By Martin Neunzert They say life's what happens as we try to re-center from the little detours chance puts in our path. Here's a little story that encircles medicine, perseverance and evolving bicycle technology and chronicles three trips on the White Rim Trail in Southern Utah taken over the last 33 years.
CRAAARACK-ACK! The sound yerked me from half-sleep and echoed around the Wingate Sandstone cliffs, unseen above me in the darkness. What the? It sounded like a rifle shot! In the middle of the night? At Hardscrabble Bottom, deep in the heart of Canyonlands National Park? When I had gotten my permit to camp on the White Rim, the ranger had chuckled and said, Youre on your own! to my query about there being anyone else in the area. I shivered the rest of the night away, and at first light threw everything into the panniers and rode as fast as I could to the sun. Once I got a good look at the Green River, I could see what had made the noise: Long shelves of ice had formed along the banks. When the water level dropped during the night, the shelves snapped off violently.
I had never been so cold. I had stripped my equipment well past the point of comfortjust a summer-weight synthetic sleeping bag and a bivy sackin order to carry enough water. That night it was 14 degrees in Moab. The photo is of my feet wearing my heavy gloves in an attempt to get some feeling back into them.
A modern treatment for leukemia is to kill off the patients bone marrow, chemically, then rebuild it using stem cells from a suitable donor, my brother in my case. Although a miraculous procedure, the recipients body feverishly, literally, tries to reject the transplant. I ran a 104 degree fever for four days yet I felt intensely cold. Even under heated blankets, my uncontrollable shivering was so bad at times they gave me Demerol just so I could sleep for short periods.
PD and I stopped next to a woman standing at the edge of one of the uppermost switchbacks on the Shafer Trail. East of our toes, the road dropped 1,300 feet to the White Rim. A whooshing sound behind us caused us all to whip around. A guy on a mountain bike flew by. Nobody spoke for a few seconds, watching. Can you believe hes doing it in flats and tennis shoes? the woman asked the sky. He forgot his cleats this morning. I turned slightly and half-stepped toward my bike so she couldnt see my platform pedals and light hiking shoes. Then she was gone, too, and silence returned, in its enormity. I muttered Try that with partial vision loss, anemia (only two-thirds the amount of red blood cells of normal), osteopenia, chemo-brain, persistent left-side weakness, and, depending on who you talk to, sleep apnea, elevated creatinine level and residual PTSD.
I know who the real hero is, PD said quietly.
Two switchbacks lower, we stopped again as some vehicles were bunched up. Young Dude asked What kind of bike is that!? His tone of voice hovered between complete incomprehension and incredulousness, as if he had only seen a lugged-and-brazed frame used as a rusty bike rack, bolted to a sidewalk outside a bike shop.
Its an antique I said, politely leaving unsaid the part that it was state-of-the-art before he was born. It was bikes like these that blew open the whole mountain biking industry. Want to see it? Go to the parking area at the Slickrock Bike Trail above Moab and find the little interpretive sign at the south end that provides the history of the Trail. Mines a twin to the one in the photo, except silver.
We werent out to be the first or to break records. After all, websites for bragging about your accomplishments wouldnt go on-line for another twenty years. I wasnt even sure mountain biking in the desert would be practical: Too hot, too big, too sandy. But with each experience, we gained confidence and efficiency, always dreaming of future adventures.
Somewhere near Candlestick Butte, a movement and clattering of rocks caused me to skid to a halt. A mature desert bighorn ram had come partway down a shaly slope, our paths crossing by incomprehensible randomness. He intently studied me, perhaps confused by my bull moose handlebars. I was in awe, and a little jealous. Until then, I had felt smugly autonomous, carrying all my water for four days, yet he thrived in this environment, sculpted by evolution, sustained by the instinctive drive to survive.
