We had five OKers at tonight's Shawnee Mission Park run -- Gene, Raymond, Dan, Mary and I. Dick and Nancy come to most of our runs, but the monthly Possum Trot meeting/dinner was held at the same time. So, Dick and Nancy were absent from the run.

Soon into our run we came across a mountain biker sitting on the trail. Dan asked "are you ok?" His reply was "no." It turned out he had taken a hard fall. He complained of pain in this back and shoulder and tingling in his hand. What had started as a training run became an official OK rescue operation!

Raymond had a cell phone in his car, so we ran back. We called 9-1-1 and an ambulance was dispatched. While Raymond returned to the injured biker, I ran to the end of the dam and met a park ranger who had been dispatched. I walked him in to to the biker. Once the park ranger was on the scene, our run resumed. But, we ended up returning to help lead the fire and ambulance personnel in to the biker. They took a strange route through the woods rather than the slightly longer (but clearly faster) trail route we were trying to show them.

It was a rather interesting and unusual Tuesday evening run. I learned one main lesson -- skip the Possum Trot club meeting...it can save a life!

-- Spike (meglin@juno.com), September 14, 1999