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CrazyTed
03-31-2006, 01:57 PM
One of our series' young mini riders was injured at a hare scramble at Budd's Creek. He crashed in a high speed section. Here are some posts from our message board...This family has worked to raise money for a young girl in VA in need of a double-lung transplant. The kids donated a ton of money and have really spearheaded the effort to raise money for this young girl. Now Cole has been hurt....

As for Cole Gross: he did break his wrist but he also lacerated his liver and the word right now is that his kidney is a "dead organ" is what the doctor says. They are not expecting the kidney to rejenerate but will know more in a couple of days. He is in Washington, D.C. in a childrens hospital and will be there for at least 4 days if not more.


Post from his mom.

Hello to our vhcss family. First let me say thank you for all your support and prayers. You don't know how much it means to us. I am always overwhelmed by the concern you all have for your fellow racers and their families. I am sitting here at the Washington D.C. Childrens hospital with my mother and it has been a long night. For those who don't know Cole took a serious blow to the abdomen from his handle bars coming out of some whoops. He apparently lost control and went down. He was unconscious for a brief time. SEVERAL of his friends stoped to check on him and I'm not sure who all stayed with him but there were several people who took care of him until the paramedics arrived. I know Kenny Jackson was there and I think Jason was with him as well, Thank's to you both, and to anyone else who helped. The paramedics brought him out quickly and took great care of him. We were told that the wrist was most definately broken but the biggest concern was his abdominal pain and struggle breathing. My mother drives faster and smarter that any ambulance could have(no offence to any ambulance drivers) so we opted to drive him to St. Marys hospital. CAT scan revealed that he had suffered a laceration to the liver and spleen, bruised his pancreas and that the right kidney was no longer functioning. There was no damage to his head or neck. His left wrist was also broken. The doctors told us he would need to be air lifted to D.C. as that is the nearest trauma unit. He is now in Intensive Care here and is doing much better than any one ever expected.The most immediate concern was internal bleeding as the liver and spleen were both torn. Fortunately the liver did not bleed out of it's protective outer liner. The doctors tell me this morning he is doing well and will soon be out of the woods as far as internal bleeding goes. The wrist will be put in a cast once he is stable and can be moved out of ICU. The urologist came in a explained that the kidney itself was not damaged but the vain to it was, and there is no blood flow to the kidney. He also said that there is only a very slight chance that the kidney will recover, but as long as there is a chance I have to believe that it will happen. I think the doctor dosen't believe it will ever function again, but he dosen't know this kid! So if you pray, pray that blood will start to flow back to this kidney and that it will recover. As far as Cole's spirit goes, it is strong and he has even been joking with me a little bit this morning. We will probably be here the rest of the week and hopefully we will be home by the weekend. Thank you all again. Please keep him in your prayers. We are sorry to hear that so many people were injured yesterday, we are thinking of them also.
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Lacie Gross




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Hello all! Cole was able to read most of the posts yesterday and maybe later today I can get him back down before 5pm to read the rest. He can't really type with a cast on one hand and the IV's in the other. But he wants everyone to know how much he enjoyed hearing from you all. He actually had me type a message yesterday, but somehow we forgot to hit "submit".
I want to thank all of you for your support and prayers since Cole's accident. You will never know how much it has meant to us to know you are there. I've said it a million times, you guys are the best. From the moment this acccident occoured, to this very minute we have been surrouned by the best friends you could ever ask for. The phone calls, the post's on the BB,the cards, a surprise visitor( thanks Tom ) and even a care package for Cole(thanks Heather, he loved it!) have been so appreciated. He also really liked the picture that Plugnickle posted! I could tell he felt a little bit better after reading your messages yesterday. I also want to thank you for checking up on the rest of our family at home. It has been hard to be away from Rob ,Wesley and little Wyatt-man. We are missing them like crazy. And it has been even harder for Rob to be at home not knowing whats going on here until he can get an update from me once or twice a day. Thanks to those of you who are taking care of him and the boys for us.
Cole's spirits have been pretty good for the most part. He had felt better on Tuesday but actually feels worse over the last two days. He has been running high fevers at night especially and has not been able to keep food down(only a few bites of potatoes yesterday). His white blood cell count has gotten higher also, so he will have a CAT scan later today. He was expecting it this morning and had to drink all this disgusting stuff only to find out that he had not yet had enough doses of a particular medication to do the scan. He ,needless to say, was just a little bit pissed that he had to drink all that for nothing and will have to do it again later. I was probably even more so. I told his doctor I thought he should have to drink the rest of it for screwing up the order. I have behaved myself pretty well, considering how many different doctors I have had to deal with, but I gave them an ear full yesterday and apparently that works because all the lead doctors have been in to see us this morning. Of course none of them have given us the information we really wanted to hear. They all feel that the chances of his kidney surviving are slim to none. They have told us to prepare for it not to happen. I am still holding out for a miracle. I know that God is in control and he will decide what happens to that kidney. In the mean time Cole is thinking of all kinds of creative ways to protect the other kidney so that when he is ready and his body has healed, he can return to racing.
Please continue to pray for him. If you have time send another message, I will make sure he sees them. Thank you again for everything.
_________________
Lacie Gross



Latest update is he should be getting ready to by moved back to a local hospital...


