Home Current News News Archive Shop/Advertise Ridecamp Classified Events Learn/AERC
Endurance.Net Home Ridecamp Archives
ridecamp@endurance.net
[Archives Index]   [Date Index]   [Thread Index]   [Author Index]   [Subject Index]

RE: [RC] Pilot Error - k s swigart

From: Tom Sites

kat, i hope you hold no grudges against the pilot who took you over the edge. 

Nope, I don't hold grudges.  Holding a grudge over anything is way too much work.

Besides, _I_ got lucky that the helicopter crashed.  If the helicopter hadn't crashed, I would have had to pay the bill for the helicopter ride, and I would have had to pay all the medical bills accumulated at the hospital.  The way it worked out, the helicopter company's insurance company paid all my medical bills.

In addition, I got to eat out on helicopter crash stories for a long time afterward and to garner some misplaced sympathy along the way.

And yes, I also got lucky that there were multitudes of people, both on the ride and other recreating on the plateau. I am told that it was a turkey hunter and his son who provided the communications for calling in assistance in the first place as well as providing the truck that transported me from the crash site to the second helicopter landing site.  In fact, the only report that I heard about an "unhelpful" person was the State Trooper (or maybe it was a county sherriff)who tried to keep Brent Johnson and Jeff Briscoe from going back into the ("about to explode") crashed helicopter to get medical supplies in order to treat me in the field while waiting for the next helicopter.  I probably would have died had they not done so.  I am told they put 6 liters of IV fluids into me (and I didn't pee once so they KNEW I had to be leaking badly somewhere) before I got to the hospital and even so my blood pressure was only 65/35 when I got there.

I have absolutely NO complaints.  And yes, there were some people there who were taking risks (with their own lives and probably some other people's as well--Jeff Briscoe told me he would never get into a jeep with the Duck again:)) that under normal circumstances "shouldn't" have been taken.

However, had they chosen not to take those risks on my behalf, I wouldn't hold a grudge for that either (even if I had survived).

kat

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-