Bilateral Amputee, Matt DeWitt, Makes History!

Matt DeWitt has made history becoming the first, and so far, only double amputee to complete the Leadville 100 MTB "Race Across the Sky." 


photo by Tiffini Skuce

Riders who must finish before the 12 cut-off. 
Here are Matt's times:

Here are the times for all the Ride 2 Recovery riders, all (except for Sara Bell who had to drop out due to mechanical problems) finished before the 12 hour cut-off and received either a gold or silver belt buckle!

For more pictures, go the Ride 2 Recovery Leadville album on their Facebook Page.
For more information on Ride 2 Recovery, visit their website and like their Facebook Page.  Also, join the Ride 2 Recovery Group Facebook page.

Back in June I reported that Ride 2 Recovery disabled Vet, double arm amputee, Matt DeWitt's specialized mountain bike had been stolen while on a training camp with Ride 2 Recovery in Alaska.  While the bike was found (4 other, non-modified bikes have yet to be found), it was damaged. 

Matt's bike was damaged by the thieves that stole it, Ride 2 Recovery's Scott Moro (AKA Bicycle Repairman) had to do quite a bit of work to repair Matt's bike. Scott posted photos on his FaceBook page as he made repairs. I am happy to report that the bike has been repaired and Matt will be racing in the Leadville 100 MTB "Race Across the Sky." 

Raleigh Bike has written about Matt: Ride 2 Recovery Veteran Enters Leadville Trail 100

Here is a story Bike Rumor posted on Matt's bike: Hack! Amazing Hands-Free Ride 2 Recovery Di2 Diamondback Full Suspension Mountain Bike

Here's Matt and the other Ride 2 Recovery riders in Leadville preparing for the race:

photo by Juan Carlos Hernandez

Michael's video shows Matt, with Ride 2 Recovery riders going down powerline: Michael passes one rider and then falls in behind Matt.

 

 

Bilateral Amputee, Matt DeWitt, Makes History!

Matt DeWitt has made history becoming the first, and so far, only double amputee to complete the Leadville 100 MTB "Race Across the Sky." 


photo by Tiffini Skuce

Riders who must finish before the 12 cut-off. 
Here are Matt's times:

Here are the times for all the Ride 2 Recovery riders, all (except for Sara Bell who had to drop out due to mechanical problems) finished before the 12 hour cut-off and received either a gold or silver belt buckle!

For more pictures, go the Ride 2 Recovery Leadville album on their Facebook Page.
For more information on Ride 2 Recovery, visit their website and like their Facebook Page.  Also, join the Ride 2 Recovery Group Facebook page.

Back in June I reported that Ride 2 Recovery disabled Vet, double arm amputee, Matt DeWitt's specialized mountain bike had been stolen while on a training camp with Ride 2 Recovery in Alaska.  While the bike was found (4 other, non-modified bikes have yet to be found), it was damaged. 

Matt's bike was damaged by the thieves that stole it, Ride 2 Recovery's Scott Moro (AKA Bicycle Repairman) had to do quite a bit of work to repair Matt's bike. Scott posted photos on his FaceBook page as he made repairs. I am happy to report that the bike has been repaired and Matt will be racing in the Leadville 100 MTB "Race Across the Sky." 

Raleigh Bike has written about Matt: Ride 2 Recovery Veteran Enters Leadville Trail 100

Here is a story Bike Rumor posted on Matt's bike: Hack! Amazing Hands-Free Ride 2 Recovery Di2 Diamondback Full Suspension Mountain Bike

Here's Matt and the other Ride 2 Recovery riders in Leadville preparing for the race:

photo by Juan Carlos Hernandez

Michael's video shows Matt, with Ride 2 Recovery riders going down powerline: Michael passes one rider and then falls in behind Matt.

 

 

Ride 2 Recovery Participates in the 2013 Leadville 100 MTB

I will be posting updates here for Ride 2 Recovery's participation in the 2013 Leadville 100 MTB.  You can follow riders live progress through the athlete tracker.

Riders are not required to check in at all the stations, they are only required to check out of these aid stations by the following cut-off times:

Twin Lakes Outbount (40 miles) Elapsed time, 4 hours; Actual Time 10:30am



Twin Lakes Return (60 miles) Elapsed time, 7 hours, 45 minutes; Actual Time 2:15pm

TrReturn (74 miles) Elapsed time, 8 hours, 45 minutes: Actual Time 3:15pm

"This is a 12-hour mountain bike race.  Official finishers must complete the course in less than 12 hours.  Rider who make the last aid station cut-off time, but fail to achieve the 12-hour finish will be allowed to continue for one additional hour only.  Finishing in less than 13 hours is an indication of a rider's tenacity, but does not earn official finishing placing.  All riders must be off the course in 13 hours."

