Friday, March 18, 2011

Frustration

After sitting out one day, Scott retested and they decided to have him sit out another day. He passed all of the mental acuity portions of the IMPACT test again, but his reaction time remained slow relative to his baseline tests.

Scott's very depressed and frustrated -- sitting around all day with no physical or mental activity is not his normal state. It's also disappointing to miss these important races. He's now very worried that he'll also miss the Super Combined and Super Gs.

The Doctors, and the review team at the IMPACT center, are unable to say that he had a concussion. His tests do not so indicate, plus he was never unconscious and never suffered mental confusion. However, the reaction time thing is causing them to be cautious. From Scott's perspective, he feels great and ready to go. I can only imagine how hard this was for some of the guys that had to sit out a year, or more. I recall Scott McCartney, a USST athlete who suffered a severe head injury a couple of years ago, blogging about feeling great three months after the accident, yet not being allowed to exercise or do any physical activity. Killer....

Tonight they're having Scott spin on a bike for 30 minutes, then retake the test to see how he reacts. It all sounds pretty open ended and we're inclined to cut our loses, save some money, and drive out of here tomorrow. His next race after this series is Mar 26th in Colorado. We'll see what the verdict is. It would be nice if he was cleared to race tomorrow.

1 comment:

  1. Sorry to hear about that Shep. Send Scott our best. Can he still review film and preview the race courses? Do strength and stretching exercises? I know its never the same as race experience, but at least it gives you stuff to focus on other than not being able to race...

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