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Hey everyone,
I have permission from Heidi, Jim Guyer's daughter to post this. He is in surgery right now in Salt Lake City. He was giving thumbs up when asked to and was aware and giving one word answers when asked prior to being put under anesthesia. He has facial bone damage which is putting pressure on his brain. They are now trying to repair this damage. As soon as Heidi learns more, she will contact me and I will post it immediately. His pelvis is apparently broken, but that is secondary at this point.
On Saturday of the Turkey Boogie, Jim went with us up to Black Dragon wash, just West of Green River, which is about an hour from Moab. There were about 15-20 of us on this adventure. Several people had jumped already. Jim had a less than perfect exit which contributed to a 180. His body was turned a bit after opening and by the time he was ready to turn the canopy around, he struck the wall. He struck the wall again lower down and then struck the talus quite hard. I was near the Suburban and luckily within cell phone range(very uncommon in the canyons) at the time and drove immediately to within 150 feet of the talus while someone else called in an ambulance. Jim was near the wall and when I got the backboard and medical kit to him, Spence and others were already working on him. Spence is a respiratory therapist and was extremely effective and calm. Jim was breathing and apparently unconscious for a short while. He came to before I arrived with the board and kit. We got him on the board, into a cervical collar and out of there within about 15 minutes. We loaded him into the Suburban and met the ambulance on the way out towards the I-70. They took him the rest of the way to Price, where he was airlifted to Salt Lake City.
Heidi, his daughter, has asked that everyone not contact the family at this time, as they don't know much until he gets out of surgery, and obviously things are a bit hectic. Our prayers go out to Jim and his family and we ask that everyone send out the healing vibes to him!
Jimmy and Marta

God speed in healing Jim. Our prayers are with you.
Mike

God speed...
Hurry up and get better; we'll go score a lid o'grass somewhere...
TJ

Do you have an address for well wishing cards?

Dang Man,
You have no idea how this news disturbs me. Jim has gone out to Idaho with our group for the last two years and has been on several of our adventures. I figure if the entire North Korean army could'nt stop him, one cliff strike can't slow him down very much. Jim's the toughest old dude I know. Get well soon brother, my prayers are with you. Like T.J. said, hurry home and we will try and score us a lid. I promise I wont leave you back at the gas station or motel next time.
Tony Herring
BASE516

Thanks Jimmy

Can you PM me with an address to send well wishes?

I met Jim in the Tombstone parking lot and drug him up to the top. Thursday night we had a good chance to chat during the Turkey feast.

Get well Jim

Tim

Terrible news indeed, Team BANDIT is praying for you man, like Tony said, the toughest old geezer I've ever met. I've shared some of my best memories with him...........I'm very sad to hear this.
Please keep us posted,
Blair

 He has facial bone damage which is putting pressure on his brain.

Jimmy - was Jim wearing a helmet? Full face helmet?

Heal Jim!

He was wearing a freefly helmet(Aviator). A full face helmet would have helped.
JP

If anyone wants to send cards to Jim,
He will be at
Latter Day Saints Hospital
8th Ave. and C St.
Salt Lake City, Ut 84143

From what I heard discussing the incident with those who were there, everyone involved handled the situation extremely well.

My hat is off to 587 for his cool head at a stressful time. Unfortunately I was jumping in another location but luckily 587 was there. His actions were certainly instrumental in preventing further injury and stabilizing Jim.

Jim, I'm glad we got to meet at the Party. Get well so we can hang out again.

Edit: Good reading for those interested
edited by DexterBase on Dec 1, 2003, 8:59 PM)

Get well soon Jim, you're definitely an inspiration to all of us!

Gabe
BASE 697

Per the helmet discussion a couple of weeks back, I'm just curious if he sustained injuries to any other part of his head (i.e. any part covered by the helmet shell).

Get well soon Jim!

We'll keep you in our prayers, Jim.

BASE jumping can be a rough sport. I've been jumping a full face helmet for several years now for this very reason (to protect my face and jaw). Full body armor is also something I've found beneficial if you do have a less than perfect landing. When is the last time you saw a motocross race where the riders had no full-face helmets or other body protection....?

Best wishes and healing vibes to Jim! He is one inspirational man...so many people have been uplifted by his continued feats of daring at his amazing age of 75! Jim is a great example of how to live life fully, for sure.

We always like to learn from the experiences of others in this sport, after all, it's easier to change your ways BEFORE you suffer a major trauma than it is after the fact. Keeping this in mind, I've learned at least 2 things: 1) FULL FACE HELMET WHEN CLIFF JUMPING! 2) Maybe when I turn 70 I'll give up cliffs and buildings and just have fun off bridges.

Super thanks to Marta, Jimmy, Spence, Lloyd, and all the others that were so quick to help. I am so proud of everyone for keeping their heads, taking care of Jim, and having the proper emergency equipment available when and where it was needed. Talk about setting a good example! These guys have definitely done that.

Best wishes to Jim and his family. Take care and get well soon!

Love,
K

I learned this some time ago when a super experienced, top Aussie BASE jumper had to have reconstructive surgery.

My experience has been that in 90% of BASE jumping situations (and 100% of beginner jumping situations) more armor/padding/helmet is better.

so is the only negative behind full face helmets and body armor that its annoying to wear on the hike/climb up?

by no armor you feel more free(like in skydiving)but are also much more vunable

Jim i never meet you, but i wich you a speedy recovery.

On beginner jumps, yes. On 99% of intermediate jumps, yes.

Body armor will inhibit some advanced jumps (for example, it's difficult to perform a twisting aerial in a full suit of Dainese armor). But don't worry, when you are ready to do these jumps, you'll know which ones they are.

are you saying that its only an advanced jump where you will perform "twisting aerials"??

surely "advanced jumps" is something more then whether you perform an aerial??

just my thoughts.........

