1. From: "Pete Rissler" <peter_rissler@rissler.reno.nv.us>

Newsgroups: alt.mountain-bike

Subject: Re: Diskectomy/Laminectomy recovery anyone?

Date: Fri, 7 Jul 2006 14:39:48 -0700

<bruce.edge@gmail.com> wrote in message

news:1152291986.510124.100470@b28g2000cwb.googlegroups.com...

> No, disk, not dick....

> But seriously, anyone out there still riding after something like an

> L4/L5 diskectomy? I had one last September and can't seem to get back

> into riding. Every time I try, even going out super easy just on the

> road, it feels great for a week, then I start a slide back into

> painkillers and it keeps getting worse for weeks after I stop again.

> I was riding 4-5 times a week, probably around 10 hours a week. Then

> came the sore back on long climbes that kept getting worse. Next was

> the series of MRI's and epidural cortizone shots.

> I sold my coiler as it was getting too heavy for me. Plonked down the

> $$$$$$ for niota Ti frame. Even with a 24 lb rig I still couldn't cope.

> Last was the surgery. A "minimally invasive laminectomy", translation:

> "Maximally screwed up". I've spent almost a year doing PT and stupid

> recovery excersizes that don't feel like they do anything. My surgeon

> says, "Well, I would have expected faster recovery, but we (ME you rat

> bastard, not you) just have to wait..."

> I didn't think I was ready to make the transition from hard core mtber

> to fat old fart, but I guess we don't ever make that choice willingly.

> I got on a scale the other day. I though the effing thing was broken,

> 30 friggin pounds since I quit riding.

> -Bruce

> P.S.Niota Ti, barely used for sale....

About 5 years ago I fractured a lumbar vertebrae (crashed on the MTB) and

for the next two years my back hurt like shit whenever I rode. The pain got

so bad that I finally went to see a chiropractor. First thing he says is

you have one leg shorter than the other and then you have almost no

flexibility. He worked on me for a couple of weeks but it didn't help. I

finally went to see an orthopedist. I got an MRI and found out I had two

ruptured lumbar disks, these were not just herniated but as the Doc put it,

they were fully extruded. The extruded disks were laying on nerves, one on

each side. He says "no wonder your back hurts, I can't believe you can even

ride a bike" then he gave me some free prescription strength Viox, all I

can say is they sure did work and look no heart attack. Just an aside, he

wanted to make sure that there was no nerve damage, so he hooks me up to a

machine that sends a electrical current through my body. After flopping

around on the table a couple of times he hooks me up one more time and sends

another good jolt through and says "Huh, you're wired backwards, let's try

this again." Well I guess if you've been "wired" backwards your whole life

then "you're really not wired backwards" you adapt. Anyway after one

epidural (cortisone shot) and a shot of "I don't know what the hell it was

but it sure made me sick " and 3 months of physical therapy (hint: find one

at your local Universities Sports Complex, these guys deal with sports

injuries all the time, and if you can scheduled it during the women's track

team work out, mine had a view of the weight room, nothing like watching

sweaty women pumping iron to pass the time). At the end of 3 months my legs

were the same length. I was given a stretching routine to do twice a day

and was told to try some yoga. Now after 5 years my back still hurt after I

ride but not as much, in fact I'm used to it but extended hillclimbs can

put a good hurt on the back. So my advice is to do a lot of stretching,

find a good yoga class and try do things that will lessen the strain on your

back, i.e.. higher position on the bike, get out of the saddle every now and

then, stop and walk around. It's either that or as you found out become a

couch potato.

Pete

2. Date: Thu, 8 May 2008 14:08:52 -0700 (PDT)
From: Thayne Bolin <thaynebolin@yahoo.com>
Subject: Race for Tara Llanes

Hello, I was searching the internet for bay area mountain bike clubs and you showed up. Last September 1rst. Pro Downhill racer Tara Llanes was invoved in a career ending crash during the Jeep King of the Mountain series in Colorado. The crash has left her with no feeling from the waiste down. I got a bunch of local racers together as well as industry support and put on a benefit race at Sandhill Ranch in Brentwood last November. When I was at the Sea Otter this year the Giant bike people (Her sponsor) approached me about running another race. I am just now starting to contact anyone and everyone in the bike industry to make this one off the hook. Last year we raised about $7,000 that went direcly to Tara's road to recovery fund. She is pushing her limits everyday in an effort to not only walk again, but to get back on a bike. At this point she has some leg movement and is allready doing things the doctors told her she would never be able to do again. we are looking for volunteers to help with track prep,donations and getting the word out about this race. Last yaer we only had six weeks to pull it off and we did very well. We had support from Santa Cruz Bikes, giant, fox Shox, Fox Racing, WTB. Mtbr.com, Michellin, Kenda and huge support from Redbull. They all donated items for a raffle and we sold over $3,000 in tickets. All totaled, we accumulated about $15,000 worth of stuff including a fully built Superlite bike from Santa Cruz Bikes. I'm not sure how involved in the sport you are, but if you could help spread the word it would be greatly appreciated for sure. The race will be sometime early to mid October and we will be running a four cross event and we also have a dual slalom course and hope to run that as well. Feel free to contact me via this e-mail if you have questions. Best regards,
Thayne Bolin.

3. From: "Terri Alvillar" <Rosieres@comcast.net>
Subject: Today's press democrat
Date: Sun, 4 May 2008 06:26:21 -0700

4. Injured bicyclist airlifted at Annadel

May 04, 2008

An injured mountain biker was airlifted by helicopter out of Annadel State Park on Saturday afternoon after he crashed on a trail.

The Sonoma County Sheriff's Department said it used the department rescue helicopter to locate the injured mountain biker, drop off a paramedic and then lift them both out of the woods using a long evacuation line.

The man was identified as Dan Kimble, 41, of Berkeley, who was being treated at Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital for serious injuries.

The man apparently crashed his bike on South Burma Trail, but emergency ground crews responding to a call for help had difficulty finding him in the thick trees and rolling hills.

The crew of the Sheriff's Department helicopter, Henry One, located the injured man in a remote area, but wasn't able to land. Officials said the paramedic was dropped off nearby and tended to the man's injuries while the flight officer prepared for a long-line evacuation.

Using the line and rescue basket, the injured man and paramedic were moved to a nearby field, where the helicopter landed and later airlifted the mountain biker to the hospital trauma center.

-- Bleys W. Rose

5. All I see is a game of "Russian Roulette" being played by "very lucky or very stupid" mountain bikers in these videos, while they rip through our fragile and natural places in BC:

http://www.injuryfreezone.com/

6. So much for "Take a Kid Mountain Biking Day"! Mountain biking is not an appropriate hobby for young people: too dangerous and expensive.

Mike

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/south_of_scotland/7655440.stm

Mountain biker critically injured

The teenager was seriously injured after falling from his bike

A 15-year-old boy has been critically injured in a mountain bike accident on a trail in south west Scotland.

The incident took place in Ae Forest in Dumfries and Galloway at about 1410 BST on Sunday.

The teenager - who is from outside the region - was initially assisted by a group of cyclists in the area.

He has now been taken to hospital in Edinburgh for treatment for a serious head injury and his condition has been described as "critical".

A police spokesman confirmed they had been called to the incident along with the ambulance service.

He said: "A 15-year-old boy from outwith the region was discovered to have fallen off his bicycle.

"The boy was with a group of other cyclists when the incident took place.

"The group assisted the boy until paramedics arrived at the scene."

Regularly inspected

The teenager was initially taken to Dumfries Infirmary but has since been transferred to Edinburgh.

Ae Forest is part of the 7stanes mountain bike trails across the south of Scotland.

It offers routes of varying difficulty from entry level to a steep, downhill course.

A spokesperson for Forestry Commission Scotland, which runs the trails, said it had been notified of the incident by police but its assistance had not been required.

"All FCS MTB trails have been subject to risk assessments and are fit for the purpose that they are marketed for," he said.

"They are also inspected monthly and maintenance is carried out as and when required.

"None of the trails in Ae have required any remedial work."

He added that the Forestry Commission always advised riders to check trail information on site and wear the appropriate protective equipment.

7. http://bb.nsmb.com/showthread.php?t=117171

Another spinal cord injury ...

Strange timing for the Wings of Life auction.

I haven't seen any mention of it here, but a rider was injured up in the interior a few weeks ago: slipped on a frosty ladder bridge and had a high cervical (neck) fracture, and is unfortunately paralyzed. The level is high enough that he is on a ventilator to breath. He was riding with buddies, and they kept him alive by breathing for him for 2 hours until he was rescued. It's early yet, and we can only hope he sees some recovery.

Be careful out there, everyone.

Always ride with a buddy.

Consider getting -- and using -- one of those braces, like the ones that the Wings of Life is auctioning off.

I've been riding with one of the Leatt braces this year, and have found it comfortable and don't find it gets in the way. The moto guys are using these a lot.

Why am I using one? I didn't find out about these until a week AFTER my son fractured his neck up on Boogie Man. Fortunately, he survived, and with the help of NSMBA and others, is doing well. Some of you know John.

Think about it. Costs a lot less than that next bike part you covet, and will potentially avert a devastating injury.

..Mike

8. Evolution in action! So much for the alleged "health benefits" of

mountain biking!

Mike

http://icdumfries.icnetwork.co.uk/tm_headline=biker-8217-s-sudden-death-at-loch-skerrow&method=full&objectid=22909131&siteid=77296-name_page.html

Biker’s sudden death at Loch Skerrow

Feb 12 2009

by Stuart Gillespie, Galloway News

A MOUNTAIN BIKER died after complaining of chest pains while on a trip

in the Stewartry recently. Fifty-four year old Iain Bell, of Dumfries,

died near Loch Skerrow on Sunday, February 1, while out cycling with a

couple of friends.

The group stopped at Loch Skerrow, which is near the old ‘Paddy’ line

between Mossdale and Gatehouse station, after the chain came off Mr

Bell’s bike at around 1.45pm, at which point he took unwell.

Due to the remoteness of the location, the Galloway Mountain Rescue

Team crew from Castle Douglas, and the helicopter from HMS Gannet at

Prestwick, were needed to help the ambulance crews and police get to

Mr Bell, but, unfortunately, he had died by the time they arrived.

There are no suspicious circumstances surrounding the death.

The Castle Douglas branch of the Galloway Mountain Rescue Team were

out again on Saturday when they, along with the police, were called

out to find two missing walkers. The pair had got lost between

Gatehouse station and Clatteringshaws and believed they were on the

Fell of Fleet. They were found by the police on a road near

Clatteringshaws in around an hour.

9. http://www.newsandstar.co.uk/news/mountain_biker_seriously_hurt_in_scotland_forest_crash_1_523575?referrerPath=home

Mountain biker seriously hurt in Scotland forest crash

Last updated 10:13, Saturday, 07 March 2009

A mountain bike enthusiast from Annan suffered serious head injuries

after being thrown from his bike in a forest in central Scotland.

Keith Bell, of Hecklegirth, thought to be in his early 20s, was flown

by air ambulance from the Carron Valley mountain bike trail to

Glasgow’s Southern General hospital where he is being treated for head

injuries.

Keith and his brother Chris where taking part in a 10.5km trail when

the accident happened.

