd go mountain biking...


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## *rt* (Jan 15, 2004)

*where'd you get those cuts on your arms?*

last summer i got stung on the butt by a bee during a ride. i'm allergic so this necessitated a trip to the ER. about a week prior to the bee incident i had gone riding on a trail that turned out to be covered with briar bushes. 14 miles of briar bushes (it was an out & back so, 7 mi in each direction) and i had hash mark-like scratches up and down both arms (and legs).

so there i am at the ER with a bee bite on my @ss, leaning over (because i can't sit down) the intake nurse's desk and she is taking my info. 1/2 way through 'what is your insurance company' she looks hard at my arms and says "where'd you get all those cuts on your arms?"

'mountain biking' i reply

nurse: 'oh'

i'm brought back to the area where i will be seen and plopped onto a gurney where i wait......

and wait.......

and wait........

finally a nurse comes over and says "so, i hear you got stung by a.......hey, where did you get all those cuts on your arms?"

'mountain biking' i reply

nurse: 'oh?'

me: 'there were a lot of pricker bushes'

nurse: 'oh.'

eventually the ER doc comes over and says "i hear you......um, where'd you get all those cuts on your arms?"

(do you see a pattern here?)

'mountain bikiing' i reply

Doc: 'really? how?'

me: 'briar bushes'

Doc: 'all of those cuts are from briar bushes?'

me: 'yes, they were covering the whole trail. Would you mind checking out my bee bite?'

Doc: 'oh. right. let's see the bee bite. OH! that looks bad.....'

in the end all the medical professionals decided that i was probably not into self-cutting behavior and was most likely telling the truth about the briars. i wonder if the fact that i was dressed in cycling gear and slightly muddy had any impact on their decision to trust me? 

on the other hand, i was actually pretty impressed that the whole medical staff at this little ER was so savy about self-cutting behavior.

oh, and after falling on my face last summer in a race i got a lot of embarassed looks - where people would stare at the bruise on my chin for a split second and then look away.








i wanted to wear a sign that said 'no, my boyfriend doesn't beat me'. 

rt


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## *rt* (Jan 15, 2004)

*bar end meet knee...*

if you look carefully you can see the Schwinn logo.










rt


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## aword4you (Jul 25, 2005)

I've taken photos of some of my nicer cuts, but usually not the bruises anymore. Mostly mine are on my legs, and I always wear pants unless I'm riding. Walking around with bandages on my wrist got a few questions (scrape from pavement in between the arm warmer and the glove) and bandages on my elbows. 

I do have pretty good road rash injury photos if anyone starts a thread about that


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## cbharping (Mar 22, 2004)

The place I get the looks is when I climb into the whirlpool at the gym. I'll see some woman looking at me, then the eyes go down to the bruises on my legs...

At my job, I would wear a skirt to work and not even remember the bruise or cuts from the weekend. Then a co-worker would spot a cut/bruise and say, "Why do you do mountain biking? You're always getting hurt". 

They just didn't get it, so I just quit wearing skirts to work and kept riding!


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## Bluebug32 (Jan 13, 2006)

In the summertime, the people I work with are used to seeing me walking around with a bag of frozen pees.


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## gabrielle (Jan 2, 2005)

oooh...that's a nice one!


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## formica (Jul 4, 2004)

I've had one of those before....


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## dir-T (Jan 20, 2004)

I think it's interesting and sad that when a woman gets banged up doing something fun it's so often assumed that she's getting beat up by her SO or is into self-mutilation.

Case in point, my wife went on a backpacking trip with another couple that we're friends with. Our friend, Kim, tripped and hit her face on a rock fracturing her cheak bone and getting a gnarly black eye. My wife worked in the same office with Kim and said it was amazing how EVERY guy who came into the office would ask quite seriously "is her boyfriend beating her?".

Eventually, they started joking with people that the two got into a fight and my wife actually was the one whe beat her up. Then that turned into rumour (smallish town) which for a while caused my wife to get a lot of sideways glances from other woman when she was at work functions.


