This Alberta man lost his leg in a freak accident in Utah — but it didn't stop him from hopping on a bike
A freak accident in the Utah desert may have recently cost an Alberta man his leg — but it hasn't stopped him from hopping on a bike.
Matthew Hadley, a 36-year-old former professional mountain biker from Canmore, faces a long recovery after his right leg was amputated above the knee less than two months ago.
Hadley and his wife, Catherine Vipond, were on a gentle hike at Fisher Towers near Moab, Utah, on March 13 when a basketball-sized rock fell from a cliff, hitting his leg.
He returned home to Canmore only two weeks ago. And even though his doctors asked him to take it easy, on Sunday, he took his brother's bicycle for a quick spin up the road. (His doctors have asked him to wait before making a second attempt, his brother says.)
To welcome him home, his friends are throwing a party and fundraiser Thursday evening at the Canmore Brewing Company.
Hadley says the event is an opportunity to show his appreciation for his family and friends.
"It's really just thank you for all the support that the community has shown and a chance to say hi to the members of the community," Hadley told the Calgary Eyeopener on Thursday.
"Between physiotherapy and rest and the day-to-day things of just trying to get healthy, I don't get out that much. So it's a great chance to see everybody at once."
Hadley, who is originally from Mount Hope, N.B., competed professionally for years, including on the Canadian national mountain bike team. He works as a technologist designing trails, including the 80-kilometre High Rockies Trail in Kananaskis.
He says he's looking ahead, beyond his recovery, to being active again.
His friends and family have been raising money to buy a specialized athletic prosthetic leg, which goes for $100,000-150,000 and isn't covered by Alberta Health Services. A GoFundMe campaign has brought in roughly $80,000 so far.
They've also thrown other fundraisers, from a goofy tricycle race in Canmore to a ham dinner in Penniac, N.B.
Friends have made him liver and onions in a camp stove in a hospital parking lot while another gave him a lobster bib. He's had a visit from a puppy, a song written in his honour and loved ones pitch in to make his home more accessible.
"Having time with family and your own home environment is great," Hadley said. "And the community outreach has been amazing, too. Just all the support from Canmore, from the mountain bike community and from my home in New Brunswick has been phenomenal."
Hadley is also dealing with considerable nerve and phantom limb pain. The force of the rock jammed a hiking pole through his hand.
His wife, who wasn't injured, yelled for help, as she didn't have cellphone service, and made a tourniquet from Hadley's rain pants.
"That's what saved my life. Otherwise, I'd be dead for sure," he said.
U.S. doctors first removed his right leg below the knee but then had to amputate it entirely. His femur, tibia and fibula were broken, and his femoral artery ripped out, he said.
"The rock basically pulverized everything in my leg, and the capillaries were not taking the blood," Hadley said.
His family has been tracking his recovery on a blog with often humorous posts. He's now able to do some stationary exercise biking and swimming, as recommended by physiotherapists.
"The slowest thing's probably been, well, energy. For one, it does come back a bit slowly but also, I've got a big skin graft on my stump where the rock shaved off muscle and skin," Hadley said. "So that's taken a while to recover, and then mentally, I'm doing quite well."
