Deschutes

Sophie Parenti

As we strapped on our bike helmets for our morning bike ride, my mom encouraged us to unplug and leave our phones behind for the day. As we took our usual route along the four mile bike path that separates the Deschutes River in Oregon and the SunRiver Resort Golf Course, we spotted the family of deer that had become familiar to us that week. We continued along our path, passing the people riding inner tubes and paddle boards down the river, which reminded me of when my sister and I fell off our paddle board the previous year, right into the freezing cold water coming off Mount Bachelor. I looked ahead at our 13 person single-file line and chuckled to myself as I watched other bikers pass our very long line of riders.

“Let’s stop here for a quick break,” suggested my uncle.

We all pulled to the side of the bike path where there was a narrow opening to the river where we could catch our breath and plan the rest of the ride. As I stepped off my bike I could hear the rivers current rushing by. I looked up and saw a little bird nestled on a branch and smiled. Then, I turned to say something to my cousin when I heard a loud “thump.” I quickly looked the other way along with the rest of my family to see my grandpa lying face down on the ground. 

My aunt gasped.

“Are you alright?” asked my mom as she knelt down to check on him.

My grandpa slowly started to sit up with his face covered in the grayish brown dirt. Once he was upright, I heard him swear in a really deep voice. From that moment, I knew something was wrong. I had never before heard my grandpa say a bad word and I had never heard him sound so mad and disoriented. He had scratches along the right side of his body and a few bleeding cuts. My uncle helped him up and they walked over to the nearest bench. 

“I’m having a dizzy moment,” he said while he bent over to sit down.

As he sat down, I watched his head drop and his body go limp and he started making a gurgling noise. That’s when my heart stopped. Everyone around me started freaking out and all of a sudden we were panicked. 

“Kids, you need to leave!” yelled my mom who was sitting next to my grandpa.

“I’ll call 911,” said my uncle, who was the only one who had brought a phone.

My sisters, cousins, and I all started biking away towards the resort. I was a little bit behind them. I started to cry. I looked back at his limp body sitting on the bench and felt helpless. Every second seemed to count and not only did I feel like I couldn’t move fast enough, but I also didn’t know if I would ever speak with him or see him again. 

While we were biking away, I decided that there was something I could do that could help my grandpa. On the path back to the resort there is a horse barn. Instead of following the rest of my family, I turned left and biked as fast as I could towards the horse barn. Once I got there I dropped my bike to the ground and ran in and asked if they could do anything to help.

“I’m a doctor, I might be able to do something to help,” responded a man who was getting ready to horseback ride with his children.

“Thank you so much. I’ll show you where he is,” I replied. I was so glad that I had found someone that could possibly help my grandpa.  

We ran outside and I jumped on my bike and while he got on his. We biked as fast as we could back to where my grandpa was. By the time we got there, I thought I was going to pass out, because I had been biking so fast and was completely out of breath. We ran over to my grandpa, and saw that he had regained consciousness. I was hesitant going towards him and stopped a few feet away thinking about how my grandpa may not want me to see him at the moment. 

About a minute later, a member of the SunRiver bike police arrived and checked him out as well. I went over to stand by my parents while the police interviewed us. While my dad was explaining the accident, he started tearing up. That was the second time I had ever seen my dad cry. I grabbed his hand and held it with a firm grip. 

During this time, the paramedics had arrived with an ambulance. The firemen, paramedics, and policemen got out and started an overview check-up on my grandpa. They checked his pulse and other vitals.  They were also asking my uncle and grandma different questions. I heard my grandpa jump in and respond to a question with one of his jokes, and then he laughed at himself. I started crying again, but this time with relief. 

Once everything had been checked, they told us that Grandpa was fine to go home and rest, my mom and I biked back to the resort in silence. While riding I thought about how lucky my grandpa was. If he hadn’t been wearing a helmet, the accident would have caused a lot more damage. I also thought about how it was smart to disconnect but that we probably should have had more sources to communication, considering we all knew that the bike path was in the middle of nowhere. 

When I saw my grandpa for the first time after the accident, I gave him the biggest hug. While my arms were wrapped around his body, I realized how lucky I was to get to be on vacation with such an amazing family. Spending time with the people you care about is special and I cherish every moment and will always be grateful.