Details
Hits: 3266

I got my aviation medical back yesterday. I expected the doc to check out the range of motion and strength in my injured limbs, but he just did all the standard stuff and then signed my medical certificate. Woo Hoo!!

I’ve got a C550 simulator session booked on Tuesday - I’ll use it to confirm that all the body parts have what it takes to handle worst case required control inputs. I’ll do rejected take-offs with max braking, engine failures at V1, crosswind landings, full rudder steady heading sideslips, nose up trim runaways, etc. Assuming that goes well, I’ve got a C550 flight booked on Wednesday so I can get recurrent. I’ll get requalified in the C90A and C182 the first week of August after I get back from OSH. I’ll defer RV-8 flights until I’ve worked the rust off on someone else’s aircraft.

I’ve been off flying for over four months now, which is by far the longest break since 1982. I’m really looking forward to getting airborne again.

Details
Hits: 3223

This has been a frustrating week. I guess we were probably due for one, as things had been going quite well.

I had planned to start back at work on Tuesday. But, late on Sunday I noted a red area on the inside of my right ankle. This area was larger on Monday morning, and there was a small bright red, quite tender area in the middle of it. I didn’t like the look of it at all, so I called the office of my orthopaedic surgeon. They told me to see my family doctor ASAP, which I did Monday afternoon. The doc was quite concerned, and diagnosed it as the skin starting to break down from poor circulation. The area in question is right on the bump of the ankle, where the bone is just under the surface, which doesn’t leave much room for blood vessels to supply the skin. I’ve got a whole bunch of stainless steel hardware in that area, which further screws up things. The return circulation is quite poor below the injury, due to all the soft tissue damage. And, to cap things off, I’ve been having pretty much constant swelling whenever I’m not flat in bed, which stretches the skin.

The return to work plans got cancelled. I spent the rest of Monday, most of Tuesday, and Wednesday morning with the leg elevated, with the ankle and foot tightly wrapped in an elastic bandage to reduce the swelling. I could see continual improvement, so I was relieved that we had caught the problem in time. If the skin had opened up, there is a very good chance I would have gotten an infection, plus we would have had the hassle of trying to get it to heal.

I got measured for a compression stocking on Tuesday morning, and it arrived on Wednesday. These things are a bear to get on, and not that comfortable to wear. But they control the swelling fairly well, so I’ve been gradually moving from a horizontal to a more vertical existence. Monday afternoon I’ll probably try a half day at work. If the ankle handles that OK, I’ll probably do half days for the rest of the week. If that goes well, I’ll try a few full days the following week. I now realize that I need to slow down the return to normal life just a bit, to not get ahead of the healing process.

The ankle definitely works better now that the swelling is not so bad. It is very stiff first thing in the morning, and somewhat stiff if I’ve been sitting for awhile. But once I get it limbered up I move along fairly well, albeit slowly. The ankle will get a lot more exercise once I’m back to work.

I’ve hit a bit of a plateau in at least one axis of movement in each of my ankle, wrist and shoulder. This tells me I need to spend even more time doing the various exercises the physiotherapist gave me. The wrist and shoulder are both quite functional, but they hit the stops a bit before they should. The ankle has a long way to go yet.

I’ve got an appointment with my aviation doctor on Wednesday morning. Hopefully he’ll sign off my aviation medical. I’m negotiating with our simulator staff to get a short session in our C550 simulator ASAP too, so I can confirm the various recovering body parts are ready to control an aircraft again. I’ll do a few hours in various TC aircraft before I have a go at the RV-8. I’d rather work the kinks out in someone else’s aircraft.

I got the third Kitplanes article finished and submitted this week. The first one I wrote is in the August issue, which is on the news stands now. “Finding TAS from GPS data” covers the right and wrong ways to determine true airspeed using data from your GPS. The next two articles are a two part series on determining static system position error starting with TAS determined from GPS data, using flight test data from my RV-8 as an example. The articles are a completely reworked and fleshed out version of a web article I wrote several years ago. Mind you, Kitplanes hasn’t actually confirmed they will print those articles yet, but they haven’t rejected them either. I’ve got several other articles in the queue, but I want to use flight test data to illustrate them, and I’ve realized that I need to collect more data to highlight various aspects in each of the planned articles. So, they are on hold for a few months.

Terry didn’t have a great week either. While she did have several excellent days, she also had a couple of quite rough nights, when she hardly slept due to pain from pinched nerves in her neck. We had thought that this problem was slowly improving, but now we aren’t so sure. She needs to talk to her doctor about this.

Details
Hits: 3334

It’s been another fairly good week. My ankle is making good progress. I made my first baby steps without crutches 10 days ago, but needed a cane to help with stairs. Within four days I no longer needed the cane. The ankle and foot swell if I spend too long upright, so I can’t do nearly as much as I would like before I need to sit down and get my leg up. It also gets sore if I walk too much. But, the swelling is better than it was two weeks ago, and I’m sure it will develop more endurance as time goes on.

I’m more mobile each day. It was grey and rainy most of the week, but today it was finally sunny. At lunch time, I felt mobile enough to brave the long flight of stairs that go down to the patio at Kelly’s Landing, a river-side restaurant that we like south of Manotick. It isn’t fancy, but is a great place to be on a sunny summer day, sitting outside on the deck, watching the boats on the river, and laughing at the missteps as they try to dock in front of the restaurant.

