Training tumble ends Hauswald B.C. hopes

Carefully prepared plans by endurance bicycle rider Yuri Hauswald came tumbling down last week.

Hauswald, a world-class competitor, was injured when he hit a bump while on a training ride on Whittier Bluff Road near Tomales. He was traveling between 25 and 30 miles per hour when the bump bounced his hands off the handlebars and he flipped to the ground.

He bumped his helmeted head and bruised his ribs. He didn’t know it initially, but the biggest hurt was to his left hand. Two days after the accident, he discovered that a bone at the base of his thumb was broken and would require surgery.

That meant a cancellation of a planned trip to Canada and participation in the rugged B.C. Bike Run, a seven-stage race of some 250 miles that includes more than 30,000 feet of climbing.

“It is a really challenging race,” Hauswald said.

It is a challenge Hauswald won’t be able to face this year. “I’m really, really disappointed,” he said.

In addition to competing in the race, Hauswald had made plans to blog about the event and write a magazine article. Those plans, as well as all the preparation, logistic planning and training are now by the wayside.

“It is definitely a bummer on a lot of levels,” he said. “A lot of leg work went into preparing for this event.”

While disappointed, Hauswald is far from defeated.

“I’ll just keep working out and pick another goal for later in the summer,” he said. “I’m definitely going to keep riding.”

He didn’t need the reminder, but the accident reenforced to Hauswald and others the absolute necessity of always wearing a helmet.

A teacher at La Tercera School, he showed his students the helmet after his accident. “They could see the skid marks,” he noted. “I think they got it.”