success

Randy with assistance was able to get into his wheelchair today in therapy.

The doors are hung in the house. The drywall is now finished.

Randy's first time trying to transfer

This was taken on Sunday. His pain was not under control. He gave it a good try though. Randy was not able to lift at all. His broken hip was giving him too much trouble.

Today is Monday morning. I called his sister Denise to check on how his night went. She said they were able to get his pain under control at one point. He got a little rest. The nurse was currently in talking with him. If he can do a transfer and keep the pain down they will either let him go home in 2-3 days, or to a rehab facility. So it looks more like a Thursday for his departure at this point.

The house is coming along. All the drywall isn't finished yet. It does have two coats on it though. Two good men worked long and hard on it yesterday. It is snowing today. Good thing the weather held out to make the ramp! I hear the doors are on the way today. After the doors the bathroom can begin.

visitors and thoughts

Just a word on visitors. Randy is in a lot of pain right now. He is NOT up to crowds of visitors for a little while. Please email or text me first to check. 801-680-2218 The people who are sitting with him are still needed.

thoughts: This is the closest I have come to crying. I just can't get over how many people are eager and willing to help my family. Every one of them has their own sorrows, their own needs. And yet, they set them aside to help us. I was feeling so sorry for myself. And then Ryan (the plumber) told me his sister has been in a wheelchair her whole life. This is how he knows what will and won't work for our new bathroom. That is when it hit me how blessed we are. This is only temporary for us. Her needs and medical go on and on. Our sweet drywall man has hearing loss. I know from experience how expensive hearing aids and batteries can be. I really want to pay all of these good people some money. They can use it as much as we can. No one will let me. I will now be on a mission to pay it forward. This is why I want to cry. I can never repay these good people for all of their generous service. Today is the first day since the accident that I am not running around between work, hospital and family. The kids are all being cared for right now by others. I can finally just sit in the quiet (thank you all for giving me a time out from the calls) and let it all sink in and just feel. Okay I admit, it's not exactly quiet. There is construction work going on as I type. But that is the sound of love. I am sure I will have my melt down after things settle a bit. When Randy is home, and things are more concrete. But it is good to have a small let down until then.

pictures from Dan Turney

This pictures explain the story so well.

This is Randy right before he fell. He was walking across to set the rope for others.

This is his skid mark from slipping. He was falling on the rock face down for aprox 30 feet.

This is the inverted wishbone or hole he fell into. We believe has he pendulum-ed down he hit both sides of the wall with his body.

This is in the hole where they then lowered him another 25 feet or so to the ground. After that they were able to move him out of this shady spot to some sun until the sun went down. Then they waited for rescue while taking care of him.

The Ramp is finished

The very large crew of men were able to finish the ramp yesterday. There is even a coat of stain on it. It is such a nice looking ramp. When my mom in law showed up she couldn't help but cry. The reality of what lies ahead is sinking in for most of us now. Austen couldn't take it all so he had to find some place else to be. His sanctuary was being destroyed. Niki had sent me pictures at the hospital, so I was more prepared.

The reason for Austen's upset is this. The original plans included moving a sink and widening two doors. But now our main bathroom is completely gutted. The boys decided to take out everything including the tub in order to put in a walk in shower for Randy. This will be so nice for him to gain some independence. It was all their idea. Drue Kehl is nice enough and generous enough to fund this very large project! He said I could choose the tile, but I told him free is my favorite color and he could have full rein. What an amazing guy!

For the rest of Saturday I was told my many people of all of the generous acts Dreu has done for neighbors over his lifetime. He is truly one of God's chosen people. I was also surprised to know that he works at the temple. I don't know how people have time to do so much for others.

Randy's apprentice Ryan was also kind enough to come over without any future notice to help with the new bathroom plan. McBride's were gracious enough to unlock the office so Ryan could access some tools. Ryan brought his little boy with him and it was nice for me to have something useful to do to help out.

It was amazing how well everyone worked together to make it all work out. Due to our new plan we had last minute need of an electrician and a dry wall person. Calls were made, favors called in and people showed up lickety split. Amazing, amazing stuff. I wanted to grab a group photo, but with all the buzz it just didn't happen. I told everyone that this is now the house that love built.

the story as told by the boys

This is the story from my (Mark Rosen) perspective. There were 15 people on the trip. Each of them saw different aspects of the event and from different perspectives.


We left Murray and drove to Green River on 21 Jan 2011.  We stayed in the Motel 6 and got up the next morning and left just after 7 AM.
 
There was more snow by the freeway than we were expecting and there was snow on both sides as we went down the frozen Yellow Cat road.  The directions led us right to Winter Camp Ridge and the trailhead was located without problems.  The ground was frozen solid which made driving easy. 
 
 
We divided into two groups with Mark Rosen, Drue Kehl, Spencer Brown, Ben Neilson, Dan Turney and Randy Willes in doing Under Cover and Jeff Dredge, Jordan Dredge, Amy Hansen, Mike Wagstaff, Paul Morris, Jake Wiscomb, Ned Hacker, Darrin Miller, and Scott Jones doing MMI.  We left the cars at about 8:44.  It was a bright and wonderful day with a clear blue sky and sun.  It was cold but not bad while hiking and going down the canyon.  We were headed down our drainage when the MMI group appeared on the rocks above the drainage we were walking down.  We teased them about their route finding skills and getting lost and being in the wrong drainage.  Fact is that I was following the map and Drue had taken a GPS reading that was just a little off from what I expected so we had a little uncertainty.  I was relieved when we arrived at the first rappel through the natural bridge and the correct drainage was confirmed.   One had to be careful at the down climbs with the ice and snow so we set up a hand line at times.  It was a gem of a canyon.  We did the last rappel at _______.
 
We followed the directions down canyon to join with MMI and then up to the exit point.  It looked like the right place and was confirmed by finding cairns.  The sun was shining and warm, the sky was deep blue, and we were in high spirits.  Soon we would be up by the cars having lunch and then down another canyon in the afternoon.
 
The crux of the shortcut out was snow covered.  I tried a vertical section just to the right of it that much of the snow had melted off already.  In warmer days with better shoes I might have been able to smear my way up but not today.  I went up for a while, then came to a stop, and then started to slide down the slope.  I slid right past everyone until I reached a flatter area and came to a stop.  I had lost a little skin but no big deal.  Poor Ben, this was his first canyon and he didn’t know what to do with me sliding down.  At first he put out his hand to try to stop me but then figuring that if he tried we would soon have two of us sliding down quickly withdrew it.   
 
Randy Willes felt that he could do the traverse along the standard route even though it was snow covered and wanted to try.  The traverse was high and sloped but below the route towards the end of the traverse the and below the route the rock had a groove or what Drue referred to as an inverted wishbone. If he fell he would fall into it. We tied a rope to him and he went off but we were at his level and after he had traversed about 40-50 feet we were of no help to him.  In all he would have to traverse about 100 feet laterally.  He found an area that was flatter than most of the slope but still snow covered and made good progress at first.  The last 10 feet slowed his progress.  He got within 16 inches of the corner he was trying for and then slid.  We were on the other end of the rope and we pulled up slack as fast as we could but he plummeted down the slope and then into a big groove in the cliff face (we didn’t take the time to pull the rope through the belay device, the fall line of the cliff was such that we was coming closer to us.  So we had four guys pulling slack up as fast as possible knowing that soon the rope would be pulling the other direction which it did.  One guy couldn’t have held him but with four of us giving our all, we brought him to a stop).  At this point he was out of sight. We couldn’t see or hear him and only knew that the rope was weighted and we better not let go.  Mark, Dan, Spencer, and Ben were forming a meat anchor and we were able to free Ben to run down and see what was going on.  We couldn’t hear him so he had to run back and ask us to lower 15 feet then back to check Randy, then back to tell us to lower another 10 feet.  Finally Randy was down and we could go and check on him.
 