UPDATE: Matt DeWitt is the first bilateral amputee, EVER to finish the Leadville 100. Finished in 11:06! Way to go Matt!!

Training Ride: photo by Robin Brown

*Note: Update times are results POSTED as of that time, not results as of that time.  Some of the postings are behind.

UPDATE: FINAL TIMES AND PLACEMENT:
All R2R riders, with the exception of Sara, who had to drop out due to mechanical problems, finished before the 12 hour cut off. 

NAME	Start Time	Finish	Time	Place
Bruce Gustafson	6:30:48:32 AM	2:30:00 PM	7:59:49:14	93
John Wordin	6:30:57:10 AM	2:35:55 PM	8:05:43:66	104	2nd in M5 div
Mike Tobin	6:30:37:43 AM	3:11:42 PM	8:41:30:64	264
Juan Carlos Hernandez	6:30:39:41 AM	3:25:30 PM	8:55:19:20	332
Marc Hoffmeister	6:30:36:04 AM	3:55:00 PM	9:24:49:29	447
David Haines	6:30:53:17 AM	3:59:46 PM	9:29:39:27	467
Tommy Muir	6:31:27:23 AM	4:22:28 PM	9:52:17:17	565
Shawn Morelli	6:31:20:77 AM	5:12:49 PM	10:42:37:40	839
Matt DeWitt	6:31:35:16 AM	5:36:41 PM	11:06:29:88	967
James Weigand	6:31:35:50 AM	5:36:43 PM	11:06:31:36	968
Jon Disbro	6:31:36:33 AM	5:50:02 PM	11:19:50:53	1042
Jordan Bressler	6:31:29:68 AM	5:58:09 PM	11:27:58:13	1095
Mike Troster	6:31:36:06 AM	6:13:52 PM	11:43:41:17	1206
Sara Bell	6:31:20:17 AM

Bruce Gustafson, John Wordin, Mike Tobin and Juan Carlos Hernandez finished in under 9 hours and will receive a gold belt buckle.  John Wordin finished 2nd in the M5 division.
 

Marc Hoffmeister, David Haines, Tommy Muir, Shawn Morelli, Matt DeWitt, James Weigand, Jon Disbro, Jordan Bressler, and Mike Troster finished under 12 hours and will receive a silver belt buckle.

UPDATE: 5:25PM MT

UPDATE: 1:00PM MT

 

UPDATE: 11:00AM MT:
(I don't know what happened to Sara's times, there have been no more posted after the start, let's hope it's a problem with her chip and not Sara)

UPDATE: 9:45AM MT 
 

UPDATE: Start Times:

NAME	#	Start Time
Matt DeWitt	1206	6:31:35:16 AM
Sara Bell	1285	6:31:20:17 AM
Jordan Bressler	1286	6:31:29:68 AM
Bruce Gustafson	1287	6:30:48:32 AM
David Haines	1288	6:30:53:17 AM
Scott Moro	1289
Jim "Gramps" Penseyres	1290
James Weigand	1292	6:31:35:50 AM
Mike Troster	1293	6:31:36:06 AM
Jon Disbro	1294	6:31:36:33 AM
Shawn Morelli	1295	6:31:20:77 AM
Juan Carlos Hernandez	1296	6:30:39:41 AM
Tommy Muir	1297	6:31:27:23 AM
Mike Tobin	1299	6:30:37:43 AM
Marc Hoffmeister	969	6:30:36:04 AM
John Wordin	1110	6:30:57:10 AM

I don't know what happened with Scotty, I'll post when I find out.

Kenneth Butler 1300 - not riding due to injury :-(  He will be at the pipeline feed zone helping and spectating.
Hunter Stoneking - Not riding.
Jim "Gramps" Penseyres AKA "Bubbles" is doing support.
  

UPDATED: FOUND! Wounded Veteran's Specialized Mountain Bike Stolen!

Anchorage, AK

UPDATED: Matt's bike has been found in an Anchorage Park.  The other 4 bikes are still missing.

Last night, the unimaginable happened, wounded Veteran, Matt DeWitt had his one-of-a-kind, specialized mountain bike stolen.  Matt was in Anchorage, AK with Ride 2 Recovery on a mountain biking trip as part of their training for the Leadville 100 MTB series this August.

