A Bump in the Road - Unexpected down time in Denver :-(

Sunday, August 22 started out as a beautiful day with a planned ride to the top of Mt. Evans.  It is the highest paved road in the US with gorgeous sites and fun roads with lots of twists, turns and switchbacks.  We rode the '42 to the parking lot at the top of Mt. Evans which is 14,130' above sea level.  The altitude and scenery left us breathless.  Because of oxygen deprivation ;-) (our living room is 8' above sea level), we opted out of the hike that would take us to the summit at 14,270' - we had met our goal!  We were treated to beautiful views and Mountain goats made an appearance to make it even more special.

Mt. Evans

Mom & Kid

View from Mt. Evans - the real "Rocky Mountain High"

After coming off the mountain we were riding through Bear Creek Canyon on the way to our camper.  While entering a curve, the back brake failed and we were unable to negotiate the curve and ran off the road into a ditch.  We were slowing down when we struck a large rock - the bike stopped and we didn't. Tim landed in the rocks on his back and I followed - landing on him and rolling on to finally stop on my back. Initial help came from Charlie Hreen - a good samaritan who was out for a Sunday ride on his motorcycle.  He dialed 911 and tried to make us comfortable until the EMT's arrived.  Since we were only a mile west of Morrison, help arrived fairly quickly and we were transported to St. Anthony Hospital Central Trauma Center.  We both underwent Xrays & CAT scans.  I was lucky with nothing broken - a bundle of bruises & scrapes.  My worst pain was in my right shoulder where I landed on a rock. I was released around 8:00PM.  Tim wasn't as lucky... He ended up with 7 broken ribs and a fractured Spinus Process (the bump off the vertebrae in your back).  He was admitted for observation and has spent 2 nights in the hospital.  At this writing, we are waiting for the doctor and believe he will be released today.  We're extending our stay in the Denver area to allow some time to heal.