Other cyclists and walkers rushed to help the injured man before an

ambulance arrived.

10. Yet ANOTHER Dead Mountain Biker

http://www.southportvisiter.co.uk/southport-news/southport-southport-news/2009/03/13/birkdale-man-40-dies-of-heart-attack-while-mountain-biking-101022-23132369/

Birkdale man, 40, dies of heart attack while mountain biking

Mar 13 2009 by Laura Jones, Southport Visiter

FAMILY and friends of Stephen Birkby, 40, who had a heart attack while

mountain biking said he died doing something he loved.

Stephen’s friend and colleague Peter Burke, said: “One of his friends

said to me if Stephen had to write his way out of this life it would

be on his bike, hill walking or sailing.

“He was fitter than all of us – it happened very quickly and he

wouldn’t have known anything about it.”

The 40-year-old was on a day out mountain biking with friends in Long

Mynd, Shropshire, on February 21 when he died.

Stephen, a former Our Lady of Lourdes and Christ the King pupil, was

an active sailor and biking enthusiast from Birkdale.

Parents Joanna and Michael, of Barrett Road, Birkdale, described their

son as “someone who loved life”.

Liz Akerstrom, his partner of nine years, met Stephen at Mason Owen,

where he worked as a partner of the property firm.

Liz said: “We spent more time together than the average couple, living

and working together but never tired of one another’s company and

never stopped laughing together, one of the things which drew us

together in the first place.

“He was funny, kind and loving, totally supportive and very

protective.

“I love him very much, miss him terribly and am lost without him.”

“Steve will also be missed greatly by my sons Sam and Tom to whom he

has been parent, inspiration and friend.

“The boys credit Steve with helping them to achieve as much as they

have so far and I am sure that his memory will continue to inspire

them in the future.”

Mrs Birkby said: “We’ve had so many lovely cards saying he was

friendly, principled, loved life and had a wonderful smile - it’s very

comforting to us.

“People liked Stephen and thought that he was a special person - he

had a real gift for friendship.

“He always wanted to live by the sea.

“He had been on sailing courses and often went out biking and sailing

with his brothers.”

Stephen leaves partner Liz, her two children, his parents Joanna and

Michael and brothers Andrew, Matthew and Nicholas.

11. Another dead mountain biker....

http://www.odt.co.nz/news/queenstown-lakes/47638/st-john-ambulance-services-fully-committed-over-weekend

St John ambulance services fully committed over weekend

Home » News » Queenstown Lakes

By Marjorie Cook on Mon, 16 Mar 2009

News: Queenstown Lakes

St John ambulance services at Queenstown and Wanaka were under pressure on Saturday attending emergency call-outs and covering major events involving tens of thousands of people.

Queenstown St John was called to three major incidents on Saturday afternoon:

•About 12.30pm at Wanaka, a 57-year-old female mountain biker broke her ankle in Sticky Forest, near Beacon Point.

•About 1.30pm near Frankton, a small Isuzu truck and motorcycle collided on a private road near Tuckers Beach Rd, causing serious facial injuries to the 19-year-old male motorcyclist (police inquiries are continuing).

•Later in the afternoon, Jacob Schriek (55), of Riversdale, died of a heart attack participating in the Motatapu Icebreaker mountain-bike ride between Wanaka and Arrowtown.

The woman mountain biker at Wanaka had her accident in a place that could not be reached by a vehicle.

She was carried about 30m on a stretcher by volunteers, mountain bikers and ambulance staff to the Lake District Air Rescue Trust helicopter and flown to Dunedin Hospital for further treatment.

St John district operations manager Peter Graylands said while the Queenstown paramedic attended to the Wanaka mountain biker, a Queenstown road ambulance crew was sent to the Frankton accident, where the patient was "status two".

He was transferred to Lakes District Hospital to be stabilised before the Otago Regional Rescue Helicopter from Dunedin arrived to transfer the patient to Dunedin Hospital, Mr Graylands said.

The Motatapu death was dealt with by medics associated with the event and by the time St John staff received information, their presence was not required.

Wanaka police later flew to the scene to deal with matters on behalf of the coroner.

Mr Graylands praised the efforts of his crews throughout Central Otago and Queenstown Lakes district this weekend.

Two Wanaka crews were kept busy transferring patients to Dunstan Hospital on Saturday, while another volunteer crew was at the Upper Clutha A&P Show.

Queenstown crews were busy at the New Zealand Golf Open and the Cromwell ambulance crew was busy providing back up to Wanaka, Mr Graylands said.

"It was just one of those days. I didn't finish work myself until 10pm. All our crews were fully committed," he said.

He would not be able to provide a tally of jobs performed this weekend until today or tomorrow but confirmed the crews attended multiple incidents as well as treating many minor injuries at the golf and the A&P show.

"My crews did a good job on a very, very hot day. It was just one of those days, and we relied very heavily on our volunteers. We were fully stretched," Mr Graylands said.

12. Another dead mountain biker....

http://www.uppermichiganssource.com/news/news_story.aspx?id=316349

Details released on mountain bike fatality
Forty-one-year-old Margaret Hahr of Munising died in the incident.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009 at 12:47 p.m.

MARQUETTE TOWNSHIP -- We have an update on the mountain bike crash Monday, in which a woman died.

State Police have released the names of those involved. Forty-one-year-old Margaret Hahr of Munising died in the incident.

Hahr and 39-year-old Sidney Shaw, also of Munising, were riding their mountain bikes on a Marquette Township trail, west of the railroad tracks on County Road 550 when the accident happened.

Shaw told police Hahr was behind him on the trail, when she fell and was unconscious on the ground. He called police for help.

Hahr was taken to MGH where she was pronounced dead as a result of her injuries.

The cause and circumstances surrounding the crash are still under review.

13. Mountain Biker Breaks His Neck

So much for the safe, family sport....

Mike

http://www.dgstandard.co.uk/dumfries-news/local-news-dumfries/local-news-annandale-eskdale/2009/06/24/doctors-miss-broken-neck-in-mountain-bike-fall-man-51311-23957967/

Doctors miss broken neck in mountain bike fall man

Jun 24 2009 by Iain Pollock, Dumfries Standard Wednesday

A LOCKERBIE man was released from hospital after a horrific mountain biking accident, despite having the classic symptoms of a broken neck.

Andrew Stevenson, 37, was injured during a day out with pals at the Scratchmere trail near Penrith in Cumbria.

He was catapulted over the handlebars of his bike and landed on his head with a sickening thud.

His wife Debbie told the Standard: He took the full impact on his head and heard his neck crunch. Immediately his whole body was pins and needles.

He had a full face helmet on and his friends had to clean soil from his face. They made sure he was totally immobilised and called the ambulance.

Medics put Andrew on a back board and fitted a head collar before bringing in an air ambulance to transport him to the Newcastle General Hospital.

The father of two was given a CT scan but released from the hospital the same day.

Debbie, who works for the NHS in Dumfries, added: Because he was getting out we thought he was okay.

I even pulled a jumper over his head because they had cut all his clothes off apart from his cycling shorts. I just assumed he had a trapped nerve that was making his hands nippy because they told me he had a CT scan and there were no breaks.

Andrew, who works as a community policeman in Moffat, was in such pain that he went to the accident and emergency department at Dumfries Infirmary the next day.

He had an MRI scan which identified a prolapsed disc putting pressure on his spinal cord, but doctors suspected there was more severe damage masked by swelling.

They said he had the classic symptoms of a broken neck, Debbie added.

Andrew was taken by ambulance to the spinal injuries unit at the Southern General Hospital in Glasgow last Tuesday ... three days after the accident on June 13.

He has been immobilised on a bed since as doctors wait for his condition to improve.

Debbie said: The doctors have no doubt that its broken but because of the swelling they cannot see it. He is due to have another scan on Monday when they will decide what to do. He could be released with a neck brace or they may need to operate.

In March the Standard revealed that Laurieston weather consultant Geoff Monk walked about for a month with a broken neck after a fall. He was also taken to the Southern General Hospital for treatment when the extent of his true injuries was realised.

14. ANOTHER Dead Mountain Biker....

http://www.bcbikerace.com/Media/Blog/

Monday, June 22, 2009

A BC Bike Race Champion and Great Guy Down

Brian Johnson was on a mountain bike ride last week - the regular “Wednesday night ride” in Invermere, BC - and, sadly, did not make it home.

It was his last ride.

Drew Bragg, one of Brian's good friends in Invermere, and one of the BC Bike Race family as our MC and voice of BCBR, phoned me last Thursday to tell me the sad news.

The guys on the regular Wednesday night ride, a very tight group of guys in a smallish town in the East Kootenays who've been getting together every week for many years, found Brian on the ground beside his bike, apparently in the process of fixing his chain. They are not sure what caused his death.

15. "Everson man dies in Colo. mountain biking accident"

http://www.lyndentribune.com/node/4637

Submitted by the Tribune on July 15, 2009 - 7:54am. News

TELLURIDE, Colo. An Everson man died Saturday in an accident while mountain biking in the Telluride Ski Area.
Rittner Ritt Lewis, 51, was biking down a steep hill along a popular trail when he hit a rock or bump and flipped his bicycle, said San Miguel County coroner Bob Dempsey.
Lewis broke his neck but was killed by the head trauma he suffered even though he wore a helmet, Dempsey said.
Lewis, a widower who owned Bellingham-based Stone & Clay, leaves behind children.
Ritts wife, Karen, passed away in January 2008 after a long battle with cancer, according to the company Web site.
Mark Reimers

16. 15-year-old Has Serious Mountain Biking Accident

http://www.skyhidailynews.com/article/20090719/NEWS/907199990/1079&ParentProfile=1067

Summer a busy time for ambulance crews

By Tonya Bina
SKY-HI DAILY NEWS
Grand County, Colorado

Grand County's Emergency Medical Services have been kept busy with calls this summer some days compounded more than others.

On Wednesday, emergency responders experienced four calls nearly simultaneously one at Rocky Mountain National Park and three in other areas of the county, according to EMS Director Ray Jennings. The day also brought emergency transfers to Denver and at least two 911 calls.

On Thursday, EMS was busy again, with one transport to Kremmling Memorial Hospital for a Flight For Life pick-up, another to Granby Medical Center for a Flight For Life.

A 15 year old extreme mountain biker practicing for the USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Championships at SolVista Basin last weekend suffered a cervical neck injury when he flipped his bike, according to the Granby Police Department.

Two other competitors experienced less severe injuries on Thursday, requiring medical transports to Granby Medical.

Also Thursday, there was a chance that a multi-car accident on County Road 10 had caused injury to seven victims. Upon arrival, EMS learned that no one had been hurt.

There were three other emergency calls during the day, another three transports out of the county, and that night, Grand County EMS had two emergency transports to Denver, one at 1:30 a.m. and another at 5:30 a.m.

Summertime, it's that way, said Jennings, saying Wednesday's and Thursday's activity volume was typical for Grand County in July.

EMS generally runs 10 to 15 calls a day, he said.

Our population increases tremendously, with people spread out all over the county from the backcountry to the resort. It goes to show the dedication of our staff to take care of the community.