Thank God for disc brakes! another woman said, grinning and letting gravity take her easily down the fun descent off Murphy Hogback. I wondered if she knew what center-pull brakes were. I was confident they were capable of locking up the wheels even when loaded with all my camping gear and nine quarts of water. Then as now, logistics are the real challenge of cycling the White Rim. My first time around, I chose to do it solo and self-contained. I had managed to cache a gallon at Potato Bottom, but failed to place another near Monument Basin. But when the opportunity came, I adapted by figuring out how to carry enough and going when it wasnt hot. Not once did it occur to me to mooch water the way modern bikepackers sometimes do, mostly because I truly value self-sufficiency, but partly because there was no one else.
Out by the Black Crack, I stopped to take in the expansive panorama, from Ekker Butte to the Buttes of the Cross. Youre riding a non-suspended bike? Mister More-Brand-Logos-Than-Spokes asked, pulling alongside. I laughed because I could see he was in too much of a hurry to listen to me explain why I wasnt on my full-suspension off-road recumbent, so I just answered, perhaps a little too flippantly, Oh, Ive been doing this for 30 years, I dont know what the big deal is.
Well, he replied, It makes a big difference to your forearms! and he flapped his hands as if he was shaking water from them. I flashed back to my initial days in rehab. After six weeks of immobilization from pneumonia and a stroke, my muscles were so weakened that my joints, particularly my knees and hips, would separate when I tried to relax or sleep. I dont mind telling you I had never felt such exquisite pain. It got so bad I asked for Oxycodone several times. That was kind of scary in itself. My physical therapists thought I was working extra hard in the gym to get back on my bike, I just wanted to build up my strength to stop the pain.
But in the present, I watched him sprint away, no doubt a drum-machine-and-synthesizer soundtrack playing in his mind like in the bike porn videos. I sincerely hoped he would someday learn the value of developing skills, tenacity and patience
When PD had invited me to ride the Rim again, I was terrified. It had been six months since I had tried to ride a diamond-frame bike, and that attempt had ended in a crash. But he refused to accede. I think my physical therapists had secretly gotten to him and persuaded him to find ways to get me back on the horse. I seriously considered moving him to the ex-friends category. Nevertheless, I was deeply curious to see if anything had changed in two-and-a-half decades. Fundamentally, no, nothing has. One still feels very insignificant out there in the vastness. But when I dragged into camp that evening at dusk, I sensed something was different.
Not just the breeze rustling the yellow cottonwood leaves, not the position of a cactus spine, definitely not the enduring sandstone that changes only imperceptibly during a humans lifespan. No, it was I who had changed.
Cancer (and its treatment and complications) had, for a time, taken away my freedom, my sanity, my dignity, my hair, my balance, my mobility, strength, even my appetite, leaving me only with my determination. Now everything I do is, in some way, therapy in the long fight to return to some level of normalcy.
Just last week one of my docs mentioned she was amazed at how well I handled 22 days in the ICU, horribly uncomfortably proned, with what felt like a garden-hose-sized ventilator tube jammed down my throat. Inspirational tenacity? Im not sure. I just did what it took to get through it. Perhaps there was an element of luck. One of the nurses in the ICU where they took me to after my stroke told me In the six years Ive worked here, youre the only one who has survived the combination of acute myeloid leukemia, a bone marrow transplant, pneumonia and stroke.
And I learned so much. Like genetics, the insane complexities of medicine or about being a professional patient. Stuff I never wanted to know that will now haunt me forever. Never again would I take for granted the profound compassion and intrinsic nonjudgmental nature of the myriad of people who helped me along the way. Or to be able to just jump on a bike and ride. Or to sleep under the rotating stars.
The White Rim Trail is a classic and deservedly popular 100-mile loop, mostly in Canyonlands National Park, mostly off-pavement.
Martin Neunzert is a long-time cyclist and tourer. He cycled the White Rim in 1989, 1990 and 2016 and has completed many other on- and off-road adventures along the way. He is now likely seen around Ogden, Utah, on his recumbent trike.
