Concussed.

Got slammed hard trying to stall out a grabbed 3 two days ago. Thought I had another two feet before I hit water, and was still backwards when I dug my edge. Still getting headaches here and there. It's not my first concussion, but it still sucks.

Anyone else in the same boat? It blows...couldn't ride this morning, pretty much can't do anything till symptoms are gone.

Not in that boat presently but I think all riders that have been at it a few years know the feeling. Make sure you wait it out, a few years back there was a Nor-cal ripper that pushed it and didn't make it. Brain injuries are serious, enjoy the time off and hit the gym!

Tough month for our crew. Ralley to faceplant was number 1, and new girl rider to face plant at a slow speed was number 2. CGA vests kept these wrecks from potentially being tragic, both riders were face down for a little while.

Take it easy for sure and hope the cobwebs clear soon.

Edit: I remember a post about a rider from Texas a few years back that didn't turn out well. Not sure that is the same BigHeavy is referring too. Concussions can be serious business.

(Message edited by bmartin on June 19, 2009)

I think theyre different stories. The texas one was Colby. I tried to dig up an update on him, but I havnt seen anything. What a shame.

were all riders with or without helmets, we havent had any head issues since we started wearing them.

sorry to hear that though...its no fun.

A buddy of mine was knocked out cold on a s-bend attempt a couple of weeks ago. It was a very scary thing to see somebody floating face down unconscious in the water.

Been there, I took 3 weeks off to make sure it healed. I hate concussions more than any other injury.

I think it's good you are waiting to ride, that is so important. I know who Stephan is referring to and he kept riding even though his head was not feeling right yet.

I've been lucky enough to enjoy 3 concussion from boarding. All three times I went blind in one eye for a few few hours, followed by the typical symptoms. The third was the worst, and I had a sensitivity to loud noises that stuck around for a few months. Luckily I had an MRI shortly after the third to confirm there was no residual damage or very slow bleeding from the previous hits.

Don't mess around with the heal time for a head injury. When you think the symptoms are gone, give yourself a few extra days just to be sure.

FWIW, I was wearing my (Pro-Tec) helmet when I got the second concussion. I hit hard enough that the foam fully copressed and the shell of the helmet left an imprint on my head. Other than the slider, I haven't worn the helmet since. Used to be a big advocate of the helmets, but not so sure after some extensive testing.

Nate - What were you doing/trying when you got your concussions?

A few weeks ago we had a young gal take a face first fall that didn't look bad at all. She kept riding but after she got in the boat she lost her short term memory. It was freaky. She ended up with a concussion. It doesn't even have to be a hard fall.

just got my 4th one last saturday but it was my first from wakeboarding and i still feel some of the symptoms

I've had two wakeboarding and two riding dirt bikes. The first wakeboarding one was on a raley that I got lazy on and didn't get pulled back in time. The second one was on a toeside 4 (haha, a 3 that booted me and I pulled it halfway to 5, hence "4").

My signature concussion move is major repeater mode for about a half day. Didn't throw up or anything, though. On my most recent wakeboarding one, I ended up taking off a full month just to be safe (plus I was busy with pre-wedding stuff so I wasn't gonna be able to get much riding in anyway).

It's definitely not worth it to push it. You have the rest of your life to wakeboard. Like most above have said, taking a couple weeks off is not the end of the world. Those stories are really sad.

Nate, here's the million dollar question, do you think the second one would of been worse had you not been wearing the helmet? Or did the padding cushion the hit?

About 2 months ago I got KO'd on a bad wreck. Took me out for a month. I was wearing a helmet and received a black eye courtesy of the water impact. Luckily I had some good friends looking out for me. CGA vest is the only way to ride IMO.

Ahh you guys have sketched me out from using my comp vest. From all the stories i've been reading about for the past while im definitely getting a CGA when my falcon breaks...

I blame mine on me. I said the famous last words. "This'll be me last try. I'm a little tired. But let me have one last go. Pull me up."

And slam.

I've ditched my Shane bindings. Those held me in to so tight on crashes I just got knocked. I now ride my matched Murray bindings which throw me free.

It's a dilemma. Risk a knee torque or a concussion.

Yeah, taking time off is kind of sucky. I've also realized that since I took time off, I've been really sore...I think boarding everyday was keeping me limber or something. Weird.

ive gotten a concussion from wrestling i stood up at te end of the round and i passed out i didnt know where i was. concussions are very serious. once the symptoms are gone wait at least 3 more days before riding.

Eubanks - Nothing special. My ambitions to ride far exceed my skill level. One was just an edge I caught shortly after getting up and messing around as the boat got up to speed. The others were just doing w2w jumps while trying to learn 180's.

Sparky - My *opinion* is that the helmet made the second crash worse. I wore the helmet for most of a full season, and almost every crash felt worse on the head than what I've experienced riding without the helmet. In the case of that second one, I think it was the impact of the shell that did me in. It's possible that the chin strap had loosened and I had a sloppy fit for that pull.

This is way subjective. I never bought into the 'larger surface area' argument and felt that the cushion was an advantage no matter what. After a good concussion I was motivated to research and learn what I could about it. I still think helmets are a good idea but that helmet designers have more work to do for wake. You can search the boards and see that I was pretty firm about my opinion. My experience suggested otherwise, and *think* I've changed my mind.

Interesting Nate. My experiences are the opposite. Lots of bell ringers without a helmet, none with...so far. You're right though, very subjective. Alot of details figure into the outcome.

Sparky, your profile pic. Q: is that a golf course lake? It looks really manicured.

As others have said, don't mess with concussions. Make sure you take the time off! I have had far too many concussions in my life (7), to which my doctor says "the next one may mean never riding again." Most came in my younger years, but I've scored 2 wakeboarding (took a hard backside edge on a failed 3 and came up short so went nosefirst on a backroll). On the last one, I had major symptoms for 1 month...and my left arm had a numb section in it for several months (pinkie for 6 months!). That summer sucked!

jb, nope, that's Lake Mendocino.

i feel the same about helmets. used to see stars a lot without. hardly ever with.
anyone who had a concussion should go to http://www.frequencyspecific.com/
they have a 10 minute protocol for concussions.
i have friends who are doctors who use it on professional athletes all the time. there are residual effects of concussions. also the best nerve protcols Loren.