We found him in a notch at the bottom of the groove.  When we arrived Randy was alert and knew what had happened.  He said that he had the wind knocked out of him but we was conversing appropriately and breathing well.  I examined him to see the extent of his injuries. His right ankle had a grade I open fracture.  The foot was rotated 90 degrees from the normal axis.  I aligned it better and we applied a Sam’s splint.   The left ankle was swollen and tender and appeared to have a fracture or bad sprain.  He kept complaining of right hip pain.  The hip seemed to me not as painful as the SI joint and sacrum. He felt pain posteriorly where the pelvis attaches to the spine and I was suspicious that he had a fracture in the sacral/SI joint/pelvic pelvic area.  The hip didn’t seem as tender but it could also have been fractured. His left hand hurt. I couldn’t feel a break.  He could move his hands, arms, neck, and left foot although the right ankle one hurt the most.  He had sensation.  His neck didn’t hurt.  He had some abrasions on his face but not much pain.  His back didn’t seem tender.  He was neurologically intact.  The place where he was wedged was cold and in the shade. He could talk with us but was going into shock.  I decided that we needed to move him into the sun were it was warmer and we could treat him.  We carried him a short way to a relatively flat area where there was sun.  Coats were placed under him to provide some insulation from the rock and then more coats over him.  We placed a mylar blanket over him and the coats on top of that.  Keeping Randy as warm as possible was a high priority.  Then we tried to make him as comfortable as the situation permited.  We discussed carrying him to Lost Spring and decided that was out.  A medical evacuation was in order.  It seemed like it was about 11:30 AM when Randy fell.  Randy’s mental status was appropriate the entire time.  He was quiet but always answered questions and took the pain extremely well. 
 
First it was decided that Dan and I would stay with Randy and provide as much medical care as we could give.  That left Drue, Spencer, and Ben to go for help as rapidly as possible.  Drue was known for his indomitable will. I knew that he would push hard and punish his companions. I thought that Lost Spring was 3 to 4 miles away.  We hoped that they could call from there.  If not they may have to go to the cars and drive until the cell phone worked.  The cars while about a mile away as the crow flys were on top of the rim and about 15 miles away if one hiked down canyon, then up canyon to Lost Springs and then along the roads back completing the big circle back to where we had parked at the trailhead. The map appeared to have shorter options. Depending on cell phone coverage it could take between just over an hour and a half to 5 hours before the SAR could be called. They were instructed not to take chances.  Not to take unknown shortcuts. Stay on the road.  The sure thing although it might be slower was better than the gambling and coming up short.  The three left and we watched for the group that went down MMI.  We began to wonder if they aborted after getting lost at the top because there was no sign of them.
 
Maybe 15 to 20 minutes after the group of three left the MMI group started to come in.  It gave us more coats and ability to warm Randy.  It was a nice sunny day and while in the sun things weren’t too bad.  Paul and Mike were runners and we decided to have them run out and see if they could catch or pass our group of three.  Perhaps they could arrive at the vehicles more quickly.  They left and we explored our options.  We couldn’t find a way out close by and it was soon decided that Jeff, Jordan, Amy, Ned, and Jake would go down canyon and explore for possible helicopter landing sites.  When that was done we decided that they would explore for a possible escape going back to the cars by the arch or looking for some weakness in the cliff band.  They had strict instructions not to try anything even remotely risky or dangerous.
 
We were left with four of us to take care of Randy.  Dan Turney, Darrin Miller, Scott Jones, and me.   Dan was very patient and a great care giver.  Darrin and Scott would do whatever it took and helped with each request.  We waited and wondered what was happening with the rest of our group.  Dan had some Hydrocodone  and we gave Randy two of them.
 
About 3 pm the sun went behind a ridge and it started to get colder and the wind picked up.  I looked across the canyon at the south facing side that still had sun and wondered about moving Randy.  I also wondered if we could find an area more sheltered from the wind.  It would have been very difficult to move him with our makeshift stretcher so I gave up on that idea.  We built a windbreak out of packs which helped some.  We also started a fire and shuttled warmed rocks to Randy.  I was afraid to get the fire too close with Randy unable to move and all the coats on him.  We warmed the rocks by the fire and then I would pick them up with my hands and check them against my face and lips to make sure that they weren't too hot.  I also had Dan check them to make sure that they weren't too warm.  One of them was and Dan caught it.  We also had something between the rock and his skin.  I worried a lot about burning him so I was very careful but Randy was getting cold without the sun.
 
We still didn’t know where anybody that had left was and what was transpiring in the world outside out little rock.
 
It must have been about 3:30 when Jeff and Jake returned without the others in their group.  It was good to see them and hear some news.  The news was that the route they had hoped would go didn’t without too much risk  and they had backed off and sent Jordan, Amy, and Ned out to Lost Springs.  We continued to give Randy sips of gator aid and place warm rocks by chilled boy parts and adjusting things to make him as comfortable as we could considering the limitations.
 
It must have been about 3:45 when someone commented “that is either a low flying airplane or a helicopter.”  We were all immediately scanning the sky.  In a few seconds we could hear the distinct sound of chopper blades and then we could spot the helicopter. What a wonderful sound and sight.
 
The helicopter came up to us and hovered over us and then went on.  It totally disappeared for a minute or two but then it came back and landed about 40 feet away on a rock ledge.  I was impressed that the pilot would land it so close to the wall.  I had thought we would be carrying Randy down canyon 500 yards or so.  The EMT got out and came over and assessed the situation and then Randy.  They splinted his left leg, left the Sam’s splint in place on the right leg and started an IV, placed a cervical collar and then had us all help log roll Randy and get him on the back board.  Once on the back board he was secured and off to the helicopter.  The helicopter was small and none of us were going to be able to go with Randy but they said they would take his pack.  I think that the guys stuffed it to the gills with rope and equipment.   The helicopter from Grand Junction was busy so they had flown from Page.   The pilot told us that the GPS coordinates that he was given were right on.
 
Once the helicopter left we began to stuff everyone’s things in packs including material left by those who went out before.  Equipment and things were mixed up but we just packed things in fast so we could get out before it got too dark.  I think that it must have been about 4:20 when we started out of the canyon.  There was a general sense of great relief that Randy was on his way to the hospital.  He would be in Price before we reached the cars.
 
