A former Calgary Stampede champion from Black Diamond may be heading down to the Cayman Islands to invest in his future.
Black Diamond steer wrestler Lee Graves plans to have stem cells injected into his injured right ankle during a procedure in the Cayman Islands, rather than having surgery in order to get back on the rodeo circuit as quick as possible.
“I hurt it at a rodeo last fall and they did a scope on it and there are some pretty good cysts on my ankle,” Graves said. “I’m missing about 15 per cent of my ankle joint. That’s quite a bit missing from an ankle.”
The process is called the Regenexx-SD procedure.
All your joints must be working when you are jumping off a horse at a near gallop and then braking while trying to wrestle a 400-pound steer to the ground.
“I have blown my knee out twice,” he said. “There’s a lot of force on your lower limbs because you’re going at a high-rate of speed and pushing on your feet trying to control 400-pounds.”
He’s done well digging in his heels to pull down a steer. The 40-year-old Graves is a two-time world champion and has won the Canadian championship five times.
He is the first Canadian steer wrestler to earn more than $2-million in his career. He went over that mark when he won the 2010 Calgary Stampede.
Graves has opted for the procedure in the Cayman Islands after hearing from a doctor he could have his ankle cleaned out, but would need major surgery in the next two to three year to make it healthy again.
“I didn’t want to limp through life and maybe the stem cell regeneration will help me from having surgery and get me back on track,” Graves said.
He said LA Laker Kobe Bryant used a similar procedure during the summer on his knee.
The process has stem cells taken from Graves’ hip in the morning. The stem cells will be processed and then injected into Graves’ injured ankle. The stem cells would regenerate cartilage and Graves said he hopes to be back in the chutes within a few months, rather than possibly missing the whole year if he faced surgery. He hopes to have the injection done in April.
“If I am out for six months because I can’t walk after having a different kind of surgery, what’s that going to cost me?” Graves said. “You have to weigh your pros and cons. All I know is, I’m all in.”
He has seen stem cells work in the past — on a horse.
“I saw a horse that was supposed to be put down because of the joint damage in his hind legs and his hocks,” Graves said. “They went to scope his hocks and he had no cartilage left. Rather than put him down, they did stem cells on him and now he’s back in full professional competition.”
Graves won’t be able to put the procedure on his Alberta Health Card. The procedure will cost him approximately $15,000.
The procedure is not covered because it is considered experimental, said Howard May, a spokesman with Alberta Health and Wellness.
“I am still at the age that I feel I am competitive,” Graves said. “If I spend $15,000 on fixing my ankle and I am back in half the time that could get me in the NFR or the CFR. Fifteen thousand that’s one go-round in the NFR, or a go-round and a half at the CFR. If it doesn’t work out, I can always have surgery.”
Graves hasn’t competed in 2012, He would like to be back by June.
