What I Did Over My Summer Break

[juliegee]

Hello my DINET friends, old & new!

Forgive my absence. I have missed you all & tried to keep track of everyone by occasionally logging on. You've been in my prayers even though I haven't had the energy to physically spend much time on the computer and respond. Thank you to all of my sweet and wonderful friends who've checked on us over these months. Your inquiries and good wishes have meant so much.

My husband had a serious bicycle accident at the beginning of the summer...after Mack collapsed from heat stroke and dehydration. That was a fun couple of days (Several local Michigan newspapers picked the story up. I will include it below.) I have spent most of the summer nursing them both back to health. Bruce (hubby) is recovering somewhat. He can only use his left elbow 20-30 degrees- normal is 180. He's about 10 degrees shy of being able to straighten it. His hand feels very heavy to him so it hangs limply. He looks a little bit like a very flamboyant gay ape He can only raise the elbow to 90 degrees. We are hopeful that he may get a little more improvement.

Mack is almost back to his "normal." He's off to college- 5 to 6 hours (depending on traffic) away. he's been there a week and seems to be settling in very well. For anyone with children who are very ill- I pray this will give you hope. Mack was bedridden for a year and has recovered enough to at least attempt to attend a university far from home. We met with the medical director there and the disability office. They are well aware of Mack's needs and have offered fabulous accomodations. (I'd be happy to talk with anyone about the post-secondary process.) For now, I talk to him almost daily & pray a lot.

Thank you again for all of your prayers and good wishes. They meant so much. Hugs to all. If you want the full scoop on our summer, read the story below:

TWO LOCAL MEN ATTEMPT TO RE-CREATE THEIR BOYHOOD ADVENTURE

Contrary to accepted wisdom, maybe they should have been content to rest on their laurels… Thirty-five years ago two local teens, Steve Spiech, 14, and Bruce Gregory, 15, bicycled from their hometown of Lawton to Mackinac Island, a 300 mile journey, in just two days. The pair enjoyed a Huck Finn-style adventure, only weighted down with necessary camping gear and a change of clothes. For sustenance, they relied on fresh fruit from local grower’s stands and water from the restrooms of gas stations along the way.

Both are graduates of Paw Paw High School. Spiech has carried on his family’s farming business and is the owner of Spiech Farms, LLC, a producer & international distributor of local produce. Gregory, whose family also earned their livelihood through farming, always dreamed of flying airplanes. He joined the US Navy and flew P-3’s during the Cold War and now flies internationally for Delta Airlines out of Hartsfiled-Jackson International Airport. He currently resides in Athens, GA.

The pair have maintained their friendship over the years and have long dreamed about of a re-do of their boyhood adventure. Now, aged 49 and 50, with a few extra pounds, wrinkles, and gray hair, they decided this was the year. Prior to setting off, Gregory joked, “If we don’t do it now, it may never be possible.” On July 11th, the duo, joined by Gregory’s 18 year old son, Mack, set off on the grand adventure they jokingly dubbed the Tour duh Old Guys, a nod to Europe’s Tour de France, which ran during the same time period.

From the beginning, they were beset by adversity. They started at 7:30AM in a light drizzling rain, which over several hours rather quickly transformed into a deadly storm, with high winds and heavy rains that felled hundreds of trees and left thousands throughout the state without power. Aside from a brief stop for lunch, where they re-donned raingear, the trio pedaled onward without fully realizing the seriousness of the weather conditions. “We had the best tailwinds that day,” said Spiech. “There was one hill we literally blew up without pedaling- it was great.” Unfortunately, the storm followed the cyclists’ path, enveloping them in wicked conditions for over five hours.

Their goal for the first day was Ionia, 90 miles from the start. They made it by late afternoon due in large part to first day exhilaration and the helpful tailwinds. Tragically, before they could pitch their tents, Gregory’s son collapsed. He suffers from a chronic rare health condition, a dysfunction of his autonomic nervous system that renders him chronically dehydrated, lightheaded and nauseous. He had trained hard and thought he was adequately compensating for the additional dehydration with extra salt/potassium tablets and a steady supply of water through a backpack hydration system; but he miscalculated, was overcome, and forced to drop out.. With rest, extra fluids, and medication, he made a full recovery over the next several days.