A park ranger met us before we reached Lost Spring Canyon.  I walked with him and talked as we walked until things became a little disorganized up front.  Then I took the lead and Jeff talked with the Park Ranger.  Once in the lead I kind of pushed it and didn’t stop until we were at the SAR staging area.  A cold front and storm was coming through and Bego, the SAR field commander at the scene, wanted us back to I-70 ASAP.  By that time it was getting dark fast.  We got into cars and headed up out of there and our guys in their cars were headed down towards us.  At the junction to LS we stopped and got everyone in their various cars and headed up Yellow Cat Road.  The road was a muddy mess and we had to stop at times to clear off the windshields and the headlights so we could see.  Travel was slow but we eventually reached I-70. 
 
We stopped in Green River and showered, cleaned up and ate.
 
We stopped in Price and saw Randy briefly in the recovery room.  He had been taken to the OR to wash out the open fracture.  I went over the x-rays with the orthopedist.  He had three different vertebral body fractures, a sacrum fracture, sacral - pelvic fracture, and bilateral tibial plafond fractures.  While we were there the helicopter arrived to transport him to U of U hospital in SLC.
 
 Randy is in a hospital in SLC doing very well all things considering.  He won't have to have surgery on the back or pelvis or so I'm told right now.  They did one ankle on 23 Jan and will do the other ankle later this week.  
 
 This story isn’t complete. There are 14 others who were there. They each has a different perspective and they each have details that I don’t have. The story really isn’t complete until they each add their portion.
 
 
Thoughts
 
I find sitting and waiting to be a hard thing to do.  Maybe it is my training where we evaluate the patient, do an intervention, instruct the nurse on what to do and move on.  I would have been happy if the group had decided that they really wanted me to run all the way to the car without stopping.  Then I would have a clear goal and a known endpoint.  After Randy was in position with coats under him and the emergency blanket & coats on top of him, gloves and baklava on, and splinted there wasn’t much more we could do for him.  We could talk and ask if he wanted fluid.  We warmed rocks to help, built a windbreak when the sun went behind the rim but it was a lot of waiting.  How long would we have to wait?  Two hours?  Four hours? Eight?  Maybe all night.  We didn’t know and had no way to contact even our group to know what was transpiring in the world outside our little rock.  Once each of the three groups went down canyon a few feet they essentially had left our world and we wondered if they had made it.  Had they been hurt?  Did the cell phone have service early or were they still working to get to the car?  Should we prepare for the night?  What happened to the group that went to explore things on the south side of the canyon?  They were going to return and tell us what they found but it seemed like they had been gone a long time with no word from them.  Did they try to push it and get hurt?  Did they follow instructions and play it safe and stay with the known or did they try to cut the time by taking risks.  Were they lost on some shortcut?  So many things going on but so much of it beyond my control and without my knowledge.  I found it very hard to remain calm and wait for it all to come together.  I felt that Dan was much better at it.  He had more patience and was better at taking care of Randy.  I wanted to be doing something.  That may be part of the reason that I considered moving Randy once the sun went behind the ridge and why we build the stretcher.  Darrin and Scott helped with the stretcher and the fire and everything else.  They were great to have around.  It felt better when Jake and Jeff returned.  They didn’t bring us helpful news but at least it was something. 
 
My experience with climbing is that we usually cede decision making to the better climber.  So if I see a route and say I can’t do that but someone that I know is better than me says that they think they can do it I will say ok I’ll belay you.  I’m not accustomed to questioning their decisions.  Now if someone is a known fool it is a different story or if someone who’s skills I consider inferior to mine decides something I’m not comfortable with, then I’ll question it.  I might question my son’s decision making even though his skills are superior to mine but I don’t question colleagues that have superior skills.  I think that everyone there is questioning themselves about why we let Randy go out there.   We all knew it was dangerous.  We knew that there was no way to adequately protect the area.  Yet not one of us including me said “don’t risk it Randy.  You might be able to make it but the risk is too high.”  I’ll live with that the rest of my life.
 
When I got home my wife decided to take me to task for doing dangerous things.  The implication being that maybe I should give up on these type of activities and live in a padded room where no one could get hurt.  It reminded me of a Star Trek the Next Generation episode.  Piccard’ s heart was failing.  He had been stabbed in the heart while in star fleet academy and in a fight with some bad guys and now years later he was dying because of it.  If only he had chosen differently when he was younger this could have been avoided.  While he is in a coma Q comes to him and offers him a do over.  He can live his life again and always make appropriate decisions.  So it shows his life.  When met with choices he always chose the path with the least risk, the safe choice.  He didn’t have any heart problems but instead of an interesting and exciting star fleet captain he became a dull, boring, pathetic person who worked as an astrophysics lab underling and was of interest to no one.  He came to recognize this and asked for his life back with all its problems.   I’m not giving up canyoneering.  I’m going to learn from my mistakes and be better, safer, and wiser.  I’m also going to help others be better and safer.  This was an avoidable accident.  There were errors in judgment and none of those involved are solely responsible.  Unfortunately, Randy is left to bear the brunt of the pain but we can all learn from it.  It is my sincere hope that those who read this report can gain a little wisdom the easy way and not have to repeat our mistakes.
 
 
Things to consider
 
I’ve talked with an anesthesiologist friend who feels that it would be better to push fluids.  Things like gator aid, tea, water, relatively clear juices.  Not hot chocolate.
 
Warm fluids go a long way to help with body heat.  A jet boil or something similar weighs very little and could be brought along.  Even having a titanium cup would allow use of the fire to warm fluid.
 
If someone is hurt and laying down flat it is hard for them to drink.  The reservoirs with tubes made it easier than trying to drink from a bottle.  A straw may be useful in the emergency kit.
 
As far as the fire starter in the emergency kit.  The regular matches didn’t work.  The special wind proof Colibri emergency lighter made to light in all conditions didn’t.  I’ve been carrying that thing around for years and in its moment of need it failed. The REI fireproof matches worked great!
 
The Sam’s splint came in very handy
 
The narcotics came in handy.

It is crazy to drive out there this time of year. On the way out things are frozen and it goes well. During the day it thaws out and becomes a muddy mess on the road. Now if one would camp and wait until it froze up again—maybe 2 AM maybe 6 AM then it would work. Otherwise there are better places to go this time of year.
 
 
 
 
Thoughts from other members of the group

Mark (Dr. Rosen), thanks for sending this. It was interesting to read it - especially in light of me being in the other group and coming in after the accident. From my inexperienced eyes, I could not have been more impressed with how everything was handled. Obviously as you (we) look back we can say it would have been nice to do it this way or that, but in my opinion that's the entire point of this life. Make the best decision you can with all the information you have. Once the decision is made, make the best of it and try to make the best of it. Once all is done and you can reexamine the situation, use it to gain more knowledge, which can be used in future decisions.

It was great to meet you and I look forward to heading out with you again.

On a funnier note, you mention that when you took the lead you somewhat pushed it. During the trip, you had been explained to me as a guy who frequently pushes the speed and likes to go fast; therefore, when you took the lead, I mentally challenged myself to stay with you and to not fall behind. I haven't had that kind of leg pains and muscle strain since high-school wrestling. It was quite a mental battle for me to keep going and stay with you. I can't tell you how rewarding it was for me to be right with you heading up the final slope. At the top I wanted to lay down and die, but my inner accomplishment required me to continue standing as though I had won a great race. Thanks for the physical and mental challenge.

Darron J Miller
 I thought you all might want to see these. The Helicopter pilot got my email and sent these this morning.

