The Athlete's Lawyer

It is not often that one sees the Federal Government recall of high end, expensive bicycles.  However, the Consumer Product Safety Commission has announced a recall of 370 bicycles due to an unsteady frame.  According to Giant Bicycle Inc., the 2011 model Giant Anthem bicycles can potentially crack at the seat post, posing a fall risk for riders. There have been no reports of injuries as of yet, the company said.
According to the PR Newswire. Giant Bicycle dealers sold these bikes to athletes nationwide during August 2010 for between $2,200 and $3,500.  If you or someone you know has one of these bikes, contact the PCSC at once and make sure not to ride this unsafe sports product.

Road racing in Richmond is safe, fun, entertaining, challenging and popular thanks to the Sports Backers Triathlon Trial Lawyer Doug Landau has competed in the National Duathlon Festival, Monument Avenue 10km, HCA 8k, Cross Country Championships and other events in the Capitol of the Commonwealth of Virginia.

UPS bag drop at the Richmond Marathon Races - runners could drop off their bags and dry clothes after warming up and then pick them up after crossing the finish line

My wife participated in the Half Marathon, which had course amenities like junk food stops and wet washcloths.  Once again, the Herndon Reston area sports injury lawyer participated in the HCA 8km (5 mile) road race, along with Brodie Reid, who was also attending the “by invitation only” annual Virginia Trial Lawyers Association (“VTLA“) Advanced Workers Compensation Law Retreat.  Richmond’s races are famous for friendly and courteous volunteers who treat you like more than just a bib number.  There were musical groups at today’s race and one nearly every mile on the scenic course of the Monument Avenue event, along which several of Landau’s clients and lawyer friends live and work.  Runner’s World magazine  selected Richmond as a site for their Runner’s World Challenge and to confirm what the Sports Backers have been saying all along: The SunTrust Richmond Marathon truly is “America’s Friendliest Marathon”!

Less than a week after his interview in by the New York Times, injured athletes’ lawyer Doug Landau appeared in the sports pages of The Washington Post.  Competing in the Veterans Day Tidal Basin Presidential Fitness Runs at West Potomac Park in the District of Columbia, Landau enjoyed the warm November weather and fast racing conditions.  The several events all departed on Ohio Drive at West Basin Drive in Washington, DC, with the Thomas Jefferson 3km going around the Jefferson Memorial Tidal Basin.  Won by Guiness Book of World Records running race record holder Ted Poulos (222 races in one year !), Landau managed 4th in a test “time trial’ effort before Saturday’s 5 miler in the Virginia state capitol.

Herndon Reston Virginia spine and brain injury lawyer Doug Landau with a gift basket from a thankful neurologically disabled client

Injuries to the brain and spine do not necessarily mean the end of exercise and sports.  While brain injury can be a life changing event, advances in sports medicine and rehabilitation have enabled bike crash and car accident victims to remain more active than in the past.  It is important to remain upbeat, active and exercise.  As we used to say at ACSM (American College of Sports Medicine) meetings, “If it isn’t physical, it isn’t therapy !”  Physical and occupational therapy is essential to maximum recovery after a spine or brain injury.  Nerve cells need stimulation for recovery and repair.  Reorganization may occur.  Synapses, that is the contacts between the nerve cells, may strengthen with stimulation and use.  Sports injury lawyer Doug Landau has several hemiparetic clients who are paralyzed on one side of their bodies.  To advance recovery from hemiparesis after stroke, one novel treatment, Constraint-Induced Movement therapy (“CIMT”), entails the temporary restraint of the functional limb while the patient is encouraged to carry out tasks with the paralyzed limb.  According to medical researchers, CIMT produces greater improvements in movement and functional use of impaired arms and hands.

The repair of broken connections between nerve cells is poorly understood.  Doctors understand that a sudden snap of the head pushes the brain so forcefully inside the skull that the long processes of the nerve cells are severed.  This effect is known as axonal shear.  Read the rest of this entry »

Anita Freres, who trains with HPC and races Doug Landau in the indoor Compu Trainer classes in Herndon, ran 20:01 and was a top 5k finisher

There were so many runners, joggers, walkers and families that even organizers needed several starting lines to accommodate everyone ! The Anthem Great Pumpkin 5k was staged in conjunction with the Greater Reston Chamber of Commerce Oktoberfest which featured local restaurants, amusement rides, live entertainment and the Annual Pumpkin decorating contest!!

