The bionic woman (aka wraptastic)

Yesterday was the debut of my fashion accessory for the cycling season- a sully brace.

This is the trade off for not having shoulder surgery now. Surgery would take me out of competition for 4 months. The doc thought I could be on a bike 2 months after surgery, but it would have to be a recumbent. Delaying surgery until winter was an easy choice.

The sully brace has lots of neat qualities. Not only do I need a friend to wrap all the velcro straps around my shoulder, but it instantly turns a comfortable 70 degree evening into a sweatfest. I suspect in a few days, the odor produced by my brace will keep any competitors far away from me (hopefully behind me). I also had the pleasure of accidentally folding over the elastic on my jersey sleeve when I put on the brace. The end result was a nasty elastic burn on my upper arm. It makes me look tough.

On the up side, this neoprene-fuzzy velcro device did what it was supposed to- keep my shoulder where it belongs. I would have had a rough time at Buck Hill with out it, I think. PT starts on Monday. Hopefully after some serious PT, I can retire the brace. Until then, keep an eye out for other people wearing the sully brace. I'm sure everyone will want to look as fast as me.