[William42]

Just got back from Sea Otter. The DS was ripping as always, and the DH was a bunch of really fast DH'ers racing trail bikes. But gwin won the DH, so everything was ok. It wasn't all good news, as a buddy went down first practice run of the first day and broke both femurs, one lengthwise and broke the head off the other. His heart stopped twice in the night, and a few blood transfusions later he's still hanging on. Current worry is that he might have a blood clot in his leg, so he's having a rough time. Wish him some good healing vibes, he needs it.

edit: update on him further down

When the racing came though, it was good times.

DS:

Gwin on his way to eliminating Brendog:

Gwin crashed his first heat against Graves (right in front of me, but sadly I didn't have my phone out), and while I think he took this heat by like .01 seconds, it wasn't enough to keep a spot, and gets eliminated.

Notice anything funny about this picture? Pro mens DH

More shreddin before it gets down to srs business

Impressively, he rode it out without losing too much time on this section:

Bulldog

Peaty still has it. After 2nd in the DS, he had the legs to come in 1.5 behind Gwin in the DH for 8th place. Talk about close racing

No little bikes for the current world champ. .35seconds off first for 5th place. Tight times.

 

[Jeremy R]

So, how awesome was it seeing the Shaw kid taking out world cup stars in the DS when he is barely in high school?

 

[kidwoo]

broke both femurs, one lengthwise and broke the head off the other. His heart stopped twice in the night,

Holy fvcking hell

That's not just broken bones.

 

[gemini2k]

Holy fvcking hell

That's not just broken bones.

Yeah. How the hell do you even do that? Have a truck dropped on your legs while riding?

 

[6thElement]

Hurts just thinking about it.

 

[William42]

Holy fvcking hell

That's not just broken bones.

yeah he got totally fycked. double scorpion tomahawked hitting the drop too fast the first run and endoing his way down the hill. It was Jesse if you didn't know that already. We're all trying not to worry about possible blood clots, although I haven't heard updates since this morning.

edit: update Just spoke with a friend who just finished visiting him in the hospital. Good news on a couple fronts, no blood clots, and his blood pressure has stabilized. He cracked his dot helmet in half, but unfortunately remembers the whole thing. He felt his hip shatter (turns out he didn't just break the head off his femur, he shattered it and his hip). Took about 20 minutes to get to the hospital via ambulance, and the Dr told him if it had been 10 minutes longer he'd be dead. Went to surgery immediately for 5 hours, rebuilt his legs and hips, and they think he'll be able to walk again. When my buddy checked on him in the hospital, he was in a wheel chair for his physical therapy for the day, and apparently his knee (where he retore his ACL) was bothering him the most. Sounds like he's done with biking though forever. They're working on xfering him to his hometown hospital.

Anyway, Luca Shaw was fycking awesome, he was pinning so hard, and minnaar is no easy pickle to take out, minnaar has gone to final four every sea otter I've ever seen (except this one, when some HS kid just ripped everything up. So rad.

 

[kidwoo]

It was Jesse if you didn't know that already.

Shoot me a pm with your phone number right now if you don't mind.

 

[eric strt6]

amazing job the ambulance Jockys did getting him there. It must have been quicker to load and go code 3 to CHOMP or Salinas vs waiting for a bird. He is damn lucky, essentially he killed himself and they brought back twice then repaired the damage. Here is hoping that, one he doesn't get a lethal blood clot and two that he can walk again.

 

[ianjenn]

Jesus man sorry to hear about your friend. Fingers crossed here hope all goes well.

 

[jonKranked]

Notice anything funny about this picture? Pro mens DH

sea otter: dh course is so easy the bikes race themselves

 

[jonKranked]

Holy fvcking hell

That's not just broken bones.

Yeah. How the hell do you even do that? Have a truck dropped on your legs while riding?

ouch. i know what kind of hardware they put him back together with just thinking about it gives me the heeby jeebies

 

[sikocycles]

Gwin won on a 29er I heard? That cant be possible. Wouldn't the wheels just explode and they dont turn well

 

[William42]

Gwin won on a 29er I heard? That cant be possible. Wouldn't the wheels just explode and they dont turn well

Just wait till you see the new demo that is coming out that he'll be racing on this year.

 

[kidwoo]

Gwin won on a 29er I heard? That cant be possible. Wouldn't the wheels just explode and they dont turn well

You've seen the sea otter 'dh' course right?

Even I would ride a 29er on that thing.

 

[time-bomb]

I hate to get all religious on everyone but thank god Aaron Gwin was there to pray over your friend and keep him alive.

Seriously though, that's a tough deal. I hope your friend remains in good spirits and recovers quickly. Best of luck to him.

 

[boylagz]

Word on his recovery. Im a nurse and everytime I read or hear something about trauma injuries, clots are a no1 concern. Damn breaking a finger blows, I cant imagine 2 of your longest bones. Healing vibes.

 

[Uncle Cliffy]

Healing vibes to your friend Will.