(Visited 97 times, 1 visits today)
See the original post here:
The White Rim - Around Again - Cycling West - Cycling Utah
- Heart Stem Cell Therapy - - - University of Utah Health ... [Last Updated On: August 22nd, 2014] [Originally Added On: August 22nd, 2014]
- Utah Stem Cell Therapy | Stem Cell Treatments [Last Updated On: August 22nd, 2014] [Originally Added On: August 22nd, 2014]
- Utah Cord Bank | 1-877-UCB-STEM | [Last Updated On: September 27th, 2014] [Originally Added On: September 27th, 2014]
- Teacher Guide: Stem Cell Multimedia Project ACTIVITY OVERVIEW [Last Updated On: September 27th, 2014] [Originally Added On: September 27th, 2014]
- Stem Cells in India | Stem Cell Therapy in India | Quality ... [Last Updated On: October 16th, 2014] [Originally Added On: October 16th, 2014]
- Tennis: Rafael Nadal to receive stem cell treatment for ... [Last Updated On: November 12th, 2014] [Originally Added On: November 12th, 2014]
- What Are Stem Cells? - CSA [Last Updated On: November 15th, 2014] [Originally Added On: November 15th, 2014]
- What are stem cells? - Craig A. Kohn | TED-Ed [Last Updated On: December 12th, 2014] [Originally Added On: December 12th, 2014]
- Stem Cell Collection - University of Utah Internal ... [Last Updated On: March 10th, 2015] [Originally Added On: March 10th, 2015]
- Hyperbaric oxygen therapy and its benefits on wound treatment [Last Updated On: March 11th, 2015] [Originally Added On: March 11th, 2015]
- Heart Stem Cell Therapy | University of Utah Health Care [Last Updated On: April 18th, 2015] [Originally Added On: April 18th, 2015]
- Actionbioscience | Stem Cells for Cell-Based Therapies [Last Updated On: May 4th, 2015] [Originally Added On: May 4th, 2015]
- Curriculum Index - University of Utah [Last Updated On: October 19th, 2015] [Originally Added On: October 19th, 2015]
- Amniotic Stem Cell Therapy in Salt Lake City, Park City Utah [Last Updated On: August 22nd, 2016] [Originally Added On: August 22nd, 2016]
- Stem Cell Quick Reference - Learn Genetics [Last Updated On: November 18th, 2016] [Originally Added On: November 18th, 2016]
- medicine.utah.edu - University of Utah School of Medicine [Last Updated On: November 23rd, 2016] [Originally Added On: November 23rd, 2016]
- Home - Department of Chemistry - The University of Utah [Last Updated On: November 23rd, 2016] [Originally Added On: November 23rd, 2016]
- Biochemistry - | University of Utah [Last Updated On: November 26th, 2016] [Originally Added On: November 26th, 2016]
- Utah Stem Cells - Sports Medicine - 7430 Creek Rd, Sandy ... [Last Updated On: December 3rd, 2016] [Originally Added On: December 3rd, 2016]
- Stem Cell Therapy for Knees- Advanced Techniques [Last Updated On: December 6th, 2016] [Originally Added On: December 6th, 2016]
- Fast facts about cloning - WPSD Local 6 [Last Updated On: August 12th, 2017] [Originally Added On: August 12th, 2017]
- Reinventing tissue regeneration, one layer at a time - MedCity News [Last Updated On: August 12th, 2017] [Originally Added On: August 12th, 2017]
- Q Therapeutics Expands Board of Directors With Appointment of Dr. Tom Parks as Independent Member - Marketwired (press release) [Last Updated On: August 12th, 2017] [Originally Added On: August 12th, 2017]
- Adult Stem Cells' Role in Disease Management and Anti-Aging [Last Updated On: August 12th, 2017] [Originally Added On: August 12th, 2017]
- Stem cell researchers discover promising lead in quest for hair regrowth - PhillyVoice.com [Last Updated On: August 18th, 2017] [Originally Added On: August 18th, 2017]
