OutdoorType

So I ran into Paul at the finish line this morning… It was an unexpected sight.  A crowd had gathered to greet Team Merrill come in for a second place finish when I looked back and saw someone wearing a VentureQuest 5 t-shirt. It was Paul. The very same Paul who was supposed to be out running support for Team #37, Pura Vida (Michelle, Miguel, Andy, and Victor) (cooking meals, organising gear, and taking care of feet), not kicking back at the Big Sky Resort.

But why was Paul here and not waiting for his team at a TA someplace?  Turns out that Miguel crashed his bike on a sweet section of unpaved, country road somewhere between the Crazies and Bridger mountains.  And why did Miguel crash? Well, according to Miguel (who was just in HQ describing his crash), it was daylight, he wasn’t sleepy, and the team was cruising downhill at 48.8 miles per hour.  Then the road turned less sweet. Miguel ran over rutted ground.  He hit ruts and lost control of his bike.  He fought to regain control as his wheels slid back and forth, but it was to no avail.  In an instant he shot forward landing head first into the ground. His helmet was cracked, there were several new ugly scrapes along the left side, and his shoulder possibly seperated from his body. His spirits were fine, his bike was fine, but his race was over.

Miguel has not been alone in crashing in this area.  I’ve heard reports of at least three other crashes in this area.  The latest resulted in an unconcsious racer (they were out for ~45 seconds), but to show the resolve and dedication of these racers, the teammember (after being medically cleared) opted to stay in the race!