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Hey everybody! Cole and I are just finding out that he may be getting transfered to Kings Daughters Hospital (Norfolk) today. The nurse came in and told us that the paper work is already being prepared but they are waiting on the doc's to approve it. Hopefully it will happen!!! We are looking for a vascular surgeon to see at home, as we speak. Wish us luck!
_________________
Lacie Gross


Hopefully, everything will continue to improve...
Thoughts are being posted for him to read on our message board..
http://the-vincents.com/viewtopic.php?t=1795&highlight=cole

Gatlin5
03-31-2006, 02:12 PM
Ted,

Thanks very much for posting the story about Cole. Please keep us posted with updates on his recovery and it sounds like he may be close to your location? We would like to send him a few things as he starts to feel better.

Our thoughts and Prayers are with Cole and his family and we will be standing by to help anyway we can.

Joe

CrazyTed
03-31-2006, 05:30 PM
Yes, if they get transferred to the Children's Hospital it is close by. His family are members of my club, the Tidewater Dirt Riders. I marshal the kids races and watched Cole start riding when he was younger and now he has become a very fast mini rider.

I'll try and keep you posted......

CrazyTed
03-31-2006, 11:05 PM
Latest and greatest news directly from Cole's Dad...

GOOD NEWS Cole is on the way home!!!!!!!!!!YEAHAWWWWWWWWWWWWW
Robert Gross



That's just awesome.!!!!

Gatlin5
04-01-2006, 06:18 AM
Latest and greatest news directly from Cole's Dad...

GOOD NEWS Cole is on the way home!!!!!!!!!!YEAHAWWWWWWWWWWWWW
Robert Gross



That's just awesome.!!!!

What great News! It never ceases to amaze me, these kid's can be in such bad shape one day and home the next. And we're talking some very serious stuff. Oh what it is to be young. I bruised my foot 6 months ago and I'm still feeling some of the affects.

Way to go Cole!!!!

Ted, any news on the kidney? I would imagine that started to respond some for them to send him home, I hope.

Thanks for the update,

Joe

CrazyTed
04-01-2006, 09:16 PM
Latest word is the kidney is still not responding. The blood vessels that supply that kidney were damaged in the crash.....

CrazyTed
04-03-2006, 09:42 AM
Latest post from MOM

Thanks guys for all the "welcome home's". We sure are glad to be home!!! It is almost midnight Sunday evening and this is the first chance I have had to get on the BB and say anything! It has been busy around here all weekend, but a good kind of busy! Cole has tried to get on with his user name but I think something is messed up there so I told him I would post for him until he can get on here with his own name. He has really enjoyed reading all your notes and checking out all the smileys. Gary Greer told us it took him about 45 minutes to get his just right!
Any way Cole is feeling pretty good. He came home Friday night at about midnight and slept much better in his own bed. He was worried about his bike so he was happy to check it out and find that it was just fine! He has actually been outside this weekend for a brief time. It has been pretty hard to keep him from over doing it. He feels so much better now, I think he's forgotten how badly he is injured. It's good to see him home He will be out of school for a few weeks, and we will be seeing more doctors in Norfolk during that time. Please pray for good news, were hoping for the best!

50ccMoM
04-03-2006, 10:32 AM
Cole,
Iam praying for you and your family. Im glad to hear that you are home. I know it makes recovery a little bit easier.

Hang in There.. :wink:
Angie

CrazyTed
04-06-2006, 10:08 AM
Latest update from Mom.....

PRAY,PRAY,PRAY!!! This is what we need most right now. Cole looks great and is feeling fine, it's getting increasingly harder to keep him still! We see a vascular surgeon today at 3:30. We have faith that he will give us good news. If you can find time today send out a prayer for Cole, we need our friends to stand in faith with us that something has changed for the better. We will let you know what the doc says later today. Thank you so much for all your well wishes and support. If there's one thing I've learned since we began racing, the VCHSS has given us some of the best friends will ever have.
_________________
Lacie Gross

Gatlin5
04-06-2006, 11:19 AM
Ted

Thanks for the update. Cole and family you can count on some prayers out of here. Get well little guy!

Joe

Tatonka
04-06-2006, 12:35 PM
Ted - thanks for the update on Cole, our prayers & well wishes are definitely with him & the family. Please let them know how large their family is!

BV

CrazyTed
04-07-2006, 10:05 AM
Mom's latest update...

