Possible shin fracture, and a velomobile review

First, the bad news: I may be out 6-8 weeks with a fractured tibia (the shin bone) after my unfortunate run-in last week with a parking lot barricade. X-rays are pending. This will take me to the beginning of August before I can start training for the September 30 marathon. If my shin turns out just to be bruised, then I can start to run sooner. The record attempt in up in the air.

Now the good news: Dianne and I went out on our velomobile test drive yesterday morning with Ray from Bluevelo. I drove the Belgian-made WAW and Dianne pedalled the Versatile, produced in the Netherlands. I also had a chance to take the Versatile for a spin, but Dianne was too short to fit into the WAW.

The WAW has a very low profile. You're practically sitting on the ground. Its light weight allows for quick accelerations and the steering - levers at your side connected directly to the two wheels in the front - are extremely responsive. I got the WAW up to 50 km/h and even when I stopped pedalling it just kept cruising at 49 km/h until I put on the brakes. This machine is great for speed, but could be awkward for city commuting.

I tried out the Versatile along a very bumpy road and its double suspension performed admirably. It's quite a bit heavier than the WAW, but I still got it up to 47 km/h. It had fully enclosed chain, very easy handling, an internal hub that lets you shift gears even at a stop and fun things like turn signals and a horn.

Both of these machines rocked. It's hard to describe just how fun these things are to drive. And the sight of Dianne cruising along next to me in the Versatile had me grinning ear-to-ear.

Ray has a Mango (a lighter velo than the Versatile) coming in soon. It looks like this will be the vehicle of choice for us. It's too bad these "cars of the future" are in such limited production, because they have so many advantages, not the least of which being ... they're massively fun!

Joggler's parkour career over before it started

Back in March I wrote this post about being a klutz when I'm not joggling or juggling.

I further proved this point yesterday after work in a painfully unsuccessful jump over a parking lot barrier. The casual shoes I was wearing were too loose. As I jumped up to hurdle the metal barricade my shoe flopped around a messed up my take-off and the next thing I knew my foot caught the edge of the metal and I crashed ignominiously to the ground.

I would have been embarrassed were it not for the excruciating pain in my left shin, which took the brunt of the impact. After hobbling to the subway the trying not to whimper out loud on my trip home, I went to a walk-in clinic to get the damage assessed.

There was a big gash in the shin about 8 cm long, but it wasn't deep enough to warrant stitches. It feels like I might have torn something in my knee, but it's too hard to tell with all the swelling around the surface wound.

So for now, I rest, and contemplate my future now that parkour has been scratched off my Things To Do Before I Die list.