Artichoke's Running Blog (Ken Spence)

5 miles at 8:49 pace.  A decent run until the very end.  I need to vent here.  This is my sad tale:  I have this concrete waterway (gutter) across the street from my house that is out to get me.  Last February on an early morning run with almost totally dry roads, I started out on my run, slipped on some black ice in that waterway, falling down very hard on both knees.  My knees have never been the same since.  After 25 years of running with few injuries, and never any knee issues, I can no longer say that.  Inspite of the fall and the knees hurting some ever since, I have still be able to run very well this past year.  Although there is knee discomfort, it's only about a .5 or a 1 on a 1 to 10 scale and I've been able to run quite well.  I just have never felt like things are that good in those 2 joints anymore while doing it.  I ran my best of 3 Boston's in April.  Ran my old man PR of 1:32 at Hobble Creek Half-marathon in August and then a 3:23 old man PR at St. George and have generally trained pretty well.  (I was only 2 minutes shy of what I ran SG in 1985.)  The left knee had started to get better and then came on this past summer evern worse and I was diagnosed with patellar tendonitis, which the Doc said shouldn't be related to the fall.  The therapist felt that with some proper stretching, etc. it would eventually go away.  It has generally improved, and usually feels better along into the run and even went totally away during the last miles of the St. George Marathon in October.  Of course, the next day was another story.  At any rate, I continue to run well even with the knee issues and probably suspect that something else is going on in the right knee that probably should be looked at by an orthopedic specialist.  So.......anyway.  Here it is, this morning, 11 months later and this time getting back from my run and in this very same concrete waterway across the street from my house, I go down again on some black ice.  Didn't see any ice anywhere the entire 5 mile run and then literally at the end of the run as I was forced to make a tighter turn than ususal due to a car coming up the road.....I go down on my right side with my right arm underneath me.  It feels like I have either cracked or separated ribs in two places, high and low.  I'm really hurting and with one run left to test it out tomorrow, I don't know whether I'll be doing Painter's or not at this writing.  I have had more rib injuries than anyone I know.  This is the second time from a fall while running.  Two times while straining to pull something like a refrigerator on a hand truck up some stairs or pulling a root out of the ground.  One time by a chiropractor as I tensed up during a manipulation.  One time reaching over the arm of a couch to pet my dog and another freakish one while laying face down on the floor and then having to sneeze.  So, here I am with yet another rib injury, that will surely take at least another 6 weeks to feel good again, as they typically do.  How's that for a story?  I'll probably still be at the Painter's Half-marathon on Saturday in St. George, either running or at least cheering everyone on.