 

[bizutch]

In all fairness to technology, there hasn't been a single Sea Otter DH ever won by a piece of technology. Peaty and Rennie on boat anchors, Mike King on a re-badged boat anchor, Lopes on anything, Graves on a hucker bike, Gwin on a townie. Only thing that matters there is the motor.

 

[Ithnu]

Sounds like he's done with biking though forever.

Wow. Racers are usually more dedicated to continue mountain biking after injuries than most. I know many who've stopped racing after a nasty injury bust still ride bikes. But for him to throw off all biking forever that must have been one nasty fu#king crash. Gives me shivers thinking about it.

 

[kidwoo]

Wow. Racers are usually more dedicated to continue mountain biking after injuries than most. I know many who've stopped racing after a nasty injury bust still ride bikes. But for him to throw off all biking forever that must have been one nasty fu#king crash. Gives me shivers thinking about it.

You don't know this guy's history.

 

[William42]

Wow. Racers are usually more dedicated to continue mountain biking after injuries than most. I know many who've stopped racing after a nasty injury bust still ride bikes. But for him to throw off all biking forever that must have been one nasty fu#king crash. Gives me shivers thinking about it.

lol, I agree with kidwoo. He has had 27 major surgeries - broken neck, back, legs, skull, you name it, he's broken it. He's got kids, and his heart stopped. I'm dubious he'll quit. He's said it before. He should though, since he cannot take it fyckin easy ever, he goes 100% from run one and he's too old to do that anymore.

 

[gemini2k]

lol, I agree with kidwoo. He has had 27 major surgeries - broken neck, back, legs, skull, you name it, he's broken it. He's got kids, and his heart stopped. I'm dubious he'll quit. He's said it before. He should though, since he cannot take it fyckin easy ever, he goes 100% from run one and he's too old to do that anymore.

Uhhh, he probably should've quit a long time ago. You really shouldn't be riding if you get hurt that much.

 

[William42]

Uhhh, he probably should've quit a long time ago. You really shouldn't be riding if you get hurt that much.

Eh, his life, he can do what he wants with it and do what makes himself happy. He likes bikes a lot, and he's pretty good at it, just always pushes 100%. Think Matti Leihokken in old age. Also, plenty of the surgeries are from when he used to be a pro freestyle skier.

Not really interested in getting into the advice idea of what he should do with his life. Just pointing out that he's in some pain and its the type of thing that sucks for any biker. Not interested in the philosophical "what he should be doing with his life" side of things.

 

[dbozman]

Best of luck to your friend. Terrible injury.

 

[jonKranked]

Wow. Racers are usually more dedicated to continue mountain biking after injuries than most. I know many who've stopped racing after a nasty injury bust still ride bikes. But for him to throw off all biking forever that must have been one nasty fu#king crash. Gives me shivers thinking about it.

You don't know this guy's history.

or the amount & kind of hardware that goes into these kinds of breaks

 

[Ithnu]

You don't know this guy's history.

lol, I agree with kidwoo. He has had 27 major surgeries - broken neck, back, legs, skull, you name it, he's broken it. He's got kids, and his heart stopped. I'm dubious he'll quit. He's said it before. He should though, since he cannot take it fyckin easy ever, he goes 100% from run one and he's too old to do that anymore.

Wholly hell. There's a few guys I race with there in CO who's gotten broken off bad. Really bad. But nothing like that.

Uhhh, he probably should've quit a long time ago. You really shouldn't be riding if you get hurt that much.

Yeah.

 

[Huck Banzai]

Uhhh, he probably should've quit a long time ago. You really shouldn't be riding if you get hurt that much.

Never understood that kind of defeatist attitude.

You do what you want as long as you're willing to deal with the consequences.

I'd rather some more surgeries than face life without aggro bikes.

That could change, but hasn't so far. (With a shattered collarbone, an l5 ac sep, snapped big toe & the ligs are DONE, Broken rib, fractured tailbone, avulsion fracture on an everted ankle, dislocated thumb, and the list goes on.. that was just 2010-2012....)

 

[Pslide]

Is there video of the crash? If so, please don't post. Glad he's stabilized.

Did Gwin really pray over him?

 

[William42]

Is there video of the crash? If so, please don't post. Glad he's stabilized.

Did Gwin really pray over him?

hahah no praying that I know of, I doubt gwin even knew he went down.

No video that I know of, and yeah, i wouldn't post it if I had it.


Anyway, moving on from waxing philosophical about what other people should do with their life, sea otter was fycking awesome, this was one of the best and most fun years I've ever gone. When you finally give up any hope of the DH being awesome, and just go to enjoy the festival, it was a great time.

And totally crazy to see the top 5 within 1 second of each other. Especially on such a wide variety of bicycles.

 

[gemini2k]

Never understood that kind of defeatist attitude.

It's not defeatist, it's intelligent. Although it's pretty clear there does seem to be a WIDE range of intelligence's on this message board.

 

[tabletop84]

Gwin won on a 29er I heard? That cant be possible. Wouldn't the wheels just explode and they dont turn well

Look at the times and you'll realize that minaar is just behind him on a full-blown dh-rig. But yeah: in the marketing world even 650b should at least give you a few seconds advance on such a course.

