Staying Healthy Takes Work

When I recently went in for my Carpal Tunnel surgery the pre-op nurse asked me a bunch of the usual questions. When she asked if I have had any previous surgeries I started laughing. It hit me at that moment that I have had a bunch of surgeries. And they just keep adding up. Yay for medicare and medicare supplement as of last year. No more $10,000 deductible and co-pays. No more waiting to get my body repaired due to cost or timing a surgery around the start of a new annual deductible. 

I've lived a physical life and leverage and gravity conspire to break down my 6'1" frame. However I am very fortunate that nothing has been life threatening  (except for a little heart attack in 2011). I think of those unfortunate souls who are dealing with serious life threatening and quality of life issue conditions and it helps me put my issues in perspective. I realize that at 66 shit is going to happen and I'm thankful it's shit that I can manage. I may be paying the price for lifting too many stones in my younger days and poor genetics but I wouldn't change anything. Well maybe a better diet in my younger years could have helped me avoid a heart attach. But the plumbing seems to be in good order now.

I hate going to doctor offices but I've learned to accept at 66 years old it's a reality of my life. It plays havoc with my "white coat" hypertension. I keep a record of my "at home" blood pressure readings so I don't have to listen to the high pressure lecture when I visit a doctors office. 

Don't need a fancy gym.

Staying active and maintaining my quality of life doesn't come easy for me. Exercise is a daily routine. I'm not genetically blessed, more like cursed. I work hard at keeping myself moving so I can enjoy life and family. Cycling 200 to 350 miles a month, regular exercise with weights, and a lot of stretching. Old muscles tighten up fast. Also a healthy vegetarian diet (really more like a sushitarian diet, I enjoy Sushi but no other fish). The most I ever weighed was 227 some 30 years ago.  In the last 15 or so years I've kept my weight between 185 and 190.

A life well lived is better than a life long lived.

I have 15 reasons to stay healthy...

9 grandkids,

5 grown kids, 

and waking up next to my beautiful wife every morning.

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Haha...this is what it has come down to, a list of surgeries so I don't have to stress my brain when filling out a new patient form. I'll be adding my left Wrist Carpal Tunnel release to the list in a couple of months. 

Surgeries - Mark Rackow

Knee right arthroscopic 

Knee right arthroscopic...again

2008 Shoulder right rotator cuff repair

2009 Back L4, L5 - Foraminotomy

2009 Back T5, T6 - Foraminotomy

2011 Heart 2 stents LAD

2012 Hip left arthroscopic

2012 Hip right arthroscopic 

2013 Hip left replaced

2013 Hip right replaced

2020 Back  L1 to L5 and S1 - Foraminotomy, partial  

         laminectomy, Discectomy, Coflex clip L4,L5

2020 Wrist right - carpal tunnel release

2020 Wrist left - Carpal tunnel release

Instagram Post

My Instagram 

ONLY ON A RECUMBENT TRIKE...ride 4 days post op after Carpal Tunnel surgery.

Top gray buttons are for the E8000. The lower ones control the Shimano Di2 electronic shifter. The display panel is the Shimano E6100 panel used with the E8000 assist motor.

Lazer Blade Helmet Replaced With Another Blade

Why replace a Laser Blade helmet with a Laser Blade helmet? I've had my old one for five years and my research tells me a helmet should be replaced every five years (some say every three years). You know...degradation of the materials over time.

Why the Laser Blade?

1. The Lazer Blade withs MIPS has a Five Star rating from Virginia Tech Helmet Lab.  (update 11/20/20, Adventure Cyclist profiled Virginia Tech Helmet Lab in the Dec 2020/Jan 2021 issue of Adventure Cyclist Magazine.)

2. It fits me well. It comes in sizes from XS up to XL. The Large fits my big head.

3. The retention system is adjusted from the top of the helmet. For recumbent riders this means no knobs and plastic between you and the headrest (if you use a headrest).

4. The back of the helmet is rounded. No point on the back to interfere with a bike rack or the tire when really laid back.

5. Now it comes with the MIPS (Multi-directional Impact Protection System). Extra protection for rotational impact.

The old helmet (red accent) and the new one. 

Inside the old helmet and inside the new helmet with the yellow MIPS insert.

No retention adjustment on the back of the helmet. Instead...

 

..it's on the top.

Rounded in the back.

ICE Rear Fender - Cut Down

I prefer a short rear fender. Less rattle and easier to maintain. 

The ICE rear fender has eight support struts that makes it easy to cut down without sacrificing rigidity. 

The ICE rear fender as it comes from ICE.

