Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Crazy Man Tim

Grandpa Tim accompanied Joe and Trisha on the Virginia Creeper Trail. For his antics on the trail he earns himself his own post on the blog. Crazy man Tim, as he shall be referred to for the rest of this post, has a nose for danger and what some (certainly not his daughter-in-law, however) would call downright foolishness.

Just a few miles down the mountain in a stunning display of biker know-how, Crazy man Tim used his front brake to attempt a stop at the end of a bridge. The application of the front brake at high speeds will in fact cause a bike to flip over. I've always read this, and now I know it to be true. Scrapes to the elbow and leg were the only injuries.

For his next trick he decided that climbing on these falls would be a good idea.

He promptly slipped on a mossy rock, narrowly avoiding hitting his head on a metal piece jutting from the rocks, and fell into the icy water.

Not to be beaten by a mere rock, he climbed right back up (after giving Joe his wet phone, wallet, and camera) on the same rock from which he had just fallen.

This time he was successful, but only for a moment. The second he moved, he fell right back into the water. He did catch himself by grabbing a branch with his left arm as he fell. His collection of scrapes and bruises was much more impressive after this escapade into the water.

Crazy man Tim did manage to walk on the Applachain trail without incident.

But later ventured onto more mossy rocks to get a better view of kayakers passing some nearby falls. He avoided falling, but seriously contemplated jumping in at the base of one of the falls just to see how deep it might be. Thankfully he exercised some self control and only contemplated this scheme.

After three near heart attacks from Trisha, the day ended with Crazy man Tim alive and mostly unharmed. Three puzzles from the day with Tim remain:

1. How he's managed to survive all these years.

2. How he's managed to keep all his limbs and wits (?) about him.

3. How Mary's managed to survive the roller coaster of watching Tim's near death experiences.

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