Hello,
A bit of good news. I just spoke to Peter, and he wanted me to thank everyone on IHB for their care and warm wishes. Peter will most likely be released from the hospital next Monday or Tuesday, and look forward to coming back home. Here's a little bit about what happened...
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Peter was injured on Saturday near Ventura. He was riding an unsupported century with about 15 other cyclist when his bike cracked mid-ride. He was going about 22-23 mph when the top tube of his frame cracked in half (no one knew how that was possible), and his bike broke into 4 pieces. The scary thing is, he did not hit anything (car, potholes, etc), and his Cannondale bike basically cracked and disintegrated during the ride.
As far as the injuries are concerned, Peter's vertebrate was fractured in multiple places (2 minor breaks and 1 serious break mid-back). Additionally, he broke a few of his fingers, and needs orthopedic surgery as well. Short term, Peter is in a back brace, but won't need surgery (which is good) and the long term prognosis is good. The overall the recovery period is 9-12 months (before he can ride again). The doctors mentioned how lucky he was for not completely breaking the vertebrate around mid-back.
Peter is doing well and resting. We saw him last Sunday, and he was in good spirit (even flipped off Profette a few times). The exact quote was "Wanna see which finger I fractured?"
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Peter also wanted me to mention that he'd love to see everyone, but asked that to give him a few days to settle in at home. Larry and Zovall were kind enough to agree to mention about Peter's injury on the main blog, and hopefully we can raise some funds and help them out financially as well.
Thanks,
Vic