Long story short, I have been looking forward to a booked Morzine trip on 17th August for months and months now and getting quite excited. However I broke my collarbone yesterday doing a bloody sportive. Doc says 6 weeks healing time as clean break that should heal itself but advisable to cancel holiday as I said it was 7 weeks away. It’s actually 2 days shy of 8 weeks so do I cancel and lose 30% of holiday cost now – the longer I leave it the more I lose or hope it’ll be ok in 8 weeks and just go as planned…but maybe lose it all when I realise at the last minute I won’t be able to ride? Don’t really do big air but the area is still tough on the body. Not the most forgiving place to try out a just-mended injury! It’s best part of £600 not inc flights etc so not peanuts. Other option is to see if it’s transferable to someone else. Heart says go, head says cancel. Gutted. What would you do?

I’d go.. it’s your head that will dictate but you should be pretty much fully healed(if no issues)

Sympathies – I did exactly that but two weeks before a morzine trip (my first). I still went as a walking trip but that was because it’s a big social with mates and I love being int he mountains walking. It was pretty heart breaking seeing them ride off each morning but I got up on the lifts explored the ridges and met them for a lunchtime beer and then again about 4. I had a great time despite.

Despite what the medics said (similar to you) I didn’t feel right on the bike until 12+ weeks. If you don’t want to consider the entertaining yourself/walking option I think you’ll have to either cancel now or risk leaving a decision until the last moment and losing all the money.

I would say cancel. While it will be healed it will not be full strength and a second break could be messy. Its a 50/50 sort of call tho

Have you got travel insurance? When I did something similar and had to cancel my insurance paid out (even on a self-booked trip, just had to send receipts for accomodation and euro tunnel etc) so I was only down by the excess amount

My mate is recovering from a broken CB, and it has taken him 9 weeks to get back on the bike (in a very gentle pottering fashion). He has done everything by the book, so I’d say your time frame is optimistic at best. I’d cancel I think

Take some comfrey…

OP … how old are you …?
my shoulder fracture was “healing” at 6 weeks, okay to ride at 12. but won’t reach full strenght for up to a year. But I’m old

And personally, as a biochemist and food scientist I wouldn’t touch commfrey with a barge-pole ….

I did mine but it was pinned – 6 weeks was about right. If it hasn’t been pinned there is no guarantee how long it will take but I would say don’t risk riding and ending up with worse.

I Broke mine 12weeks before a trip to Whistler, to say I was gutted was an understatement. I got back on bike at the 10 week point and I was OK. I was on bike in gym after about 3weeks.

I could have ridden before the 10 weeks it was the risk of falling and it breaking again that kept me off.

I would say touch and go 🙁

What kind of rider are you?

A Glentress mincer type who likes blue runs would probably do just fine. If you’re on a DH bike and heading to Chatel for the hucks, I might give it a miss.

Actually no, I’d still go but just be careful. It’s really easy to just cruise around Morzine/Les Gets without breaking yourself. When your shoulder starts aching there’s plenty of bars to rest at.

For the record, my first trip there was 3 months after my worst ever injury. I had a brand new DH bike and was with a bunch of really ‘up for it’ pinners. I hated it! Now I go there with my GF and I’d have to be half dead to skip it.

You might also like to consider that if you do come off and properly mess it up you might not have insurance cover for a pre-existing condition?

To counter the tales of longer periods above I broke mine in to 4 bits a few years ago, went and saw physioclinic.net for some voodoo witchcraft magnets and lasers (pro mtb, mx, horse riders etc are their business) and was back on the bike on road after 2.5 weeks. 4 ish week to gentle mtb and 5.5 weeks to a weeks riding in scotland on the mtb with no problems.

Apologies – slight thread hijack.

@mmoofo

And personally, as a biochemist and food scientist I wouldn’t touch commfrey with a barge-pole ….

Why wouldn’t you touch comfrey?

Depends on the break, I was back on the bike in under a month – up to speed in under 2.

Get your self a figure of 8 brace rather than a sling and try to keep movement, see how you feel in a couple of weeks time.

I’d go. If I couldn’t ride much (or not at all) there will still be other things to do.

Age 50 I broke mine 9 weeks before a trip to the Alps with Trail Addiction. Wasn’t exactly a clean break either (3 bits). 2 weeks rest, 2 weeks on turbo with arm in sling, 2 weeks of gentle flattish riding and then a gradual build up, meant I was able to go and enjoy the trip without issue. I even fell off on that shoulder on day 1 and it was fine. Everyone is different. Eat well, sleep well, and treat it well and you may be OK. And plenty of physio.

