Utah Mixed Epic Summary and Lesson Learned

 So, I pulled the plug. I believe this is the second big race I ever quit, and I certainly have mixed emotions. I feel I let a lot of people down; Kids on Bikes, the people who donated, and myself.  There were some good things to come out of this though, and I’ll get to those later.

At the Start with Leadville Legend Todd Murray

Heading out of Salt Lake and into the Mountains

Normally, I thrive on these kinds of races and conditions. The harder it is, the more I like it. But this race was different. Almost from the beginning, I wasn’t feeling myself. My body would not acclimate to the heat. The first three days were over mountain ranges and rough terrain, that normally, I would have loved. But the heat, even at 9,000 – 10,000 feet seemed to really take its toll on me. I was constantly, lightheaded, nauseous, and couldn’t force myself to eat. I was riding 15 – 18 hours a day, with almost 30,000 feet of climbing in the first 200+ miles and not eating anywhere near enough.

Typical Day 1 and 1 Terrain

Day 1 and 2 Climbs

Beginning the very first climb off pavement

I just had no appetite. I pushed on, hoping that after three days my body and mind would acclimate, and I’d be able to turn things around. The wind picked up on the evening of the third day and a smoky haze filled the air. I rode into the night, finally stopping and setting up camp around 11:00 PM. I was now out of the mountains and into the desert. I was really looking forward to the incredible views of the Milky Way, typical of the desert night, but instead the haze blocked everything but a hazy orange moon. Getting up and continuing on at approximately 4:30 the next morning, I could smell the haze and smoke as I rode through the early morning. As the sun rose it became obvious that there was a large fire somewhere and the haze was thick. The rest of the day was spent riding through a moonscape looking desert, dealing with heat, smoke, wind, and sand. It was a long day, and I still had no appetite, I was really getting sick of drinking warm plastic tasting water but it was absolutely necessary to stay hydrated. Bloody smoke buggers now turned into a full on running bloody nose. A female racer, Jackie, who I’d been going back and forth with the last couple days caught me after I took a short 15-minute nap. She had a great attitude, only disappointed that we could not enjoy the scenery because of the smoke. I was not so jovial, and my conversation was limited to grunts of displeasure, and statements such as “I’m done”. My attitude and morale were at an all-time low. This really bothers me, because I pride myself in staying positive no matter how tough things get. Eventually, I came into Hanksville, UT a little after dark. I needed to get a hotel, or access to electricity to recharge my lights, Garmin, phone, and backup batteries. Hanksville consists of two gas stations, two motels, a couple of restaurants, and a campground with cabins. I booked a cabin, re-supplied with water and junk food at the gas station, took a shower and ate dinner. Other than a gas station pizza, that was the first real food in four days. My nose was still bleeding off and on and my throat felt like it had been ripped inside out.

Hitting the High Point of the Race

Riding in the Haze

I woke up at 4:30 the next morning to take on the next segment of the race, which was supposed to be the toughest; passing over the Henry Mountains. The wind was blasting, which as far as I could tell, blew the smoke out, but my throat and lungs still burned. My nose was clogged with smoke buggers, that no matter how much I blew, seem to keep coming back. I was feeling weak and nauseated, so I decided to wait until 7:00 when the restaurant opened, and eat breakfast. I had no appetite and was still feeling weak at mid-morning. It was at this point I came to the decision that I was going to have to scratch from the race. I still couldn’t come to grips with that decision, so I thought I would hang around for a day, and see how I felt the next day. Others ahead of me, including my friend Todd Murray (Lisa Iwamiya Murray) did the very same thing, and continued on after a day’s rest.

Not Looking to Well after 4 days of heat, exhaustion, and not eating much

Logistics getting home from Hanksville were complicated. There were no Uber, buses or any other type of commercial services that I could get a ride with. At home we were having contract work done, and my wife could not leave until they finished toward the end of the week.

This is where a miracle happened. One of the good things that came out of this. Brent Colwell, who I met seven years ago, while participating in a weeklong ultra-endurance running race in Costa Rica, reached out to me and asked if he could give me a ride home. I was flabbergasted and speechless. Surely, he couldn’t be serious. He lived in Utah, ( the course went right by his house which I had passed by two days earlier), had the week off from work, and was headed to the mountains in Colorado to do some camping, hiking, and biking, and would be happy to take me with him. This is nothing short of incredible.

