Taken for a ride: Sledding accident doesn't tickle his wife's funny bone
Have you ever had one of those moments in life where you immediately wish you could turn back time and do it all over? Maybe something you said, or something you did; or something you wished you’d done differently, or not done at all?
I had one of those moments a couple of Sundays ago as I soared off the snow ramp at the bottom of the Vet’s Park sledding hill. Actually, is wasn’t so much snow as it was ice - or perhaps concrete - and if I had to venture a guess at my approximate launch speed, I’d peg it somewhere in the neighborhood of 25-30 mph, so I knew my odds of having a smooth, injury-free landing were fairly slim.
Lon Horwedel | AnnArbor.com
I’d kept my promise for 59 minutes and 30 seconds before I let my kids talk me into going down the big hill - it’s those last 30 seconds that always get me.
To be honest, I wanted no part of the ramp at the bottom of the hill. I even made sure to start my descent from the far right edge at the top of the hill to try and avoid it. A third of the way down the hill, everything was going just fine - I was accelerating nicely, it was relatively smooth, and my path seemed to be a good one - but then trouble arrived.
Ahead of me, about 20 feet or so, a mother and her small child veered into my path and wiped out as I barreled down on them. The thought of possibly vaporizing the two wasn’t pretty, so I leaned hard to my left and dug my feet into the hard-packed snow behind me, hoping I might somehow steer clear of them.
Luckily, the edge of my sled dug in just enough to let me skirt by them unscathed, but now I had bigger problems. The ramp I had so painstakingly tried to avoid, was now dead in my sights and I had no time to react.
I hit the ramp so perfectly and at such a high rate of speed, that I launched myself at what my son estimated was “at least 6 feet high!” Time seemed to stand still as I separated from my sled and began swimming through the air. All around me I saw the jaws of stunned children hanging open as at first I soared, and then plummeted back to earth like a wounded bird.
During my 5-second flight, I had plenty of time to ponder several landing choices. My head didn’t seem like such a good idea, nor did my chest, so I opted instead for a stunt-man-like dive and roll to try and minimize the structural damage I was certain to inflict upon myself. Unfortunately, my timing was off a bit and I landed on my right elbow instead of my shoulder. Several snap rolls later, I popped to my feet like I’d planned the whole thing.
Amazingly, nothing really hurt - at least not too bad - by that I mean my teeth were still in my mouth and there wasn’t a trail of blood in the snow. But then I tried to straighten my arm - no good - my wrist was a little sore too. I went to pick up the remains of my crumpled sled and realized my right hand wasn’t working all that well either. Panicked, I began windmilling my right arm in circles to see if my shoulder was still attached. It seemed to be OK, but I felt an immediate depression sink in when I realized my trans-Ann Arbor flight might have just cost me a summer of golf and baseball.
Of course, the worst was yet to come. How, exactly, do you tell your wife you probably just broke your elbow doing the one thing she made you promise not to do? As it turns out, I didn’t have to, my kids took that honor the moment we walked in the door. All I had to do was sit there and put up with the firestorm that followed … and followed … and followed.
When my wife realized that no amount of “I told you so” or “what the hell were you thinking?” would fix my broken wing, she reluctantly drove me to the ER where my suspicion was confirmed - I had fractured the head of my radius, or, in layman terms, I’d broken my elbow.
Oddly, the type of break I sustained didn’t require a cast, or even a splint. The doctor simply gave me a sling and told me to ice it for 20-minutes, five times a day, and take painkillers if I wanted.
It’s hard to describe life with only the function of your non-dominant arm. Some things proved to be a lot easier than I thought - brushing my teeth, tying my shoes, folding laundry, and making beds for example. And some things proved a lot more difficult, like driving a stick shift, opening a jar of peanut butter, blowing my nose and … well, you get the picture.
That lasted only a few days before the swelling in my elbow subsided to the point where I could perform most daily tasks without much bother. Of course, daily tasks aren’t throwing baseballs or playing golf, and it saddens me to think my chiseled biceps and pecs will be a thing of the past once I’m finally healed.
In the meantime I’ll keep icing my broken elbow five times a day as I wait for the bone to heal - six or more if you count the frigid stares I keep getting from my wife!!!
Lon Horwedel is a photojournalist with AnnArbor.com. You may contact him at lonhorwedel@annarbor.com.
Comments
Anne Jackson
Fri, Dec 24, 2010 : 9:51 a.m.
Kamikaze sledding, not to mention good 'ol regular sledding is dangerous on known steep icy hills in A2 (Vets) or in the Arb. Hate to put a damper on things, but my intensely networked teenager just came upstairs to tell me that two friends were severely injured in a sledding accident last day/night (not sure). Be sure to read the article when it gets posted. As always, the news travels faster than the written report. Praying for the two girls.
shepard145
Sat, Jan 30, 2010 : 4:59 p.m.
I've taken our kids sledding at Vets Park hill for years and never had a great time and zero injuries. There are plenty of smaller hills around for the fragile, clumsy, unskilled folks writing in...
Paul the Malcontent
Wed, Jan 27, 2010 : 7:39 p.m.
