Last summer I was going down a nasty, rooty chute and managed to tuck my front wheel behind a particularly large one and launched out the front door. Upon landing on another big one I heard this CRACK and felt my leg twist in angle nature did not intend. All I could think about was how the hell I was going to get some help as I don't normally ride with my phone and was about 1/2 mile from the road at the bottom. After about a dozen attempts I managed to get the bike upright and pointed the right way down the trail, get my foot on the pedal and scootered to the bottom. A nice lady with her kids and dog were just pulling into the trailhead and instead of just calling for an ambulance she took me to the hospital. Within 2 hours I was in the operating room to bolt and plate a fractured femur.
It has been 8 months and am just again feeling the flow after lots of pain and rehab. Everyday seems to get a little better and I find myself pushing it once again and riding some of those spots that scare me a bit. I am also much more aware of the consequences and am definitely holding back some but that comes from realizing that I am mortal, something that I never really thought about before. BTW I am 68 yrs and still ride by myself most of the time, with my phone now but I'm aware that bottom line, there is no substitute for healthy regard for safety and self-reliance.
May 12, 2022, 1:20 p.m. - Joseph Crabtree
Last summer I was going down a nasty, rooty chute and managed to tuck my front wheel behind a particularly large one and launched out the front door. Upon landing on another big one I heard this CRACK and felt my leg twist in angle nature did not intend. All I could think about was how the hell I was going to get some help as I don't normally ride with my phone and was about 1/2 mile from the road at the bottom. After about a dozen attempts I managed to get the bike upright and pointed the right way down the trail, get my foot on the pedal and scootered to the bottom. A nice lady with her kids and dog were just pulling into the trailhead and instead of just calling for an ambulance she took me to the hospital. Within 2 hours I was in the operating room to bolt and plate a fractured femur. It has been 8 months and am just again feeling the flow after lots of pain and rehab. Everyday seems to get a little better and I find myself pushing it once again and riding some of those spots that scare me a bit. I am also much more aware of the consequences and am definitely holding back some but that comes from realizing that I am mortal, something that I never really thought about before. BTW I am 68 yrs and still ride by myself most of the time, with my phone now but I'm aware that bottom line, there is no substitute for healthy regard for safety and self-reliance.