I hope Randy is doing better this morning. He has been and will continue to be in my prayers.

I also wanted to let all of you know how impressed I was and am at your preparedness and willingness to do crazy things for a friend and someone in need. A very bad situation was made not so bad by each of you having prepared for years prior - never knowing what you would and wouldn't need to know and do. You are inspiring to me and though I wish it had been a forgettable weekend (or maybe memorable for a different reason), I will remember it as long as I live and when Randy has recovered, I will allow it to be a memory of inspiration and motivation. I hope that if/when I am in a situation where someone needs me to know or do something, I am as prepared as you were.

Thanks for letting me be a part of your group and I look forward to being out with you again soon.


Darron J Miller

From: share--1405439134476098172@windowslivemail.com [mailto:share--1405439134476098172@windowslivemail.com] On Behalf Of Erik Vognild
Sent: Sunday, January 23, 2011 9:15 AM
To: Darron Miller
Subject: Erik Vognild has shared photos with you




Erik Vognild shared the album moab arches rescue 22211 with you on Windows Live.

Here are some of the pictures from your adventure. You gentlemen were awesome help and it was much appreciated. I hope your friend fares well.
Erik V. (the bus driver)



View album





Spencer’s Group point of view-

When we were trying to find the exit point Mark and Randy were discussing the snow filed and I started to look around for another exit. Nothing was very apparent. Rand is one of our best climbers and when we decided to go out there I felt the same way that Mark does He is a skilled adult and I respect his skills and his decision making capability.

After the fall and Drue Kehl, Ben Neilson, and Myself started the walk. As we made our way out we found the arch that we were going to back track and walk over after we had got out of the canyon. After about 1-1/2 mile we found the canyon to walk up to get to Lost Springs. As we walked we did not talk a lot trying to move as fast as we could. Ben kept checking his cell and could only get about one bar which was not enough to make a call. About ½ mile after we turned right we exited the park. Still not enough cell phone service to make a call. We found the 4X4 trial and stared up that about ¼ of a mile from the top of the canyon at Lost Creek Campground Mike and Paul caught up with us we gave Mike Ben’s cell and Drue went with him with the GPS. Ben Paul and Myself kept going at a slower pace.

Drue and Mike were able to make the call at the top of the canyon. Once we got up there we made the 12.5 mile walk to the cars. Mike and Drue were still ahead of us and kept ahead of us it did not matter because the five of us knew that we had to get to the cars and get back to Lost Creek to get the rest of the group. We just kept going the road had toughed and it was mostly mud and slush which only made things go slower we were not going as fast of a pace as we did before because the call to 911 for Randy had already been made. At 3:30 we heard something like a helicopter and at 3:40 we could see it hovering. That was the best thing that had happened all day. We kept moving knowing we only had one choice to get to the cars for the rest of the group. About 5:15 and we were about ¾ from the cars we heard 4 wheelers and it was the ground SAR. They had enough seats to take us to the cars. We go to the cars and headed back to get the rest of the group.

Something interesting the sheriff that I rode with on the 4 wheeler told me that many times the whole group will stay with the injured person and expect SAR to get everyone out. I informed that we were men and a woman of action.

We got in the cars and headed back to get the rest I ended up driving Jeff’s truck I am sure that he regrets that now. I am very happy that no on e spent the night in the canyon.

Only added this to Mark’s version give the point of view for the group that walked to the car.

x-ray saturday

The surgeon said that the surgery went well. There are 17 pins in his right foot along with metal plates. There is no cartilage in his right ankle.

Saturday 7:30 am

Randy had a great night nurse. They brought him pain meds every hour round the clock. He said he hurts but it is in the ache stage. Last night was the worst pain he has had in his life. He is not is as much pain now, but he was better before surgery. We are both tired. His pain was too much to sleep, but not enough to have him writhing in pain.

We are still waiting on the doctors to do rounds. Kelly is here and after rounds I will go home to help with the house remodel. I can post new Randy picture's when I go home.

out of surgery and in pain

Randy had lot's of visitors show up after his operation today. I think I said surgery was long but it was 4 1/2 hours. His dad was here with him all day. It was Dreu who did the night shift. Around 4:45 he started to hurt more and more to the point he was cring out in pain. He didn't stop until the doctor gave orders to the nurse for some dilotted. The pain pain level 10 was over around 6:40 and down to a 6. All the staff and family knew how tuff Randy is so they didn't question his need for more pain meds. We hope to stay on top of the pain for the night. The doctor was just in and warned us it would be a long hard night. The nurse put a large bag of ice on his foot and elevated his legs up above his nose level.

I had planned to go home, but I changed my mind and cancelled all of my helpers at the hospital. I put my mom in charge of the kids. Thank you all for your understanding and going with the flow. Now I will find some food and deal with whatever the night brings.

Sugery is over on right leg

Randy is recovering from his long surgery in his room. His ankle is hurting and he is asking for pain meds. There are 17 screws, plates and wires in his right leg. More than in the left leg. He is hurting so much. He says that his legs feel like they are still moving. He is having 'trippy dreams' about it. The nurse thinks they are finished with his right leg as far as surgery goes. There will be x-rays taken in a little while.

Craig Walentine has been at the house building our ramp. His grandson Jordan was just released from the icu in nevada. That sweet man. I had no idea he was going through his own trama at the same time! I told him he could leave and go. But he insisted that he wanted to stay here and keep busy. That really touched my heart. Eddy Bradly was helping him out as well.

The case worker nurse said to me today (before surgery was finished) that if surgery goes well Randy could come home as soon as Tuesday. I was both excited and a bit nervous as to how we would get our projects completed in time. I made some calls and we will hope for the best. There is a possibility it won't be that soon. Always variables with post operations with complications. Let's all pray that he heals well.

Here is the view out Randy's window. He can't see out but it paints a good picture of how I feel inside.

Friday= Surgery for sure

9:20 a.m. They are taking Randy down to prep him for surgery now. It will be about an 8 hour surgery. His right ankle has many breaks to fix and they will be difficult even for the most skilled surgeon. His dad is with him. I had to get everyone to school and I won't have time to make it there before he goes.

I talked to Randy on the phone until they started to prep him. He is so happy to have surgery. He slept with his feet as high as he could to reduce the swelling. He said the doctor was still a bit hesitant but said that it was much improved so her would go ahead and do it. I wished him luck, told him I loved him, and I will go back to sleep until I have to work and take Tanner to school. I will pick up my kids from school and be able to be back at the hospital before Randy is out of surgery.

Thursday= still no surgery

My Father in Law stayed the night with Randy. After the kids went to school (I left Austen at home with Tanner)I arrived in time to see the surgeon and have him look at Randy's right foot. He said although the swelling was down, the surgery site of the ankle was still too swollen to operate. He apologized and let the nurses know Randy could eat and drink again. The exam was quite painful for Randy.

I told the surgeon that Doc Rosen said what a beautiful job he had done. The surgeon blushed (wow) and said" why, thank you for sharing that with me. Be sure to thank him for me as well."

Then another hospital day, trying to keep Randy's feet comfortable. Visitors, a bath, nap etc.

Surgery for tomorrow is tentative and not planned until 10- 12.