- UCLA scientists identify a new way to activate stem cells to make hair grow - UCLA Newsroom [Last Updated On: August 18th, 2017] [Originally Added On: August 18th, 2017]
- Scientists Discover New Hair Growth Technique Using Stem Cells - TrendinTech [Last Updated On: August 18th, 2017] [Originally Added On: August 18th, 2017]
- Utah family sets up campground in Rexburg to fight cancer - Rexburg Standard Journal [Last Updated On: August 25th, 2017] [Originally Added On: August 25th, 2017]
- FDA Cracks Down On Stem-Cell Clinics Selling Unapproved Treatments - Utah Public Radio [Last Updated On: August 30th, 2017] [Originally Added On: August 30th, 2017]
- COLUMN: Let's make biological warfare a crime - Journal Gazette and Times-Courier [Last Updated On: September 2nd, 2017] [Originally Added On: September 2nd, 2017]
- Utah Stem Cells - Cottonwood Heights, UT | Groupon [Last Updated On: September 26th, 2017] [Originally Added On: September 26th, 2017]
- Adult Stem Cell Therapy in Utah Docere Clinics [Last Updated On: October 1st, 2017] [Originally Added On: October 1st, 2017]
- Fasting for 24 hours regenerates stem cells, study finds ... [Last Updated On: June 18th, 2018] [Originally Added On: June 18th, 2018]
- About Us | Utah Stem Cells [Last Updated On: June 22nd, 2018] [Originally Added On: June 22nd, 2018]
- Transgenic Gene-Targeting Mouse Facility HSC Cores: Home [Last Updated On: July 8th, 2018] [Originally Added On: July 8th, 2018]
- Stem Cell Joint Regeneration | Utah Stem Cells [Last Updated On: July 26th, 2018] [Originally Added On: July 26th, 2018]
- PRP vs Stem Cell Injections | Southwest Spine and Pain Center [Last Updated On: September 24th, 2018] [Originally Added On: September 24th, 2018]
- Stem Cells for Hair in Park City, Utah Docere Medical [Last Updated On: December 9th, 2018] [Originally Added On: December 9th, 2018]
- Utah Stem Cells - Salt Lake City, UT - Yelp [Last Updated On: January 4th, 2019] [Originally Added On: January 4th, 2019]
- Mutation Generation & Detection HSC Cores: Home [Last Updated On: March 10th, 2019] [Originally Added On: March 10th, 2019]
- Umbilical Cord Stem Cell Review: StemVive from Utah Cord ... [Last Updated On: April 27th, 2019] [Originally Added On: April 27th, 2019]
- Orthopedic Stem Cell Therapy in Utah for Painful Joints [Last Updated On: September 7th, 2019] [Originally Added On: September 7th, 2019]
- Merus N.V. (MRUS) and PolarityTE Inc. (NASDAQ:PTE) Contrasting side by side - The Broch Herald [Last Updated On: November 29th, 2019] [Originally Added On: November 29th, 2019]
- Intermountain to open new center for pediatric precision medicine - Healthcare IT News [Last Updated On: November 29th, 2019] [Originally Added On: November 29th, 2019]
- Brainstorm Cell Therapeutics Inc. (BCLI) and PolarityTE Inc. (NASDAQ:PTE) Contrasting side by side - The Broch Herald [Last Updated On: December 8th, 2019] [Originally Added On: December 8th, 2019]
- 5 Innovations From the Science of Senses Now. Powered by - Now. Powered by Northrop Grumman. [Last Updated On: December 8th, 2019] [Originally Added On: December 8th, 2019]
- These Vaginas Evolved to Fight the Penis, Not Accommodate It - VICE [Last Updated On: January 5th, 2020] [Originally Added On: January 5th, 2020]
- On the Road to 3-D Printed Organs - The Scientist [Last Updated On: March 2nd, 2020] [Originally Added On: March 2nd, 2020]