The county has the capability to run eight ambulances during the height of winter and summer. The entire EMS staff, he said, is qualified to attend emergencies, creating a department that can expand and contract with the needs of the community. Everybody on staff has an EMS certification from EMT all the way to Paramedics, Jennings said. It allows us flexibility to run multiple calls simultaneously.

- Tonya Bina can be reached at 970-887-3334 ext. 19603 or e-mail tbina@skyhidailynews.com.

17. ANOTHER Dead Mountain Biker! So much for the alleged "health benefits" of mountain biking....

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/france/5955043/Holiday-Briton-60-dies-after-300ft-fall-from-bike-track-in-French-Alps.html

Holiday Briton, 60, dies after 300ft fall from bike track in French Alps

A sixty-year-old British man has fallen more than 300 feet to his death while mountain biking in the French Alps on a camping holiday with nine friends.

By Alexandra Williams in Chamonix
Published: 12:36PM BST 01 Aug 2009
The fall occured near Chamonix-Mt-Blanc, one of the world's most popular mountaineering areas
The body of the man, from Brighton, was discovered on Friday afternoon by police in Chamonix-Mont-Blanc.

He hired a bike on Friday morning and went for a ride alone along the Balcon Nord track, a popular mountain biking and walking trail.

Hikers discovered his bike impaled on a tree just below the track and alerted police.

A search by helicopter located the man's body 330 feet below the track.

A spokesman for the Mountain Police in Chamonix said: We do not know why the man fell. We are waiting for the results of a post mortem.

The man hit several trees and fell a considerable distance 100 metres. It is very steep in this section.

We believe he was on his own. He was on holiday with friends but he was the only one who went biking that day. There are no witnesses to his fall.

The Balcon Nord is a popular route and technically it is not too difficult.

18. ANOTHER Dead Mountain Biker!

But he was doing what he loved to do. That makes it okay? "This is the third death on a bike in the area in less than a month."

Mike

http://www.telluridenews.com/articles/2009/08/05/news/doc4a78fbcd13539554804810.txt

ON THE MOUNTAIN
Mountain biker dies of heart attack

Dr. Alexis Shelokov, 55, had home in Telluride

By REILLY CAPPS
Writer

Published: Wednesday, August 5, 2009 5:19 AM CDT
A doctor who worked to set crooked spines straight died of an apparent heart attack while riding his mountain bike on Prospect Trail Monday afternoon.

Alexis Shelokov, 55, lived in Plano, Texas, most of the year, but had a house in Bachman Village. He was an orthopedic surgeon and the medical director of the Baylor Scoliosis Center in Plano.

Shelokov leaves behind his wife, Georgiana, who is a radiologist, and two children: a boy aged 13 and a girl aged 11, reported San Miguel County coroner Bob Dempsey.

Shelokov had already been to Telluride three times this summer, said his friend Ed Roufa, mostly to mountain bike, which he loved.

It was a horrible accident, said Roufa, but he was doing what he loved to do.

Ed Roufa was with Shelokov when he died. They had ridden the Prospect Trail almost to the bottom, and Shelokov was ecstatic.

I cant tell you the exclamations we were using as we were doing the downhill, Roufa said. Then Shelokov suffered his attack.

EMTs arrived within minutes, Roufa said, but were unable to revive Shelokov.

Valley Lawn Funeral Home is handling the arrangements.

This is the third death on a bike in the area in less than a month. A visitor from Washington state died after a solo crash on Telluride Trail July 12, and local Captain Jack Carey died July 17 while road biking on Lizard Head Pass.

Shelokov grew up in Glenwood Springs, Roufa said, an avid skier and ice climber. He got his medical degree from the University of Texas Health Sciences Center in 1982. He had owned a home in Telluride for at least 12 years, Roufa said.

Shelokov straightened out the spines of adults and children with scoliosis, the malady of a crooked, S-shaped spinal column, and he received some raves from former patients on scoliosis.org and vitals.com, where doctors are rated.

I love him, wrote one woman.

Wrote another patient: I have never met anyone so attentive, caring, compassionate and very professional and honest at the same time.

In an interview on Ivanhoe.com, Shelokov talked about how patients with scoliosis would confide to him that they felt different, they felt deformed.

There are times that I describe my practice as one of being a psychiatrist with a knife, Shelokov said. Its an odd way to put it, but any time youre doing a procedure that changes the way a person looks physically and the way they feel physically, you cant do that effectively without dealing with the patient emotionally, dealing with them as a person rather than just a collection of bones.

He said he was working to correct the misperception that theres nothing to be done for adults with scoliosis. He told them: You can be made straight. A man who loved to ride his bike, Shelokov even helped a woman get on one. An online story from Baylor tells about a woman whose scoliosis got progressively worse as she grew older. Then, at age 31, she met with Shelokov, who told her there was help. After surgeons at Baylor fused five vertebrae in her lower back, she went out and bought a mountain bike. And now that Ive tried it, she said, Ive fallen in love with the sport.

It seems fitting that Shelokov would find a way to help other people get into the sport he loved.

He was the essence of Telluride, Roufa said. A great friend and a great rider.

E-mail: reilly@telluridedailyplanet.com. Phone: 728-9788 ext. 11.

19. ANOTHER Dead Mountain Biker!

There seems to be a pattern here....

Mike

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,705305265,00.html

Man dies along southern Utah bike trail

Published: Tuesday, May 19, 2009 4:31 p.m. MDT

Authorities are investigating a man's death along a popular mountain-biking trail in Washington County.

Sheriff's deputies said it happened in the Little Creek area, where Joseph Manning, 40, of Avendale, Pa., had been mountain biking with friends when he became separated from them.

"He was later found by his friends near a pool of water. His friends started CPR on him until assistance arrived," Washington County Sheriff's Chief Deputy Rob Tersigni said Tuesday. "Medical personnel took over but were unable to revive him."

Manning's body has been sent to the state medical examiner for an autopsy, but Tersigni said there were no obvious signs of foul play. Temperatures in the area were nearly 100 degrees, prompting the Washington County Sheriff's Office to warn anyone hiking or biking in Utah's red-rock country to be prepared.

"With any type of activity, your body can overheat quickly, causing you to go into distress," Tersigni said.

Ben Winslow

20. ANOTHER Dead Mountain Biker....

http://www.velonews.com/article/92239/pro-racer-steve-larsen-dies-of-heart-attack-during-running

Retired racer Steve Larsen dies after collapsing during running workout

By Steve Frothingham
Published: May. 20, 2009

Steve Larsen, probably the only professional who competed and won major races as a mountain biker, road biker and triathlete, died Tuesday evening after collapsing during a running workout.

Larsen was 39 and he and his wife Carrie Larsen have five children.

"He was doing a track workout and he collapsed. They did CPR immediately and an ambulance arrived quickly, but they weren't able to save him," his friend Michael Nyberg told VeloNews

Another friend of the family confirmed Larsen's death, saying that an autopsy is pending, but that he apparently suffered a heart attack.

Larsen began racing in the 1980s and was on the Motorola team for three years in the early 1990s, racing the Giro d'Italia and other major European events. He then moved into mountain biking, winning the NORBA National Cross-Country title in 1997 and 2000.

In 2001, he switched to triathlon, qualifying for the Ironman in his first year in the sport, and finishing ninth at the Hawaii event. He also competed in XTerra offroad triathlons. He was reportedly the only American to compete in the world championships for road, mountain bike, track, cyclocross and triathlon. He was a member of the 1993 U.S. world road championship team that helped Lance Armstrong win his first world title.

Larsen at the 2003 Tour de Georgia
Photo: Casey B. Gibson

Larsen grew up near Davis, California. For several years he operated a bike and triathlon shop there, called Steve Larsen's Wheelworks. He retired from professional racing in 2003 and opened a real estate agency in Bend, Oregon.
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He still competed in triathlons for fun, finishing 70th at the 2008 Ironman World Championships with a time of 9:19:25.

21. Another Death Caused by Mountain Biking

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10513114:

Boy killed in crash loved his bike
5:00AM Thursday May 29, 2008

Doctors told Frazer McKinlay-Storey's family that he had suffered the worst neck injury they had ever seen. Photo / BOP Times
As teenager Frazer McKinlay-Storey was about to slip into unconsciousness, he managed to utter four words to his mother: "I love you, Mum."

Frazer drifted off, on board a helicopter heading to Auckland's Starship hospital. He didn't wake, and died two days later. He was just 13.

Last Thursday, about 4.15pm, a mountain-biking accident at the Tauranga BMX Club track at Sulphur Pt left him with a shattered neck.

The Tauranga Boys College student, who lived in Matua and had a passion for mountain biking, fell and hit the ground at such an angle that his neck shattered on impact.

"It wasn't a stunt or a jump ... it was just a berm that he was riding around and didn't realise there was a drop off on one side," Frazer's stepfather, Ross Bond, said yesterday. Frazer was to visit his father in Auckland the next day and was having a last blast around the track.

He was equipped with a brand-new crash helmet, but no protective gear could have saved him, Mr Bond said.

After the fall, a friend of his ran to get help and dialled 111. St John Ambulance staff arrived shortly afterwards.

Frazer was conscious for 12 hours after the accident.

"The doctors there were saying it was the worst neck injury they've seen on anyone because most people who have had that sort of accident would have been killed outright. So for him to have been conscious for 12 hours was quite something," Mr Bond said.

Frazer's condition deteriorated on Friday _ his mother Charlotte McKinlay's birthday _ and he was put on a ventilator before being prepared for the trip to the Starship. He spoke to his mother before being sedated for the 5pm flight. "The last thing he said was, `I love you, Mum'. He never woke up," Mr Bond said.

At Starship, an MRI scan showed the severity of his injuries and Frazer passed away peacefully on Sunday.

The family are devastated. "We're getting through it all, ups and downs," Mr Bond said.

Frazer's passion for mountain biking was ignited when he bought a bike at the beginning of the school year, his first at Tauranga Boys College. It was the first he'd bought out of his own pocket.

"He lived for it. He'd come in and have breakfast wearing his helmet," Mr Bond said. "Anywhere he wanted to go ... we had to dismantle his bike and put it in the car to take it with us."

Mr Bond said Frazer would be remembered as "a complete joker, bubbly, outgoing and very generous."

"[He was] an absolute gem to be around, wise beyond his years. He was a really good kid."

Tauranga Boys College Principal Robert Mangan said Frazer had been making good progress and had just been moved up a class. "Our thoughts and condolences are with the family in what is a very tragic accident."

Tauranga BMX Club President Ash Rawson said the next club meeting on the track would be in Frazer's honour.

Frazer's funeral will be in Auckland at Romaleigh Funeral Home, 31 Oceanview Rd, Northcote at midday tomorrow.

- NZPA

22. ANOTHER Dead Mountain Biker!

Evolution in action....

Mike

http://austriantimes.at/news/General_News/2009-08-07/15364/German_mountainbiker_dies_in_Tyrol

German mountainbiker dies in Tyrol

By David Rogers

A German man died from a heart-attack yesterday (Thurs) as he cycled in the Tyrol.

The 58-year-olds wife who was with him at the time said he keeled over as they rode from Mittenwald, Bavaria, into Austria to cycle to the Karwendel Haus near Scharnitz.

An emergency doctor called out by the woman said he had died immediately.