In all, 5 wounded Veterans had their bikes stolen from inside a locked Uhaul at the Sheraton in Anchorage, AK.  Matt's bike was the only specialized one stolen.
If the bike isn't found, it is uncertain at this time if another bike could be specially fitted in time for him to ride in Leadville.

In 2003 DeWitt was patrolling in Khalidiyah, Iraq, when a rocket propelled grenade changed his life forever. Matt lost both of his arms below the elbow in 2003.  Having been a competitive mountain biker prior to his injury, Matt wanted to ride again.  Enter Ride 2 Recovery.  With the help of Ride 2 Recovery and mechanic Scott Moro, a specialized mountain bike was created especially for Matt. 
The specialized handlebars allow him to grip and steer with his prosthetic arms

 

and a special bar on the back of his seat allows him to break.

 With this bike, he was able to attend the Bush W100K ride with President George W. Bush

 

The hope is that Matt's bike can be recovered so he will be able to continue his training and participate in the Leadville 100 MTB challenge. 

 

Please pass this on, it's a one-of-a-kind bike and should be easy to spot.

State Governments are NOT Subordinate to the Federal Government

Maybe the anti-federalists were right, maybe the Constitution made it  too easy for the federal government to take over.  Thomas Jefferson didn't believe that, however.  The constitution and the bill of rights were written so that neither has more power than the other and that is the way it should be. 

Thomas Jefferson wrote about our Constitution: “With respect to our State and federal governments, I do not think their relations correctly understood by foreigners,” sadly, I believe many of the citizens of the United States of America do not understand how the relationship between state and federal governments is supposed to work.  Jefferson relates that when the founders wrote our constitution, they had the ability to write what they pleased, that they had no “musty records” or laws they needed to follow.  They were free to create a document, laws, of their own choosing.  They choose not only the wording, but also the format of our government. Our government was founded  so that the state and federal government work hand in hand, each having their own responsibilities, separate, but equal.  But many citizens don't understand this.  They believe the federal government has control over state government and therefore allow them to act as such.

Exactly what are the responsibilities of the state and federal government?  Ours is a constitution based on Federalism, power is divided between a the federal, state and local governments.  Many are confused as to the relationship between the two.  This is why the Bill of Rights was written by our founders, Amendments that clarify what is written in the Constitution and the rights of the people and the government, both state and federal.  It is why Jefferson pushed for the Bill of Rights in the first place.  Jefferson states, “[Those who don’t understand the relationship between the state and federal government] generally suppose the former subordinate to the latter. But this is not the case. They are co-ordinate departments of one simple and integral whole. To the State governments are reserved all legislation and administration, in affairs which concern their own citizens only, and to the federal government is given whatever concerns foreigners, or the citizens of other States; these functions alone being made federal. The one is the domestic, the other the foreign branch of the same government; neither having control over the other, but within its own department.”

The state government gives power to the citizens while the federal government is concerned with foreigners matters.  Here’s where the problem arises. It is not the job, as put forth by our founders, for the federal government to be creating legislation, laws, that apply directly and only to citizens of the United States. That is what the state’s government is for. The federal government, time and time again, oversteps their bounds.  They interfere with issues that are clearly the domain of the state government. The state government is not subordinate to the federal government, yet the federal government acts as though it is. They are both equal and one does not have the power to dictate to the other.  State governments are NOT subordinate to the federal government, though the federal government continues to attempt to enslave them.

Jefferson believed Amendment X to be foundation of our government and it states: “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.”  These are the rights that the citizens and the states must protect. The states must stand up and reclaim what is inherently theirs, what is given. 

The responsibilities the federal government pertaining to foreign matters is outline in Amendment XI, and limits state’s rights pertaining to foreign affairs and treaties.  Amendments X and XI were written to specifically clarify the responsibilities and limitations of the federal and state governments.

These are the rights which the Constitution of the United States, the Bill of Rights, protects, which are rights of the citizens of our states.  "The true foundation of republican government is the equal right of every citizen, in his person and property, and in their management."

Of course, our Constitution is a living document, it is able to be changed, as Jefferson says: “Nothing then is unchangeable but the inherent and unalienable rights of man.”  Why change the foundation upon that which our great nation was founded?  It is when we attempt to change the foundation, to allow federal government to encroach upon what is clearly the responsibility of the states, that there are problems. This is the reason there is an enormous federal debt.  It is what Jefferson feared when he said: “[The people are] our dependence for continued freedom. And to preserve their independence, we must not let our rulers load us with perpetual debt. We must make our election between economy and liberty, or profusion and servitude.