We drove through a bit of a snowstorm over Vail Pass and the Eisenhower Tunnel but made it safely back to Colorado Springs some time around midnight. The next day we hooked up with  Steve Bremner, who also ran the ultra-endurance race seven years ago, and we did the “must do while in Colorado Springs” Incline/Barr Trail Loop. For some reason I felt pretty good on this outing, which made me beat myself up even more for quitting the Utah Mixed Epic. However, after Brent left for Leadville, it all came down on me and I slept for almost 13 hours straight and am still feeling wasted. Despite the race being a disaster, we had a great “Coastal Challenge Reunion” and I got to show Brent a little bit of my beloved Colorado Springs.

The other good thing that came out of this, even though I failed to finish, is we raised almost $2,000 for Kids on Bikes. This is the real victory of this whole endeavor. And for that I can’t thank everyone enough. Believe it or not this goes a long way to help KoB accomplish their mission to “…empower all kids to lead healthy, active, and happy lives through bicycling…” Despite my failure, we helped a lot of kids.

Finally, What went wrong?

Over the last two days, I have analyzed and obsessed over what went wrong. As I said above, normally I thrive in tough ultra-endurance challenges. But the answer is simple. It’s exactly, as a coach, I’m always preaching against and preventing my athletes from doing: OverTraining! As my wife Roswitha (Rose DeWitt) said, I never gave myself a chance to fully recover from breaking my back on July 15. Now that I look at my training log, I realize she is absolutely right. I was hideously stupid. Just 2 ½ weeks after breaking my back I did a 100-mile virtual race/ride on Zwift, followed a week later with a 135-mile ride followed a week later with a 165-mile fully packed ride (the naked guy ride). Three days later, six weeks from breaking my back, a big day riding most of the Leadville 100 MTB course followed by another virtual 100-mile race/ride three days after that. Finally, a 100 mile gravel race just 6 days before the start of the Utah Mixed Epic, which started just a little more than eight weeks after breaking my back. Throw in all the riding in between, and this is an extreme example of stupid overtraining. I simply blew it, and as a coach there is no excuse for that. The good news though, is my back feels fine, I’m just exhausted and will recover.

I have nothing but awe and respect for those that are still out there. They will be finishing up over the next two to five days. And everyone still out there deserves huge kudos. The Mixed Utah Epic is no joke.

Thanks for reading, your encouragement, and support of Kids on Bikes.

-larry

Final Prep before Heading to Utah Mixed Epic

First, I want to thank everyone who has donated to support Kids on Bikes. Every bit makes a difference. I will be proudly wearing a “Kids on Bikes” jersey throughout the race. This will help motivate me when things get tough. A big reason I am doing this race, aside from the adventure, is to raise awareness and support for this great organization. I have very strong connection with their mission. I grew up in a family that could not afford a bike. I cobbled together an unsafe raggedy bike from bits and pieces I could find, and it became my gateway to freedom and whole other worlds. Without biking and running as a teenager, who knows where I would have ended up. The race is scheduled to start on Sep 4, one day before my 63^rd birthday; Sep 5. I hope to make that an epic day within an epic ride. We shall see. But what I really hope is that we can really up the ante on support for Kids on Bikes. Every bit makes a difference!

 

Some how I got all this plus on the bike! (Except Gemma the dog)

I did my final ride this morning, before heading to Salt Lake for the start of the Utah Mixed Epic on Friday. Bike is packed and ready to go. I feel good, but nervous. The course description sounds pretty brutal, but I feel I’m ready to take it on. There is ton of climbing right out the gate, so I hope I haven’t packed too much. Could be a lot of pushing? My biggest concern is lack of water over the long desert sections with no resupply sources. I’m set-up to carry up to eight liters (2 Gallons) of water if I need to. I think that should get me through those sections. Temps are looking to be in 100s at the lower altitudes, so I may do a lot of night riding. We shall see.

Packed and Ready

From the Cockpit

 

The Utah Mixed Epic TrackLeaders site is now up, from which you can follow the race.

 

Thanks for reading and thanks for your support to Kids on Bikes!