23. http://www.philly.com/philly/wires/ap/news/state/pennsylvania/20090824_ap_mainemankilledinwpamountainbikecrash.html

Maine man killed in W. Pa. mountain bike crash

The Associated Press

BEAVER, Pa. - Police believe a Maine man was killed when his mountain bike crashed on a steep hill in western Pennsylvania.

Brighton Township police Chief Howard Blinn says a jogger found the body of 44-year-old Robert Anderson about 3:15 p.m. Sunday.

The chief says it appears Anderson, of Long Island, Maine, was thrown from his bike and hit his head on a rock a Brady's Run Park.

Blinn says Anderson was in the area visiting his mother, who was watching his 6-year-old daughter when he was killed.

Brady's Run is owned by Beaver County and is about 25 miles northwest of Pittsburgh.

,,,

Information from: Beaver County Times, http://www.timesonline.com/

24. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/south_of_scotland/8218546.stm

Mountain biker seriously injured

The injured man was airlifted to hospital from the Dalbeattie forest trail to Dumfries and Galloway Royal Infirmary

A mountain biker has been airlifted to hospital after crashing on a trail in the south west of Scotland.

The accident occurred on the 7Stanes route at Dalbeattie Forest in Dumfries and Galloway at about 1100 BST.

Friends treated the man - who had serious head and neck injuries - before emergency services arrived.

Due to the difficulty in accessing the area by road a Royal Navy Sea King helicopter was scrambled to take the injured man to Dumfries Infirmary.

A Scottish Ambulance Services spokesman said: "The place where the accident took place was deep in the forest near Kippford Caravan Site.

"Our ambulance was not able to negotiate the rough tracks and to speed up the rescue operation we called in a Sea King helicopter as our own air ambulance was on another call at the time."

The injured man has not been identified.

The Dalbeattie mountain bike trail is one of seven linked tracks operated across the south of Scotland.

25. http://www.thisislancashire.co.uk/news/4561237.Mountain_biker_hurt_in_fall_at_Moses_Gate_Country_Park/

Mountain biker hurt in fall at Moses Gate Country Park

8:47am Monday 24th August 2009

RESCUE teams were called to a Bolton park after a mountain biker suffered a serious leg fracture.

The 38-year-old rider had been out with his brother and a friend in Moses Gate Country Park, Farnworth.

He had fallen from his bike and damaged his leg. Crews from the North West Ambulance Service were called out.

Paramedics splintered his leg and waited for the arrival of a Bolton Mountain Rescue response crew.

He was put on a stretcher and carried around half-a-mile to an ambulance, which had parked behind the Rock Hall information centre after struggling to get into the park due to a height restriction barrier.

A squad of 13 members of Bolton Mountain Rescue went to the park at 10.40am yesterday, using two Land Rover Mountain Rescue ambulances.

Team member Dave Marsh took one of the mountain bikers and the three bikes to the home of one of the bikers friends in Clifton.

The injured rider, from Swinton, was taken to hospital at 11.30am accompanied by his brother.

Team leader Garry Rhodes said: His leg was seriously fractured and we were called to help ambulance crews gain access to the site and to assist in the mans evacuation by stretcher.

The mountain rescue crew was also called to Winter Hill following reports at 11.42am yesterday of a 35-year-old walker having sustained a suspected dislocated shoulder in a fall.

The man managed to walk to the ambulance without assistance, however, and the mountain rescue services were not needed.

26. http://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/news_digest/McDonald_s_executive_dies_in_bike_plunge.html?siteSect=104&sid=11117777&cKey=1251106736000&ty=nd

McDonald's executive dies in bike plunge

The managing director of McDonald's Switzerland has been killed in a mountain bike accident in the Swiss Alps.

Martin Knoll, a 51 year-old Austrian, was touring in a group when he lost his balance and plunged about 50 metres in the Engstlenalp area near Innertkirchen in canton Bern, the company's website announced on Sunday.

His body had to be recovered by helicopter after the accident, which occurred on Friday.

The area of the accident is popular with mountain bikers but police describe it as "challenging". On the exposed stretch where Knoll fell, notices advise bikers to dismount.

Knoll had been with McDonald's since 1993 and headed the business in Switzerland and Liechtenstein since 2003.

27. http://www.thisislancashire.co.uk/news/4561237.Mountain_biker_hurt_in_fall_at_Moses_Gate_Country_Park/

Mountain biker hurt in fall at Moses Gate Country Park

28. http://radiology.rsna.org/content/219/2/427.abstract

US Findings in the Scrotum of Extreme Mountain Bikers1

+ Author Affiliations

¹From the Departments of Radiology II (F.F., A.K., G.H., B.A., D.z.N.) and Urology (A.S.), University Hospital Innsbruck, Austria. From the 1999 RSNA scientific assembly. Received June 21, 2000; revision requested July 28; revision received September 5; accepted October 2. Address correspondence to F.F., Department of Radiology, Division of Diagnostic Ultrasound, Thomas Jefferson University, 132 S 10th St, Main Bldg, Seventh Fl, Philadelphia, PA 19107-5244 (e-mail: ferdinand.frauscher@uibk.ac.at).

Abstract

PURPOSE: To sonographically investigate whether mountain bikers have a higher prevalence of scrotal abnormalities compared with that in nonbikers.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Eighty-five male mountain bikers (mean age, 25 years; age range, 1745 years) and 31 healthy nonbikers (mean age, 24 years; age range, 1537 years) were examined for scrotal findings at ultrasonography (US). Only male subjects with a history of extensive off-road biking ( 2 h/d 6 d/wk; covered distance, >5,000 km/y) were assigned to the group of mountain bikers, whereas the control group did not engage in bicycling. In addition to clinical evaluation, US examination of the scrotum was performed by using a linear-array transducer operating at a frequency of 8.0 MHz.

RESULTS: Eighty (94%) mountain bikers had abnormal findings at scrotal US. Thirty-nine (46%) had a history of intermittent scrotal tenderness or discomfort but no severe scrotal trauma. Abnormal findings at US included scrotal calculi in 69 (81%), epididymal cysts in 39 (46%), epididymal calcifications in 34 (40%), testicular calcifications in 27 (32%), hydroceles in 24 (28%), varicoceles in nine (11%), and testicular microlithiasis in one (1%). In the control group, abnormal findings were noted in five (16%), all of whom had epididymal cysts. The overall difference in the number of scrotal abnormalities in bikers compared with the number in nonbikers was significant (P < .0001, ² test).

CONCLUSION: US shows a significantly higher prevalence of extratesticular and testicular disorders in these mountain bikers compared with nonbikers.

29. Acute injuries from mountain biking.
T K Chow, M D Bracker, and K Patrick
Department of Emergency Medicine, Loma Linda University Medical Center, CA 92354.
See commentary "More on mountain biking." on page 708.
This article has been cited by other articles in PMC.
Abstract
We questioned members of 2 southern California off-road bicycling organizations about injuries associated with the use of all-terrain bicycles. Cyclists were asked about riding and safety habits, the kind(s) of injury sustained with their most recent accident and whether they sought medical treatment, and the circumstances of the accident. Of 459 mailed surveys, 268 (58.4%) were returned. Respondents (82.8% of whom were male) ranged in age from 14 to 68 years. Of these, 225 (84%) had been injured while riding all-terrain bicycles, 51% in the past year. Although most injuries were characterized as minor, 26% required professional medical care, and 4.4% of those injured were admitted to hospital. Extremity injuries--abrasions, lacerations, contusions--occurred in 201 (90%) cyclists with 27 (12%) sustaining a fracture or dislocation. High levels of helmet use (88%) may explain the low occurrence of head and neck trauma (12%). Frequent riding and riding on paved terrain were associated with increased severity of injury, although most accidents--197 (87.6%)--occurred off paved roads. These results suggest that, compared with regular bicyclists, all-terrain cyclists have more, but not necessarily more severe, injuries. Clinicians and emergency medical personnel should be aware that the increasing popularity of off-road cycling may change the frequency and nature of bicycling injuries.
Full text
Full text is available as a scanned copy of the original print version. Get a printable copy (PDF file) of the complete article (689K), or click on a page image below to browse page by page. Links to PubMed are also available for Selected References.

145
146
147
148

Selected References
These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

Cushman R, Down J, MacMillan N, Waclawik H. Bicycle-related injuries: a survey in a pediatric emergency department. CMAJ. 1990 Jul 15;143(2):108112. [PubMed]
O'Rourke NA, Costello F, Yelland JD, Stuart GG. Head injuries to children riding bicycles. Med J Aust. 1987 Jun 15;146(12):619621. [PubMed]
Sgaglione NA, Suljaga-Petchel K, Frankel VH. Bicycle-related accidents and injuries in a population of urban cyclists. Bull Hosp Jt Dis Orthop Inst. 1982 Spring;42(1):8091. [PubMed]
Tucci JJ, Barone JE. A study of urban bicycling accidents. Am J Sports Med. 1988 MarApr;16(2):181184. [PubMed]
Kraus JF, Fife D, Conroy C. Incidence, severity, and outcomes of brain injuries involving bicycles. Am J Public Health. 1987 Jan;77(1):7678. [PubMed]
Belongia E, Weiss H, Bowman M, Rattanassiri P. Severity and types of head trauma among adult bicycle riders. Wis Med J. 1988 Jan;87(1):1114. [PubMed]
Wasserman RC, Buccini RV. Helmet protection from head injuries among recreational bicyclists. Am J Sports Med. 1990 JanFeb;18(1):9697. [PubMed]
Wasserman RC, Waller JA, Monty MJ, Emery AB, Robinson DR. Bicyclists, helmets and head injuries: a rider-based study of helmet use and effectiveness. Am J Public Health. 1988 Sep;78(9):12201221. [PubMed]
Thompson RS, Rivara FP, Thompson DC. A case-control study of the effectiveness of bicycle safety helmets. N Engl J Med. 1989 May 25;320(21):13611367. [PubMed]
DiGuiseppi CG, Rivara FP, Koepsell TD, Polissar L. Bicycle helmet use by children. Evaluation of a community-wide helmet campaign. JAMA. 1989 Oct 27;262(16):22562261. [PubMed]
Worrell J. BMX bicycles: accident comparison with other models. Arch Emerg Med. 1985 Dec;2(4):209213. [PubMed]
Guichon DM, Myles ST. Bicycle injuries: one-year sample in Calgary. J Trauma. 1975 Jun;15(6):504506. [PubMed]
Fife D, Davis J, Tate L, Wells JK, Mohan D, Williams A. Fatal injuries to bicyclists: the experience of Dade County, Florida. J Trauma. 1983 Aug;23(8):745755. [PubMed]
Kruse DL, McBeath AA. Bicycle accidents and injuries. A random survey of a college population. Am J Sports Med. 1980 SepOct;8(5):342344. [PubMed]
Kiburz D, Jacobs R, Reckling F, Mason J. Bicycle accidents and injuries among adult cyclists. Am J Sports Med. 1986 SepOct;14(5):416419. [PubMed]
Maring W, van Schagen I. Age dependence of attitudes and knowledge in cyclists. Accid Anal Prev. 1990 Apr;22(2):127136. [PubMed]
Fullerton L, Becker T. Moving targets: bicycle-related injuries and helmet use among university students. J Am Coll Health. 1991 Mar;39(5):213217. [PubMed]