The federal government was not created to care for the people, the federal government was created to attend to foreign affairs and affairs of the country as a whole.  The state governments, with the extension to local governments, were created  "that all power is inherent in the people; that they may exercise it by themselves, in all cases to which they think themselves competent, or they may act by representatives, freely and equally chosen; that it is their right and duty to be at all times armed; that they are entitled to freedom of person, freedom of religion, freedom of property, and freedom of the press."

The federal and state governments are separate, but they are equal, one not more powerful than the other.  And yet, as Jefferson himself predicted, "even under the best forms, those entrusted with power have, in time, and by slow operations, perverted it into tyranny."  

Our citizen's are not well informed, government run schools and media that supports the federal government have tainted the minds of our citizens. I fear that because our citizens no longer know about the responsibilities, duties and limitations of the different branches of government they will not take corrective action to correct what has gone so terribly wrong.  If you don't know it's broken, you can't fix it.

"If a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be." --Thomas Jefferson to Col. Charles Yancey, 1816.

Who Wants the Flu?

 
Cold and flu season is here again and nobody wants a cold or the flu.  Here are some tips to help prevent the spread of cold or flu and some ways to help you feel better if you get sick.

 
Symptoms of cold and flu are similar. You may have some or all of these symptoms. 

• fever *Not everyone with the flu will have a fever.
• cough
• sore throat
• runny or stuffy nose
• body aches
• headache
• chills
• fatigue
• sometimes diarrhea and vomiting

A flu vaccine protects against the three viruses that research suggests will be most common.  This year’s vaccine has only been moderately (62%) effective in preventing the flu so it is important, whether you have had the vaccine, or not, to follow these tips to help prevent getting the flu.

• Wash your hands often with soap and water. If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand rub.  This is the NUMBER ONE way to prevent the spread of infection.  Teach children to wash their hands.  

Clean hands prevent the flu:

 

• Clean and disinfect surfaces and objects that may be contaminated with germs like the flu.

• Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth. Germs spread this way.

• Try to avoid close contact with sick people.  If someone is coughing or sneezing, try to stay at least 6 feet away from them.

 

If you are sick with a cold or flu, prevent the spread to others.

• The CDC recommends that you stay home for at least 24 hours after your fever is gone except to get medical care or for other necessities. (Your fever should be gone without the use of a fever-reducing medicine.)
• While sick, limit contact with others as much as possible to keep from infecting them.
• When you sneeze or cough, cover your nose and mouth with a tissue or sneeze/cough into your elbow (not your hand). Throw used tissues in the trash after you use it.

 

Remember: Colds and flu are viruses and antibiotics will not help you unless you have a bacterial infection on top of the viral cold/flu infection.

Care for yourself when you are sick:

• Get plenty of rest, give your body time to recover.

• Eat lightly and keep hydrated, you may have a poor appetite, that is normal when you are sick. It is important to drink and keep hydrated.  Hot tea with honey and lemon are helpful if you have a sore throat and/or cough.

• If you are congested it may be helpful to avoid dairy which increases mucous production

There are medicines available, over the counter, to treat fever, cough and congestion.  Read labels carefully and follow directions.  Do not take more than the recommended dosage.  Pay particular attention to "cold medicines" that have multiple ingredients.  Example: If a cold medicine has acetaminophen, don't take additional acetaminophen (Tylenol) you can overdose and damage your liver.  I prefer to treat the symptoms and use medicine for each symptom.  Yes, you will be taking more medicine, but you will not be taking more dosage of each medicine and you will customize your medicine to only those symptoms you have.  You will not be taking medicine for symptoms you don't have.  Example: if you don't have a cough, there is not reason for you to take something that has cough medicine in it.  

If symptoms persist or get worse, see a doctor.
 

Certain people are at greater risk of serious flu-related complications (including young children, elderly persons, pregnant women and people with certain long-term medical conditions) If you are in a high risk group and develop flu symptoms, it’s best for you to contact your doctor. Remind them about your high risk status for flu.

CDC Emergency warning signs:

In children

• Fast breathing or trouble breathing
• Bluish skin color
• Not drinking enough fluids
• Not waking up or not interacting
• Being so irritable that the child does not want to be held
• Flu-like symptoms improve but then return with fever and worse cough
• Fever with a rash
  

In addition to the signs above, get medical help right away for any infant who has any of these signs:

• Being unable to eat
• Has trouble breathing
• Has no tears when crying
• Significantly fewer wet diapers than normal
  

In adults

• Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
• Pain or pressure in the chest or abdomen
• Sudden dizziness
• Confusion
• Severe or persistent vomiting
• Flu-like symptoms that improve but then return with fever and worse cough

This video is was made for healthcare workers, but it's fun for everyone to watch: