TIME MARCHES ON

Today is a special day. It is my youngest child's 50th birthday. Since the following post was written 11 years ago, he's changed a bit. No longer scaring me to death on dirt bikes or scuba diving or bungee jumping, and instead of vacations spent in Big Bend to ride dirt bikes with his friends, he now goes there to golf with his friends. Today he is relaxing in the mountains of Ruidoso, New Mexico with his family - wife Amy, son Travis, and daughter Kelly. I think he plans to play a little golf while there as well.

Matthew is not only a great son, but also a wonderful family man. He allowed me to post the following on my class blog way back when - and he's quite the story teller. Even as a little boy he could spin a yarn.

FRIDAY, JULY 25, 2008

"I don't know why I'm not gray..."

This guy has been my son for 39 years now. I don't know why I am still surprised when he does things that scare me half to death. Bungee jumping, dirt bike riding (photo at left), scuba diving, jet skis... He's always involved in something that should turn my hair gray! He has two children now, and I was beginning to think I could relax. His call from Arizona last week telling me the following "little tale" assures me my days of worrying for his safety are not over.

When he told me about his adventure, I was getting confused. I said, "Why don't you write about it, Matthew?" He hesitated, then told me he already had. Seems he subscribes to a blog for off-road riders, either on motorcycles or four-wheel drive vehicles. He had asked them about good roads to go off road on while he was on a business trip to Prescott, as he had some time to kill and decided to explore the mountains around Jerome. For some reason, he didn't rent a four-wheel drive Jeep as he planned. But the weather was beautiful when he started out, as you can see in the first photo. He made me promise not to leave a comment on the off-road blog (like, Oh, my gosh Matthew, you could have been killed!). I promised.

I got his permission to put this on our blog. And I was the mother who was scared when he was scuba diving with sharks and giant stingrays all over the Caribbean! He sent beautiful underwater pictures from those expeditions.

       

"I found FR413. Unfortunately, two-wheel drive Chevy Trailblazers, serious thunderstorms,  

 6300' elevations, rock slides, and mud do not mix.

When I got almost to the top, I was surrounded by serious storms, 40 mph winds, rain, and more rain. I was screwed. The road had started to wash out and I was losing traction. A three foot boulder came tumbling down, bouncing like a super ball about five yards in front of me as I approached the top of the pass. My rental two-wheel drive was pelted with pea- and golf-ball size rocks.

I will never forget that image of the boulder bouncing down the hill, thinking of the damage that it could have done to me and the rental.

I gassed it as there was no place to turn around and I could see blue skies in the distance. Then I saw this:

No place to turn around. After I backed out of the slot, there was a wall on one side and a 1000'+ drop on the other. And it was steep and muddy and raining cats and dogs.

I had to back out about a half a mile to find a place that I could "barely turn around". I had to inch up to the drop-off and then pull forward to the wall several times until I was pointed back down. I would get out of the truck each time to judge my distance to the drop. I was concerned with getting stuck and the side of the road collapsing sending me over the edge.

Remember the three-foot boulder from my trip up the pass? Now, the road back down (where I had just come from), was completely blocked from the rock slides. I got out of the truck and could hear the rocks still falling around me and it was still raining like no tomorrow.

I was trapped. Nowhere to go, up or down. Rocks falling all around me, on the side of a mountain in a thunderstorm.

I was ready to abandon the truck and call 911 for help. I grabbed my cell phone. No coverage. I was thinking about waiting the storm out (I had enough water and snacks to last a few days), but I was not comfortable with the thought of riding a landslide off the side of the mountain.

I kept thinking about my wonderful kids and wife. And how long it would take for someone to find me.

I got out of the truck and somehow managed to clear a path through the landslide. I would not be surprised if I did not move a rock that weighed at least 300 pounds. It kept rolling and bouncing all the way down. I could not see it hit the bottom because of the clouds, but I could still hear it crashing for what seemed like an eternity.

I made it back down to Jerome and then to Prescott, and I am currently sitting in my hotel room nursing a six-pack.

I am flying home tomorrow and had a route picked out that would take me to Crown King and then down in to Phoenix. I'll stick to the pavement for the rest of this trip.

Somewhere on the mountain. Note the water running next to the wall.

This is a ghost town/old mine on the way up. I would like to have spent some time here.

~ Matthew Rider

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You know what? I'm still not gray. Finally, a few gray hairs sprinkled here and there, but certainly not put there by his antics. Now it's my grandchildren putting the fear in me! 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BABY BOY!

WITH LOVE,

MOM