Issue link: https://tmcpulse.uberflip.com/i/1089662
t m c » p u l s e | m a r c h 2 0 1 9 19 How one cowboy is coming back after injuries S t o r y b y A l e x a n d r a B e c k e r • P h o t o s b y C o d y D u t y B areback bronc rider Anthony Thomas has dreamed of being crowned world champion since he was a young teenager in Australia taming wild horses. But before he can reach that milestone, there's one thing he must do. Heal. Two and a half years ago, Thomas suffered what he believed to be a broken elbow during a competition. He didn't even fall off the bronc—the rodeo term for a horse that bucks—but the sheer force from the animal was so extreme that something snapped. He didn't know what or in how many places—all he knew was that he would have to ride through the pain. And that's exactly what he did for 18 months. "That was my first ride for that week, and I had to ride another three, so I think I broke it pretty good by the end of the week, and it really didn't get any rest for another year and a half before I got it fixed," Thomas said. "I kept competing with it because I had to keep making a living and trying to make my goals a reality. In rodeo, you don't get paid unless you win." Eventually, though, Thomas lost all feeling in his arm from the bicep down, which meant he had lost his grip. In bareback bronc riding, the rider grips a leather handle attached to rigging that wraps around the horse's shoulders. During competition, the rider uses only one hand to grip the handhold and hang on. Thomas finally scheduled X-rays and, after competing in the RAM National Circuit Finals Rodeo in April 2018, headed to Fort Worth for what was supposed to be a straightforward surgery. It turned out, however, that Thomas was suffering from far more than a broken bone. A pre-surgery MRI revealed a laundry list of problems, includ- ing recurrent hyperextension injuries, a minimally displaced anterior medial coronoid fracture, and an ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) tear—something commonly seen in professional pitchers. Thomas had torn his UCL on both the proximal and distal sides, which required an extensive repair. His MRI also showed chronic entrapment of his radial, medial and ulnar nerves, indicating that the three major nerves running down his forearm were surrounded by scar tissue, decreasing their ability to send electrical signals to his hands and, thus, reducing his grip strength. He also suffered from scar tissue and stiffness in his elbow joint, as well as bone spurs, which triggered a sharp pain every time a horse bucked and his elbow straightened. ➟ Facing page: Anthony Thomas ropes a horse that he's working to break.