I did the same a couple of weeks before a week in Mallorca with my cycling buddy. I’ve written a lot on Cycle Chat about this, but here’s a cut ‘n paste of what I wrote a few days ago to somebody who came on asking questions then didn’t have the courtesy to acknowledge my efforts banging out a long reply with two fingers:

“I broke mine on 18 August and more recently I started this thread on collar bones where you can see my own account and that of two other members of CC: https://www.cyclechat.net/threads/the-collar-bone-thread.246915/

You’ve got plenty of time so reading those threads wil keep you busy for a while. My strong advice to you is to INSIST on having the collar bone plated for a quick and complete recovery. It’s one bone that you can’t plaster so you have to either plate it or leave it in the hope that it will mend itself. For that to happen the broken ends have to be in contact for long enough to form a clot of blood, which becomes a callus, which then becomes new bone. My bone ends were so far apart (having buried themselves in the surrounding tissue) that they never met. The doctors make their decisions on the basis of statistics and the statistic is that something like 85% will mend themselves but the statistic doesn’t tell you how many heal straight and how many with a kink or a lump or with your shoulder shortened and your armpit permanently squashed shut and sweaty. Look on the collar bone as doing the same job as a supension strut in a car and you’ll get the idea – it locates the complex shoulder joint in the right position. Of course doctors want to avoid the risk of anaesthesia and infection through surgery so they quite correctly hope the bone will heal without intervention.

When you see the orthopedic consultant you need to discuss the likelihood of the bone not meeting and healing and set a date, by which you can have a follow-up x-ray to check progress and make the important decision. If you are in the US they will probably agree to do it straight away. The longer you leave it the more the broken ends will round off and go to sleep and the harder it is for the surgeon to wake them up and re-start the healing process. Mine was plated after 3 months of misery and the surgeon had to roughen the bone ends and cut them straight then pack synthetic bone graft into the gap to promote blood circulation and formation of new bone.

The second reason why you might need it plating is so as to allow you to get the shoulder joint moving to prevent adhesive capsulitis, or frozen shoulder, which results from the trauma or from inaction. You can find lots on the web about it but it’s all basically the same stuff as there isn’t much to say about it. I got plated in December then had time for the bone to heal until 10 April when the surgeon carried out a capsular release op on my shoulder and I’m pleased to report that my shoulder is settling down and gaining strength and movement after two months of painful physio and exercises. I’m back on the bike although 30 miles / 2 hours is my limit at the moment.

So in specific answer to your questions:

6-8 weeks to heal if you’re lucky and the bone ends settle in a good opposed position and you’re young. You could equally have a non-union or form a pseudo-joint, which is basically a soft gristle joint. Lots do and many carry on a normal life with non-union or a pseudo-joint. The muscles of the shoulder can stabilise the whole setup without needing the clavicle to hold everything in place.

Surgery isn’t that common – at least here in the UK – for the reason I’ve explained.

Once the pain diminishes you need to be doing gentle movements to try to keep the shoulder moving but it will continue to hurt for quite a few weeks yet, especially if not plated.

No, you can’t worsen the fracture but if the bone begins to join you could cause the ends to separate and you hear penty of stories of this happening. This is why you need a good sling that holds the arm in the correct position, not the poxy tape sling they give you in British hospitals.

Once again my strong advice is to push for plating and get it all out of the way as soon as possible and get back onto the road to recovery. Orthopedic surgeons are notoriously bullish and blustering so you will need to take a firm line with yours. Always take somebody along with you to back you up and to remember stuff you won’t hear because your brain wll be digesting the latest information the surgeon has just delivered to you. If the surgeon won’t agree to operate now, be firm in establishing a date for a follow-up x-ray and a decision on plating. Or find another surgeon.

On pain relief there is evidence that ibuprofen inhibits bone repair by preventing the inflammation and bleeding that is needed to form a new joint so I stayed off it after I had had my plate fitted. I used paracetamol, which is a very good drug if you use it correctly, which means keeping the level topped up. Take 1 gm every 5-6 hours and keep a pencil and paper by the bed for notes so that you don’t lose track of times.

You will be feeling miserable and full of doubt but take comfort from the knowledge that millions have gone before you and recovered and you have now joined the pantheon of cyclists who have broken a collar bone!”

Oh and by the way, I went to Mallorca and was able to do some walking despite the misery and the pain, so all was not wasted.

what would happen if you came off there and injured it again – would the travel insurance company pay out if they found out about the previous injury?
It’s the kind of decision faced by the contestants of bullseye, do you take the money and go home, or stay on and try and hit the jackpot?
In my 20s I’d have gone, not so sure now late 30s.

It’s not the kind of injury that requires hospital treatment unless the bone breaks out through the skin.

Break through the skin! Must look like something out of Alien. Ouch.

I’d go. If I couldn’t ride much (or not at all) there will still be other things to do.

Me to, have a contingency plan, road bike maybe ?

Well the roads are nice and smooth so if you can, road cycling would be good.

