Welcome home Jobob!

[maillotpois]

For those of you wanting the story of all of our worst day on a bike, here it is.

Jo did a fantastic job on a 70 mile Death Ride training ride this weekend. She was super strong, new bike was great, weather was wonderful. However, about 2 miles from the finish, on a very short descent, she went over the bars (according to witness on scene - none of our riders saw what happened and Jo does not recall). Maybe a big pothole, maybe an animal - we will never know.

When I got to the scene a couple of minutes later (I was riding sweep at the end of the ride), Jo was on the ground, semi conscious, bleeding from the face, being tended to by passers by who had gotten out of their cars - these people luckily had EMT training and one was a med student. TE-ers Mel and Dachsund were there - all very upset. Just awful.

I sent all the other TNT riders on their way accompanied by coaches, and Mel, Dachsund and I waited for help. Rangers were everywhere within minutes as this was a National Park (Pt Reyes). The passers by with EMT training were doing C spine precautions. Jo's husband Leebob came on scene shortly thereafter as he had been doing SAG for us.

She was airlifted to the hospital where she was diagnosed with compressed vertebra, cheekbone fracture and had stitches. They continued to monitor her for several days there as she had some mild (!) internal bleeding apparently. She also had a concussion for sure, though no no one ever said that word to me.

Big hug to both Jo and Lee and I am so glad you are home.

[newfsmith]

That sounds a lot like Denise Goldberg's accident, except on a descent. Best wishes for complete recovery. In the meantime, gentle hugs.

[andtckrtoo]

Oh my! Sending massive healing vibes to Jo! That is scary! I am so glad you will recover. When you are feeling up to it, I'll meet you for a beer instead of a ride.

PS to Sarah, Mel and Dachshund - that is never easy to come up on. I'm just glad she had y'all there. Says something about the benefits of group riding. Also - if you start to feel a little down or depressed, you may want to see a counselor for a time or two - seeing a good friend hurt can have some odd consequences that may seem totally unrelated but are not.

[skinimini]

Jo, full speed ahead with your recovery. Best wishes and good healing vibes on its way from Atlanta!

[Chile Pepper]

Sounds terrible. Get well soon, Jobob.

[Ninabike]

That sounds a lot like Denise Goldberg's accident, except on a descent. Best wishes for complete recovery. In the meantime, gentle hugs.

As I was reading Sarah's account, I was thinking exactly the same thing!! It just makes you realize how the most experienced cyclists can have accidents like this. Thoughts and prayers going your way Jo, and to Leebob too.

[tulip]

Jobob, I feel your pain! I was in a similar accident 5 years ago, and I, too, got to ride in a helicopter. I also don't remember the ride. Too bad, because I've always wanted to ride in a helicopter.

Take care of yourself. Don't hesitate to get cognitive or speech therapy if you need it. That's what I needed, but I couldn't advocate for myself at the time, so I missed out. I'm sure Leebob will advocate for you if you cannot.

-tulip

[Aggie_Ama]

I have never wanted to ride in a helicopter. Eek. Glad you are back home. Wish you the best in recovering.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

I hope you heal rapidly. Poor thing, sounds awful!

[jobob]

I'm doing fine, gang. Lee's been a champ and I have a cozy steup near the toob and a small laptop to mess with. I'm typing real slow (from me that means crawling ) but I'm seeing the doc tomorrow and in the meantime getting lots of rest so all is good (well, OK, but you know what I mean).

Oooh I'm the proud owner of a nice soft new snuggli in bright blue. Awesome loungwear.

Thanks for the recount, mp. I was only there in body. Can't believe I was only a couple of miles from the end -- and the beer! Yeesh.

Later, folks.

- Jo.

[maillotpois]

Jo - sounds like you are well set up for a good recovery. Never underestimate the healing power of TV. and ice cream. We really missed you on the ride today but we all sent big healing thoughts your way.

Mel - we did get lucky on the location of the crash - those rangers were amazing. I was so impressed. Have you talked to the witness/med student person who wanted an update? She was great.

[solobiker]

I am so sorry this happened to you. I hope you feel better soon. My heart is just racing to think about your accident and I was not even there. All the positive energy I can get is heading your way.

[melissam]

For those of you wanting the story of all of our worst day on a bike, here it is.

MP did a great job summing up the whole crash scene. Yeah, it was one of the hardest days I've had on the bike. I think I got there a few minutes after it happened. I experienced a series of terrible realizations -- my heart sank further with each one: I saw the rider on the side of the road (maybe they're just fixing a flat? No, they're lying on the ground - that's not good), I recognized the Team In Training jersey, and I recognized Jobob's knickers and legs. And the Lynskey. I looked at her face and recognized Jobob, but well, she looked a lot better when she was climbing Mt. Vision a few miles earlier.

MP arrived a little later, LeeBob and Dachshund came up a few minutes after that. LeeBob and MP handled the situation like pros; Dachshund and I fell apart just a little bit on the side of the road. We took care of little things, like getting Jo's bike back up to the car, and transferring stuff to the other SAG from LeeBob's car so he could head up to the hospital.

I remember being so grateful that passers-by with the right training stopped to help and that the rangers and emergency personnel got there so quickly. Jobob was in really good hands.

And the people were so nice. The driver who was following her and saw the crash wanted to stay in contact to see how it all turned out. (Of course, at that point, I would have given my eye teeth to know that it was going to turn out as well as it has.)

PS to Sarah, Mel and Dachshund - that is never easy to come up on. I'm just glad she had y'all there. Says something about the benefits of group riding. Also - if you start to feel a little down or depressed, you may want to see a counselor for a time or two - seeing a good friend hurt can have some odd consequences that may seem totally unrelated but are not.

andtckrtoo,

Thanks -- so far, we're handling the aftermath pretty well. I rode back to the start/finish line from the crash site. I was tucked safely between Coach Sarah and Coach Graham, and wasn't as shaky as I thought I'd be. I also did a recovery ride on Sunday and wore my Amici Veloci jersey in Jobob's honor.

I think I'm ready to roll on Saturday's training ride.

Jobob,

It was great talking to you this morning on the phone -- you sounded great! We're planning to head up to Lagunitas after Saturday's ride so we can score you some of that Brown Shugga'!

- Mel

[aka_kim]

I also did a recovery ride on Sunday and wore my Amici Veloci jersey in Jobob's honor.

I did too (wore my AV jersey that is). It seemed appropriate, and there must be special healing powers in those colors.

Mel, I'm glad you guys are doing OK.

Jo, I'm so happy to see you posting again, and can't wait 'til the snarking begins anew, that's when we'll know you're really healed.

[dachshund]

Dachshund and I fell apart just a little bit on the side of the road.

Yeah, all I could do was react emotionally. Jo was completely still. I don't think I ever saw her move, so I was very scared. I sagged the last part of the ride because of a headcold, so I was riding in the car with Lee. We came upon flashing lights and I could see a couple of cyclists. I got out of the car thinking "no, no, no..."

But darned if they didn't get a helicopter out there a few minutes later. Jo, you had an extremely efficient crew helping you.

Yes, heal up fast! In the meantime we'll bring therapeutic beer!