On day two, the pair cheated and lightened their load of camping gear and enjoyed a chase team comprised of Gregory’s wife, Julie, and re-cooperating son. They made great time and planned to end their day in Marion, the 170 mile mark. The Gregory chase team worried a little when the duo didn’t show up as expected. They anxiously waited on a little bridge, overlooking a babbling stream on M-66. Finally, the “old guys” popped over the horizon gracefully drafting one another. They were still over a quarter mile away, when one of the men flew through the air and fell hard on the right hand side of the road. The chase team launched into full crisis mode. Mack, still wobbly from his previous day’s crash, catapulted into a full sprint towards the cyclists, while his mother flew the opposite direction towards the chase vehicle, dialing 911 as she sped towards the felled man. By the time they reached the pair, both were upright and laughing. Spiech repeatedly assured Gregory that he was fine; while Gregory repeatedly assured him that no one had seen his spill….until the “calvary” came into view. Luckily, the only harm occurred to Spiech’s ego. After bumping Gregory’s tire, he had fallen into soft grass that perfectly cushioned his fall. Unfortunately, this close call ended up being a dress rehearsal for the real deal the next day.

On day three, the two were making great time and were poised to reach Petoskey, the 260 mile mark, by mid afternoon. They were only twenty miles from their goal, traveling against a stiff headwind, on a particularly dangerous section of US131. At that section, the highway was comprised of two opposing lanes of traffic with a shoulder less than a foot wide. Traffic was moving briskly, around 70 miles an hour, just inches from the cyclists. The two were drafting very closely to compensate for the adverse winds, when Gregory’s front tire struck Spiech’s rear tire hard. Spiech was able to remain upright, but Gregory took a brutal fall on the left side directly into oncoming traffic. A vehicle was only twenty feet from colliding with Gregory before pure adrenaline gave the fallen cyclist the Herculean ability to get himself and his bike off the roadway onto the safety of the shoulder where he promptly collapsed. He enjoyed the last few miles of the day’s leg in an ambulance speeding towards Petoskey’s Northern Michigan Regional Hospital. He had badly dislocated and fractured his elbow, tearing multiple ligaments along the way. He is back home in Georgia awaiting surgery and a long recovery.

When asked if they would try again, Spiech said, “Yes, I would do it again. It is clearly dangerous. The problem is; I am not convinced

that I am willing to make the changes required to make the trip safe, which is no close drafting.” Gregory said, “Absolutely. This was a practice run for a smarter trip.” Let Europe have their Tour de France. Michigan had their Tour duh Old Guys… and it ended

badly.



[firewatcher]

WOW! Julie, what a summer. I am so glad they are going to be OK.

Bless you all!

[songcanary]

Holy Cow! That article was so entertaining I felt like I was there! Seriously, I am very glad to know that your hubby is on the mend and that Mack is well. Golly, I hope you all have a nice breather after all that. So glad to see you back Julie, I missed you

[cordellia]

am certain the pithy article does not tell half of the story...

incredible...cannot imagine what YOU have been going through

these past months... healthful wishes to bruce!

thrilled to hear that mack is doing well... heartening to know

school officials are so supportive.

blessings in your path julie...

~cordelia

PS: eyeing our stationary bike with suspicion now...

[Ernie]

Hi Julie,

I am sorry your husband had an accident. I hope he will get back to normal again. What a busy summer.

[Rachel]

Julie, it is so good to hear from you! I had been wondering where you went. I'm so sorry about Mack's collapsing and your husband's accident. How terrible. I hope that your husband will continue to improve and regain some movement in his elbow.

That's great that Mack is at college and is doing well! I hope that the semester goes well for him and that he will excell in his classes.

Rachel

[HopeSprings]

I wondered where you were! So glad to hear your son is doing better. Hope he has a successful semester!

Naomi

[Christy_D]

Wow, I'm sure you're in need of rest with a summer like that.

Good to hear Mack is able to go away to college. Cody is still homebound, just as sick as ever. Going to the Mayo next month.

I hope your Fall is more relaxing than your summer.

Christy

[potsgirl]

Julie,

Wow, what a nightmare of a summer you had! And it is still ongoing, considering that Bruce is still in physical therapy (an assumption here) and working on trying to get back as close as possible to his "normal" functioning. Is he able to work now? I would guess not...

I'm so glad that both husband and son seem to be on the mend, and that you're getting a well-deserved break from all that trauma and stress. Keep us informed!

Jana

[janiedelite]

Oh my goodness! I'm glad to see you back and hope that your hubby recovers completely. It's good to hear that Mack is able to start college like a normal kid his age. You all are an inspiration!