ICE Ergo-Luxe Seat Re-reviewed

Let me start off my saying that my original review from April 16, 2020 was done shortly after my back surgery February 19th. I largely discounted the Ergo Luxe seat due to discomfort around the incision area of my back where I had surgery. I didn't even take the effort to make minor adjustments needed to accommodate the extra thickness of the Ergo-Luxe. BIG mistake! So please let me have a do-over.

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Another update 3/3/21

After developing a tear in the Ergo Luxe seat (go to post) I put the mesh seat back on. For now I'm very happy with the mesh seat and plan on keeping it on the trike. What I like most about the mesh seat is a bit lower center of gravity and the the firmness of the mesh seat when peddling.

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ICE Ergo-Luxe Adventure seat cover on my ICE Sprint

I use an Adventure seat frame on my Sprint. 

The frame of the Adventure seat base is a bit longer and I find it more comfortable.

I'm very VERY happy I did not end up selling the Ergo-Luxe seat cover and waited for my back to toughen up. It has toughened up and now I can say this seat is really comfortable. Like REALLY comfortable.  

After having installed the Ergo-Luxe seat cover on my Sprint seat frame and making minor adjustments to the trike to accommodate the thickness of the Ergo-Luxe I took it for a 20 mile outing. It's clearly the most comfortable seat you'll ever sit in whiling pushing pedals. After a few more rides it's without a doubt going to stay on my ICE Sprint FS E8000. The couple of negatives are outweighed by the positives.

The seat sits a little higher with its extra padding raising the center of gravity a bit but the seat is constructed in a way that makes it much easier to lean into a turn. On the old mesh seat I had to lean forward to clear the seat frame before being able to lean into a turn. Being able to easily lean into a turn by far compensates for the higher center of gravity.

Another issue that gets talked about a lot is heat. Yes my back heats up a little more with the Ergo-Luxe but not nearly enough to be a deal breaker considering everything else that rocks on the Ergo Lux. 

Another issue I brought up in my original review was the extra padding absorbing energy. As I said earlier "I ride a lot of hills and I felt that the Ergo-Luxe was a bit too cushy and absorbing some of my power when pushing pedals going up a hill." I feel now that I may have over thought this issue. With the E8000 and my riding style being being more relaxed nowadays the loss of power is a minor issue. 

In the end the seat is supper comfortable and easy on the old muscles. I'm really enjoying the ICE Ergo-Luxe. And to think I almost let the haze of a recent back surgery cloud my thinking. I have been enlighten.

This is not a seat for someone who wants to ride light and fast. For all others it's an option worth looking at.

The minor adjustments that needed to be made on my Sprint to accommodate the extra padding of the Ergo-Luxe

Ready to Ride

Shimano E8016 630Wh Battery and Mount

Shimano's latest external mount battery is the E8016. A 630Wh battery that offers a substantial jump in range over its next largest battery the E8010 504Wh battery.

Bad news, the E8016 is a large battery that will not work on the older BM-E8010 battery mounts. A new battery mount, the BM-E8016 is required.

Good news, the new BM-E8016 battery mount will accommodate the older E8010 and E8014 battery. So at least you can use your old batteries but you will have to by the new BM-8016 battery mount.

      

The big new E8016 630Wh Battery

The older B8010 504Wh battery (shown with mount)

  

My Correspondence with Shimano

My Question - Can the down tube battery mount for the E8010 be used for the new E8016 battery

Shimano's Answer - Hi Mark. The New BT-E8016, does require a new battery mount BM-E8016, and will not work with the BM-8010 mounts. I hope this information helps. All the best.

My Question - One last question (for now). Will the new BM-E8016 mounts work with the older E8010 battery?

Shimano's Answer - Hi Mark. Yes the BT-E8010 and the BT-E8014 will work on the BM-E8016 mount. All the best.

Bike Lanes Becoming Pedestrian Lanes

Give me a break. In the age of COVID 19 if you gotta give another pedestrian a little space by moving into the bicycle...fine. And there are a lot more pedestrians out. Most pedestrians move back onto the sidewalk or out of the way when a cyclist comes along. But there are the newbie exercise walkers and runners that have discovered the great outdoors thanks to COVID who are clueless and just hold their ground in the bicycle lane, some with strollers, some staring at their phones and some just being whatever, forcing cyclists to move into traffic to get past them. 

I'm happy people are getting outdoors and exercising but use common sense. Especially on a downhill blind curve, what do you expect when I almost plow through you.

It's time that city planners start designing public spaces with pedestrian needs in mind. Token sidewalks just don't cut it anymore.

This pic is on a less traveled road going uphill and in so big deal. But pedestrians

 in the bike lane on busier roads are common.