Of Bike Crashes and Blessings

It’s the holidays and the time to be thankful for the gifts and the people and the passions that fuel our lives.

Erin finishing the bike leg of the 2011 Lake Meridian Triathlon

On August 28th, Raise the Bar’s Erin Eronemo had his triathlon season by the tail – living out a dream that few people have the opportunity to experience. At 47 years old,  Erin won the Lake Meridian Triathlon in Kent  which included a bike split that stands out as one of the Pacific Northwest’s best.   Erin rode like a charging locomotive and averaged 24.55mph  on a hilly 15.8 mile  course with “room to get faster,” he says with simple, humble ease.  No one who knows Erin would dare doubt it.   His plan was to fight for victories at 3 more Northwest races before the season ended – something that was well within his reach.

A few years ago, Erin was was hit by a truck during a training ride and had a big fight on his hands to come back to the high level of competition he’s earned over the last 20 years.  You’d be hard-pressed to find anyone who works as hard and as quietly as Erin – and his hard work paid off.  Coming off his first Ironman in June with a huge base and a couple of months to build his speed, by August he was clearly in the shape of his life. In an instant, it all changed.

3 days after his Lake Meridian victory, he was on a training ride on Kent-Black Diamond road (ironically the Lake Meridian Tri bike course) going 30+ on a fast, slightly downhill section of the road toward an intersection.    A car coming from the opposite direction – also at about 30mph – took a left turn directly in front of him.  There was no way to avoid the collision – Erin can remember taking his hands off the bars and putting them in front of him before the impact.

The scene of the accident. Kent -Black Diamond Road and SE 292nd Street. Marks on the road still remain

The tally of injuries is mind-boggling. 8 broken ribs – each in 2 places, a broken shoulder blade, broken collar bone, a punctured lung, lacerated liver, 3 fractured vertebra  and multiple deep bone bruises leaving him with some lingering numbness.   Days into the ordeal at Harborview, Erin was unbelievably black and blue, and in a medicated daze while the doctors tried to control his pain and deal with all the injuries.  It was awful.

Just past Thanksgiving, it’s now been 89 days since the accident and Erin finds himself in the middle of a long rehab – this one much more serious than the last.    It’s slow and painful and life-altering.  Nothing about his regular routine is what it was – except his discipline to work as hard for healing as he does to win races. Instead of getting up at 2:00am to take care of his customers at Franz Bakery before coming home to train, his days are now spent bouncing between Kent Easthill Physical Therapy, Spencer Chiropractic, 24-Hour Fitness, Massage, and water running at the pool.

At George Anderson’s Kent Easthill PT clinic,  a race photo of Erin on his bike hangs on the wall above a treatment table.  George clearly loves working with him. “Erin demonstrates the same approach, the same fierceness, determination and grit to getting well as he shows when competing in that picture. His athletic background, base fitness level prior to the accident and mental perspective continue to enhance his approach to his recovery.  He is just under 90 days out from his accident and considering the significant trauma he sustained his recovery is eye opening. A person with less base fitness or lacking the understanding and experience in consistent training would not do nearly as well as what he has demonstrated to date. His greatest asset in his circumstance is his mind.”

“Thankfulness” is certainly a thought that’s rampant in the minds of his family, friends, and teammates and the biggest target of our gratitude is that Erin is still here.   There’s no doubt this one was a squeaker.

Beyond the gift of having him around, there are other lovely things that have surfaced through the misery. Erin had many visitors at the hospital and at home – many of whom were his close friends at Raise the Bar.   Brad Williams spent a lot of time at Harborview and at Erin’s house since the accident.  He sent regular updates about Erin’s progress to the RTB team and it rallied them around him.  Many brought meals for him and his wife Tracy, daughter Courtney, and son Matt when he came home, and sent encouraging messages.

And to make even more delicious lemonade out of really sucky lemons, he gets to do some swim coaching at RTB these days – something that his work schedule didn’t allow in the past.  Team members tell him on a regular basis how happy they are to see him and how they’ve been thinking about and praying for him. In addition to being touched by their thoughtfulness, I think his spirit is lifted.  AND there are some triathletes who are now going to swim faster!

Then there are his training buddies – fondly known as the Geyser crew – a group that has trained together and encouraged (trash-talked) each other just about every Sunday morning for the better part of 20 years.  Phil Spencer, Ed Clarke, Brad and others….They are a strong, warm, circle around Erin and his family. Through all of this, their friendship is something  beautiful to witness.  I feel fortunate to have been a small part of it.

Phil Spencer offered this… “This accident has been eye opening for all of us.  Having been Erin’s Chiropractor for years I have an intimate knowledge of how his body operates, its strengths and weaknesses.  This accident changed everything.  How he survived that devastating impact is beyond me.  Watching him gradually come out of this has been nothing short of a miracle.  Erin’s style sense could be best described as cycling’s version of an ‘occupy wall street’ protester.  I speak for every one of his training partners when I say that the happiest day of the coming year will be seeing him pull up on his new bike, resplendent in the requisite pink arm warmers, ratty leg warmers and mismatched kit for his first Sunday Ride back in action.”

Here’s to a happy holiday season for all of us –  full of things to be joyful about and blessings to be grateful for. Especially you, Erin.  You deserve it.