What a morning . . . wear your helmet
Posted by Brad and Deanna | Posted in News | Posted on 17-07-2004
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Today started out as great day but we had a good scare shortly into it. Deanna and I woke up to ride the monument loop. We left the house at 5:45 AM and started riding. This was the first time Deanna was taking the road bike around the loop. Riding a road bike on pavement is easier than a heavy mountain bike, but it sure is nice to have the extra gears that a mountain bike offers. The backside of the monument loop is one of those places most people dream about the extra gears.
Well, anyway we started around the loop and it appeared to be just another ride. The hill on the backside of the loop offered no more challenge than a speed bump for her. She had an excellent ride almost all the way to the end. Deanna decided she wanted to pull into the viewing area and stop to take a little break. As she slowed to turn, she found some loose gravel and sand on the roadway. When she hit the gravel she instantly slammed to the ground and the bike went flying. She fell so fast and so hard I could not tell what hit first. From the evidence of a cracked helmet and a large gash on her right arm it can be narrowed down. I made sure she was OK – at least as OK as possible and I raced to the visitor’s center that was a hundred meters away. A park ranger arrived in a matter of minutes and quickly decided we should call for an ambulance. Any time there is a head injury it is a good idea to be safe and get everything checked out.
As people rode and walked by, you could hear them say "Did you see her elbow?" Fortunately the gash on her elbow was in a place whe was not able to see. This was one of those cuts that I could not even look at for a fear of fainting. I have a very weak stomach and cannot handle such things.
Anyway, a few minutes later the ambulance arrived. She had her neck stabilized and was taped to one of those fancy boards they haul around. It sure did not look comfortable. Once she was ready to load into the ambulance I raced home to get the Jeep and meet her at the hospital. She had most of her wounds cleaned on the trip and arrived at the hospital only a few minutes ahead of me. The ride was not too pleasant for her since she gets motion sickness so easily and was already feeling sick on top of that.
Once she was at the hospital they checked her neck and back and then removed her from the board. A few minutes later she received some painkiller and something to soothe her stomach. She went thorugh a CAT scan and they brought her back for some more wound cleaning. The gash on her arm was cleaned for a while and she ended up receiving six stitches. The doctor did an excellent job fixing this thing up. It was pretty ugly. I estimate it was 2 inches long and maybe a half inch wide. Of course I couldn't look too long at it with my wimpy stomach.
We were released from the ER with a couple drugs and headed home. She is taking a well-deserved nap on the couch now. I hope the pain is not too bad and doesn’t last too long. In a day or so we can head to the bike shop to get brand-new helmet. Of course I need to figure out if she is ever going to ride again . . . I am pretty optimistic. We get to return to the doctors office in ten days to have the stitches removed.
Thank God she is OK and feeling alright resting on the couch. She is going to have some pretty cool battle wounds to share on the bike trails when she returns! At least for now, she has the best scar in the family! I guess it isn't a scar yet, but we are sure the mark won't go away any time real soon.
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