Accidents while skating . . .

[Neverdull44]

When I was a kid, my best  friend wanted to go skating with me.  Her first time out, she fell on the boards and cracked her front tooth in half.  It was a grownup tooth, and she had to have cosmetic surgery.  Saw her just a few months ago, and we still talk about it. 
She ended up skating frequently too.     

My mother tried skating when I was a kid.  Her third time around, she fell on her tailbone.  Because she was a nurse, it was a major ordeal for her job.   She never skated again.

In the 1980's, a college friend wanted to go skating with me.  She wasn't in the best physical shape, and fell on her arm.  She broke it, and never skated again.    Yesterday, a new friend of mine went skating with me.   She did great and didn't fall.  I broke the curse!

Have you had any accidents with friends or family skating?  Or just seen some really bad ones at the rink?

[Bill_S]

Oh, yes! I've seen some bad falls. In another thread, I just mentioned that I knocked out the two front teeth of a teenage friend with my toe picks. We were playing hockey on a frozen pond.

Among my colleagues is a math professor who skated publics at my current rink, and I convinced him to take LTS lessons. During his first lesson, he fall backward and hit his head hard enough to bleed badly. An ambulance took him to the hospital, and he never skated after that.

The worst head injury I witnessed was at a public skate in a Columbus rink. One of the hot-shot teenagers on hockey skates was speeding around, weaving in and out of other skaters. I could see that this guy was skating beyond his capability. He fell and slid into a woman who then toppled backwards hitting her head. She didn't regain consciousness while they cleared the rink and waited for the ambulance. Her husband was at her side the whole time.

One thing that sticks in my mind is that seems to take forever waiting for an ambulance when there's a serious injury.

[Loops]

After I had about a year of skating lessons under my belt (group lessons), or maybe it was my first year, I don't remember, I had my birthday party at the rink.  I was, ahem, showing off, and doing a spin.  Near the boards.  I must have lost control, because I have a vague recollection of hitting the boards, but only clearly remember waking up on a bench in the warming room.  I was around 6/7 years old.  Classy.

I obviously skated many, many times since. 

I once saw one of the other girls I skate with fall backwards out of a layback.  We were around 12/13???  It was the only time I've ever seen anyone older than 5 cry like that.  Thankfully she was OK.  She skated many times after, too!

My best injury happened when I was 13.  I was running through my program, fell, got up and in the process kicked myself in the wrist.  It must have been particularly cold, or I was particularly pumped because I didn't notice it until I finished and saw the blood dripping.  I missed the main artery by a few millimeters, and still have the imprint of a 1987 era MK Professional toepick in my wrist.  Over time the battle scar has faded, but that first summer every time I went to the pool (i.e. every day) it turned purple.  That was awesome. 

Oh, and I nearly forgot, last year I was practicing a lift with someone for the gala, and another skater wasn't paying attention and in collision avoidance mode, smacked her hand into my partners blade.  Yeah, they can cut!

Skating should probably carry a Surgeon General's Warning....

[Neverdull44]

My own worst accident was in a back spin.   I didn't follow doctor's orders, and got on the ice 4 weeks after delivery.   I was going to just skate around.  That didn't last long, and I got bored.  Did a few waltz jumps, loops, flips, lutes . . . you get the picture?   Everything felt fine, so I did some spins.   I then decided to do a back spin.  Normally, can do in my sleep.   Out of nowhere, bam on the ice.  I thought I broke my hip.  Pain radiated in every direction around my pelvis.     I laid & laid & laid there.  I was 33 years old, and got the "she's not getting up" moment where everyone on the ice looks at you.  Then, a few more moments went by and they skated towards me.  This entourage included my wise, Russian coach.  As only a Ukranian Russian coach can do, she gave me a talking too.    In that speech came the wise words, "You just had a baby, and your hips are not back together.  That's why you are so hurt."

[Christy]

I used to go skating every week with my Dad when I was around 5/6 then one evening he fell and got an inch cut on his head so my mother used that as a reason to stop us both from skating because she didn't like us going. Sadly my Dad didn't skate again, but I managed to go with a friend when I was around 11/12, then I injured my coccyx and gave my mother another excuse to stop me skating.

