Best buddies Sean Stanhope and Matt Cottrell have beaten the odds and lived to race again.
After spending the summer writing about the On The Edge (OTE) race club results, I thought I'd offer a look at an exciting event that happened last Tuesday. It was an event that all of us in the race club had waited two long months to see happen and it was more amazing than anyone ever expected. The event took place at OTE's bi-weekly hill climb race training night on Steven's Way.
The race night event has cyclists climbing the entire 2.7 km hill from the highway to the top. The fastest riders complete the task in about seven minutes.
The Tuesday event was the last one of the season, finishing off a weekly series of time trials, dirt crits and the painful hillclimb. The amazing part of the story wasn't about who came first or second, but about who was there.
Oh sure, all the regulars were there, but it was the unexpected ones who made the evening so special. Two months and one week ago, Matt and Sean were struck on the highway by a car. Matt's leg and collarbone were smashed. Both Matt and Sean had their helmets destroyed in the crash. The helmets saved their lives, but Sean received such an impact that he had massive headaches from concussion injuries and suffered all summer. Matt has a steel rod in his leg and titanium pieces in his collarbone. The idea that anyone could suffer such injuries and ride again so soon was realized on Tuesday when both boys showed up and both "kicked some serious butt."
Sean won the climb and Matt came fourth both times. Just seeing the boys back on their bikes made everyone feel great. The fact that they performed so well, so soon after their accident, is a testament to the fitness and commitment of these two very special members of our community. Welcome back, Sean and Matt! You are an inspiration to us all.
Since the accident, Matt has taken up writing. You can read The Longest Ride of My Life, his experiences following his accident, at the Sprockids website www.sprockids.com/articles/articles.html.
