How's this?

How's this story I read on iafrica?
Man, that had to hurt!


US climber tells of severing arm with a pocketknife

A climber who freed himself from a fallen bolder by cutting off his own arm with a pocketknife had recovered enough to tell the tale on Thursday.

"I did what I had to do," he told a host of reporters who had converged on Mount St. Mary's Hospital where he was recovering in Grand Junction, Colorado.

Aron Ralston (27) is used to adventure and risks. He dealt calmly with the consequences.

He applied a tourniquet, cut off his lower arm, rappelled down a 20-metre cliff and hiked six miles through a national park in the Western state of Utah.

"I'm not sure how I handled it. I felt pain. I coped with it. I moved on."

Ralston was hiking on April 26 when the 450kg boulder trapped his arm. He waited for three days, until his food and water were gone, before deciding that the arm would have to go.

"I began laying plans... and the next five days until I was rescued... I spent going through each option."

Ralston had tried everything else. He had slung his rope over the boulder and tried to lift it. He chipped at the rock with his knife.

That made the blade hopelessly dull by the time he decided to amputate his arm.

It eventually cut through the flesh, but not the bones.

He had to twist his arm again and again until the bones snapped off. He was free for the first time in five days.

With a makeshift bandage and tourniquet, he still had to crawl along a 45-metre canyon. And then he rappelled, one-armed, down the rock face. After hiking for hours, he met a Dutch family who went for medical attention.

A week later, the mechanical engineer was alive to tell the tale.

He said he can't wait to get out into the wild again.

 

Wow - the bit that blows my mind is that to amputate his arm, he had to break his own bones! Could not cut through them.

Makes me go weak at the knees .. and the wrist.

 

Don't think I would be capable of that - though given the circumstances, you never know.

Anyway, this made me think of the world championships of '98 when Frank VDB finished 7th. He crashed in the beginning of the race and injured his wrist. In the end he managed to place 7th after numerous attacks. He wasn't capable of sprinting anymore due to pain in his wrists. Afterwards an X-ray pointed out that both his wrists were broken, but he still managed to ride an extraordinary world championship.

I've broken my wrist before, so I know how painful it is... but finishing 7th after several attacks with 2 broken wrists.... unbelievable

Before that I thought I was capable of suffering on the bike, but apparently the Pro's can handle a little more pain than I can

Niek

 

Hi guys, It’s unbelievable what the human body is capable of given the right situation. (Maybe "right" is the "wrong" word to use! ) It is also a lot tougher than most people give it credit for. Still, given a certain situation anything is possible no matter how frightening the thought is! We all think of it in shock but the human will to survive is a strange and strong one.

 

[QUOTEHe had to twist his arm again and again until the bones snapped off. He was free for the first time in five days.
[/QUOTE]

jeeeeezz!!!!!!!!! now he is someone you can call your hero!

 

i cant help but wonder.....what happened to his hand???

did they just leave it here for the maggots and birds to eat? i wonder how he would handle hearing his hand is now home to 200 or so flys???

 

They retreived it but the damage from the boulder made it impossible to reattach.
Eeewwwww...

 

He is clearly a very tough minded person but also incredibly stupid to go hiking alone in the back country.

Rule 1. Never go hiking alone.

Leon