 

-larry

Final Tune-up for Utah: Pony Xpress 160 Gravel Race

Carried Everything So I didn't have to stop at aid stations

Pony Xpress 160: Man is was so nice to do a real race vs virtual. And it was awesome! Big kudos to Phil Schweizer for putting on such a great race while following strict COVID protocol. The course was splendid! I started with the lead group which may have been too fast. It was very cool though, because riding in a pack like that was the real version of riding in the packs I’ve been virtually riding in all summer on Zwift. Eventually the group broke into two and I was in the second group. I believe most of the people in these groups were doing the 80k vs the 160k. Eventually got dropped by the second group and rode alone for a while until my friend Tom Turney, with a group of five or so, caught me. We rode together, then about half turned off at the 80k turnoff. We caught stragglers of the groups ahead, who like me got dropped. I decided not to stop at the second aid station, which left three of us riding together from that point. Some rolling hills, and I discovered one of the riders was in my age group. He seemed strong and totally in control, riding a much lighter bike and carrying minimum stuff. I was able to gap him a bit on the climbs, did not have the gearing to stay with him on the pedaling descents. Finally, at about 48 miles we hit a big climb of 11+ miles, followed by another 5 mile climb shortly after. I managed to open a gap and catch others on these climbs. I motivated myself by telling myself I'm a climber, this is what I live for, I love to climb. It worked, although a couple times I had to back off just bit and remember to relax the upper body, before I got myself into trouble. I was worried on the descents since I didn't have the gearing to go as fast as some of the others, so all I could do is get in the most aerodynamic tuck possible when I couldn’t pedal fast enough. During the last 8 miles or so the skies opened up and made this race really epic. It was a deluge, like I haven't seen in years, complete with hail. Just kept riding, almost completely blind, wind gust that were incredible, flooded roads. Luckily the last 5 or so miles were on pavement, so the rain actually washed all the mud off my bike. Ended up winning the 60+ category by 11 minutes, finishing 23^rd overall. It felt so good to be racing again, and it was so much fun! This is a real confidence booster for Utah. Now it’s time to rest, rest and rest some more. 

Less Than Two Weeks

 Winding down to the last weeks and I have put in some great training rides. On Wednesday, Aug 19, I took a day off of work, drove 2 ½ hours to Leadville and met my friend Abe Valdez and rode most of the Leadville Trail 100 MTB course (91 miles) then drove 2 ½ hours back home. It was a truly awesome day. The weather was perfect, and we had an amazingly fun, hard ride. On the way home, blasted a playlist of sing along type songs (mostly Beatles) and pretty much sang at the top of my lungs all the way home. It was an awesome day.

Abe Heading up Sugar Loaf before Power line Descent

Abe - Almost to the top of Columbine

Top of Columbine

Columbine Mine

 

For the weekend with less than two weeks until Utah Mixed Epic, I worked on getting everything dialed in; What to take, what not to take, and how to pack. Set up so I can carry up to 8 liters of water when needed. This will come in handy on the long stretches of desert with no water availability.  It was another great training weekend with a 100+ mile ride Saturday and 100+ KM ride Sunday to get things dialed in. Just a couple more minor adjustments and should be set!

Gettin er Dialed-in!

Hope I'm Ready

One of the things I thought about on these rides is how lucky I am to be able to experience these adventures. One of the things I loved about coaching the Cheyenne Mountain High School Team was seeing the joy those kids experienced riding their bikes out on the trails. There are many kids who may never get to discover that joy and that is what Kids on Bikes is all about. By helping a kid experience the joy and freedom of riding a bike, who knows where that might take him/her. And I did say “helping” not giving. These kids have to earn their bikes and you can learn all about the program at the Kids on Bikes website. If you feel this worth a few dollars, and every dollar helps, then please see my donation page at Larry Bikepacks Utah. Thanks for your support!

 

-larry

An Almost Overnighter 16 Aug 2020

High Drive, Gold Camp, Phantom Canyon, Shelf, Cripple Creek, Victor, Gold Camp: 165 miles, 13,000 ft of climbing, 16 hrs of actual pedal time, total time 18+ Hours. Great Training ride for Utah Mixed Epic. This ride proved the Leadville saying "You can do more than you think you can" to be absolutely true. It was a great ride that threw a little bit of everything at me including a naked guy in the middle of the night. Big long climbs, awesome descents and scenery, extreme heat in Canon City, rain & hail going up Shelf Road through Red Canyon, huge temp drop in Cripple Creek, night riding down Gold Camp. Around 10 PM I was beginning to feel I was hitting my limit. Getting lightheaded, having a hard time concentrating on the trail in the dark. So, I got off the bike and started hunting around for a good place to make camp, when my headlight came upon a guy completely naked hiding behind a tree. He wasn’t more than 6 feet away! Completely naked! He didn't even have shoes on! Last thing on the planet I expected! I actually screamed when my headlight came upon him. Almost dropped my bike! He stepped from behind the tree. I yelled at him "What the F**K". He just said "it's all good man, I'm just hiking". Scared the bejeevies out of me. "You can do more than you think you can". Suddenly I was wide awake and full of energy. 2 1/2 hours later, about 12:30 am I was home. Just shows you, that you may think you're tired and at your limit and in reality, you're not even close. But really, that was just weird!