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## athalliah (Dec 9, 2005)

Nice bruise shots, ladies! I don't have a single picture of a bruise. Pictures of me adorned with cuts, slings and walking casts...check!

When I first started riding I was a batender in college; and this time period coincided with the beginings of a relationship. The guys in the kitchen would repeatedly ask where the bruise on my arm/hip/leg came from; and one coworker went was far to say he would "take care of him" for me. My cracked ribs were the breaking point (ha ha). While it was endearing that they cared that much, I was concerned that they may not believe me and "take care of him" anyway. 

I believe regionalism comes into play here; I was in Tallahassee (which may as well be in Georgia) at the time I was learning to ride. Both men and women seem to be astonished by a woman mountain biking (well, doing anything of a physical nature in general). I'm not knocking the south and saying it is an entirely backwards place; just less progressive than other areas of the county. *rt* I know you're a fellow southern gal; sure you got a little of this (like thinking that you were a cutter at the hospital). Anyone else from the dirty south?


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## CougarTrek (Jan 27, 2007)

*My scar saved me from skirts!*

That's right. I went to a major science conferance last spring for the first time and naturally had to go on a shopping spree before hand (I'm still an undergraduate so I didn't own suits at the time). My stepmother was insisting that every girl should have a suit with a skirt...that was until I tried one on with my beautiful 6 line chain ring scar that runs the entire length (and breadth) of my calf and is noticeably the wrong color even 2yrs later!! She agreed with my insistance on pants after that :thumbsup:


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## Luvz2Ridez (Sep 4, 2006)

Last summer when I was first getting into the DH/FR stuff and before I owned leg armor, I used to fall ALOT! And I'm one of those girls who bruises easily (anemic) and they always turn this deep bright purple. Well, at the end of last summer I had a dermatologist appt where I had to get into a gown and the doc checked my entire body for moles. Well, needless to say, I was covered up and down my legs with bruises, some old, some fresh, including a huge one on my thigh I had received the previous day. The doctor, who was a women, sat down in front of me and asked "what are all the bruises from? Is there something you'd like to talk to me about?" It took everything in my not to burst out laughing because my husband would never even raise his voice at me let along a hand. But I do appreciate her for being concerned.


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## *rt* (Jan 15, 2004)

i actually went to the dentist a couple days later to make sure i hadn't broken my jaw.  made my teeth hurt for weeks. 

rt


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## deanna (Jan 15, 2004)

*rt* said:


> oh, and after falling on my face last summer in a race i got a lot of embarassed looks - where people would stare at the bruise on my chin for a split second and then look away.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I needed a sign like that several years ago--I lept before checking out the landing area, and ended up landing just before my front wheel went into a large section of knotted roots. Needless to say it was an immediate endo. Landed on my head first--cracking helmet, helmet compressing down cracked the bridge of my nose, then continued over and skidded along the ground on my right shoulder.

Did walk away from it once the birdies quit spinning around my head. The black eyes developed two days later, on top of all the bruises and scrapes. Boy the looks I got when I was out in public! I was racing again two weeks later. Never claimed to be smart.


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## WTB-rider (Jul 25, 2004)

Hope you ladies don't mind a husband chiming in here but I was once thoroughly interrogated at an ER by 2 police officers when I brought my wife in with a cut eyelid(puppy claw). Better that emergency personnel are so in tune rather than blind to what may or may not be occuring.

BTW, Theotherh and rt, please take this only as a compliment...nice legs.


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## ValerieNV (Jan 18, 2007)

My bike has yet to inflict the damage my horses do - but it looks promising . I'm not sure how I did this , my husband said it was my chain ring


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## screampint (Dec 10, 2001)

I've got a good one. After I had my daughter I was super eager to get back out on the trails. I waited the 6 weeks after the c-section (per doctor's orders) and chose a ride that I was very familiar with and even rode with my doctor. I guess I was a little too eager because I got going so fast and was having so much fun with her right behind me when I went down hard! I could hear her cursing and saying "8 weeks! Damm!t! 8 Weeks!" I ended up with a black eye and lots of nice bruising on one arm. The next day my husband and I went out to dinner with the kids. Imagine the nasty looks he got standing next to me as I was holding my 5 year son's hand with one arm and our 6 week old duaghter in my other arm.


