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Don't carve in powder mode!!!


zoltan

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This has been said before, but don't carve in powder mode with Raichle/Deeluxe boots! The lean adjuster isn't strong enough to take a large impact without it being locked. If you want the flex that powder mode provides, buy the BTS or RAB.

I was taking my second to the last run of the season in spring conditions at Whitetail in PA. I was making turns on a fairly shallow part of the slope toward the bottom when I went into a toeside turn going fairly fast. I'm not positive what happened next, but I think the nose caught a patch of soft snow. A kid who was watching said that I did a couple of complete flips in the air. When I can down from the first flip I landed toeside, the boots flexed, and the lean adjuster on the front boot, which was set to powder, literally exploded, and a split second later my tib and fib snapped right above the ankle. I knew my leg was broken even as I was upside down in my second flip. It's weird seeing your foot flop around. If the adjuster had been locked it wouldn't have pulled apart. If it had been locked or if I had installed my BTS (which is sitting on my coffee table) I really don't believe my leg would have broken.

I'm currently sitting at home with new titanium hardware in my lower leg, and have to stay off that leg for 6-8 weeks. The stupid thing is, I had the BTS, but I put off installing it till the summer since I needed to make some modifications to my boots to make them work properly.

The whole ordeal wasn't too bad except for when they had to take off my boot. My boot is downsized and a very snug fit. I had a friend with me and the only time they looked ill was after the boot removal.

I have pictures of the leg, but didn't want to post them since they kinda gross.

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ugh... this is EXACTLY why I fear AND RESPECT hardbooting.:(

Gah that sucks man. I had a lesson I was teaching and this woman, and while ont eh lift up she said she wanted to go do Moguls. I groaned a bit as I had a hard boot setup on, and I wiped out fairly hard, but was lucky that I tumbled the right way and "turtle-shell" slid on my back in them. I went in, and switched back to my softboots, and life was "ok" again.

Damn dude... that just sucks. Hopefully it doesn't end your riding in the future.

Best wishes,

D>

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Ewww! that really sucks. I am curious though, did the break occur due to extreme forward lean of the boot on impact and lean mechanism failure? I had my mechanism blow out in a carve last year. I was very lucky, no injury:http://www.bomberonline.com/VBulletin/showthread.php?t=11051

I was in walk mode, but powder mode isnt any better as it only locks the rearward lean. Any insight as to how the failure caused the break? Also, if anybody out there is still riding in walk/powder mode, I have a set of RAB's(not BTS) I could send you for next to nothing. I hate hearing these stories. Good healing to you Zoltan! :biggthump

Sale pending on the RAB's(that didn't take long)

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Dave and I have both had tib fib fractures. They blow... Best news is you don't even notice after they are healed.

I just got my rod out a few summers ago and I am almost metal free...Its like it never happened.

Good advise about "WALK" mode this topic has been discussed before.

So Sorry you got injuried..

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Guest demonballer

that is really terrible to hear about your break but atleast it came towards the end of a season. I forget to lift up the tabs or they get knocked down on there own so I end up riding in walk mode alot. I think i will order bts after hearing this story. I am very sorry about your break and thanks alot for spreading the knowledge you learned through that terrible experience.

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I have had similar falls but without the breakage.

On a our club race day there was lots of fresh snow. The course was not sideslipped very wide and I was too early on a gate. As I was getting into the toe side the nose must have compresseed hard and then realeased. I never really thought landing on my head was a good thing until now.

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I have pictures of the leg, but didn't want to post them since they kinda gross.

POST THOSE PICS !!

I, for one, want to see. I've seen lots of "bad" xrays and it's still interesting to analyze the fracture in terms of the forces that we apply to our skeleton.

Seriously, I wish you a fast and uneventful recovery.

JD

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Crazy stuff, speedy recovery to you.

I got kinda scared my last time out, I folded the nose on my ATV (damned spring conditions) and torqued my leg harder than ever before (even harder than when i snapped my 4wd).

I knew it didn't break, but that was scary. My lower leg still hurts sometimes a week and a half after. Btw, I had BTS installed on my boots -- wonder if that saved my leg. Thanks for the info. This is good stuff, might save a few other people the trouble.

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Zoltan,

that sux! heal fast.

I'm really starting to think WHITETAIL IS BAD NEWS

1. Folded the nose last year and lost my iPod Nano in the snow during a cartwheel. Next lift ride up, it was found and stolen by a younger kid 20 feet below me. although engraved contact info on back, never saw it again.

2. First day this year- hit from behind on a blue by another boarder. end of season.

3. Zoltan has bad accident there this past weekend.

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It's probably the Percoset talking, but here's a picture my friend took in the ER:

brokenlegsmall.jpg

Sorry to hear about your injury!!!

I spent 14 weeks in casts(3) last year... and have broken all sorts of body parts over the years ... but man that's a GREAT pic! :eek: Love the cardboard box splint too!

Get well.

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It's probably the Percoset talking, but here's a picture my friend took in the ER:

brokenlegsmall.jpg

I quoted it so people have to look at it again when scrolling down =P

Keep on pumping the percs :biggthump heal fast.

Anyone know how bad it is to ride in walk mode on UPZs? I rode my burton winds in walk all the time and had no prob. But that was when I wasn't really able to put alot of force into my carves.

The UPZs are holding up fine when I flip it into walk. I usually do that when I get tired/lazy since its easier to make fluid carves in soft snow. I know I put alot of stress on them this year since I was able to snap some clasps carving in the godliest hard pack you can imagine.

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:eek: :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek: Zoltan, was this a fore/aft break, or laterally?

It's shifted to the side in the picture because that's were it ended up by the time we got to the ER. The "splint" wasn't exactly tight. The cardboard was all that was keeping my foot from flopping front to back. Here's an x-ray of the break:

brokenlegxray.jpg

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Those are some scary pictures. The last time I was on the hill, I rode a few runs in walk mode. It was just a little too lose for me, so I clicked back into a locked in mode. Then I went home and ordered BTS. After seeing your pictures, that kit which has been sitting on my table for the last week is going to be mounted tonight!! I was going to wait till next year just like you. Thanks for the timely warning. I didn't really understand the risk I was taking in walk mode. Now I do.

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