30. http://bjsm.bmj.com/cgi/content/abstract/35/3/197

British Journal of Sports Medicine 2001;35:197-199; doi:10.1136/bjsm.35.3.197
Copyright 2001 BMJ Publishing Group Ltd & British Association of Sport and Exercise Medicine.
Br J Sports Med 2001; 35:197-199
2001 the British Journal of Sports Medicine

Short report

Mountain biking injuries in rural England

L M Jeys¹, G Cribb¹, A D Toms¹, S M Hay¹

¹ Trauma Unit, Orthopaedic Surgery Department, Royal Shrewsbury Hospital, Mytton Oak Road, Shrewsbury, UK

Correspondence to:
Correspondence to: Dr Jeys, 27 Newton Park Road, West Kirby, Wirral CH48 9XE, UK lee.jeys@btclick.com
Abstract

BackgroundOff road mountain biking is now an extremelypopular recreation and a potent cause of serious injury.AimTo establish the morbidity associated with this sport.MethodsData were collected prospectively over one yearon all patients presenting with an injury caused by either recreationalor competitive off road mountain biking.ResultsEighty four patients were identified, 70 malesand 14 females, with a mean age of 22.5 years (range 871).Most accidents occurred during the summer months, most commonlyin August. Each patient had an average of 1.6 injuries (n =133) and these were divided into 15 categories, ranging fromminor soft tissue to potentially life threatening. Operativeintervention was indicated for 19 patients (23%) and severalrequired multiple procedures. The commonest injuries were claviclefractures (13%), shoulder injuries (12%), and distal radialfractures (11%). However, of a more sinister nature, one patienthad a C2/3 dislocation requiring urgent stabilisation, one requireda chest drain for a haemopneumothorax, and another requiredan emergency and life saving nephrectomy.ConclusionThis sport has recently experienced an explosionin popularity, and, as it carries a significant risk of potentiallylife threatening injury across all levels of participation,the use of protective equipment to reduce this significant morbiditymay be advisable.

^31.http://www.tri-cityherald.com/945/story/697496.html

FATAL: Yakima man dies in mountain biking mishap

Herald staff

YAKIMA A Yakima man died today after he apparently lost control of his mountain bicycle while descending a steep hill and was thrown from the bike, Yakima County authorities said.

The body of the 42-year-old man was found in a small canyon north of the Terrace Heights area around 1:30 p.m., not long after he was reported by his family to be three hours overdue from his ride, the Yakima County Sheriffs Office said.

His body was spotted by an acquaintance, authorities said. The victim was wearing a helmet and gloves, the sheriffs office said.

The Yakima County Coroner's Office plans an autopsy to determine the cause of death. The mans name was not released.

32. http://www.exmouthherald.co.uk/exmouthherald/news/story.aspx?brand=EXJOnline&category=news&tBrand=devon24&tCategory=newsexh&itemid=DEED01%20Sep%202009%2013%3A29%3A39%3A073

Mountainbiker rescued after serious fall on Lympstone Common

devon.editorial@archant.co.uk
01 September 2009

A MOUNTAIN bike enthusiast was left with two broken wrists after falling in a crater on Lympstone Common.

Exmouth firefighters were on Monday afternoon called to woods near Pines Ridge car park to help move the injured man to a waiting ambulance.

Onlookers said the man had been riding his mountain bike up a steep ridge of earth when it flipped over, sending him over the handlebars onto his outstretched arms.

33. Another Mountain Biker in a Coma

Meanwhile, the "fun" sport of mountain biking continues unabated....

Mike

Date: Fri, 4 Sep 2009 11:47:04 -0700
Subject: [BTCEB Info] Gala Ride 9/12 ; Adriana's Crash
From: Cyril Manning <cyrilmanning@gmail.com>
To: btceb@googlegroups.com
List-Unsubscribe: <http://googlegroups.com/group/btceb/subscribe>

Gala Ride -- NEXT SATURDAY, SEPT 12 on Mt. Tam

The next Gala ride is September 12 at Mt Tam.
Join us for our monthly group ride at 9:30 am the 2nd Saturday of
every month for a casually paced social group ride at one of the many
great parks in the east bay. This no-drop ride is always fun for all
levels!
Meet at Mill Valley Plaza, 87 Throckmorton Ave, Mill Valley ~ 9 a.m.
We ride at 9:30!

Note that Mt. Tam is where a much loved member of our community,
Adriana Ospina, had a terrible crash last weekend, putting her in a
coma. We will certainly ride with Adriana in our thoughts, and anyone
who wants to help her and her family with the huge burden this tragedy
is sure to have can bring cash or check donations for the trust that
has been set up for her.

----------------------------------

Check out our blog lately?
http://btceb.org/blog/

Are you a fan yet?
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Bicycle-Trails-Council-of-the-East-Bay/126341979240

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34. Bike accident means Edison principal Chuck Tansey will miss school opening

http://www.mlive.com/news/kalamazoo/index.ssf/2009/09/bike_accident_means_edison_pri.html

Bike accident means Edison principal Chuck Tansey will miss school opening

by Rex Hall Jr. / Kalamazoo Gazette
Saturday September 05, 2009, 12:10 PM

KALAMAZOO -- While students at Kalamazoo's Edison Environmental Science Academy will return from summer vacation on Tuesday, their principal won't be able to join them until at least two days later.

That's because Chuck Tansey, 36, is recuperating at his Kalamazoo home from a broken right wrist he suffered Aug. 23 when he crashed his mountain bike during a race at Fort Custer. Since then, Tansey said he's been through three surgeries at Bronson Methodist Hospital and was hospitalized for two days this week when he spiked a fever.

He's been told by doctors he can return to work at Edison on Thursday but won't get a final OK until after a doctor's appointment scheduled for Wednesday, Tansey said. This school year marks Tansey's sixth as the school's principal.

"This has been my second major accident, and I pretty much told my wife after the first one that if it happened again, I would stop racing," said Tansey, who is an avid mountain biker.

Tansey said the crash in which he broke his wrist occurred not long after the start of the bike race at Fort Custer. He said he rounded a corner fast, struck a tree stump on the ground and went over the handle bars of his bike. When he struck the ground, he landed on his wrist, said Tansey, who was wearing a helmet.

"I heard a little snap and looked down ... and you could see it was messed up," Tansey said of the compound fracture, which he described as a "Steven Seagal break ... kind of what you see in the movies."

Tansey's wife, who was with him at the race, drove him to Bronson, where doctors put metal plates in his wrist. The area of the break was too swollen, so doctors weren't able to close Tansey's arm after the surgery, he said.

He said he returned to the hospital Aug. 26, but doctors were still unable to close the arm because of swelling. They were finally successful during a third surgery a couple of days later, he said.

Tansey said he paid another visit to Bronson and was admitted to the hospital on Tuesday when he began running a high fever. He was released from the hospital Thursday evening. He said doctors weren't able to determine what caused the fever.

Tansey said he doesn't plan to race mountain bikes again, but he is going to give road biking a try, as well as some triathlons. As he continues to recover, Tansey said he has received immense support from his family, staff at Edison and Kalamazoo Public Schools administration.

"This support has allowed me to focus on getting well," he said.

35. Prospective Doctor Paralyzed from the Chest Down Due to Mountain Biking

If THIS doesn't move people to oppose mountain biking, nothing will!

Mike

Date: Mon, 07 Sep 2009 16:11:44 -0700
From: Monica Craver <mecraver@shaw.ca>
Subject: Re: Another Mountain Biker Dies from a Heart Attack

The insanity never ends --- sounds like this doctor-to-be's dream has been cut short by mountain biking, too. It is such a waste, isn't it.

http://bb.nsmb.com/showthread.php?p=2230681#post2230681
Rider Down-Healing Vibes

Just talked to my dad and received some sad news.

10 days ago the son of a family friend had a bad crash on Whistler Mountain. Blake Jameson is paralyzed from the chest down apparently and is heavily sedated.

Skid will know who this is. As Blake is working to be a doctor, and was volunteering with the bike patrol on Whistler for the last 2 seasons.

36. Injured mountain biker airlifted to hospital

What an expensive sport (for everyone involved, including the taxpayers)!

Mike

http://www.newstalkzb.co.nz/newsdetail1.asp?storyID=162903

Injured mountain biker airlifted to hospital

10/09/2009 6:00:01

An elderly man has been airlifted to hospital after coming off his mountain bike in the Marlborough Sounds.

The man in his 80s from Kenepuru Heads was reported overdue from a trip to the Queen Charlotte track at 2pm yesterday. Police search and rescue members found him on the track with hip and leg injuries.

Nelson's rescue helicopter was called in at 11pm because of the remoteness of the steep, bushclad location. The crew used night vision goggles to spot him and a St John advanced paramedic was winched down. The man was treated on the spot and was then winched out.

37. Mountain biker lucky to be alive after crash

http://www.granthamjournal.co.uk/news/Mountain-biker-lucky-to-be.5639325.jp

Mountain biker lucky to be alive after crash

Published Date: 11 September 2009
Friday, 10am - A MOUNTAIN BIKER is lucky to be alive after a crash helmet saved his life whilst on holiday in Scotland.
Nigel Wainwright, a flight engineer from RAF Cranwell, had been cycling an advanced 'red run' in Dalbeattie when his front wheel dug into the rocky terrain and threw him off his bike.

Landing on his head and neck, Nigel knew from his military training what he had to do.

He said: "As I landed on my head it felt like I had been hit with a hammer. It didn't even feel like I had the helmet on. I felt my neck compress and I knew it was important not to move."

Luckily, Nigel was not cycling alone and other members of his party alerted the emergency services.

He said: "The first ambulance could not reach me, so they called in the Air Ambulance. They were unable to move me safely over the rough ground, so they had to call in a Sea King helicopter to winch me off the mountain. They were extremely professional and calm in what was a very difficult situation.

"There was some friendly banter on board from the crew, as the Navy helicopter rescued someone from the RAF, which was a little embarrassing."

The dad of two, 39, was taken straight to hospital in Dumfries, where tests revealed the extent of his injuries.

He suffered a cut to the head where his helmet had split in two, as well as a stable fracture in his neck, bleeding muscles and torn ligaments.

Experienced in many outdoor pursuits, Nigel was aware of the dangers but said that more people need to take precautions as his accident could have ended very differently.

After his lucky escape, he is keen to stress the importance of wearing helmets to all cyclists, from children riding to school to their parents and occasional riders.

He said: "I am lucky to be alive and got off very lightly. I am still in a great deal of pain and can't stand for long, but so far I am recovering well and owe my life to that helmet.

"I enjoy the adrenaline and the risks, but not wearing a helmet is foolish.

"I think it is a fashion thing, as they are probably viewed as uncool and a bit of a pain to put on.

"However, for the sake of a few pounds you can save a life, which you can't put a price on."

E-mail your news and views to comment@granthamjournal.co.uk

38. Mountain Bikers Glorify Injuries!

And then they have the nerve to complain about road biking being dangerous!

Mike

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/travel/cycle-of-life-at-whistler/article1283987/

But don't worry if you show up for dinner scraped and bruised biker war wounds are expected.

Yeah, it was full contact, face to rock, says Vanessa Murphy, sporting a shiner that elicits respect from other mountain bikers.