- Tolero Pharmaceuticals Announces Expansion of the Zella 102 Study in Patients with Intermediate and High-Risk Myelodysplastic Syndromes (MDS) -... [Last Updated On: May 15th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 15th, 2020]
- Surplus antioxidants are pathogenic for hearts and skeletal muscle - The Mix [Last Updated On: May 15th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 15th, 2020]
- New Stem Cell Injury Lawsuit Filed StemVive & Utah Cord Bank [Last Updated On: June 15th, 2020] [Originally Added On: June 15th, 2020]
- Childrens book, Olivias Tower: The Building Power of Cells - ABC 4 [Last Updated On: October 13th, 2020] [Originally Added On: October 13th, 2020]
- A $50,000 Helmet Can Read User's Mind. And It's Ready - NDTV [Last Updated On: June 23rd, 2021] [Originally Added On: June 23rd, 2021]
- Is the Tooth Fairy Real? the Origin Story to the Tooth Fairy, and Why It Is a Story Commonly Told Today - Digital Journal [Last Updated On: June 23rd, 2021] [Originally Added On: June 23rd, 2021]
- Learn how to remove unwanted fat with procedures beyond liposuction - ABC 4 [Last Updated On: July 21st, 2021] [Originally Added On: July 21st, 2021]
- US stem cell clinics boomed while FDA paused crackdown ... [Last Updated On: October 5th, 2021] [Originally Added On: October 5th, 2021]
- Fasting boosts stem cells regenerative capacity | MIT ... [Last Updated On: October 5th, 2021] [Originally Added On: October 5th, 2021]
- Stem Cell Quick Reference - University of Utah [Last Updated On: October 28th, 2021] [Originally Added On: October 28th, 2021]
- Sen. Orrin Hatch's legacy tracks the GOP's evolution on health - NPR [Last Updated On: May 2nd, 2022] [Originally Added On: May 2nd, 2022]
- Efficacy and Safety of Sintilimab in Combination with Concurrent Chemo | CMAR - Dove Medical Press [Last Updated On: June 22nd, 2022] [Originally Added On: June 22nd, 2022]
- Effect of tensile frequency on osteogenic differentiation | IJGM - Dove Medical Press [Last Updated On: July 3rd, 2022] [Originally Added On: July 3rd, 2022]
- Cloning and Stem Cells | Biological Principles [Last Updated On: July 3rd, 2022] [Originally Added On: July 3rd, 2022]
- STEMTECH CORPORATION Partners with VERB in Launching Interactive Video and Livestreaming Sales Enablement Apps to Strengthen Direct Sales Channel -... [Last Updated On: July 27th, 2022] [Originally Added On: July 27th, 2022]
- Calendar of events, awards and opportunities - ASBMB Today [Last Updated On: August 22nd, 2022] [Originally Added On: August 22nd, 2022]
- This Man Set the Record for Wearing a Brain-Computer Interface - WIRED [Last Updated On: August 22nd, 2022] [Originally Added On: August 22nd, 2022]
- Brain Dissections: Neuroanatomy Video Lab - University of Utah [Last Updated On: October 4th, 2022] [Originally Added On: October 4th, 2022]
- Brain-Like Organoids Grown in a Dish Provide Window into Autism - University of Utah Health Care [Last Updated On: October 13th, 2022] [Originally Added On: October 13th, 2022]
- The History of Cloning - University of Utah [Last Updated On: October 29th, 2022] [Originally Added On: October 29th, 2022]
- Genes and Addiction - University of Utah [Last Updated On: November 6th, 2022] [Originally Added On: November 6th, 2022]
- Stem Cells in Use - University of Utah [Last Updated On: November 6th, 2022] [Originally Added On: November 6th, 2022]
- The Stem Cell Debate: Is it Over? - University of Utah [Last Updated On: November 24th, 2022] [Originally Added On: November 24th, 2022]