Aside from that little adventure, I feel 100% recovered from my fractured vertebrae. I am SO grateful it wasn't worse, and that I recovered so quickly and fully. I am getting super excited about the Utah adventure just a few more weeks away. And again, as I've said in every post, I want to raise awareness and support for Kids on Bikes. Like everything else COVID19 has negatively affected their ability to fund their programs. And with the extra precautions they need to take due to the virus, operation costs can only go up. You can support their cause through this adventure by going to Larry Bike Packs through Utah. Every little bit helps. Thanks!

Looking over Cheyenne Canyon from High Drive

Some of the awesome scenery on Gold Camp

One of Several Tunnels Along the way

The end of Gold Camp - Signs shot to pieces

Love these Rides

A long climb (20+ miles?) Up Shelf Rd

Pictures do Shelf Road no Justice

Top of Shelf Rd just before Gold Camp

Colorado Springs from Gold Camp

Utah Mixed Epic Dress Rehearsal

This weekend I was joined by Todd Murray to ride our first Dress Rehearsal in preparation for UME. Todd, is a Colorado Springs Police Detective, and one of the toughest, but nicest guys I know. He is one of two people to finish every Leadville 100 MTB Trail Race since its inception; something like 26 years straight. Additionally, he is a former Leadman champion and course record holder,. Add a handful of Ironman Triathlons, 24 hour races, and well, you get the picture. Todd is the real deal. Todd Is also signed up for UME.

Todd Murray Taking in the View

We had an incredible ride with fully loaded bikes, looking for big climbs at high altitudes. This ride had several purposes; Test our equipment, test our gearing with the additional weight on steep long climbs, figure out what and how to pack, and get a typical UME day in the saddle.

Initial Test Set-up

We chose to ride up through Cheyenne Canyon and tackle one of the steepest and longest climbs on the “Ring the Peak” route. This climb is approximately 3 miles long, an average grade of 8%, with pitches much steeper, and topped out at over 10,400 ft. This was after four hours of mostly climbing just to get to the base. We were able to climb it, but if someone magically gave me an extra gear at the time, I would have whole heartedly accepted.

Todd Toping out at 10,400+ Feet After a long hard climb

Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich Break

After the climb we continued to Victor then descended Phantom Canyon. Phantom Canyon is such an amazing place. The scenery just blows me away every time I ride it. Descending from 10,200 feet to about 5,400 felt like going into an oven, hitting the bottom of the canyon at about 94 degrees. So another benefit of this ride, was getting a small taste of the extreme heat we are going to face in Utah. We returned to Colorado Springs via Hwy 115, a rolling grind that seemed to go forever. In the end we covered 135 miles and over 10,000 feet of climbing.

Getting Over Victor Pass

We learned a lot on the ride. Both of us came away, knowing we need to re-think how and what to pack. Our total time was 13 hours with 11:30 of actual ride time. A good indication of what a typical day at UME will be like. My goal is to ride approximately 15 hours a day. We also got a small taste of what the heat will be like. Very intimidating. That is one of my biggest fears about this adventure. Most of my riding is early morning before work when it is still cool. My next challenge is to get acclimated to the heat.

For Someone that doesn't eat a lot of salt, my jersey was caked

That was exactly what I set out to do the next day, on Sunday. After a family hike, got a later than usual start for what I intended to be a short recovery ride, but in the heat. Surprisingly, I felt pretty good and just kept riding. I left with only two bottles of water, as I was not expecting to go long. 52 miles and 3,000 feet of climbing later, I was feeling the effects of the 90+ degrees and lack of fluid. This strengthens my resolve to acclimate and brings to reality that UME will be anything but a picnic.

My back felt fine. Other than being a little rough getting on and off the bike, it felt strong. I even felt better on Sunday. I have no explanation other than I've been doing core strength work for years and my almost 25+ years vegan diet. Its only been 3 1/2 weeks since I fractured it. 