I once skated with some friends from uni - one guy decided to look helpless and get sympathy from the ladies, until he fell flat on his face and broke his nose (for some reason he didn't think to put his hands out to break his fall).

[lifebyliya]

I was mid spin when I saw this guy just speeding towards my direction. Whether or not I stopped or moved aside, it was like the collision was inevitable. The person did hit me and I fell, my right calf hitting my left toe pick. It's been 4 months and I still have a toepick scar on my right calf. Did I mention the guy did not apologize and didn't even check if anything happened? I actually doubt he realized I was bleeding when I fell.

[Loops]

I injured my coccyx and gave my mother another excuse to stop me skating.

That reminds me of one of the skaters at my rink.  She was working on her 8th test when she fell during a patch session and broke her coccyx.  It can happen to anyone!

[lutefisk]

A couple years ago I fell hard during a Mohawk combo in my weak direction and busted my right radius.  But the incident that I recall the most vividly occurred back in the 1970s:  I was practicing forward swing rolls and got a little too close to the boards.  I snagged the toe picks of my right skate on the bumper at the bottom of the boards.  Somehow that sucked me right into the boards face first.  No lasting damage, but I didn't get up for a couple minutes and remember that little boo-boo to this day!

[AgnesNitt]

I fell backwards and toepicked my male coach in the crotch six weeks before his wedding.

Fortunately, he said I only hit the 'inner thigh'.

I guess those heavy insulated coach pants are good for something.

[taka]

When I was 7 or 8 my coach was trying to get me to lift my leg higher doing a spiral across the ice during my lesson. I was concentrating so hard on lifting my leg higher that... I... erm... forgot to stop! I hit the top of the barrier nose first, and more or less forward rolled OVER the barrier, landing in a heap (mostly on my bum!) on the other side!

The damage? Bleeding nose, twin black eyes, sore coccyx and some spectacular bruises! Glad we'd been learning dive rolls in Gymnastics not long before this - it came in very handy and most likely saved me from much worse injury! I've still got a a tiny scar and matching small flat bit at the bridge of my nose where I hit!

Still not nuts on doing spirals remotely near a barrier!

[Loops]

Taka, did you used to skate with Wanda Beezle?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q_IsE9dF22A

That must have been a pretty scary experience when you did that though.  Glad it didn't stop you!!

[taka]

Taka, did you used to skate with Wanda Beezle?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q_IsE9dF22A

Lol!

The thing I remember most is that is the only time I've ever seen my rink first aid room open and in use! Otherwise I found it funny more than anything else (well once the shock wore off!)! It was like the 101 falls I had vaulting at Gymnastics... only without the huge crashmat! I was back on the ice the second my Mum would let me back on.

A baby tooth also got "helped" on it's way to falling out in another spiral fall (first attempts at catch foot). Just the ice, no barrier this time! My current coach is the one who looked after me (she wasn't my coach back then).

I wasn't the most co-ordinated of kids! Still not as an adult for that matter!

[Neverdull44]

I have the Wanda Bezel spread eagle . . . . lol.  That was brilliant, thanks for sharing.  I adored Debbie Thomas.   

[iomoon]

Someone actually thought Debbie Thomas skated drunk at the competition when I showed it to them.  They had a great laugh when I told them that Debbie won first place.

The first time I tried to jump, I fell flat on my stomach and strained my abdomen.  In the first class, someone broke their wrist. My friend (who's skated longer than I have!) just had a triple patella fracture on her knee 3 weeks ago.

[Guinnie]

Back in the mid-60's, our club was preparing for our annual show. Our arena had a candy machine, and the rules were that you did not eat on the ice. I was practicing for my first solo, and I slipped on a clear cellophane wrapper while doing a spiral. The end of my left blade went into my right thigh, and another parent took me to the ER for stitches. I still skated in the show, but my leg was still bandaged up pretty heavily.

The next year my dance partner and I decided to go across the street for a bite to eat. We were 11 years old. Instead of walking around, he swung his leg over the boards and his blade clipped me on the bridge of my nose. No stitches, but lots of blood! He tried to avoid me all week after that because he thought I didn't like him anymore lol.

My GD was knocked down recently at a public session by an overly aggressive hockey skater, who was skating backwards and not looking where he was going. She ended up in the ER with a badly sprained arm. It didn't keep her down long though. She was back on the ice two days later.