Cool. Nice, echoes Araxi waiter Andrew, displaying his own scabby road rash.

That's the thing about Whistler everyone's active.

39. "SES leader dies in mountain bike event"

Beginning to see a pattern here? Mountain bikers say their sport is a safe, fun, environmentally benign activity for the whole family. If mountain biking is such a good thing, I wonder why mountain bikers need to lie about it?

Mike

http://news.theage.com.au/breaking-news-national/ses-leader-dies-in-mountain-bike-event-20090914-fnba.html

SES leader dies in mountain bike event

September 14, 2009 - 4:59PM

NSW State Emergency Service (SES) Commissioner Murray Kear says he's devastated by the sudden death of Deputy Commissioner Greg Slater.

Mr Slater, 46, of Mount Keira, died of an apparent heart attack while taking part in a mountain biking endurance event with his son in the Mogo State Forest on the NSW south coast on Sunday.

Mr Kear said Mr Slater was a "much loved" and highly-decorated officer who had served with the SES for 11 years.

The SES telephones were ringing "hot with condolences" from around the country and from overseas over the loss of Mr Slater.

"Today we're like a small family, feeling it very hard, all around the state," he said.

Mr Slater's death had come as a shock because he had been a healthy, fit man, Mr Kear said.

Endurance sports were his hobby and he had previously competed in the Australian ironman triathlon championships four times.

"Greg was the epitome of a healthy person ... anything that had physical exercise attached to it, Greg would be in it, so it's just a shock," he said.

Mr Kear said Mr Slater's wife Jenny, also a NSW SES employee, his daughter Madaline and his son Alex, who was cycling in the event with his father when he died, were devastated.

"(They are) trying to come to terms with the loss of a husband and a father," he said.

Mr Slater joined the Australian Federal Police (AFP) in 1981 and served in Cyprus and East Timor, as well as with the Rescue Squad.

NSW Minister for Emergency Services Steve Whan said Mr Slater had been instrumental in the development of the SES since his appointment as deputy commissioner in 2004.

He had been recognised for his dedication, commitment and bravery, having been awarded an AFP Commendation for Brave Conduct and a United Nations Fire Commander's Commendation for Brave Conduct.

"Mr Slater's leadership and dedication to the community of New South Wales and to his country will be sorely missed," Mr Whan said in a statement.

"On behalf of the New South Wales government, I extend my sympathies to Mr Slater's family and colleagues."

Mr Kear said the NSW SES was discussing memorial arrangements with Mr Slater's family.

A post-mortem examination is being conducted to determine the cause of his death and police will prepare a report for the coroner.

40. http://www.ktvz.com/Global/story.asp?S=11153933

Injured mountain biker, lost climbers rescued

Posted: Sep 17, 2009 11:24 PM PDT

From KTVZ.COM news sources

A mountain biker lost control and went over her handlebars on a trail west of Bend Thursday evening, prompting a 2 -hour rescue effort, authorities said.

About the time that wrapped up, Deschutes County sheriff's deputies rescued two climbers lost at Smith Rock.

In the first incident, Julie Barbour, 44, of Bend, crashed on the Whoops Trail, near Phil's Trail, around 6 p.m., said Deschutes County sheriff's Cpl. Wayne Morgan.

An off-duty Sheriff's Search and Rescue volunteer was riding on the trail and came upon the crash scene, Morgan said.

The SAR volunteer stabilized Barbour and reported the incident to 911 dispatchers, who in turn contacted SAR, which sent nine volunteers to the scene.

Barbour was placed on a wheeled litter and taken about a quarter-mile to a nearby spur road. For there, she was placed in a four-wheel-drive SAR vehicle and taken about 1 miles to a waiting Bend Fire ambulance at Skyliners Road, Morgan said.

Around 8:40 p.m., the ambulance took Barbour to St. Charles Medical Center-Bend with non-life threatening injuries, the corporal said, adding that she was wearing a helmet at the time of the crash.

At 8:47 p.m., 911 dispatchers got a cell phone call from Tony Carr, 23, of Portland, who said e and climbing partner Rosemary Patterson, 24, also of Portland, were lost on Smith Rock and unable to find their way back to their camp, said sheriff's Sgt. Mike Biondi.

Carr and Patterson had been climbing all day, but said they became disoriented as darkness fell and had just one small flashlight between them, Biondi said.

Two sheriff's office deputies responded to the area and used their emergency lights and sirens to help the climbers get their bearings, the sergeant said.

After about a 90-minute search, deputies were able to help the climbers move up the trail to the overlook parking area, Biondi said, adding that both climbers were unhurt.

41. Nurse Brain-Injured by a Mountain Biking "Accident"!

I hope that this very sad case will convince people that mountain biking should be banned EVERYWHERE. Trails are not designed to be predictable, and never will be, making mountain biking inherently dangerous. No amount of "fun" will compensate for this!

Mike

http://www.insidebayarea.com/oaklandtribune/localnews/ci_13411131

Family, friends seek help for Piedmont woman injured in bike ride

By J.M. Brown
Correspondent
Posted: 09/24/2009 10:33:12 AM PDT
Updated: 09/24/2009 11:49:32 AM PDT

Friends of a Piedmont woman who suffered a brain injury during a cycling accident last month are asking for the public's help in raising funds for her family.

Adriana Ospina, 37, a labor and delivery nurse at Oakland's Alta Bates Summit Medical Center, was ejected from her mountain bike on a trail below Mount Tamalpais on Aug. 30 after a long ride with friends. In addition to the brain injury, Ospina is being treated at Marin General Hospital for a broken collarbone and shoulder blade.

Ospina was in a coma for 19 days until Sept. 18, when she finally began to respond to voices and spoke slightly. Relatives anticipate she will need costly rehabilitation after she fully regains consciousness.

Loved ones keep a constant vigil at her bedside. More than 430 people have joined a Facebook page designed to keep people up to date on her progress.

Friends also have set up a trust fund to help Ospina's family cover extensive medical bills, as well as their own expenses. The outpouring of support already has been more than the family could have imagined.

"I never thought this many people would come," said sister Luzangela Ospina, 34. "For a couple of days at the hospital, we were like, 'Oh my God, who are all these people?'""

Ospina's parents, Octavio and Myriam, were born in Colombia and moved to New Jersey before arriving in California 20 years ago. The couple raised their two daughters in Oakland and San Leandro before retiring and buying a home in Stockton. Adriana has been helping to support her parents financially, her sister said.

"They are supposed to be enjoying retirement, and this throws everything off," Luzangela Ospina said. "We're a nervous wreck. Anytime the doctor comes near you, you get high blood pressure."

Ospina has lived in Piedmont for about two years and has been a nurse for 15 years, her sister said. As a registered labor and delivery nurse, she works one-on-one with expectant mothers all the way through the birthing process.

"Half of the kids born in Piedmont, she was assigned to their mothers," said friend Adeline Wood, who added that Ospina is an accomplished athlete.

Besides mountain biking, Ospina is an open water swimmer with the South End Rowing Club in San Francisco, where she has competed in the International Alcatraz Triathlon.

Last year she climbed Half Dome at Yosemite to commemorate a friend's birthday and has also biked the snow sheds at Donner Summit with friends.

"She is like a daughter to me," said Wood, a mountain biker who is working to plan fundraising events for Ospina.

Water World Swims and the South End Rowing Club raised about $6,000 during a recent swim event for Ospina. A group of about 100 met at sunrise, said a prayer for Ospina and swam the 2.5 miles from Alcatraz Island to the shore in San Francisco, Wood said.

No one is exactly sure what caused Ospina's accident. Wood said a large group of riders was coming down a coastal trail from a Sunday morning ride on Mount Tamalpais when they realized Ospina didn't come in with them.

Riders went back up the trail and found her lying on the ground about 20 feet from her bike. She was wearing a helmet and protective pads for her shoulders and shins, but the fall was too severe to avoid serious injury.

"It's a fluke accident that can happen to any of us," Wood said.

Fellow riders, some who are in the medical field, attended to her immediately as 911 was called, Wood said. An ambulance arrived shortly and took to Ospina to Marin General, where she underwent surgery to address the brain injury.

Ospina's doctors have only told the family that "it is just going to take a recovery process," her sister said. "They say only time will tell."
HOW TO HELP Donations to Adriana Ospina's family can be made payable to the Adriana Ospina Trust, Wells Fargo Bank, 151 40th St., Oakland, CA, 94611. Keep up to date on Ospina's progress and fundraising events by visiting www.caringbridge.org/visit/adrianaospina or the Facebook page called "Family and Friends Praying for Adriana Ospina."

42. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/scotland/article6850964.ece

Injuries on the rise among mountain bikers

Mark Macaskill

A leading Scottish spine surgeon has called for an urgent review of mountain-biking safety after figures showed the number of cyclists seriously injured has risen.

David Allen, director of the Queen Elizabeth National Spinal Injuries Unit at Glasgows Southern General hospital, warned the sports growing popularity meant the number of off-road cyclists injuring their spines would continue to rise unless action was taken.

Since 2004, there have been more than 120 mountainbiking accidents, with eight cyclists getting spinal injuries. Cycling is the second-most common cause of sports-related spinal injuries, after diving.

Last month, a mountain biker was airlifted to hospital with serious head and neck injuries after crashing on a trail in Dalbeattie in the southwest of Scotland. In October last year, a 15-year-old boy received a serious head injury in Ae Forest in Dumfries and Galloway.

There does appear to be a disproportionate increase in the number of mountain bike injuries and they are, in general, more serious [than other cycling accidents], said Allen.

The increase in serious injuries has coincided with Scotlands growing international popularity as a destination for mountain bikers.

The trend has been blamed on inexperienced riders who tackle forest trails and purpose-built tracks, which often involve difficult jumps and steep drop-offs. Concerns have also been raised over the quality of riders equipment, such as helmets and pads.

Allens warning comes ahead of the publication of a national strategic framework on mountain biking, compiled by cycling groups.

The framework will recommend that all trails in Scotland comply with a standard colour-coded grading system used by the Forestry Commission. Under the system, green denotes the easiest trail, progressing to blue, red, black and orange, which should be attempted only by the most experienced bikers.

More detailed information on trails will be provided so riders can judge which are best suited to their ability.

The first mountain bike proficiency scheme, run by Scottish Cycling, the sports governing body, will also be launched in Scotland and rolled out across the rest of Britain. Riders must demonstrate good technical, navigation and first aid skills to pass.

A national strategic framework on mountain biking is welcomed as long as it takes into consideration the importance of safety awareness and safety of the trail, equipment and clothing, including the use of helmets and protective body armour, said Allen. We would welcome a real-time accident-monitoring scheme that could identify dangerous routes.

Allen added that Scotlands growing reputation as one of Europes best mountain-biking destinations meant that additional measures were vital to stop the number of serious spinal injuries rising further.

The countrys flagship centre, at 7stanes in Dumfries and Galloway, boasts 25 world-class trails and generates more than 9m for the local economy. The Mountain Bike World Cup is held every year at Fort William, Inverness-shire.

We cant stop anyone from accessing Scotlands great outdoors but we should be aiming to limit injuries by providing as much information as we can to participants, said Jackie Davidson, chief executive of Scottish Cycling. With increased numbers comes the potential for increased levels of injury, but a lot more safeguards are being built in with regard to the grading of trails, education of riders and the structure of clubs.