Reston Herndon injury lawyer Doug Landau was the runner up in his age group with a time of 20:24.  The ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd. triathlon trial lawyer was 51st out of 1,393 finishers.

The Race beneficiary was the Inova Heart and Vascular Institute which provides the full spectrum of diagnostic and interventional cardiac services as well as electrophysiology, cardiac and thoracic surgery including minimally invasive surgery, heart and lung transplantation, and implantation of artificial heart devices. The Institute also offers prevention and risk reduction through classes and cardiac and pulmonary rehabilitation.

Going 3-for-3 in Virginia Triathlon Series sprint races this season enabled Herndon Reston injury lawyer Doug Landau to work on his speed for the USAT National Championships and qualify for the World Championships. Racing all over Virginia also enabled the Triathlon Trial Lawyer to visit with clients and counsel as well. While no other lawyer we know of does this, Landau makes public his trial and triathlon schedule so that clients, their friends and families can see him “in action” and talk to him in person about what is expected when it comes time for their “day in court.”  Upcoming Races, Cases and Places include:

• 10/13/2010 Alexandria (VA) Circuit Court, Defendants Motion to reduce the amount of a recent personal injury case verdict achieved by ABRAMS LANDAU on behalf of an innocent motor vehicle passenger in the morning, Virginia Workers Compensation hearing, job accident case hearing, Manassas midday, and Fairfax Bar and Medical Society Legislative Meeting, Falls Church (VA) in the evening (!)
• 10/15/2010 Virginia Workers Compensation hearing, job accident case hearing, Manassas
• 10/16/2010 Hagerstown (MD) Duathlon (running and bicycling !)
• 10/23/2010 Litchfield County (CT) Bike Tour with the Litchfield Hills Cycling Club during Lakeville (CT) High School volunteer weekend
• 10/25/2010 Social Security Administration, Washington, D.C., Disability Hearings
• 10/26/2010 Virginia Workers Compensation Commission, workplace accident hearing, Fairfax
• 10/30/2010 Either Leesburg or Fairfax (VA) 5km. road running race
• 11/2/2010 Virginia Workers Compensation Commission workplace injury hearing, Fairfax
• 11/4/2010 Virginia Workers Compensation hearing, job accident case hearing, Manassas
• 11/6-7/2010 University of Miami School of Law, Coral Gables (FL), Reunion and co-counsel meetings
• 11/13/2010 Virginia Trial Lawyers Advanced Workers Compensation Seminar, Richmond (VA), Arthur Ashe Athletic Center Health Expo and Richmond Sportsbackers Marathon Festival 8km. road races
• 11/20/2010 Herndon (VA) Community Center Annual Turkey Trot 5km cross country race (in the afternoon, blocks from the office !)
• 11/25/2010 Ashenfelter 8K Classic, Glen Ridge (NJ), on Thanksgiving Day, the United States Track & Field-NJ Championship Road Race, benefiting the Glen Ridge Educational Foundation
• 12/9/2010 Virginia Workers Compensation Commission, workplace accident hearing, Fairfax in the morning, Washington, D.C. Trial Lawyers continuing education meeting in the evening in the District of Columbia

If you want to see Landau “in action” at these or other events, please e-mail or call the Landau Law Shop (703-796-9555) beforehand, as insurance companies settle on the eve of trial,  judges postpone trials and races get canceled due to weather or other unforeseen events, and your time is valuable.

While many races start “in water,” there are times and courses where that is not possible.  In a race this summer where very low tides resulted in a several hundred meter sprint from the show to water deep enough to swim, several competitors suffered lacerations from shells below the surface.  One triathlete contacted ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd. because he sustained a severe injury to the bottom of his foot with what appears to be permanent residual nerve damage.

Sports injury lawyer Doug Landau consulted with this fellow athlete.  Advising that a liability case would be difficult, and that the Release signed by all competitors would be used to show that the competitor assumed the risks of injury from such a sports event, Landau suggested that the injured athlete look into medical coverage that may be available for the event.  Just because an athlete is injured during competition does not mean that Read the rest of this entry »

Landau with a new friend and fellow triathlete (and her cracked aero helmet)

Even the best prepared athletes find that their safety and injury prevention equipment is not “race ready.”  It is a terrible feeling to train for months, travel hundreds of miles and to arrive at the race venue only to find that a vital piece of safety gear is broken or missing.  Doug Landau has had goggles break, wetsuits rip and bicycles flat at major sports competitions, so he knows what it feels like to be physical ready, but unable to compete.