Finally, we can’t forget Kids on Bikes. I am taking on this race/adventure as a fundraiser for KoB. In these crazy times with COVID19, KoB’s biggest fundraiser, the 24 Hour Indoor Challenge is in Jeopardy. I believe  COVID19 is affecting all of us in more ways than we know. For kids of lower means, probably more so. Wouldn’t it be great in these times, to help these kids experience the freedom and joy of riding a bike. Every little bit helps. If you find it in your heart you can donate at my donation page. Thanks for reading and thanks for all that have donated. 

Almost Full Throttle

Good Morning Colorado Springs

So far my healing and recovery has been nothing short of amazing. In the emergency room, the doctor said 4 - 6 weeks, and based on my age, probably closer to 6 weeks. This morning, exactly 3 weeks from the crash, I did a 4 hour ride with over 5,000 feet of climbing. I did this on the bike I will be riding the Utah Epic with partial packs to add weight while climbing. My back felt relatively good, with some muscle or tendon pain when I stood to pedal. Over the last week, I’ve been picking up the intensity and distance, and feel like I am well on the way to getting my fitness back. If things keep going as they are, I should be fit and ready on race day. One of my biggest concerns was not coming through for Kids on Bikes. I feel really strongly about KoB and what they do for kids. Of course there will be more challenges along the way, the race itself for example, but at least this is one challenge that is almost behind me.

These last few days have been incredibly positive. Saturday, I participated in a Zwift virtual 100 mile ride called the The BMTR Fundo (A). My training log notes from that ride: “Flat, fast, and hard! A total sweat fest. I think I flooded my basement! It seems my back is well on its way to healing. Didn't seem to be an issue today. 29th out of 400+, although not all 400 went the whole 100 miles. Bonked with about 18 miles to go and got dropped by the group I was with. Started cramping and feeling nauseous, which has never happened on an indoor ride. The next group was 20 min behind, so was able to hold them off despite really struggling to get to the finish.” Needless to say, I was super happy with that ride.

Early On - Big Group - About Mid Pack 

My Avatar Long Hair and an S-Works

Last Climb and less than 2 miles to the finish

One Tired Puppy 

Since my back didn't bother me Saturday on an intense indoor ride, thought I’d try outdoors on Sunday. Rode up Rampart, a dirt and rough in places road, but once it started getting rough, I could feel it. Turned around and came down really slow through the rough sections. I'm definitely not ready for that. So hit Santa Fe Trail to Palmer Lake, and aside from being wiped out from Saturday's ride, it went pretty well. 5.5 hours, 65 miles on mostly dirt. I'm super excited that I am recovering faster than expected. 

Rampart with Pikes Peak in the Distance

Quick Pit Stop at Ice Lake

Took Monday off and on Tuesday rode 1.5 hours on the indoor trainer at endurance pace. Felt really good, still a little rough getting on and off the bike, and I even contemplated riding my bike to work. However, in the end decided not to, I’m pretty sure my back is not ready to carry a heavy backpack.

This morning was incredible. As I mentioned at the beginning, rode for 4 hours. It was mostly dirt with a lot of climbing and I felt strong. I returned to the seen of the crime and saw no deer. I have to admit, I was very apprehensive about crashing during this ride. Even a small crash would be extremely painful. I contemplated riding on the trainer vs outdoors, but decided to chance it and glad I did. It was so nice to be back out on such a gorgeous morning.

Halfway up High Drive

Red Rocks Open Space

I’m super excited to be back on track and partnering with Kids on Bikes. I know with COVID19 there is a lot of uncertainty right now, and I’m betting that the families and kids that KoB serves are even more affected by the impact. I and everyone involved appreciates all and any contributions big or small. Thanks for everything.

Making Progress

As I mentioned last week, after 11 days I finally got on the bike and felt good. That was Saturday, 11 days after three fractured vertebrae. Indoors, but on the bike. I can’t be thankful enough for Zwift. It really is a game changer when it comes to indoor training. 

My Virtual Pain Cave - Zwift

My goal is to be on the starting line of the Utan Mixed Epic, a self supported race through the mountains and deserts of Utah. On Sunday the 2nd ride since the crash, I was able to stretch the ride to three hours, but at an easy pace. Monday, was an easy recovery ride, and Tuesday 1.5 hours at endurance Intensity. 

Wednesday, exactly 2 weeks after the crash, I decided to push it a bit and hit the hills. I picked a very hilly route that ended with a climb up the equivalent of Alp d’Huez, called Alp d’Zwift. I expected my power to be down, with the 11 day lay off and the pain in my back, but I didn’t expect my Heart Rate to go through the roof. My average power on the climbs was in the zone 3 range while my heart rate was way up in zones 4 and 5. This is a bit disappointing since before the crash, I was setting the best times and power output in four years. However, I won’t dwell on that, because the fact that I can get on the bike and ride at all at this point, is something to be very grateful for. The key is to keep a positive attitude, stay focused on recovery, and work to be in the best shape I can be, given the circumstances.

