A BIG PRICE TO PAY FOR ‘NEGLIGENCE’ – RAW'S Injury

A routine weekend surf at the beach …turns into a day where the force of nature toss us like a piece of Kleenex in the laundry.

After battling some fierce wave action for 20 min, I stumble onto shore with “RAW”. The poor thing suffered a fractured right dorsal fin. We tried to keep Raw from going into shock and rushed it home. OT splinting methods failed. Fortunately, our friendly neighbor supplied us with some adhesive products that only industrial workers have access to, and we attempted to fix it into place.

Our efforts were only a ‘band aid’ solution, as Raw suffered even more damage the second day. The fin was now fully broken off… IT WAS TIME TO VISIT THE ‘HOSPITAL’.

“The DING DOCTOR” – the only doctor in town had to give us a ‘scolding’. He said that our “negligence” has lead to only one option – ‘SURGERY’.

1 week without Raw created a void in our evenings, and the cost of our ‘negligence’ was more than we budgeted for. The Ding Doctor wanted to pronounce death, and even tried to offer money to us to put Raw “to sleep”. However, the fun times we will have with it will be priceless! We decided to go ahead with surgery, and treated Raw to a new waxing before taking it out on its first rehab surf. Just like its hardy owners, Raw withstood all blows thrown its way, and made a complete recovery.

Lessons learned:
1. If you buy slightly damaged goods, there is a good chance it will lead to further damage.
2. Band-aids, duct tape, and crazy glue can only get you so far.
3. If you get pushed off, jump back on…you may go further the 2nd time around, and if not, the ride will be enjoyable.

- Island Rice