I forgot to mention that Tanner had a follow up Dr. appointment today. Austen took him for me and I sent a note. The appointment was at the same time as the surgery was to be. The doctor called me and we were able to get things taken care of. Austen missed school to do this for me.

Just checked me emails. Doc Rosen put together a great story page with all the boys point of view of Randy's story. It is great and after I get permission I will share it with all of you. I still can't wait to get the pictures from Dan Turney. It is a great way to see the story.

I am getting quite exhausted running in between my hospital life and 'normal' life. The mental drain can be too taxing for me at times. I plan on working tomorrow for two hours just to have a mental break from the drama. I started to get the shakes this morning. I had them every time I was away from Cooper. It is just the stress. Going to work and having a different focus will be a good break. A nice visit to normal if you will.

The kids are doing okay. The older two worry. Tanner is anxious. Cooper seems to take it all in stride. I think he feels like a hospital veteran. He knows the drill of post-poning and not having a time line.

Wednesday= not the surgery day

I took a couple of calls on my way to the hospital today. One was Drew Krill. He will be doing my bathroom construction and even offered to make it not only functional but pretty as well. He even said I could have a hand in choosing the tile for the floor. That was so sweet of him. I told him it could be whatever he wanted. Randy had just re tiled last year, but there isn't any left over.

My mom-in-law called me when the doctors came in this morning. (I was in the parking lot) The surgeon decided to post-pone the surgery because Randy's ankle is still too swollen. They are hoping for tomorrow instead.

He was getting two bags of blood today. One while I was away and one while I am here. His hematocrit was low. Getting the blood helped his oxygen levels increase. It also took care of his nose bleed. Now his machine beeps less.

Today when the P.T people came in they were impressed by the large show of family. His parents were here, plus Tanner and I had arrived. My dad came in a bit later, visited for about 1 1/2 hrs and then took Tanner to school for me. The two people were discussing how soon Randy could come home, what needed done at the house, how to teach him to transfer and things of this nature. They can see his big support system so they would like to do his training here and send him home as soon as possible. But of course we have to wait until surgery or surgeries are over.

Currently Matt from physical therapy is here. He is smart enough to realise that if we put Randy into a sitting position his foot will swell and post pone surgery even more. So he is only going to work with Randy's upper body today and leave his feet alone. This is great! He is trying to prevent bed sores and pneumonia. This is why he wants to move Randy a bit. We are even going to get a trapeze bar. Super! The nurse had talked about it but nothing materialized...

I just stopped typing long enough to speak to Matt. I told him my concerns about moving Randy with his broken pelvis and back. I understood the surgeon to say that Randy should not be moving his pelvis and spine for 3 months. I wondered how we could better use the bedpan. I am also worried because they are talking about doing transfers starting tomorrow. He is currently off checking with the surgeon for me. He was very sweet about this and said that my concern was valid. He didn't know of all of this information. So he would get in touch with the surgeon himself. Oh how I LOVE it when people take the time to know for themselves all the story, and not rush into things. Matt is so awesome!!

Matt is back. He spoke to the doctor. It is okay to roll Randy on his good side. It is also okay to change positions a little bit without causing swelling to his feet. After surgery transfers are also okay. It is just the pressure of standing on his feet that would mess up the pelvis and back. That would cause too much pressure to the area's. But gentle rolling and careful transfers will be okay. And prevent the bedsores and pneumonia. What a relief.


Randy was able to have a bowel movement today with the bedpan. No luck urinating however. The nurse said this is common with pelvic injuries. I stayed in the room to see how in the world they put a bed pan under him without moving his hips or spine. They don't! The surgeon told me that his spine and hips should NOT move for 3 months. Randy told this new nurse that the previous nurse had been moving him onto his right side. I just about died! His right hip is the one that is 'scrunched' as the doctor put it. I didn't get upset with anyone but I calmly explained what the surgeon had told me. The other nurse who was assisting listened and then said that they needed to use a different bed pan. It took 3 of us to roll him onto his left side. I asked if there was any other way and got no answer. When the rehab guys were in I asked the same thing but they told me it was too difficult.

Randy told me that the staff had been moving his bad leg with the metal rods that are sticking through it. My friend Tricia lived through this with her husband. I remembered her telling me that the staff with Justin was doing the same thing and that it was ripping his skin. (he lost his leg). So I wrote on the board NOT to do this with Randy.

I spoke to Troy McBride this morning while driving into the parking garage as well. They are being super! Troy said that they had no intention of dropping Randy from health insurance. (I didn't think so) He had been looking into how to help us out with disability. He also said that Randy had enough money from his next check to pay our portion of health insurance for this month. That next months premiums should be paid by his vacation days that he won't be taking. And that for the 3rd month if need they could "come up with more vacation days as needed". Love the McBride family! I told him just to send me a bill or call me if and when I need to give them money to keep paying our portion of the premiums to ensure that my whole family has health insurance. (we pay about $650 a month plus our dental and McBride pays the rest.)

My aunt Inez sent me a beautiful card with a nice note and some "gas money". Thank you for your generous amount:) A girl Jody that I went to school with has offered to send some money. She just lost her father and is thinking of us. This is very sweet. I am feeling so much better about things. I know it will be long and a bit difficult but I also know that we can handle it with all of your love and support. Thank you all.

Randy's eye and nose

I forgot to mention that Randy's left eye is very bloodshot. The lower part looks like it is filled with blood. He gets it a little bit (not as much as it is now) when he gets really run down or over worked. He also has a bloody nose. He asked another day, and I asked last night if we could get some humidity in his oxygen. When he asked the nurse said he would ask the doctors if it was alright. When I asked the (different) nurse said "we don't usually do that, I could get you a nose spray." And she did right away.
I know they do. Cooper had one. And our c-paps at home have one. Plus the oxygen Tanner was suppose to be on at home had one. I even have the saline bottles to hook up to it at home. I just might bring one with me today. I hope we get helpful nurse today. Or even better, I will ask the doctors when they take him to surgery.

All of his nurses have been nice. Some are just slower than others. And some not as useful. But everyone is nice. And they all say that Randy is their most pleasant patient.

It's funny how he has only been there a few days but it feels like weeks to me. I think it is because it is day-sho-vu. (no clue how to spell a French word) At this point also known as P.T.S.D. It is all too reminiscent of Cooper's stay. The difference is at Primary's I knew where all the supplies were. The nurses were fine with me getting supplies. This place the only thing I have access to is an ice machine around many corners. Not just one down the hall. And there is not a community computer to use to keep me informed. But Jeff brought in his laptop for us to borrow last night. So this will be very useful. I can keep up to date while there, and when Randy feels better he can as well.

While taking the girls to High School today Karly and I were able to talk for a minute. She asked about Dad. Then she remembered to tell me that the Castle Dale hospital called to see how Randy was. She said that they probably thought she was me. They wondered how long he would be at the hospital. She thought Randy wasn't home because we didn't have the ramp and doors ready. I told her it was because his surgery's were not over with. "oh, sorry." she replied. No problem. I should just call them later I said. But really, the list of people to return phone calls to is staggering. So probably not all that important. But it is touching that they would take the time to check. I guess that comes from being a small town. I forgot how tight knit that can feel. Rather sweet actually.