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## DeeEight (Jan 13, 2004)

My friend Jenny who mountain bikes was often injuring herself and getting strange looks, but its when she was working at the Toyota factory that she got the best bruises. One summer she was working in the part moving department, which required lifting lots of boxes which weren't heavy, but were awkward to move. So she'd end up with all these large deep bruises up the insides of her arms. She kept having people staring at her when she'd be going home afterwork and would stop for gas. All the people kept looking at her like she was some crackho with track marks or something. Then again, she has a sleep disorder which includes night terrors and has gone so far as to give herself a black eye. So of course I take her to dinner and everyones looking at us like I'm the one who did it.


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## Nordy (Mar 11, 2007)

I just have to add to this, before I took up mountain biking and had legs that looked like no ones ever should I was into Archery. It was something I took up to pass the time while my husband was in East Timor with the air force. WELL.... after my first lesson I got the weirdest looks, as almost every shot had thwapped me nicely in the arm so by the end of the day I had a lovely set of "finger marks" that looked like I had been lovingly manhandled BIG TIME. I was just lucky that my workmates understood the archery thing and knew hubby was away at the time. 

When I took up mountain biking however he wasnt away and I wore jeans for the first few months as my legs just looked like one big bruise. The attached photo is my leg after the first week of riding.


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## Durtdevil (Oct 18, 2005)

I've had so many bruises over the years on my legs, arms, chest, hands, you name it but one of the most memorable crashes I've had left me with two interesting bullet hole sized scars in my left calf. Crashing with speed on a downhill run, stood up laughing, looked down at my leg to brush away some dirt and saw my leg tissue/muscle whatever it was oozing out of two perfect puncture wound holes, no blood just tissue popping out, it was pretty gross. We never could figure out what I landed on that caused the hole, no real pointy rocks around, some small twigs here and there, but nothing obvious. I was two miles in/down on this particular trail, my friend was with me, we walked out just fine after she whipped off her top for me to wrap my leg in, however she was wearing a very pretty and lacy black bra that day and I thought it might be best if she wore her top and I would take mine off as I was wearing a jog bra kinda thingy. Too funny.


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## dompedro3 (Jan 26, 2004)

first off, I am a guy and apologize for intruding on your forum, but this thread reminded me of a situation a few years back. 
not really a funny story:

Had a friend (girl) who was a victim of abuse. Coincidentally, we went shopping together the week after I had a water polo game which gave me a nice black eye and a bike accident which left me on crutches. She had just gotten out of the hospital after her ex broke her nose and knocked out a few teeth (he fled the country after the warrant was put out)

Anyways, the sales lady looks at me and says:
"Well aren't you two a sight for sore eyes, what happened to you" looking at me
"had a mtn bike accident"
looks at my friend:
"well what's your excuse?"

needless to say that led to an awkward moment, which kind of put a damper on the day (we were shopping to cheer her up, before yet another surgery to fix her nose)
We actually left the shop right after that.

Hate to break up the jolly thread, but thought i'd share the story.


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## Durtdevil (Oct 18, 2005)

That's pretty sad..
I hope your friend is doing much better these days.


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## TreeSaw (Jun 29, 2005)

I bruise very easily so I often get the "whoa, where did you get that" comments. My Dr.s have learned not to ask.


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## pedaling pyrate (Nov 30, 2004)

*get one of these*

http://www.cafepress.com/buy/mountain+biking/-/pv_design_details/pg_1/id_8713103/opt_/fpt_/c_360/

:thumbsup:


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## athalliah (Dec 9, 2005)

dompedro3 said:


> first off, I am a guy and apologize for intruding on your forum, but this thread reminded me of a situation a few years back.
> not really a funny story:
> 
> Had a friend (girl) who was a victim of abuse. Coincidentally, we went shopping together the week after I had a water polo game which gave me a nice black eye and a bike accident which left me on crutches. She had just gotten out of the hospital after her ex broke her nose and knocked out a few teeth (he fled the country after the warrant was put out)
> ...