Last Friday, after the Herndon Reston sports injury lawyer picked up his bike and triathlon racing gear from Velocity Pro bicycle shop, he saw that another competitor had a cracked bicycle helmet.  Her damaged “aero” bike helmet would never pass the USAT officials’ inspection and she would not be permitted to race with such unsafe equipment, as her head gear would not protect her skull from impact and potentially severe brain injury.

As he has done before, Landau offered her a helmet, since he often travels with spare safety equipment.  The West Coast Athlete graciously accepted lawyer Landau’s offer, as was back in the race.  The next day her sister returned the Virginia bike safety lawyer’s helmet, and they cheered the other bicycle racers participating in the US National Triathlon Championships.  If you have room in your bike travel case, car, luggage, etc., consider bringing extra safety equipment.  You too may be alb to help out a fellow athlete and prevent unnecessary injury or disability.

After a mountain bike crash, the pain, bruising and “road rash” may take several days to peak.  Taking some time off and using ice, heat, massage and gentle stretching are all good ideas.  However, there are some tough multisport athletes who do not let a bicycle accident slow them down.

Despite road rash, cuts and other injuries, Traithlete John Brannock finished the Warrenton Sprint Triathlon with a smile

John Brannock, a former training partner and team mate, came in this weekend  on a business trip.  As is Doug Landau’s habit, the Herndon trial lawyer convinced his friend to join him for the first annual Warrenton Sprint Triathlon on Sunday.  Landau borrowed a bike, brought extra helmets and other safety gear, and loaded the mini van so that they could car pool to the pool.  The 300 yard indoor pool swim, 11.8 mile hilly bike ride and the 5 km. up and down run course would take less than 2 hours.  However, Brannock had been in a mountain bike accident on Friday, and his bruises were just coming into their full black and blue color !  The new Warrenton Aquatics Center (“WAC”)  was a clean, state of the art facility for this new Virginia Triathlon Series event in Fauquier County.  Located just passed the exit for “Old Town” Warrenton and the Court House area where the ABRAMS LANDAU Law firm has represented injured workers, car crash survivors and the families of brain injured victims, the bike course takes races on Route 29/211 and the run course is a very challenging two loops.  It was only after the race that Brannock showed Lawyer Landau his cuts, bruises and swelling !  Brannock raced on a borrowed bike, ran with the wrong shoes and was limited by his battered joints.  Nevertheless, despite these handicaps, and the 2 hours time differential coming from his home in Colorado, John had a strong showing and even won a prize for having come to Fauquier County from the mid-west !  Congratulations John Brannock !

Recumbent bikes can be good for those with back injuries or spine issues

Hampered by back injuries, lumbar pain or degenerative disc disease, many avid bikers have left the sport because of the discomfort caused by road bikes and drop style handlebars.  However, a solution may be to change the riding style by chaining the bicycle, according to bike injury lawyer Doug Landau.  Taking the pressure off the spine may be “just what the doctor ordered” notes the former Applied Anatomy and Physiology grad student and member of the American College of Sports Medicine.

“Anyone who has spent any time on the W&OD, Mount Vernon, Four Mile Run or other Northern Virginia bike trail has seen all manner of recumbent and “non-traditional” bikes,”  adds the back and spine injury lawyer.  “One client was crushed by a negligent motorist, and was up and riding within days.  This bike crash injury victim adapted a recumbent bike to his needs, complete with a holder for his cane and a bag for his supplies.  By continuing to exercise in a non-impact sport, this Reston area personal injury plaintiff was able to hasten his physical recovery from his crash injuries.” If you are interested in Recumbent Bicycles, check out “Recumbent & Tandem Rider” magazine.

If you, or someone you know, has back pain or spine issues that is forcing them off the bike, consult with a sports medicine doctor to see if recumbent cycling is an appropriate alternate form of exercise.  Injured athletes’ lawyer Doug Landau of ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd. incorporates stationary recumbent cycling in his training program year round, and finds it is an excellent way to read through his “third class mail, journals, magazines and watch sports on television !”