Tuesday-the meeting

Today was a long day. I got the kids off to school. Drove one carpool and Steph took my turn on the other carpool. I could have done it, but I was on the computer planning out Randy's schedule and got carried away. (Thank you Steph)

Then it was off to the hospital. The snow made the roads quite dangerous. I saw 4 cars faced the wrong direction on the freeway. There were two that spun out of control in front of me. It took an hour but we arrived safely. Tanner and I were not able to stay too long because he has afternoon kindergarten. I helped him try to pee (no luck) opened the blinds and arranged his sheets and things. We had a nice short visit. I really liked his nurse today. I asked her for some lotion for his ever growing scrotum. Cooper's was bigger, but Randy's is quite swollen. Cooper ended up getting a chafing rash, then got the lotion. So I thought we would get lotion first this time.

My mom was nice enough to drive out in the crazy weather to relieve me of my post. The social workers came to talk to Randy as I was leaving. Then it was off to school and volunteering. Drive everyone home, answer calls, dinner arrived (thanks Tondevold's it was delicious!) Talk to McBride plumbing. The boss asked what they could do for us. I said my standard nothing, but then remembered something. I asked if they could move our bathroom sink so that Randy's wheelchair would fit into the bathroom. He said sure, we can do that. Then I asked how much notice they would need to put us in the schedule. He said, " you just call us and we will come right over". How great right? When I told this to Randy he said, " You have no idea how much that touched me." And then cried, and asked for a hug. He then told me all the people who had offered to do anything for us. I then told him the many people who had told me the same thing.

Today Barbara brought us some bread. Angie Cooper bought us milk and gave us a gift card to walmart (where I buy Tanner's milk) Brandon offered to give me back my gift of $100 and add a gift card to smith's for the same amount. Craig Walentine came over to measure for the ramp and door ways. We have a great support system for Randy.

Then back to the hospital. The nurse came in to sit Randy up. I wondered how they were doing this. Basically the push the buttons on the bed and put him into a chair like position. It is painful but he said it gets less painful each time. Afterwards they lower the bed and he uses his arms to pull himself back up to the head of the bed because gravity has slipped him down. His right foot was super swollen after this adventure. The left one as well but not as much. Then he needs a great big rest.

My mom had waited for me. She said Randy had some important visitors. She could see the love they have for him and the comradely. This helped me to remember why Randy so badly wanted to go to St. George even though he had two kids having surgery on the same day as the trip. He ended up NOT going, but that was also because the guys called and told him his place was with his family, and they PROMISED to invite him again. Which they did. And he loved every second of it.

Later in the evening Jeff, Mark, and Paul came for our meeting. It was very productive and there were actual notes taken. Mark was with Randy so I got to hear the story of someone who saw it. Dan Turney who was also there had taken some terrific photo's of everything and documented them with times and added maps. He gave the 'book' to Jeff who brought it and showed us all. There was even a picture of Randy right before he fell. This was so good for me to see and hear! I can't wait to get a copy.

Then Paul re-told the story of why no one could call me and this time it made sense. And Jeff did tell Tom to call me, but Tom wasn't going to until Randy assured him that I could handle it. Now that part made sense too!

I was able to explain to the guys why I was so upset on Sunday. I wanted to hear it from a familiar voice, but at least I got the call. Also when Randy came out of surgery I thought he would be beat, and I wanted to see him first, then have the kids see him. Then bring in all the rappelling family. I just don't share well. It wasn't that I didn't want them there. I think they could understand that now. I did apologize for over reacting. Paul reassured me that they still love me, and they know how I can be:) I could feel the love.

The men are doing an amazing job of thinking about what we need and finding great solutions for the problems. Jeff asked Randy and I what else we were worried about and is working on it now. There will be a spread sheet for volunteers in the future that will be easier to use. Keep your eye's peeled.

Tricia texted me during our meeting. Her husband had a similar accident and lost his leg in the process, but is lucky to be alive. She said that Justin is just worried sick about Randy and that she cries every time she read this blog. That is what touched me! I think only fellow Post Traumatic Stress Disorder suffers can appreciate this little fact. Love you guys!!

Randy's next surgery will be Wed (tomorrow) at 12 noon.

My sweet friend Barbara called today. She is willing to go back to work (she recently quit) and cover my students for me. The best part is.. she is going to let me get the pay! Now that is amazing. So far I am only having her cover for me on Wednesday so that I can be with Randy on surgery day. I am taking this just a day or two at a time.

Thank you everyone for your kindness and prayers.

volunteer list

I am trying to get a list together for this week and next to sit with Randy at the
hospital when I can't be there. If you can fill in the gaps please let me know by today.
Feel free to call or text me. You can email me but I will be at the hospital this
morning; but home for school and work after 3 so I can check my emails after 3. I will
be meeting with Jeff tonight at 7 to coordinate schedule's and other things he has
planned for us. Just click on comment to let me know what you can do. Thanks.


Tue 25th

Wendy 9:30-11:30
11:30am- 4:30pm Mary Walton
9:30pm- morning Jeff Dredge

Wed 26th
7am - 2 LuJane Willes
10-7 Wendy
_________
9:30- morning Cory


Thur 27th
Ron 7:00 am -
as soon as Tanner's doc appoint is over =Wendy
5:00 Trevor
6:30 Kim
Night Ron Willes

Friday 28th
Ron 7:00 am - 10
Kelly 4- Sat
9:30-11:30 Wendy
6-9 pm Spencer
night Kelly



Saturday 29th
RAMP DAY
am Kelly
12noon -end of day Wendy
night Austen

Sunday 30th
am Jerry
Wendy - all day
night Denise

Monday 31st
I need help all day! I work 9-6
7am_____________
night______________

Tue 1st

9:30am -11:30 WEndy
11:30-_______________
5:30pm -9:00 Wendy
night Kara

WEdnesday 2nd

I need help I work 9-4
day____________________
night ______________

Thur 3rd

9:30 -11:30 WEndy (Tanner has school at 12:30)

1:30 - end of day WEndy
6:00-_________________
night__________________


Friday 4th
9:30 -11:30 Wendy and TAnner
11:30__________________
1:30-6pm Wendy
night______________________

Monday 11pm

The little boys and I just got back from seeing Randy. Daniel Willes is going to spend the night tonight. Randy looked a lot worse than yesterday. His voice is rough, his face is puffy and he says he feels like he was hit by a truck.

Both feet are oosing stuff. They are 'suppose' to. I helped him prop his legs up higher and scratch all of his itches. Then he told me his stomach was really hurting so I rubbed it for a while. He said it really helped. He tried to use the hand held potty without any success. All so reminiscent of Cooper's stay. Randy was hot, sweaty, itchy and stomach hurt with gas pains. All stuff Cooper had as well. I need to bring up a back scratcher for him.

Seeing him so miserable has soften my heart. I now feel the way I thought I would and should. I can't be mad any more. I told him how sorry I am for being so grouchy yesterday. He said it was okay, he understood, there was just too much stress. I thanked him and told him I still wish I could have handled it better.

After work Andrea gathered the Riches up and brought them over to measure my house for a ramp and wider door ways. Mike Henry also came to help out. We will need a ramp and widen two doors along with moving the sink and vanity out of the way.

