The year of my 40th birthday, I had a bucket list goal to compete in a mountain bike race. I signed up for the Sea Otter Enduro and the approaching race was a way to hold myself accountable to ride regularly and train. There was probably a bit of mid-life risk-taking going on as well. I had just upgraded to a new mountain bike (Costco special!) and was watching red bull youtube videos of people flying. I got a full face helmet, new armor, and was building my confidence, though faster than I was growing my skill.
Well the gap between my skills and confidence caught up with me. I was riding Braille at Soquel Demonstration State Forest, a trail I had ridden cleanly many times before. I had cleared several obstacles on that trail already until a particular jump got me. It was a 2-3 foot plank propped off an old stump before a messy drop off. I got my timing all wrong and had my weight too far back for too long. I bucked over the bars, flew through the air, and landed on the top of my head.
I don't think I lost consciousness, but I saw stars for sure. I took a few breaths, got up, said some bad words and a prayer and checked myself over. I was dazed and knew I was in for a world of pain but the adrenaline mercifully delayed that. I used my selfie camera as a mirror. Helmet was destroyed and my nose was torn up. That helmet saved my life. The visor was detached, I found it 20 feet up the trail where I must have made initial impact.
Somehow I biked myself back to the parking lot. I was visibly jacked up. Big thanks for the fellow trail goers and their welfare checks. "Who's the president?" they would ask. I realized this wasn't politics, but to make sure I knew who I was. Against better judgement, I drove myself to the Kaiser ER. They stitched up my nose, the CT came back clear of brain bleeding/fractures, and they sent me home.
What unfolded over the next few months was unexpected.
The jump that got me
The damage
I finished the race I signed up for at Sea Otter. It was three weeks after my accident and my first time back on the bike. I was timid as hell, still concussed, out of shape, and got heat stroke. Poor judgement, again, but I did it. Obligatory: "Good times!".