I’m planning to go back to work on Tuesday for the first time since the accident. Hopefully the ankle and foot will be happy with this. If it can’t handle full days, I’ll try half days.

Terry has had several good days this week, but she also had days with quite a bit of pain. We’re trying to find patterns, to correlate what she did earlier to the pain level she has later, so we can learn what she can and cannot do. We’ve identified some of the variables, but others are proving elusive.

I’m putting the finishing touches on the third Kitplanes article. The first one is apparently in the issue that is on the news stands now, but I haven’t yet managed to track down a copy. The second article is in the pipeline at Kitplanes, and I need to submit the third article to them this week. Then I’ll pause, as I need to generate some more flight test data to use as examples for data analysis in the other articles I have planned.

Details
Hits: 2903

We’ve had a very good week. I started physiotherapy on Thursday, and now have a new set of exercises for my shoulder, wrist, leg and ankle. I’ll be going back for physio twice a week, and will be doing my exercises three times a day.

My right leg and ankle made huge strides this week. I had been walking around with crutches, placing partial weight on the leg. 10 days ago, I could support my full weight, but didn’t have enough ankle strength to keep myself from toppling over in a random direction if I didn’t steady myself with crutches. I exercised the leg and ankle every day, and it got stronger quickly. On Friday afternoon I took my first baby steps without crutches. I didn’t go far, and the ankle got tired very quickly, but it was a huge milestone.

Last night, I made it up the stairs to the master bedroom, and slept in our bed for the first time since the accident. Up to now I’ve been sleeping in a hospital bed in the dining room, on the ground level of the house. Today, we went to a big empty parking lot and I tried out the leg and ankle when driving our car - it went very well, including max effort braking. We’ve got a few scheduling issues to resolve, but I may get back to work for a few hours late this week. I’m pretty pumped to be getting closer to normalcy, one small step at a time.

Terry had a fairly good week. She is getting stronger every day, and is starting to learn what she needs to do to avoid pinching the nerves in her neck which gives her on again, off again pain.

A coworker and his wife came by today to weed Terry’s flower gardens. They have been by the last three weeks, and have almost got ahead of the weeds. Thanks.

Details
Hits: 3003

I've had a pretty good week, but Terry's was quite mixed.

My ankle is getting a bit more capable each day. It has the strength to support most of my weight now, with some discomfort. But I still need crutches to provide balance, as the ankle doesn't yet have the strength and control it needs to keep me from toppling over in some random direction. The wrist is getting much stronger - now I can hold a five pound laptop computer horizontal, which was only a dream a week ago.

Wednesday it was quite nice, and Terry was feeling good, so we went out for lunch, and then did a quick visit to Chapters. We used to hit Chapters once or twice a month, but we probably hadn't been there since February. It was good to be back, if only for a few minutes (my foot swells if I spend too long in a standing position).

I had a visit with an orthopaedic surgeon on Thursday. It wasn't a completely satisfactory visit, as they were two hours behind schedule. They were effectively seeing two day's worth of patients in one day because all the appointments the week before had been cancelled. I didn't see my regular doctor, as another doc was helping out. He did give me clearance to start physiotherapy, so I made an appointment for a physio evaluation later this week.

Terry's week wasn't nearly as good as mine. Her back injury is healing well, but she is fighting a new issue. Some days are good, but on other days she has numbness in her hands, and significant pain in her arms and hands. She has had some tests done to figure out what the problem is, but they haven't found the smoking gun yet. The current theory is pinched nerves, but we don't know yet what the root cause would be.

We've booked airline tickets to fly to Green Bay, WI in late July. Terry will spend time with her sisters, and I will spend a few days at the EAA Fly-In at Oshkosh. I had hoped to fly the RV-8 there this year, but it will still be good to get there by car, so I can meet up with other builders. We've received a tremendous amount of support from the RV community after the accident, with lots of e-mails, telephone calls, and web forum postings, and it will do me a lot of good to see some of these great folks in person again. I doubt I'll be walking that well, so I'll probably end up renting an electric mobility cart.

Details
Hits: 2844

We’ve had a pretty good week. My ankle is getting stronger and more flexible every day. I was supposed to have another visit with the orthopaedic surgeon on Thursday, but he had to cancel all his appointments that day, and it got rescheduled for this coming Thursday. I expect to start physiotherapy after that visit. I think I am getting close to the point where I could drive again, at which point I should be able to go back to work. We live out in the country, and the only practical way to get back and forth to work is to drive.

Terry’s torso is getting much stronger - she spends more time out of her back brace than in it. She was supposed to start physiotherapy this week, but her physiotherapist threw her back out, and had to cancel several days of appointments. Hopefully her appointment tomorrow will actually happen.

Friday at lunch time it was already quite warm, so we climbed in the car and did our first expedition all by ourselves. We had lunch, sitting outside at a local restaurant we like. It was wonderful to get out of the house, and to be able to do it without having to impose on someone else. Finally we are starting to get our freedom back.

I submitted my second Kitplanes article last week. The first article will be in the August issue, I think. The second article, if they like it, will probably be in the September or October issue.