I called Jeff. He said he already has a crew to make us a ramp for free, Mark Rosen will help with all of the medical paperwork (truly a godsend! I despise doing that)and Paul will go to Randy's work with me to make sure that they will keep him 'employed' so we don't loose our health insurance. (if we did that would be a nightmare-too unimaginable to think about right now) The ward has meals taken care of for a while. Meals make it so I can spend more time with Randy which will be nice.
This is all a huge relief and burden lifted from me. Jeff and I will meet in Randy's room tomorrow night and go over things together so we can stop double planning, and we can come up with a schedule for sitting with Randy. Things are starting to feel do able. Thank you Jeff and buddies! You're all so amazing to be so kind even when I am fuming. Thank you everyone.

At work today everyone offered condolences and help. One mom of my students even gave me some money and told me that her brother in law makes ramps for a living and he would be willing to help us. How wonderful is that? Another tutoring mom let me know that she also has metal in her foot and she can get around just fine. Another relief.

Funny story: My mom comes to pick Tanner up for me on Mon and Wed because I can't be in three places at the same time. So today was no different. My mom came for Tanner and I drove the school carpool, dropped off kids, and went to work. I get out of the van turn to shut the door and I hear..."Surprise"

It was Tanner! He had stowed away on the floor under the rear seat of the van. Quiet as a mouse. How surprising is that? Who knew he could be quiet that long. I was upset of course and dragged him inside with me. I called my mom to come pick him up. She had searched every where and figured he was with me. But she almost couldn't find him at my work. He was hiding under the sofa in the waiting room! What a little peanut. This prompted my mom to tell me that she wants to have a talk with the kids to tell them to be more cooperative.

After school Karly helped Cooper with his homework (I was still at work). Cooper even did the weeks worth of spelling all in one night! This is all very amazing. Love it:)

Oh ya, I talked with the night nurse. No one knows for sure when Randy will come home. We still don't know if he will go to rehab and back to the hospital or not. So far it's still one day at a time. But no worries. We can do this thanks to everyone's wonderful support.

Day two=Monday

After a good nights sleep I feel a bit better. Jeff was nice enough to stay the night with Randy. Randy's parents came back into town and are staying with him today. I called to talk to Randy. I can't be there because I work Monday's from 9-6.

The doctors think he may also have broken his left arm. It has been "tender" since his fall according to Randy. He is so tough that tender could easily mean broken. They did more x-rays and other test today. No word on those yet.

PT and OT came in today. My mom-in-saw and brother told me Randy is quite tired today. And that all the test made him quite sore. He has his turtle shell on and the doc's had him sit up for something. It hurt.

So to summarize: He can't put any weight on his feet for a minimum of 3 months
His spine and pelvis should correct themselves while he is on bed rest

Mike Henry said I can't take Randy home until I get a ramp for my front door and be sure that the doorway's are big enough for his wheel chair to get to the bathroom.

The troops arrive

After we got our food we sat down to eat. My phone rang again. It was Sharlyn. She and Corey had driven up to the hospital and wanted to visit. I told her Randy was still not out of surgery but they could come to the cafeteria.

What a site! They came through the doors in a crowd. Sharlynn, Corey, Jeff, Johnathan, and Mike Henry. Luckily for me Jeff started the introduction's because I was too stunned to do it. As we talked I saw the two doctors who had assisted with Randy's surgery at the next table. After we were done one of them came over to talk to me about the operation. Since Mike also works at the U they gave him all the doctor speak and filled everyone in on things. Then we headed up to Randy's room to hopefully see him.

We had a long wait (hours). Jordan and Amy joined us and brought me food:) Very nice. As the wait dragged on Jeff pulled out his laptop and showed us the pictures from the site, and told us the story as he had heard it. Plus the part after he had arrived on the scene.

My mom called and wondered when she and the kids could come. I told her Randy should be out any minute and come whenever they could. I couldn't wait for my kids to see him. I knew they would feel better. They had all been so upset with worry. The two oldest ones cried. I forgot to mention that when my brother came over he had offered up a family prayer for us.

Randy finally came up to his room! The wait had been long even for him. Everyone talked and laughed. Randy was in good spirits as always. After a while some people left. My mom and the kids arrived. I was so happy to see them. I could tell Randy was too. Cooper had a lot of questions. But before I could answer him he answered himself. Oh, ya just like when I was at the hospital, etc. etc. Then more visitors arrived. More talk about what had happened (again no one from his group was there just the others who came upon the scene.) Mary, Paul, and Denise joined in. Jeff was still there too. Mary was nice enough to take my kids to the cafeteria for some food. My head started to spin. I was super tired and had a headache.

Then something crazy happened. People were planning another Moab trip to the same spot and talked like Randy was coming. They even said that the rescue ranger people wanted to come along for it. More talk about how great they are, how they only needed a helicopter for rescue because they can do everything else. I had a melt down. I asked my mom if she wanted to take the kids home or if I should. She said she would when they were ready. So I decided to go home. I said good-bye to Karly and said a grumpy good-bye to Randy and I was off. I had asked Randy if he was fine will all of the fuss, he said he was. I wasn't. That is why I decided to go. Randy is the patient, not me. So it was my problem and I just couldn't seem to stop getting upset with everyone's comments. I know they all love us and are trying to help. But since I couldn't handle it I needed to be the one to leave.

Randy's story told by Wendy

I must admit that I am worried to write this part. I am 100 % sure that Randy will correct it a.s.a.p. But here it goes:
He said he was walking over a ledge (Jeff showed me the picture of it later that day) to tie a rope for the others. It was a narrow ledge that his feet couldn't quite fit on and full of ice and snow. Just as he got to the other side and put his hand where he wanted to grab on.. his feet slipped in the ice. He slid down the canyon steep wall about 20 or so feet. Then he pendulumed over into the other side of the wall. By this time the wind was knocked out of him and he doesn't remember anything until he is on the ground.

He was tied into Mark Rosen and there were about 4 others next to Mark who pulled on the rope. This stopped him from hitting the bottom. I have not spoken to anyone who was with Randy at the time of the fall.

Jeff and his group were meeting up with Randy's group. From the stories that were told by the other group in Randy's U of U hospital room while we waited for him to get out of surgery (and while he arrived and tried to rest after surgery) I have surmised that Mark or someone yelled down to him. He didn't respond. They lowered him to the ground another 20 feet or so. Climbed around and down to him. Mark the surgeon addressed his ankles and tried to split them. He knew they were both broken. The right one being a compound fracture (meaning exposed bone). Randy said that he yelled up to the guys, "I have a broken leg!" on his way down.
Some of the faster "runner" types went out of the canyon to call 911. Jeff was told to scout out a landing spot for the chopper. He came back with some wood for the splint. Mark had wanted to make a stretcher and carry Randy out to a good spot, but Jeff said not to move Randy and Mark agreed. The men covered Randy up with all of their extra coats and blankets. (I saw the picture. You could only see Randy's nose sticking out.) The chopper came soon and landed quite close. Who ever was still with Randy helped the chopper guy load Randy onto and into the chopper.