 

[Huck Banzai]

It's not defeatist, it's intelligent. Although it's pretty clear there does seem to be a WIDE range of intelligence's on this message board.

When you give up your passion, you are defeated.

And that's a REALLY unintelligent thing to do. Dig a grave and hop in while you're at it!

 

[slyfink]

Never understood that kind of defeatist attitude.

You do what you want as long as you're willing to deal with the consequences.

I'd rather some more surgeries than face life without aggro bikes.

That could change, but hasn't so far. (With a shattered collarbone, an l5 ac sep, snapped big toe & the ligs are DONE, Broken rib, fractured tailbone, avulsion fracture on an everted ankle, dislocated thumb, and the list goes on.. that was just 2010-2012....)

not a dig; but an honest question: do you have children or any other dependant? caus' if it's just you, then sure, that's a great attitude to have. if it's not just you... well then it's a serious conversation to have. And maybe this guy had that conversation and still feels like this is something he needs to do for whatever reason, I'm not judging (there's tons of "extreme" athletes with kids and families. their sport is part of who they are and they can't be separated from it - I acknowledge that). All I'm trying to say is it's not necessarily defeatist, sometimes its just about responsibility.

 

[Pslide]

What if my passion is cocaine. If I give that up is it a REALLY unintelligent thing to do?

Take away the stigma, and is DH really that different than a cocaine habit? Expensive, dangerous, selfish, short term reward. I'm not trying to bring the sport down, I love it. It's my drug of choice.

(PS - I agree with Slyfink)

 

[OGRipper]

sea otter was fycking awesome, this was one of the best and most fun years I've ever gone. When you finally give up any hope of the DH being awesome, and just go to enjoy the festival, it was a great time.

And totally crazy to see the top 5 within 1 second of each other. Especially on such a wide variety of bicycles.

Good job. There is a lot of fun to be had down there every year as long as you bring the right attitude.

As for riding after injuries, I don't see the value in labeling or judging someone else's decision one way or another, especially with the limited information we typically get here. Maybe it's because some people need to feel better about not pushing themselves, even though they are free to make that call.

 

[Huck Banzai]

not a dig; but an honest question: do you have children or any other dependant? caus' if it's just you, then sure, that's a great attitude to have. if it's not just you... well then it's a serious conversation to have. And maybe this guy had that conversation and still feels like this is something he needs to do for whatever reason, I'm not judging (there's tons of "extreme" athletes with kids and families. their sport is part of who they are and they can't be separated from it - I acknowledge that). All I'm trying to say is it's not necessarily defeatist, sometimes its just about responsibility.

I would suggest that family is passion as well (no... really?! ), so kind of tangential at best.

I have no dependents (at least as far as the IRS is concerned.), although contribute significantly to supporting 2 family members. I'm an IT 'engineer' so as long as I can type, I'm good. (let someone else cable and rack, I like pushing buttons.........)

Certainly there are circumstances and exceptions to 'my' rule, but I was responding to: "Uhhh, he probably should've quit a long time ago. You really shouldn't be riding if you get hurt that much.", which sounds disdainful, and is a very broad disqualification; preface that statement with "If he has dependents,..." and then I can accede to the point.

As for riding after injuries, I don't see the value in labeling or judging someone else's decision one way or another, especially with the limited information we typically get here. Maybe it's because some people need to feel better about not pushing themselves, even though they are free to make that call.

^^Well said.

 

[General Lee]

In case you missed it, the race season has started. You can stop assuming you know how to makes someone's life choices better then them, despite it having zero effect on you personally, until at least October.

Cheers

 

[William42]

In case you missed it, the race season has started. You can stop assuming you know how to makes someone's life choices better then them, despite it having zero effect on you personally, until at least October.

Cheers

Thanks for that. Lets put a little perspective in this thread: he had a horrific injury, but he's a tough ass dude, and his life choices are his own.

Moving on, Sea Otter is actually pretty fun with the right expectations (lots of free beer and a big bike festival with some good racing). Also pretty cool to have a course that you can see everybody on DH bikes to XC bikes within 1 second, as kind of a novelty sideshow kinda thing. The DS is rad, and I had a great time!

 

[boylagz]

Word. Otter was really fun. Surprised A LOT of raffles and freebies happened. Fox was throwing away boxes of DOSS posts and a fork+shock set. Really wanted that 40 shirt dammit

 

[William42]

Word. Otter was really fun. Surprised A LOT of raffles and freebies happened. Fox was throwing away boxes of DOSS posts and a fork+shock set. Really wanted that 40 shirt dammit

right?? buahaha, some guy without a shirt on literally hit the fyckin deck diving for a DOSS post, got kicked while he was down and all scraped up, came up ready for a fight, turned out a won a shock pump

Everybody was giving him so much sh1t for being a jackass

Also, lets not forget dt swiss and kenda for consistently giving out tons of free beer. Almost almost almost almost makes me want to buy a kenda product, but I respect the environment too much to just buy something for the sole purpose of throwing it away.