I’d still go and ride the roads if I wasn’t MTB-ready… You may not be that pro-lycra though…

Deluded…
I have worked for a longtime in the food industry. An extremely well respected food chemist told me to never touch the product. This was late 80s , when there was an association with it … and mutation of cell.
He is a bit of a stickler for natural remedies … for example, he sticks turmeric on everything … on the basis that ‘it is the only food ingredient that has been shown to attack cancer cells’
Just before the normal STW pack of baying wolves descend, I have to be honest, I haven’t researched comfrey any further… other than telling family members it might have issues.
I believe in the US, where they will imbibe just about anything, it is banned for internal use. I don’t think that the case in the EU. That said, I will now go and do some more research.

https://www.webmd.com/vitamins/ai/ingredientmono-295/comfrey
https://livertox.nih.gov/Comfrey.htm

You won’t be riding. And if you do, what happens when you fall off? Will your medical insurance cover a pre-existing fracture that has been made worse, or caused you to crash and have a more serious injury?

Mine took three months. Sorry but I think you need a dose of reality 🙁

BTW ^ is correct about insurance / travel insurance. I was not allowed to travel / fly for work for 6 weeks. You will be after that time … but check with them before you go …

Don’t go mate. Not worth it, for all the reasons above.

Could the US Comfrey ban maybe be a drug company, “if we can’t patent it lets lobby to get it banned” it type of thing?

On my first collar bone break I used knitbone tablets (I understand this is comfrey) given to me by an old Polish neighbour. I was in Morzine on the DH bike 7 weeks later. Make of that what you will (I was only 30 at the time, not sure I’d be able to do it now).

Sorry to add more negativity but…

As your Doctor has said it isn’t advisable. Six weeks is generally the benchmark for healing of broken bones but not a guarantee, and clavicle fractures have a relatively high rate of incomplete healing.

Also after 6 weeks in a sling you’ll have a lot of muscle wasting, weakness and pain to contend with. Riding alpine descents won’t be much fun, or a particularly good idea.

Probably best to cancel, and rebook in the future when you’re fully fit and far more likely to enjoy your week of riding

Did mine 4 years ago and 6 weeks is just start of repairing, it 12 months for full heal. I had 6 week xray and couldn’t see much difference in break it was still clearly not repaired, it takes a lot long for bone to reform and weld. However, I’d personally go for the hol but not ride Alpine MTB certainly nothing remotely hardcore, I’d find some peaks and scrambling and go for the social. It was probably more like 12 weeks before I felt fully in control of the bike ie hoofing the front wheel about, bunny hops, tough descents etc

Thanks for the replies.
For the record I’m 48.7 so hardly a young ‘un any more.
Called event organiser who will let me know if there’s any public liability insurance but woman I spoke to sounded doubtful. My mate has the details of the guy who cut me up – sounded German so may have holiday insurance – worth looking into? Not sure how long work happy to pay me at home plus not sure of damage to bike, plus the holiday.
Holiday company happy to refund or swap name if I can find a replacement.
I think going and not biking or even road biking would be very different to doing what I want to do and seeing/hearing their adventures etc every day would be tough.
Thinking I’ll prob cancel as gutting as it’ll be for lots of reasons mentioned. Only ever broken a little finger 20 years ago so no idea how long this will take 😕

Google Brian Simpson I think it is, a break clinic in Ipswich who heals people quickly.

but you should be pretty much fully healed

That’s utter trollocks. The bone may be rejoined but it certainly isn’t strong.

More risk of doing more damage.

+ at 48 you will have lost strength, mobility, balls etc etc

Save your money and holiday, do some decent rehab and go next year when you are more confident on the bike again

cancel it.

It takes longer to heal than most realize. i completly agree with globalti except mine was a year before it was plated.

a simple injury turned into a nightmare.

Snapped mine at Antur 2yrs ago.
No op offered.
I’m 55

Healng time was pretty good around 3 weeks until i was running and biking.
Used a lot of ice packs to reduce inflammation and get the broken bones lined up quicker for fusion.

Full MTB around 8 weeks and DH about 10 weeks.

Didn’t use a sling for more than 3 days,drank lots of skimmed milk(apparently more calcium in skimmed)

Probably best to cancel, and rebook in the future when you’re fully fit and far more likely to enjoy your week of riding

At your age you might be dead before some imagined future. Go on your holiday, do what you can ride or not and enjoy yourself as best you can. I’d definitely regret cancelling but never regret making the trip even if all I could so was stick my feet up and enjoy a drink in a bar 🍺

I’d definitely regret cancelling but never regret making the trip even if all I could so was stick my feet up and enjoy a drink in a bar 🍺

Aye, deffo. I spannered myself 3 days before Morzine a few years back. Could barely move…. But plenty of drugs (of the allowed kind) and lots of beers, i ended up having a cracking week 🙂

Called event organiser who will let me know if there’s any public liability insurance but woman I spoke to sounded doubtful. My mate has the details of the guy who cut me up – sounded German so may have holiday insurance – worth looking into?

NO IMO – I do not think its the right thing to do and I would think your chances of winning anything are low

I wouldn’t cancel, go walking and/or road biking or dial back the gnar a bit depending on how well healed it is by then.

Never done a clavicle but the only broken bones crash I had the main problem for me was frustration at not being on my bike!