One of the best parts of making videos over these last 6 years is being able to correspond with so many terrific people who have been inspired to take up our awesome sport! I consider it an honor indeed to have received hundreds of emails, letters and messages from people from all over the world, and I reply with great enthusiasm to each and every one.
But inspiration goes both ways, and from time to time I receive some of the most amazing stories, and I want to share a very special one with you here, with this gentleman’s permission. His story is a testament to both his incredible inner strength and determination, and his physical resiliency. It’s a rather long letter, but I wanted to quote it in its entirety:
Terry-
I just wanted to drop you a line to thank you for introducing me to this incredible sport. My name is Carey, and I’m a 52 y.o. emergency medicine physician. I had been a distance runner/marathoner/triathlete for over 30 years, until July of 2010 when I was hit by a farm tractor that suddenly pulled out in front of me while I was riding a Vespa-type scooter at 45mph.
I hit the engine block full force, and sustained multiple injuries- including an open book fracture of my pelvis, torn abductors in both legs, torn hip cartilage, multiple fractures…and later clots in my lungs and legs. Today I am very lucky to be alive, but sadly I can’t run anymore due to my hips and a pelvic non-union. I fought for months to get my fitness back, and was biking 100 miles a week again within a year, but I have longed for the simplicity of running out my front door into the nearby canyon and finding solitude on the trails without the complexity of a bike.
[I]Somehow- I really don’t remember how- I came upon one of your videos this winter. The simplicity of a unicycle, plus the incredible skill that you have, was very inspiring to me. I wondered if a 52 year old orthopedic nightmare could unicycle without pain- what the heck, it doesn’t hurt to ride my bike, I thought- so on February 18 I bought a $140 24″ Torker Lx and brought it home. My wife thought i had gone insane. After seeing me fall hundreds- maybe thousands- of times, she was certain of it. Neighbors began to wonder.
At first they were curious, then they started to give me a wide berth on the road. Hushed whispers in Starbucks- “That’s the wacko doc that belongs in the circus-” made me more determined to learn how to tame that one wheeled monster. Fortunately, my wife and teenage boys now think it’s pretty cool (or at least that’s what they tell me).
I wasn’t a very fast learner. Riding came a lot sooner than mounting. But I gave myself a goal- by Easter Sunday, I wanted to be able to ride around the block. Well, on the Saturday before Easter, I free mounted in the garage, rode down the driveway and all the way around the block and back- a distance of about a half mile. I was pumped.
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Well, on the Saturday before Easter, I free mounted in the garage, rode down the driveway and all the way around the block and back- a distance of about a half mile. I was pumped. Now I am up to 3 mile rides in the neighborhood daily. I am still learning- and a long way from competent- but my goal is to buy a good MUNI and start riding the canyon trails this summer. The better I get, the more I realize what a Zen sport this is….like telemark skiing and whitewater kayaking, the more relaxed I am, the better I perform.
Anyway, thanks again for your inspiration and your INCREDIBLE videos- I really appreciate the quality, the effort, and your great sense of humor. If you are ever out this way, give me a call and I’ll try to keep up with you on the trails!
Sincerely, Carey