12:53 PM Mountain Standard Time on Tuesday, August 17, 2004

By Marty Velasco Hames / NewsChannel 3

Watch the video

Marty Velasco Hames is happy to be back in the saddle.

I was leaving my physical therapy office this morning, bracing my arm from the pain of the session, when it suddenly hit me. I had two broken wrists.

My most recent bike crash was actually about two weeks ago. It left me with about 15 or so broken bones in my wrists and hands (The doctor really never gave me a final count.), some stitches on my chin, and a decent amount of road rash. Well, the road rash is all healed up and you really have to look to see the scar on my chin, but my hands are still a long way from being back to 100 percent.

The crash happened while I was riding on a bike path through the Dreamy Draw Mountain Preserve. It was hot and it was a short, recovery workout day. I had already finished my run and was wrapping up with a quick hour ride. About 10 minutes from my house, my front tire hit some gravel and I went down hard on my left side. As before, my helmet saved me from potentially serious head injury.

I walked out and was able to flag down a passerby and get a ride to my house. From there, my mom took me to the hospital where we could assess the damage. You can read more about the crash and the man who rescued me in the August issue of SWEAT magazine.

Marty's injuries included about 15 broken bones in her wrists and hands.

Both of my arms were in a lot of pain, with my right worse than my left. X-rays revealed I had a broken bone just below my left thumb, and a bunch of fractures in my right wrist. The good news is there was no serious head or back injury.

I wish I could tell you I realized how lucky I was, and that was all that was important, but I'd be lying. The realization hit me that my dream to race in Ironman Hawaii was probably over, and I cried.

But, there was one person who could still keep my dream alive. Dr. Lloyd Champagne, one of the best hand surgeons in the state, just happened to be on-call that afternoon. He took a look at my X-rays and admitted right out that my right hand was a mess. Typically, they would have to attach some metal type contraption called an external fixator on the outside of my arm to hold everything in place. I guess a cast wasn't even good enough.

However, Dr. Champagne said that if we were lucky, there might be another way to fix my hand, and allow me to resume some amount of training while healing.

Dr. Champagne checks Marty's hand.

He explained the possibility of using a titanium plate surgically inserted just below my palm, which would stabilize my wrist. He could fix a few of the other bones with pins and wires, thereby foregoing the need for casts and external devices. Dr. Champagne said that we would just have to proceed into surgery and hope for the best.

A few hours later, around midnight, I woke up in my room. There were no casts on my arms, no big external metal devices, just some wraps and splints.

The next morning Dr. Champagne called to say the surgery was a huge success! The plate fit exactly how he had hoped, and everything looked good for recovery. We definitely lucked out and thanks to Dr. Champagne, the possibility of Hawaii was once again in my future!

Marty trains with Nate Koch.

My coach, Joe Friel, founder and president of UltraFit, confirmed it the very next day. After consulting with our team physical therapist, Nate Koch with Endurance Rehab in Scottsdale, they decided we had enough of a base established that easing up for a few weeks would not affect us that much for Hawaii.

So, after two surgeries and three days in the hospital, I went home. Two days later the splint and wraps were gone, and I was back in the gym cross training. Less than a week after my crash, I was back on my bike riding on an indoor trainer. I was running, as well, with very little to no pain in my wrists. Dr. Champagne told me to wait until my sutures were completely healed before attempting to get back in the pool.

Marty takes a swim in Tempe Town Lake.

Right before my accident, I had reached a milestone in my training. Swimming, with special permission and a guide, at Tempe Town Lake. Tempe is host to the 2005 Ironman Arizona (Yes, I'm signed up.) and the 2.4-mile swim will take place in the lake.

The city invited me to try the swim, which was my longest ever. The lake was fresh, the scenery was beautiful, and I enjoyed every second of it. It was an incredible feeling of accomplishment, having just learned how to swim in the last couple of years. Hopefully I will be going back to do the swim again in September (again, with special permission and a guide). I have to stress that going out to swim at the lake on your own is strictly prohibited –- I just don't want you to get in trouble! Fortunately, there are a ton of fun events out at the lake where you can swim. You can check it out at www.tempe.gov/lake.

I hope you had a chance to catch Lance Armstrong in his historic Tour de France win. My coach was actually there watching some of it in person, and riding some of the race route! Hopefully he'll bring pictures back to share with us!

The group who showed up for the party at Bicycle Ranch poses for a picture.

Meanwhile, Bicycle Ranch in Scottsdale has been brimming with excitement over the race. In fact, they held an early-morning party to watch stage 18 of the race live on a big-screen TV from the store. Dozens of people turned out, and NewsChannel 3 was there to broadcast all the action live for "Good Morning Arizona." Of course Lance won the time trial, and it was fabulous to witness the excitement with other Valley cyclists!

Also, you may have seen people walking around with yellow bracelets the last couple of weeks. They cost $1 and the proceeds go to support cancer survivors. As you know, Lance is a seven-year cancer survivor, and at one point was given a 50 percent chance to live.

The bracelets are imprinted with his slogan, "Live Strong." They've been flying off store shelves. The goal of the campaign is to raise $5 million and so far it has been a huge success. You can learn more about the project by going to www.laf.org (the Lance Armstrong Foundation).

I've been working closely with the team at Bicycle Ranch getting ready for Ironman Hawaii. Paraic McGlynn has been checking my fit on my bike frequently as my fitness level improves. They also closely inspected my bike for any cracks in the frame after my July crash. Fortunately, my bike survived with only a few minor scratches.

I also spent a few hours recently with their pro mechanic, Bob, learning how to take my bike apart and put it back together for transport to Hawaii. I also just like knowing how my bike works, for those times when you encounter mechanical problems when you're out riding. Bob actually teaches a class at Bicycle Ranch on bicycle maintainence which I highly recommend. You can find out more about it on their current newsletter. You can also read an interview I did recently with Bicycle Ranch about my training for Hawaii at www.BicycleRanch.com.

Proceeds from these yellow bracelets go to support cancer survivors.

While Joe has been away, and since I can't swim right now, I've been putting in extra hours with Nate at Endurance Rehab. He's been keeping my swim muscles strong, and working on some other areas of weakness. Nate is also a big fan of the exercise ball for strengthening the core. So when I do get back to swimming, maybe I'll be stronger and faster than before!

I'm also working with the best hand physical therapist in town. His name is Chris Reynolds and he's with Desert Hand. I thought training for an Ironman was tough! Chris is working on helping me regain range of motion and flexibility in my right wrist, which right now is very limited. I barely have the strength to hold a cup of coffee or squeeze toothpaste from the tube! I'm sure with Chris in charge that will change very soon.

Chris Reynolds helps Marty regain range of motion and flexibility in her right wrist.

I also want to take a second and send out a huge thank you to all of you who sent me cards, letters and e-mails wishing me well. Please know that I read each and every note, and it always means more than you know. Some of the most meaningful sentiments include stories of your own personal struggles, and how you overcame adversity.

Challenges happen to all of us. That's why I want to share the positive as well as the less-than-positive side of this Ironman experience. Some days are easier than others, but we can't give up! There are so many incredible adventures out there just waiting for us. Remember, the best things in life are never easy.

OK enough writing for me for now. Time to go jump on my bike! Hawaii is just two months away! Good luck to you in crossing the finish line of your own dreams!

Be well,

Marty