A friend on Facebook posted this anecdote today: "One of my daughter's friends hit an icy patch going down a hill by their house yesterday, lost control and slammed into a tree. She is 13. She is doing ok but there was some damage to one of her kidneys and possibly a hematoma that they are monitoring to make sure it clots...I am just posting so people keep in mind to remind their kids to be careful because you never know." A follow-up post indicates she also had to get a blood transfusion due to a low hemoglobin count. BE CAREFUL OUT THERE!
snapshot
Tue, Jan 26, 2010 : 3:50 p.m.
Proof positive that "mind over matter" has it's limitations. But letting the child out to play sometimes goes unpunished. Those times make it worth the risk!
tdw
Mon, Jan 25, 2010 : 7:57 p.m.
Has anoyone else ever tied a sled to a snowmoble? And then tried to wipe out you buddy(who's being towed).
Charlie Naebeck
Mon, Jan 25, 2010 : 12:20 p.m.
I remember several years back when I was probably 10 and my brother was 7 that we had the runner sleds going down Vets hill and he decided to steer hard left from the top of the hill and hit that snow fence on the left side pretty good to leave a waffle pattern on his forehead. :) He was really lucky too caus he just missed one of those fence poles that hold up the mesh by about 2 ft. It does get pretty iced up towards the bottom of the hill each year though for sure. on a seperate note, great picture on the article! :)
Lon Horwedel
Mon, Jan 25, 2010 : 9:48 a.m.
It appears I'm not the only one whose ever had a "mishap" on a sledding hill. Thanks for sharing your stories. In the end, I guess that's what makes it all worthwhile... the stories. Oh, and Tugla, I can steer a sled just fine on snow, just not so well on ice... which now is painfully apparent!
spm
Mon, Jan 25, 2010 : 6:58 a.m.
I'm sure my father had to put up with the same type of scolding from my mother as you did with your wife after a similar accident happened to me. My mom told my dad it was too dangerous to sled down a hill full of trees at our cabin up north, but dad said everything would be fine and took me out on one of those saucer type sleds. I promptly slid straight into a very large tree, since you really can't steer it, and blacked out. I don't recall being carried back up the hill, but luckily I was not too injured except for the very large bump on my head. I'm sure my dad didn't hear the end of mom's scolding though!
bunnyabbot
Mon, Jan 25, 2010 : 12:33 a.m.
hey tugla, it's not how you're driving (sledding) but all the others who get in the way that throw you off course, not to mention there's always one kamikaze daredevil in the bunch
tugla
Mon, Jan 25, 2010 : 12:06 a.m.
Too many people don't know how to steer properly while sledding, but it's essential. I still find it amazing how none of my now teenage neighbors have any idea where they'll end up or what they'll hit as they go down. They might as well be going down backwards. I grew up on a sled, on the playground at school, in my backyard, at the friend's house, I remember dozens of snow days in junior high where I would spend the entire day sledding - I never hit anything accidentally, and I'm shocked to hear that Vet's is the most dangerous hill around here. It's really not that difficult to aim yourself - even to navigate a slalom course - by simply placing one hand on the ground at a time. Simple concept - you break on the side where you want to turn. Also, remember - you're always choosing to stay on that sled. You can always bail... just do a roll like a kayaker, and your descent will stop shortly thereafter.
paul levine
Sun, Jan 24, 2010 : 11:04 p.m.
I was sledding in the Arb many years ago, and suffered shatter fracture of my humerous after a hard landing. It was absolutely horrible, and if it had not been for the help of those around me I don't know how I would have made it to the hospital. Recovery took over 6 months, with several casts and recasts. I was never quite able to find fun in sledding after that.
fish
Sun, Jan 24, 2010 : 10:10 p.m.
Our family fun on the Vet's Park steep hill ended with my 7 yo with a fractured femur. She hit a pole on the side of the hill holding a snow fence (I believe the city moved it after multiple requests and injuries -- the trees are still awfully close). 2 surgeries, 6 weeks in waist high cast bed ridden, 2 mos in a wheel chair, 1 month with a walker, plus rehab. Quite a bit for a 7 year old -- guilt for us as parents not realizing the danger. The ER said if she had hit the pole differently and hit her head, she would have died. They also said they treat many serious inuries from that hill every year and suggested no one go down that hill without a helmut (Ambulance drivers also confirmed this). It is fun, but dangerous place. The other hills on the other side of the rink are equally fun, but not as steep and you can get away from trees. Sledders beware.
bunnyabbot
Sun, Jan 24, 2010 : 6:25 p.m.
Dear God the Vet's hill, I remember it well from childhood. I was so happy to sled down that hill for years, until one day when I was 10. A friend of mine and I went and there were 100's of people, the hill was sheer ice and it was the coldest day I can remember. I got home and was numb and crying I was so sore from crashing and being crashed into. My dad had to take me out of my snowsuit I couldn't do it myself and then gave me hot toddy and sent me to bed. I didn't break anything but I think I bruised my whole body.
MikeyP
Sun, Jan 24, 2010 : 2:07 p.m.
The problem is that A. women don't have a sense of adventure but B. men don't have the sense not to have one.