Randy said he was so relieved to see the chopper. He said he was hurting quite badly by then and was cold. He even made some connection with the guy. Knows someone who know's him type thing, but I couldn't understand what Randy was saying by then. He was getting a bit sloppy in his words and was drifting in and out.
The doctors talked to us about his surgery. He was to have both feet worked on. Hopefully fix the left one and put a 'halo' on the right one until the swelling went down enough on it to operate. If time permitted they would put a big cross bar of steel into his pelvis to stablise the brake there. The spine specialist had looked at the breaks in his back. One burst and one compound compression. They said they didn't need to operate on the spine because since he can't walk for so long the back would heal itself while he was laid up. The specialist also said he was very lucky. His back burst went out instead of in. If it had gone in they would need to operate to get all the shards out of his spinal cord fluid. But it went out AND missed all of the nerves. No one could believe that he didn't have any nerve damage. (That would have caused him to be paralized.)

We got word that there was someone in need of an emergency surgery and we would be waiting for them to finish before we could get Randy back. He was sleeping a lot and I was exhausted. It was 8 am and I had not slept yet. The guy who was waiting with us (nurse?) offered to let me sleep in an empty bed next to Randy and he drew the curtain for me. I had trouble falling asleep due to worry and my phone, but I did sleep for at least one solid hour and it was wonderful. I was awakened by the people taking Randy back to surgery. We said our good-byes. I returned some texts, rested a bit and then went to find the waiting room.

My dad was in the waiting room when I arrived. He had been looking all over for me. We waited together for hours. Met a nice man named Ron from Ely Nevada (where my dad was born). After 5 hours I got a call that they were just wrapping up on his left leg. They had put metal plates inside and outside to hold his ankle together and they would be starting on the other foot. I assumed they wouldn't have time for the pelvis and they agreed.
Knowing it would take a long time I went to eat the orange I had packed in Randy's room. I had hoped to rest but the social worker came in to talk with me and give me papers. My dad then found me and we decided to go eat our first meal of the day at 6pm. He had been fasting for Randy! How sweet and surprising.

thought

I know I shouldn't be mad. I know Randy is super lucky to be alive, and even luckier to not be paralyzed. But it is hard. Lot's of work ahead of us. More hospital bills to debate. I need to apply for medical disability for him. etc. etc.

I forgot to mention that Tom the helicopter person called the next day while Randy was in surgery to check on him. How thoughtful right? And I just called my mother in law. She told me that Tom came to the hospital to see Randy for himself and check on him. (Monday afternoon) What an amazing nice guy! Love that stranger. I am sorry I didn't get to meet him.

The wait at the E.R.

Kelly and Keith were kind enough to wait with me in the E.R waiting room. They were also able to get the staff to let me in to see Randy in between some of their assessments and test. That was wonderful! So good to see him and talk with him. Hes legs were wrapped up so I didn't get to see how mangled they are. When he went off for another MRI I sat with the Gray's until they assigned Randy a room. They helped me find it and I let them go after a few hours.
Jeff arrived at the hospital shortly after they left. I think that was around 1 am. He tried to wait for Randy while we bantered back and forth. Me being upset, and him saying how careful everyone was, how prepared they are for this, etc. Then we went for a long walk to try to find Randy. I think we did but he was in a closed room getting his MRI. (we could hear the ping, ping,) So we went back to his room and Jeff went home with the promise of returning in the morning.
Good thing too. Randy didn't get to his room until 4:30 AM! So exhausting. Then by the time everyone did their thing he wasn't hooked up to anything until 6ish. And they said surgery would be at 7 am.
They took him down at 7 am but due to another patients emergency he was pushed back until 9. I was able to wait with him in the bay and for the most part we were alone. This was the first time I was able to get his side of the story.

p.s.

When I was talking to Jeff before I went to the U he said that the helicopter was too small for anyone to ride with Randy. He said the group of people who ran ahead to get cell service to call 911 couldn't call me because they didn't know my number. (funny, I am listed and 411 still works) The doc and Jeff were one of the last ones out of the canyon so they couldn't call me either. Jeff said he told the chopper guy to call me.

At least I got a call. Jeff also called me while I was waiting for Randy at the U to let me know what was going on after he arrived at the castle dale hospital. Randy had asked to see him and had Jeff give him a blessing. His buddies also gave him a blessing after the fall while they were awaiting the chopper. They lowered him down the rest of the 30 feet and then covered him in a giant pile of coats and blankets to keep him warm.

When I spoke to Randy at the castle dale hospital he told me that his friends had taken really good care of him. He was still in good spirits and even talking about going rappelling again! (I said I will divorce him if he goes again.)

next

I knew I didn't have the full story, plus I wanted to see Randy myself. So I did the next best thing. I called my cousin Kathy in Price. I asked her to check on him and tell me what they could see.
The phone rang again. It was a doctor from Castle Dale. He said Randy was going into surgery for his ankles and he would be spending the night.
I called my brother who had offered to drive me down there. Mom was on her way over to watch the kids.
I started packing and scrambling for what to do.

Then before my family arrived another doctor called me to say that he was overseeing this other doctor and looking at his mri's. Randy's injury's were extensive and he had no business being in such a small hospital. He had a broken back and tail bone along with his ankles. As soon as Randy was stable and the weather permitted they would get him to slc. They had only washed out his right ankle because that is the one where the bone had broken through the skin. They were worried about infection. The doctor didn't want Randy to ride by ambulance because it could injure his spine more.

I called Jeff. I had not heard from any of the rappelling buddies. I asked who was with Randy. (I had already gotten the answer when I asked the doctor.) NO ONE. Who was going to be with him? I demanded. Jeff said he was on his way to be with him. Good. I didn't want Randy to be alone. I was a lot farther away then any of them. I was wishing that Rosen could be with Randy to operate and I said so, but Randy told me it wasn't possible. Then the red tape of insurance flooded into my head and realized he wouldn't have privileges there anyway.

When my mom and brother arrived my mom told me that my aunt Inez talked to Rick and Kathy and they were quite concerned. Then I was worried. But also relieved to know that someone was with him and to know what was going on.
I couldn't take the barrage of phone calls and so I went to the U to wait for Randy to arrive by air.

While I was waiting for hours I was texting and worrying. Keith and Kelly Gray came to give me a blessing. (they had asked me and I was happy to accept.) It was very late but they came and were able to be there with me when Randy got off the chopper. The doctors let us follow him into the E.R. It was about 12 midnight.

The phone call

Randy went rappelling with his "rappelling family" this weekend. They left on Friday and were due back Saturday night late. Randy texted me to let me know they got there safe and sound. He said he would call me the next day.
Saturday the kids and I were busy cleaning and playing. I kept thinking he should call me but then I would get busy.
The phone rang at 5. It was a stranger. He said, "hello this is Tom. I just had the pleasure of giving your husband a helicopter ride into green river."
me, "crap, what happened?"
him, " laugh, your husband wanted me to call you, I don't usually do this but he said you are the type of person who can handle it."
He then proceeded to tell me how Randy fell while in moab, the doctor who climbs with them said he had two broken ankles. He was at the castle dale hospital. Don't come yet because they will most likely transfer him soon. Plus it's not worth you getting hurt. He or a doctor would call me back. He just wanted me to know that Randy was alive and talking. He kept saying how sorry he was to have to be the one to call me.