The Forestry Commission Scotland, which manages the 7stanes centre, said all trails were risk-assessed and routinely inspected by biking rangers, and that accidents were investigated to see if lessons could be learned. A spokesman said: We take mountain bike safety very seriously. We want riders to enjoy the trails, whatever the level, but we also want them to do this safely. There are many things you can do to improve safety, including proper trail design, good interpretation and grading and we always keep procedures under review.

43. Mountain Biker Breaks Her Neck, Barely Escapes Dying -- But Unrepentant! (Stupidity, your name is "mountain biker"!)

http://www.lodinews.com/articles/2009/10/07/sports/1_accident_091007.txt

Lauren Liden smiles as she talks about her love of mountain biking while in her Woodbridge home. Liden crashed and broke her neck during a recent race in South Dakota. (Dan Evans/News-Sentinel)

Broken neck can't stop Woodbridge cyclist Lauren Liden

By Joelle Milholm
News-Sentinel Staff Writer
Wednesday, October 7, 2009 6:21 AM PDT

Comments (1 comment(s))

While her body lay flat on the ground, Lauren Liden's mind was racing.

The Woodbridge resident wondered how she went from riding her mountain bike to being tossed into the air before landing head first on the ground.

With a throbbing headache and blood rushing from her nose, she tried to analyze the situation. She could wiggle her toes and fingers. She had feeling up and down her body. She wasn't paralyzed, but she knew something wasn't right.

As an ambulance came to take her out of the adventure race in which she was competing in the hills of South Dakota to the hospital in Rapid City, she began to think her neck was broken.

She was right. Liden fractured her C1 vertebrae, the very top bone in her neck. Luckily for Liden, it didn't touch her spinal cord. Outside of immense pain and a short stint in a few different neck braces, Liden won't have any permanent damage from the accident.

"I could have been dead or I could have been in a wheelchair. To me this is nothing," Liden said recently, pointing to the immobilizing headgear that is strapped from her back to the top of her head. "I will be as good as new in four or five months and back to what I was doing and I am extremely lucky."

It's hard to believe it's all from a stick that popped up off the trail and jammed itself into her front tire, bending two of her spokes like an elbow and launching Liden into the air like a projectile.

The Race

Liden is a cyclist. Whether it's road riding, hitting mountain trails or summer adventures with her husband Lyle, she spends a lot of time on her bike. So when she was approached about competing in Primal Quest a 10-day adventure race covering 600 miles of biking, trekking, climbing, caving, kayaking, river boarding and more with the majority of the miles coming on the bike she couldn't refuse.

So she joined a three other Stockton Bicycle Club members who were in need of a female rider for the coed race and headed to South Dakota in mid-August.

Liden's squad, Team Spanos, hiked a marathon with their camping gear on day one. They continued through the race, biking and caving, working hard and only sleeping about two hours a night.

"I was having a blast," said Liden, a veterinary doctor who owns Dry Creek Veterinary Hospital in Galt. "I would have to say I was having the time of my life in this race."

Halfway through the fourth day, Team Spanos realized they'd taken a wrong turn during a biking section of the competition. Once they figured out they were on the wrong road, they turned around to backtrack in search of the right one.

On the way back, they met up with Big City Mountaineering, another team that took the same wrong turn. As they pedaled back to the original trail on a forest service road not a technically challenging ride Liden glanced back to talk to one of the Big City Mountaineering riders.

Bam! That's when it happened.

"I caught her out of the corner of my eye. I saw her going over her handlebars," said Liden's teammate, Steve Peppard, a Galt resident and Stockton Police Officer. "I knew it wasn't going to be good. Then I heard her land."

The Crash

Liden said that those who saw the crash believe she flew about 30 feet. She landed straight on her head, like a railroad spike being driven into the ground by inertia. Her helmet, which now shows a crack in its interior foam, saved her life.

"One minute I'm on my bike, riding down the trail. No big deal," Liden recalls of the crash. "The next minute I'm airborne and for a split second I remember thinking 'Whoa what I'm I doing in the air.' And then I smack on the ground. Just in milliseconds. It was so fast."

The impact broke her neck and brought intense pain to her entire head. Her sunglasses were impaled into her nose. Her teammates had to pull them out of her face, leaving a gash across the bridge of nose that would later require three stitches and has left an X-shaped scar.

Her jaw throbbed. Her ears rung. Her eyes, reacting from a traumatic impact, became painfully sensitive to light.

"The regular sunlight was like the light of 10,000 suns burning my eyes," Liden said. "It was so bright."

Her teammates covered her eyes with a towel, which they also soaked with water for Liden to suck on. They forced her to remain still, trying to stabilize her neck an effort that saved her life and prevented paralysis. Even taking a sip of water was too dangerous.

While waiting for the ambulance, Liden, who was fully conscious, started to realize the severity of her injury.

"I was thinking this is the bad kind of pain and there was no way I was going to finish that race," she said.

The Aftermath

More often than not, fractures to the top two vertebrae result in paralysis or death. Test results revealed that Liden's ligaments held the fractured C1 in place. The broken vertebrae didn't touch the spinal cord.

The break also could have damaged nerves that connect to the diaphragm, like what happened in Christopher Reeve's paralyzing horseback-riding injury. In that case, Liden would not have been able to breathe and could have died or spent the rest of her life needing respiratory assistance.

Many times when vertebrae are broken, they must be surgically fused together to create permanent stability. With no vertebrae above C1, Liden would have had to have the broken vertebrae fused to her skull, severely limiting her neck and head mobility for the rest of her life. Once again, Liden got lucky and her C1 showed enough stability to eliminate the need for surgery. She was even allowed to leave the hospital, fitted in her halo tightly strapped to her head, neck and back, five days after the crash.

A few days later, she traveled back to Lodi.

At first Liden's activities were very limited. She couldn't move around much, or even lift a gallon of milk. Getting dressed and taking a bath were grueling activities.

Day by day, Liden was able to do more. Now she's able to go to the gym and can even lift 15 pound weights. She's got her stationary training bike up in her backyard and rides it almost every day.

In the immediate future, she's looking forward to ditching the halo for a less obstructive neck brace. Then she'll be able to slowly get back to work.

She's bummed she'll be inactive for the snowboarding season, as she already bought a pass to Kirkwood. She constantly pesters doctors about when the halo can come off and when she can get back on the bike. She's hoping to be training and racing again come early 2010.

"It's really scary what could have happened," Liden said. "People look at this whole getup and say 'oh you poor thing.' But I am so lucky."

A comment from a friend:

Flying over the handle-bars is such a common mountain biking accident. It's like they are playing Russian roulette with their lives. I am sure this unrepentant gal also suffers from some "brain damage" due to amnesia (forgetting quite how she ended up with a broken neck in the first place).

It is a sad state of affairs that people who are smart enough to become doctors, nurses (or veterinarians), who don't value their own lives, enough to quit this dangerous sport after such a close call from a "very common accident". Would any of us want ourselves, or our animals, treated by someone like this gal? Not me!

Is it really any wonder these people do not value the natural environment they ride roughshod on, either? I shake my head at the cluelessness of it all.

--Monica Craver—

44. "The victim, Andre Steed, was struck a by a mountain bike rider who did not stop after impact"

http://cbs3.com/topstories/biker.fatal.hit.2.1273313.html

PHILADELPHIA (CBS 3)

Andre Steed was run-down by a bicyclist on a Center City street and later died from his injuries.

Citizen's Crime Commission

Philadelphia police are seeking help from the public locating a bicyclist who fled the scene of a fatal accident in Center City.

According to the Citizen's Crime Commission, who is administering a $10,000 reward, the accident happened on October 15 at the corner of 16th and Locust Streets. The victim, Andre Steed, was struck a by a mountain bike rider who did not stop after impact.

Authorities say Mr. Steed suffered massive head injuries and passed away on October 24.

The law firm of Caesar, Rivise, Burnstein, Cohen & Pokotilow are offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of this biker. Witness at the scene described the biker as a white male in his early 20s, weighing approximately 140 pounds wearing a white hoodie with red spots in the back. The mountain bike was described as white.

If you have information on the biker you are urged to contact the Crime Commission tip line at 215-546-TIPS.

45. ANOTHER Mountain Biker Dies of a Heart Attack!

So much for the alleged health benefits of mountain biking....

Mike

http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_13584894

Centerville man dies while mountain biking

By Lindsay Whitehurst

The Salt Lake Tribune
Updated: 10/17/2009 03:22:53 PM MDT

A Centerville man died of a heart attack while mountain biking with his son in Weber County on Saturday, police said.

Rick Bastian, 55, had biked from Green's Pond to the Art Nord Trailhead, north of Snowbasin Resort, said Weber County sheriff's Sgt. Teresa Perkins. He felt short of breath but chalked it up to the higher altitude and told his 24-year-old son to go ahead. As he started up the next peak, he collapsed and went into full cardiac arrest, Perkins said.

His son called 911 about 11:45 a.m., and the man was flown by helicopter to Ogden Regional Medical Center. He was pronounced dead on arrival.

46. "Crashes in the mountains are an every day occurrence"

http://www.sltrib.com/collegesports/ci_13657237

Mountain biker overcomes fracture

Utah cyclist wins overall national title despite fall in downhill race that broke his collarbone.

By Martin Renzhofer

The Salt Lake Tribune
Updated: 10/28/2009 11:47:48 AM MDT

Mitchell Peterson didn't realize the extent of his injuries. Then again, it just shows the grit of mountain bikers. Crashes in the mountains are an every day occurrence.

"I noticed that every bump hurt," he said.

Despite a broken collarbone, the University of Utah finance major finished the final leg of the 2009 USA Cycling Collegiate Mountain Bike National Championship and with it the overall championship.

Mitchell was the lone Ute at the competition, which was completed Oct. 18 at Northstar at Tahoe resort near Truckee, Calif. He finished second in cross country and short track, 42nd among 4X racers and 50th in the downhill.

Mitchell's downhill finish can be excused. He crashed midway through the race and fractured his collarbone.

Instead of seeking treatment, Mitchell attended the awards ceremony to pick up his trophy. Only this week did he finally visit the doctor.

"The downhill course had a 5-foot drop," the 22-year-old cyclist said. "I came onto a rock that had been moved into my normal line. I swerved and crashed."

What makes this championship unique is the levels of competition. While Mitchell is part of a club at Utah, schools such as Fort Lewis College, which won the overall competition, offers scholarships. Mitchell scored high enough to give Utah an overall 15th place among 38 schools in team competition.

Simply put, BYU has dominated the Mountain West Conference cross country landscape. The Cougar men have won nine of 10 championships, while the women ran away with the title eight times.

More of the same is expected Saturday when BYU hosts the conference meet, which will take place at the Cascade Golf Course in Orem at 10 a.m.

BYU's women have actually finished second the last two seasons, while the lone blemish on the men's run came five years ago when Air Force broke through, edging the Cougars.

Currently, the men, which recently placed third at the Pre-Nationals, are ranked sixth nationally, while the BYU women are No. 22. The Cougar women, led by MWC Female Cross Country Athlete of the Week Cecily Lemmon-Lew, finished second at the Chile Pepper Invitational.