Climbing Alp d'Zwift

Summiting Alp d'Zwift

Another key component to training for this race is testing equipment and sorting out what to take. This requires overnight rides to test lights, batteries, food choices, camping gear, bike packs, GPS, and myself. Although, most of my equipment was thoroughly tested during the Tour Divide, I now have a different bike and changes that need shaken out.  Optimally, I would spend several weekends, riding 12-18 hours, camping, then riding the same distance the next day. Obviously, this is not going to be an option as it will probably be a couple more weeks before I can even ride outside, and the start is just around the corner. But I’ll do what I can, and who knows, I seem to be healing quickly, so maybe I’ll get out there sooner than later. In the mean time, Zwift is my ticket!

Crash and Recovery

It’s been a pretty rough week since the last post. But we have to take the bad with the good, stay positive, and not lose sight of our goals. And my current goal is to race the Utah Mixed Epic and raise awareness and support for Kids on Bikes. I love their mission, as it reflects so much on where I come from, and what they contribute to the well being, health, and joy of disadvantaged kids is so essential today.

Regulated to Trainer for a While

While returning home from my “Wednesday Morning Cheyenne Canyon Hill Repeats” which I cut short due to fatigue, I hit a deer descending at somewhere between 35 and 40 mph.

Ended up in the emergency room via ambulance. Prognosis: 5 fractures in 3 vertebrae (L1 - L3), a whole lot of soft tissue damage in the lower back, standard road rash, and a shattered helmet, which probably saved my life. The good news is the vertebrae did its job and protected the spine, and the deer got up and ran off into the woods, so I hope it’s OK. So the Telluride 100 just 11 days away from the crash was out. Other good news: The doctor, a cyclist, predicts full recovery in 4 - 6 weeks. Although the vertebrae is fractured, there was no displacement, so letting the “pain be my guide”, the act of riding a bicycle should not cause further injury. 

The doctor also said, “the first few days will be very tough” and he was right. The first three days I couldn’t get out of bed without help. Bless my amazing wife, Roswitha, for all that she did to take care of me as my “at home nurse”.

I am incredibly grateful that it wasn’t worse. It was a hard violent crash, and at my age I should have come out of it much worse. Our bones are supposed to be brittle at this age. When I hit the ground and felt the pain in my back, and could not get up out of the street, my first thought was, “uh oh, this could be a life changing event”.  I had a lot of time to think about this over the time I was confined to bed, and I’m convinced that being Vegan/Plant Based almost my entire adult life has a lot to do with it. During the many years that I’ve been plant based, I’ve had relatively few injuries, and always seem to heal faster than normal.

Four days later, on Sunday, I was able to take a short walk. It was painful, and I looked like a 90 year old man, but I walked. Each day got just a little better; slow but sure progress. Each day, I was able to pick up my walking pace a little bit more and go a little bit farther. Most of the pain came from the “soft tissue damage”. 

"Gemma the Dog" accompanies on first "Walk"

Ms. Deer on first Walk. Gave her lots of Space!

Luckily, I have the option of working from home, so on Monday, did just that. I could not, and still can’t, sit for extended periods of time, so my awesome employer, Plus3 IT Systems, at my request, immediately sent me a stand up desk converter. 

On Wednesday, one week after the crash, I decided to quit taking the pain meds, except when going to bed, and let the pain decide how far I could push myself. 

Thursday, eight days after the crash, I was able to dress myself, including putting on my socks and shoes. Up until this point I was working from home but chose to go into the office. That was probably pushing a little bit too much, and made for a very uncomfortable night.

Finally, on Saturday morning, 11 days after the crash I got back on the bike. The trainer albeit, but I was pedaling, and it felt good to get that old familiar rhythm going again. It was rough getting on and off the bike, but while on it, I felt great. I wanted to pedal forever, but kept it to 90 minutes.

Feels So Good to be back on the Bike!

It’s been incredible how many people have reached out to offer help, pick my stuff up from the fire department, offer encouragement, positive thoughts, and prayers. I consider myself so fortunate to belong to such an awesome community, employer, and wife. I’m on the mend, and sooo looking forward to Utah and supporting Kids on Bikes. This adventure will be special!