Well now I want to vomit.


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## rather*be*riding (Apr 4, 2007)

pedaling pyrate said:


> http://www.cafepress.com/buy/mountain+biking/-/pv_design_details/pg_1/id_8713103/opt_/fpt_/c_360/
> 
> :thumbsup:


Well isn't that special LOL Well, if I had a picture of the little piece of tooth from a cavity filled tooth I had one of my molars way in the back from my last crash I'd save you from the sight....I can't take a picture of how bad my neck felt after that one but I'm sick of the.."Well why on earth would you do such a thing"


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## smudd (Oct 25, 2006)

*This thread drew me out of hiding.....*

Hello Ladies,

I'm a little late on this one but am compelled to post. Let me introduce myself. My name is Summer and I've been lurking here for months. This thread has brought me out of hiding.

I relate so much to ya'lls posts. I took a big pointed rock to the chest last summer (three falls that ride so I was beat up head to toe) and ended up going to the doctor two days later because my mother (an RN) convinced me I had a bruised heart. My doctor was so concerned with my multiple cuts and bruises that he spent several minutes "counseling" me. He first asked if I was married and after my reply of yes repeatedly asked in several different ways if my husband beat me up. I'm not trying to be insensitive to actual physical abuse here, but it was difficult for me to keep a straight face throughout the entire rest of the exam. His diagnosis: possible abuse, multiple contusions, abrasions and torn cartilage where my ribs connect to my breastplate I think???? Treatment: stop mt biking. I politely thanked him.

Funny thing is I showed up two weeks later with my husband to get his shoulder looked at after an endo. We were quite the pair, he in a sling with a torn trapezius muscle and me with my injuries.

After the explanation of what happened to my husband the doctor reconsidered his first assumptions. He shook his head with a smile and said to my husband "I know what's happening here! She got tired of getting beat up by you and now she's beating you up." I think I said something like "he got mouthy" and we all had a good laugh. Needless to say I get looks all the time and my family and friends think I'm crazy.

P.S. the first pic is the rock to the chest crashes (sorry fellas no pics of giant bruise under my left boob) and the second pic is from an endo this winter. In the second pic I was wearing knee and shin guards hence the isolation of bruises to the thigh area.

P.S.S. I do bruise easily and thought this a good opportunity to ask if any of you ladies knew of a treatment that does not include taking an iron supplement and/or other supplements as I prefer not to take supplements. I'm not anemic (been through multiple testing), and I eat pretty well, lowfat - high/carb/protein/fiber. I use arnica already and it seems to help slightly but I feel like I could be doing more. Any suggestions?


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## smudd (Oct 25, 2006)

*tricky thing....*

getting those pics to post in the right order.  1st pic is the endo, 2nd is the doctor visit.


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## tedroy (Mar 17, 2005)

*Basically we're all masochists!*

The pain we endure while riding kills the pain when we fall, and so we get home sayin,
"YEAH that was so cool!"... but folks in the elevator on monday do freak!
And we don't really hurt 'till the second day..!


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## Sixty Fiver (Apr 10, 2006)

Guys get this too, especially when they're old geezers like me.

I opened up my leg from right below my knee to the top of my foot after landing on a chainring and had several co-workers tell me that I should stop riding when they saw the knee to instep bandages (I always wore shorts at work) and heard what happened.

Apparently.. when one is a certain age (I'm 41) or gender they shouldn't be engaging in such high risk recreation.

For the record... chainring scars are cool and help us identify other members of our tribe.


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## kaboose (Oct 27, 2005)

*a few of mine*

i've had my share of crashes and the rocky desert has no mercy.

the first one is after a major cleanup getting the dirt out before the numbness goes away.
the second - after my first and only (let's keep it that way) face plant endo. 
the last one - falling on a very pointy rock.

tis a good thing that in time it all heals up!


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