I've been skiing and kiteskiing at the snowy's for the past three months...what a drag!!hahahah

And yesterday I did what every one dreads!

I tore my knee out!

What a ****!

Now I need a re-construction...and probably more than a while to get better!

Has anyone else needed a reconstruction? If so, how long after surgery does it take to get better...to go kiting again?

I'm devistated that I'll miss out on the first couple of months!!!

I did my knee and I missed over a year of kiting and 9 months of surfing Even when I started kiting again I just rode strapless. After about a year and a half I got back into it for real.

Having said I know a guy who was back into it after 6months.

Just make sure you get a good physio and do all the rehab.

Have the operation as soon as you can , let me tell you though your knee will never be the same.Your recovery will be quick depending on the surgeon you use and the way they choose to do the reconstruction.

You should be walking around after a week or two, my reco is 8 years old now and the knee is not as stable as it was, what they dont tell you is the new ACL gets weaker as time goes by, so keep the muscles strong around your knee, and may I suggest you get a surgeon that does all the football players as they are the best.

But in saying that I kite all day on it and wear a knee brace and have had no real problems good luck with the operation.

Thanks guys for your words of encouragement.

Someone told me that I should be on the water again by mid November(I think it was the doctor....I was in alot of pain...it could have been the green fairy!).

I'll definitely get the footy surgeon to do my knee....great idea....those guys are up an runnin on the field 6 to 8 weeks later...

I wanted to do the mambo comp this year....I'm hoping I'll have that miracle granted.

You know...when i heard the "pop" of my knee...the first thing I thought of was....."o Fack Now I can't kitesurf for fanking weeks!!!".

that sucks!!!! popping your knee can be 1 of the worst sports injuries you can do i reccon.

i snapped my ACL, my PCL and tore my MCL and crushed alot of cartlige. i had to waight 2 months before i could get my opp done but after that it was only 2 1/2 to 3 months before i was back out on the water again and i'll tell you what if you think you loved kitting before having it taken away from you like that it just makes you love it even more when you do get back out there

stay focused on your physio. i found it realy easy the first few weeks but after 8 weeks of streching everyday it just drives you crazy and it will take some serious will power so stay possitive. a good mental attitude will make you heal much faster

all the best
hope to see you back on the water soon

Thats great news you will be kiting again in a few weeks.

Damn, knees are the ****test. Good work on not doing any ligament damage. I'm off till January and haven't ridden since march cause I held off on the surgery. Sucks that a little knee can cause so much time off the water.

Rich Stenning dislocated his hip a few days ago and they reckon he'll be on the water in a few weeks. I'm gonna do that next time, sounds cooler and alot quicker to fix.

Hope the knee comes good mate, i had my knee bent backwards while racing motos and had the ACL recontruction, i was back on the water in 5 months though but with a knee brace. then 2 months later broke my leg in two places and needed a titanium rod inserted into the bone to hold it together to heal. The pain from the broken leg was 3 times worse than the knee. My advise is to buy yourself a good quality knee brace so you are not so susceptable to a knee injury, i still where mine when the wind is strong and i cant get enough power from my knees, it helps trust me.

Sounds like you tore your medial meniscus and probably did slight spraining of the MCL and possibly the ACL. If the medial meniscus is not torn to badly there is not to much problem however if they need to remove some you will get athritis a lot earlier depeding on how much they remove and where they remove it. There is a possibility to get it sewn back together but because the meniscii are pretty much avascular they take a long time to heal or may not heal at all. 6-8 weeks sounds about right just thank god you didn't tear a ligament and hope theres not too much damage to the meniscus.

And tonewolf you shouldnt need a brace. The meniscii are just for cushoning, provided the ligaments are in tact a brace will only really weaken your knee because it will take a load off your knee and the knee muscles will weaken. Plus I remember hearing something that the braces will brake when ligament rupturing forces are applied and are mainly for just slight impacts.

Although don't take my word for it, a qualified person knows best..