"As a team, it was a great opportunity to get ready for conference and championship meets," BYU women's coach Patrick Shane said.

For Lemmon-Lew, who placed second out of 267 runners, the conference award was her third this year. Despite not feeling well, she ran a career-best 20 minutes, 32.5 seconds for the 6K.

"I was really happy with the race and excited for how the team ran," she said afterward. "We're improving in every race."

The women's main competition appears to be New Mexico, which boasts four of the year's top 10 times, including Ruth Senior's run of 21 minutes, 23.7 seconds at Pre-Nationals.

The men finished behind No. 1 Stanford and No. 4 Colorado. Mike Batty's 12th place finish led the Cougars. His 8K time was 24 minutes, 2 seconds. Cougar runners also placed 19th (Thomas Gruenwald), 29th (Rich Nelson), 44th (Alden Bahr) and 59th (Ryan Merriman).

"I think we established the depth chart for the conference race and solidified who our lead runners are," BYU men's coach Ed Eyestone said.

The Cougar men appear to be a clear favorite as they own seven of the 10 best times this season.

martyr@sltrib.com

47. ANOTHER Mountain Biker Death

So much for the alleged health benefits of mountain biking....

Mike

http://www.kivitv.com/Global/story.asp?S=11379730

Idaho Man Dies While Mountain Biking in Utah

Idaho man dies while mountain biking in Moab

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- The Grand County sheriff's office says an Idaho man has died while mountain biking in Moab.

Todd Johnston, 42, of Ketchum, was on the Gold Bar Rim Trail Friday when he complained to friends about being tired and stopped to walk his bike.

Johnston's friends kept riding. When he didn't catch up, they doubled back to find Johnston collapsed. A group of motorcyclists had found Johnston and were performing CPR.

In a news release, Grand County officials say emergency crews unsuccessfully tried to revive Johnston for about an hour, using both CPR and a defibrillator.

Information from: The Salt Lake Tribune, http://www.sltrib.com

http://www.mtexpress.com/index2.php?ID=2005128509

Hailey resident dies in Utah

Cause of death of avid mountain biker Todd Johnston not yet known

By JON DUVAL
Express Staff Writer

Hailey resident Todd Johnston, 41, died from as-yet-unknown causes while mountain biking with friends near Moab, Utah, on Friday.

Johnston, owner of Four Seasons Spa & Pool, collapsed while riding the Gold Bar Rim trail, a section of jeep trail and slickrock popular with mountain bikers.

Johnston was riding with his friends and frequent riding partners Reed Melton and Marc Driver, both Wood River Valley residents. In an interview, Melton said the trio had driven down to Moab for three days of biking, with plans to return Sunday.

Melton said that at the base of a small climb on a jeep road, Johnston said, "I might have to walk this," a statement Melton took to be a characteristically self-deprecating remark from his friend, who Melton called a strong rider who liked to challenge himself.

According to Melton, at the top of the climb he and Driver waited for a few minutes before heading back down the trail, thinking that Johnston might have a flat tire.

Instead, they found Johnston collapsed on the ground and a group of motorcycle riders, two of whom were trained emergency response personnel, already on the scene performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation. According to the Grand County Sheriff's Office, emergency crews responded to the call 40 minutes later, at 2:45 p.m., and used a defibrillator to try to revive him. Johnston was pronounced dead an hour later.

"Some people have asked if it was exhaustion, but there's nothing further from the truth," Melton said. "That day had been three friends out joking and laughing on a casual ride, going at a conversational pace."

Melton said that although they had been out for about three hours before Johnston collapsed, the ride had been broken up by a flat tire, a snack break and photo opportunities.

"Todd was one of the most fit people I know and had done serious races," Melton said.

Johnston's father, Chuck Johnston, agreed, saying his son was well known for his energetic personality.

"He didn't do anything halfway and always wanted to push himself," he said.

He said an autopsy will be performed to determine the cause of death, but that results will not be available for six to eight weeks.

"Todd was a person of boundless energy and energetic love," Chuck Johnston said. "He had incredible love for his family, friends and this community.

"It's important for everyone to know that he was never alone and was with people he cared about. He was doing something he loved and we're glad we had him for 41 years. His spirit is in this valley because his legacy is so great."

A memorial service will be held for Johnston at 2 p.m. Friday at St. Thomas Episcopal Church in Sun Valley with a reception following from 3-5:30 p.m. at the Elkhorn Springs Restaurant.

Jon Duval: jduval@mtexpress.com

48. "Mountain biker who died named"

[Evolution in action! Mike]

http://www.odt.co.nz/news/dunedin/80414/mountain-biker-who-died-named

Mountain biker who died named

Mon, 2 Nov 2009
News: Dunedin

The 56-year-old Dunedin man who collapsed and died while cycling at Lake Hawea on Friday was Dr David Peacock.

Dr Peacock, a graduate of the University of Otago, was a psychiatric registrar with the Otago District Health Board.

A keen mountain biker, he was a former president of the Otago Tramping and Mountaineering Club and a member of the Royal Dunedin Male Choir.

Last month, he sang in the Dunedin production of Gilbert and Sullivan's opera Yeomen of the Guard.

49. ANOTHER Serious Injury Caused by Mountain Biking!

http://www.cyclingnews.com/editions/second-edition-cycling-news-thursday-november-19-2009

Hincapie leads charity ride

Article published:

November 19, 13:07

By:

Hedwig Kr��

$15,000 raised to cover medical expenses for injured cyclist

On Sunday, November 15, Columbia-HTC pro George Hincapie led a charity ride in Greenville, SC, to raise funds for local cyclist Thea Kent, who was critically injured in a mountain biking accident. Kent, who does not have a health insurance, suffered a fractured vertebra, seven broken ribs in her back (broken at the spinal column), six broken transverse process bones, a punctured lung and minor head injuries.

"The Ride for Thea Kent" was subsequently organised by the local cycling community and became a full success after Greenville resident Hincapie signed up to lead the 55-mile event, one of two distance options on offer. Approximately 450 local cyclists participated and raised a total sum of $15,000 to help Kent cover the medical expenses resulting from her accident.

After the ride, which followed popular local routes of Paris Mountain, Tigerville, the Callahan Mountain Road and Camp Old Indian, participants gathered for a silent auction of cycling equipment that included a Team Columbia jersey signed by Hincapie. This raised another $585 for Kent.

"My gratitude goes out to the hundreds of people who helped to lighten my burden," said Kent. "I cannot possibly thank every one individually, but I want every one to know I appreciate every gesture - no matter how big or small. I am eternally grateful."

Local sports photographers The Living Pixel have listed event photography on their online storefront for sale through December 15. All profits from the sale of pictures from this event will also be donated back to Kent.

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50. Tara Llanes, a champion downhill mountain biker, suffered a horrific crash while racing at the Jeep King of the Mountain event

If this can happen to a "champion", ordinary mountain bikers are at an even greater risk....

Mike

http://www.velonews.com/article/100135/2010-race-for-tara-date-announced

2010 Race for Tara date announced

Published: Nov. 21, 2009

Press Release

The mountain bike park at Northstar-at-Tahoe resort will host the Race for Tara 4 on Oct. 2-3, 2010.

Tara Llanes and Andy Buckley, Northstars director of resort experience, made the announcement on Nov. 20, about a month after the 2009 Race for Tara at Northstar, located near Truckee, California.

The Race for Tara was started three years ago by Brian and Thayne Bolin after Llanes, a champion downhill mountain biker, suffered a horrific crash while racing at the Jeep King of the Mountain event in Beaver Creek, Colorado. A large portion of Race for Tara proceeds will be donated to spinal cord research and helping other athletes with spinal cord injury. A smaller portion will go toward the continued medical costs Llanes has had to endure.

According to a study initiated by the Dana and Christopher Reeve Foundation, there are nearly 1 in 50 people living with paralysis approximately 6 million people. llanes is working to build a fund for athletes that have catastrophic injuries like hers.

I want to be there for other athletes that are going through the same thing I do day in and day out, she said.

The Race for Tara was started to help raise funds for Llanes and her ever-growing medical costs. During the races first year, Llanes was still in the hospital and only able to call in on the loudspeaker to thank participants. In the second year Tara was actually able to drive to the race and show her appreciation to everyone. In 2009, Tara was not only able to be at the event she was able to participate and race down the mountain in a 4-wheeler DH bike.

Downieville DH Champ and WTB pro Mark Weir said the Northstar downhill is great.

It was the most well-balanced course the U.S. has ever had, he said.

The 10-minute long course will test the endurance and skill of every participant. The courses will vary depending on the level of rider. There will be a $35 donation for all beginners, intermediates, and experts and a $40 donation for all semi-pro and pro.

In the last three years the Race for Tara has raised nearly $30,000 thanks to the entire cycling community.

I was impressed with the amazing support the event received from both companies and individuals, said Matt Robertson of Shimano. Giants presence was amazing, not just the brand but the racers and the employees. They led the charge and were closely followed by the rest of us.

51.

4. Injured bicyclist airlifted at Annadel

Mike

Mountain biker critically injured

Doctors miss broken neck in mountain bike fall man

http://www.bcbikerace.com/Media/Blog/

Monday, June 22, 2009

A BC Bike Race Champion and Great Guy Down

Summer a busy time for ambulance crews

By Tonya Bina SKY-HI DAILY NEWS Grand County, Colorado

A sixty-year-old British man has fallen more than 300 feet to his death while mountain biking in the French Alps on a camping holiday with nine friends.

ON THE MOUNTAIN Mountain biker dies of heart attack

Dr. Alexis Shelokov, 55, had home in Telluride

By REILLY CAPPS Writer

Man dies along southern Utah bike trail

Retired racer Steve Larsen dies after collapsing during running workout

German mountainbiker dies in Tyrol

Maine man killed in W. Pa. mountain bike crash

Mountain biker seriously injured

Mountain biker hurt in fall at Moses Gate Country Park

McDonald's executive dies in bike plunge

The managing director of McDonald's Switzerland has been killed in a mountain bike accident in the Swiss Alps.

Mountain biker hurt in fall at Moses Gate Country Park

US Findings in the Scrotum of Extreme Mountain Bikers1

Abstract

Short report

Mountain biking injuries in rural England

Herald staff

Mountainbiker rescued after serious fall on Lympstone Common

Bike accident means Edison principal Chuck Tansey will miss school opening

by Rex Hall Jr. / Kalamazoo Gazette Saturday September 05, 2009, 12:10 PM

Injured mountain biker airlifted to hospital

Mountain biker lucky to be alive after crash

SES leader dies in mountain bike event

Family, friends seek help for Piedmont woman injured in bike ride

Broken neck can't stop Woodbridge cyclist Lauren Liden

Centerville man dies while mountain biking

Mountain biker overcomes fracture

Mountain biker who died named

Hincapie leads charity ride

2010 Race for Tara date announced

Press Release

By Tonya Bina
SKY-HI DAILY NEWS
Grand County, Colorado

ON THE MOUNTAIN
Mountain biker dies of heart attack

By REILLY CAPPS
Writer

by Rex Hall Jr. / Kalamazoo Gazette
Saturday September 05, 2009, 12:10 PM