Just thought I would let you all know we did get some good news today. We saw a vascular surgeon who has arranged for Cole to have and angiogram in the next seven to ten days. He makes no promises but believes that there may be blood flow to Cole's kidney, despite what other doctors told us in DC. This is a test that will show conclusively whether or not there is blood flow and if it is adequate enough to justify performing a bypass to restore full blood flow to the kidney. This is the first doctor who has said " the kidney may be saveable". So, your prayers are being heard and answered and so are mine!!! I want to especially thank Sherrie Connor (Eddie and Brent Hamm's mom), she works with specialists in this area (kidney's) and has been a Godsend to me in the last two weeks. I would have been lost with out her guidance in asking the right questions and finding the right doctor. She is a real
_________________
Lacie Gross

Latest rumor is he is going to try and come to our race in Bristol, VA this weekend to hangout with all of his friends. Hope he makes it as we'll make him feel special!!!!

Tatonka
04-07-2006, 06:44 PM
That is great news! Keep on truckin' Cole......

BV

Gatlin5
04-09-2006, 08:08 PM
Ted,

Thanks for the update. Glad to hear there is some real hope for the kidney. We'll keep the prayers going their way, you can count on it.

Look forward to hearing the results and if you had a chance to visit with him.

All the best,

Joe

CrazyTed
04-10-2006, 01:20 PM
Didn't get a chance to speak with him over the weekend but did see him getting around pretty good in a wheelchair. He had plenty of his young fellow racers crowding around making him feel welcome. They still haven't heard any updates but I'll keep ya'll posted....

CrazyTed
04-14-2006, 03:00 PM
Latest update from Mom


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Cole is doing well right now. His appetite is getting back to normal and he feels fine. NO pain or discomfort, unless you count the needle sticks to draw blood for his next test!! We had blood work done yesterday in preparation for the angiogram to be done next Tuesday. He will be put to sleep for this so he won't feel a thing. This will let the surgeons know how much blood flow the kidney is receiving. It will also determine if a renal by-pass is needed to restore full blood supply to his kidney. I have been told that if the surgeon didn't think that the kidney was even possibly saveable this test would not have even been ordered. Please keep us in your prayers as we await the results from this test. And thank you all for EVERYTHING!!!!! If I could, I'd rent a billboard in every town, that the VCHSS has members in, just to let people know how much we appreciate all your love and support. Yesterday was a perfect example of how much your support means to us. Rob went out to check the mail, in it was the bill from the National Childrens Medical Center, needless to say it was kinda hefty, but right behind it was a large envelope from the Chivly family, it was full of cards made by Kate's kindergarten class!!! They were so sweet and funny, so sincere, we just couldn't put them down! They made us forget all about that big ol bill we had just opened! I laughed and cried all at the same time! Thanks Kate, your timing was right on! I feel so blessed to be surrounded by such great friends.
_________________
Lacie Gross



Hope the tests go well....

Gatlin5
04-15-2006, 09:15 PM
Thanks for th update Ted, we'll being thinking of him next week. Let us know how the test goes if you could.

Thanks,

Joe

CrazyTed
04-20-2006, 12:39 PM
Unfortunately, the test results were bad.... Here's the latest update from Mom,,,


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I thought I would update you all on Cole, He is at home and recovering nicely from his angiogram that was done on Tuesday. The unfortunate news is that the doctors saw no blood flow to the kidney therefore there is nothing more that could be done to save it. Cole was not too excited about having an operation so he was glad to hear that they will not have to remove the kidney. This means he is just two weeks shy of the six week healing period ordered by his doctors! Then he can return to life as normal, with the exception of needing to protect the surviving kidney from harm. We have ordered the core saver from sixsixone and as soon as I get my precsription for some heavy sedatitives , and the vest comes in, he wants to get back on his bike .
_________________
Lacie Gross

Gatlin5
04-20-2006, 10:23 PM
God, I'm so sorry to hear this news. I had such a good feeling this was going to be news we all wanted to hear.

It is incredible that he is so anxious to get back on his bike. What's wrong with us, what is it about this sport. It graps a hold of us at a young age and we can't let it go no matter what it puts us through.

Cole, keep up the great attitude and keep fighting the good fight.

Joe

50ccMoM
04-21-2006, 09:45 PM
Cole,
You are a brave little soldier. We are all so proud of you ! Im glad to hear you dont have to have surgery.


Every single one of us here understands the hold that this sport can have on you.
Even just the smell of a revving dirtbike can get the blood flowing. I was one of those parents who said that if and when my son got injured he would be done racing.... well I see that look in his eye when he gets on his bike and I understand how it makes him feel and I cant deny him of that.

So that is why we at Rider Down are here for you. We dont judge ! We just care !


-Angie

RuthieC
04-22-2006, 10:37 AM
Cole,

You are an awesome kid! What a fighter! Please continue to keep us updated and you will stay in our prayers Cole!!

The Chattons

Tatonka
05-18-2006, 09:12 AM
Ted - any news on how Cole is doing?

Thanks,

BV