What I'm saying is that (a) a twisting aerial is an advanced jump, and (b) a twisting aerial is one example of an advanced jump on which more body armor is not necessarily desirable.

On most advanced jumps, more armor is definitely better.

I'm not sure if you are trying to say that a twisting aerial is not necessarily an advanced jump. If you are, I strongly disagree. While rotations (i.e. forward and backward somersaults) have increasingly become common fare in intermediate and advanced BASE, I think that anyone who feels that a twisting (i.e. side to side twist alone or [more often] combined with forward or backward rotation) aerial is not an advanced jump has not adequately considered the possible consequences (i.e. massive line twist) of less than perfect deployment timing during the twist.

If you are of the opinion that a twist is not "advanced", let's start another thread and discuss that.

For 5 days, I hiked and climbed carrying 1 BASE rig, 1 Safety jacket (the new model), 2 knee pads that also cover my shins, and a Camera helmet.

It's not such a pain that you can't carry it. Some of the climbs were pretty challenging too.

Use a Suitable stash bag with wider shoulder straps and a waist band. I had just a plain ole stash bag with thin straps and was able to get around just fine.

Plan for the worst.

Any word on Jim's condition?

Edit: The most advanced arial I saw this week was a double gainer. That maneuvre is very easily done in full body armor. It's not so common to do precise twisting arials. Very few people do them.

Not at all........ it is an advanced jump in its own right. When I first read your post I read it that it was only twisting aerials that were deemed advanced jumps - I just wanted to clarify that this was not the case - but on re-reading your post I may have misread slightly - apologies.

Any updates on Jim's condition?? Is he out of surgery and 'awake' yet???
Thanks
Blair

Anybody heard anything?

The doctors keeping Jim unconscious for at least a couple more days to allow healing to continue. They are going to reconstruct the bones in his face and repair his hip joint during this time. We will not know the extent of the brain damage until they allow him to regain consciousness. The doctors have said that this might not happen until after the weekend. His condition is critical yet stable. Again, we will not know anything until he regains consciousness and Jim can answer questions. HIs wife will let me know as soon as anything develops and I will immediately post it here.
Jimmy

We just received an email from Judy Guyer, Jim's wife, and I wanted to share the following excerpts with you all here. I was not in Moab, just wanted to share the good news from his home state, and give many thanks to all the folks who were there.
Take care
Blair


"He has had all of the needed surgeries and the prognosis is very good."

"I have received the messages that have been sent and have relayed your good wishes to Jim. Today he nodded his head so I know he has heard."


"Jim's fellow jumpers attended to him so quickly and so well they they have helped tremendously in the good results Jim is experiencing now.
My heartfelt thanks to all of you for your caring concern."

Vibes for a full & speedy recovery.

Did Jim land under canopy ? or was it a ride down the wall ?

His canopy remained inflated.

Anybody heard anything new about Jim?

wanted to bump this up to see if anyone has more news on jim. i've known jim since he was going thru aff and just wanted to make sure he's improving...

thanks guys,
arlo

Marta and I went to see Jim yesterday at LDS hospital in Salt Lake City. He is doing really great considering the severity of the accident. They have fixed his hip and facial bones. He looks very much the same with a bit of bruising still evident. He was on his way to physical therapy when we arrived. He is getting up and hand walking down the parallel bars, without putting weight on his injured left hip. He doesn't remember being at the Turkey boogie or the accident, which is quite normal with a brain injury of this nature to have lost the recent short term. He is still confused as to why he is in Salt Lake and what happened. He recognized us and wanted to talk but he has had a breathing tube down his throat for so long that it was quite difficult for him, more of a whisper. His wife Judy is amazing. She is being sooooo strong through this. She understands that Jim may still want to jump and she will be ok with that if he is mentally still sharp. There are good signs of this as when she was cruising him around the hospital in the wheelchair he looked back conspiratorially at her and said, get me out of here! She is living in a residence adjacent to the hospital and is constantly with him. As anyone who has ever been in the hospital or been to see someone, this is very difficult for the visitor and so important for the patient. Your morale suffers and time drags on as you wish for your normal life back. Anyone who would like to help with this situation or has been a friend to Jim, PLEASE take the time to send a get well card or flowers or call the hospital to talk to Judy, she needs the support, although you would never guess it to see her or to talk to her.
Thanks,
Jimmy P.
Contact information for Jim:
LDS hospital
8th Ave & C St.
Salt Lake City, Utah 84532
Phone: 801-408-1100
He will be there for at least a couple more weeks.

Thanks for the update Jimmy. I had gotten a few emails from Judy but hadn't heard anything in the past few days. Lisa called the hopital a few times but they would not tell her any new updates. Flowers have been on standby till he got out of ICU but will go out on Monday.

After the incident I didn't have an opportunity to thank everyone who pitched in and helped a brother in trouble. So, thank you. It feels good to know that MOST people will do what needs to be done in a time of crisis with no hesitation and no questions. Spence, outstanding job assesing the situation and taking control. It certainly saved Jim's life. It also made me realize just how little I know about crisis first-aid. Lisa and I will be taking a refresher CPR course this week and have signed up for a two day wilderness first-aid class in Febuary(first available).
Heal fast Jim... we're thinking about you and Judy.

Jason
BASE 570

yahoo muff muff muff get well soon jim and HEAL up them bones see you again soon

Hey Jimmy! Hey Marta!

I was wondering if there's an update on Jim's condition. Last I heard all his surgeries were complete and he was aware enough to nod his head that he heard the well wishes that were being read to him. Any more news would be appreciated.

Thanks,
K#763