As 2011 draws to a close and for us it ends on a high note. Sports Reaction Center was voted the Best Rehab Center in the Competitor Magazine “Best Of” Awards for 2011. This is high praise coming from the athletes we work with who took the time to express their appreciation for what we do. As a the founder of Sports Reaction Center, I am personally very grateful for the outstanding professional staff I work with every day, and I look forward in 2012 to bigger and better things  in collaboration with my amazing colleagues.

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We had several highlights this year: I would say for me, the trip to Daegu to support Mike Sayenko in his World Championship bid was the highlight of my career.

One of my favorite moments as a physical therapist came early in the year, when world class hurdler Ginny Powell came to see me after a prolonged injury kept her out, and I was able to help her get back to competitive running expeditiously.

The reason Ginny came to see me was in part due to our acquisition of the OptoJump. We also used this technology to help northwest runners improve their form, and in particular, supported Club Northwest both the elite athletes in the clinic, and also by being at track practices and the meets. We are very happy to have a good working relationship with Club Northwest.

I also got to test Jenny Simpson, the Daegu World Champion in the 1500 Meters while I was in Colorado Springs at the Olympic Training Center. It was a really amazing moment to see her win the 1500 and I got this great photo of her celebration:

While I was in Colorado, I tested members of the Colorado Rapids MLS team during a demo of OptoJump. This happened right after their game with the Sounders where Steve Zakuani had his leg broken. Colin and I were there for that game. It was really sad to see.

During 2011,I worked with the trainers at the Seattle Mariners to solve a puzzle with one of their pitching prospects. We also had the pleasure of watching our patients compete in the Rugby World Cup in New Zealand, in the Ironman World Championships in Kona, Hawaii and in the highest level of sports all around including Ironman events, Track and Field at the Nationals, where the Club Northwest women took third overall  and our rugby squads competed in the Super League as well as in the National 7′s competition.

Our commitment to local Rugby is significant with several teams now being supported by Bethany and my staff. We enjoy the time we spend with the Super League Squad Old Puget Sound Beach and the men of the Seattle Rugby Club in the fall,  spring and Summer Sevens seasons.

We also came to work closely with Renew Fitness in Bellevue, and a club we really like and encourage our patients to check out.

During the summer we added Laura Michelson, DPT to our staff. Laura is a competitive runner who is  deeply connected to Club Northwest, a club we sponsor and support. Laura brings her bubbly personality to our office and keeps us all in stitches with her lovely sense of humor. We had another staffing change during 2011 with Melanie moving on to PTA school and Allyson coming on board to fill in the gap.

During 2011, we were featured in a fair amount of media, in the newspaper, on TV and in Magazines. We launched a concussion study, and we reached out to multiple teams including Children’s Hospital to support their efforts in the management of concussion.

We also wish to express our heartfelt thanks to our patients for supporting our practice during 2011. Thank you!  It was a great year for us on many levels and we look forward to a new year of helping our local athletes get healthy, stay healthy and compete!