car39 wrote: Talk to Liam Dwyer. He lost his left leg in an IED explosion in Afghanistan and has 2 co-driving wins in the Continental Tire Series. You can find him on FaceBook. He's also a Southbury boy. If you want his email address, pm me.
Yeah, I can't complain too loudly. I don't know Liam, but he grew up literally around the corner from me. I admire everything about him.
I appreciate all the helpful info. It looks as if I'm getting off fairly easily here. I'm looking at an arthroscopic meniscus repair, plus a cleanup of some other junk and scar tissue in there. Fortunately, the ACL appears to be intact. The surgeon says that I'll be on crutches for a day, bearing weight the next and I may be able to drive a stick in two to three weeks after that if I pay attention to the PT schedule.
So...I can continue to search for cars with clutch pedals on Craigslist.
You mean they're not just going to sand it down and replace it with Home Depot parts? You are Woody, aren't you?
Good luck man. :)
car39 wrote: You mean they're not just going to sand it down and replace it with Home Depot parts? You are Woody, aren't you? Good luck man. :)
I'm a mechanic. I hate doing body work.
Unrelated but related...I was visiting a research facility that we deal with and they were showing off their metal 3-d printer that they use to print joint replacements. Still experimental but way cool. I mean, these guys have the machine that will print your titanium parts if you can draw them.
The coolest thing they had was the skeleton of a mouse...the mouse was scanned with a micro CT scanner, and the resulting image was simply downloaded into the 3D titanium printer, and out comes a perfect replica of the mouses skeleton. No mouses were harmed in the replicating of this skeleton.
Glad to hear it's not as bad as it might have been. You didn't say if it was resulting from an injury or just wear and tear but after the surgery you will need to focus on prevention and maintenance........just like a car. The knee is a weight bearing joint so if you are carrying around some extra pounds now is a good time to think about losing some. The fundamentals always apply. Exercise, diet and stress reduction are a good place to start. Take care of your body and it will thank you by giving you many extra miles to enjoy........just like a car.
Woody - I'm a veteran of three knee surgeries, two on my left and one on the right. Assuming you're working with a good orthopedic surgeon who knows their way around the knee, you can expect a day or two with crutches, weight bearing after that. I was walking with a cane in three days each tIme. The biggest challenge is regaining your strength and range of motion. This is why PT is critical. Find a skilled one and do what they tell you religiously. I was back to driving my manual transmission vehicles in about 10 days. Good luck and let us know how it goes.
In reply to Sanchinguy:
I think this is a zomby canoe revival. Woody started this back in 2015.
Not sure how much of my experience will translate to the specific operation you'll be undergoing, but I had a knee replacement last year on my left leg and was able to drive a stick as soon as I could get into (and out of) the car. I drove my wife's auto for a couple of weeks and was then right into my sports cars. I found that the leg was just fine as long as it was operating anywhere near 2/3 to full extension, which is all you need to operate a clutch. It was painful only when trying to bend it further than that.
I has ceased to get out of cars as I did when younger, putting the left leg out, putting all your weight on it and swivelling at the knee to get out. I disembark by swinging my right leg out and then standing up on both. The only car I won that is a problem is one with limited head space and a relatively short door - an MGA coupe. Anything with 'modern' door range is no issue at all.
Don't anticipate problems, just wait and see how you can manage - you may be pleasantly surprised.
In reply to jamesannie:
Yup, Zombie Canoe.
Nick_Comstock wrote: I've been toughing out my torn meniscus in both knees for about three years now. Some days are better than others. One day I will have no choice but to get them worked on. Hopefully your recovery is quick.
The longer you wait, the less likely it can be done by scope.
My recovery (small meniscus tear) from three small holes was short and relatively painless.
My boss at the time had put his off for 4 years, big long scar and long painful recovery.
To answer the question posed, I think I was back to a proper gear box in the second week.
Edit: just saw this was really old....
I had part of meniscus removed after toughing it out for many years. Knee finally locked up of course on a business trip a 1000 miles from home. Very painful but after lock up knew I couldn't nor did I want to wait any longer for surgery. Doctor did scope it but found a tremendous amount of arthritis in joint and under knee cap which he scraped and ground on also found a lot of scar tissue. They scheduled my first PT for 48 hours after surgery for which I thought they were nuts. Ditched the heavy duty pain killers after 48 hours because they were bothering me so bad. Was on crutches for 5 days but decided I needed to be walking without them. As someone else said listen to your therapist and do everything they say even though it can hurt like hell. Doctor said I would be back for a total knee replacement in five years. It been seven and aside from knees cracking and popping enough to be heard in a quiet room I'm relatively pain free and do what I want to do.
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