Mt Elbert Part Deux

So picking up where I left off, we made it to 13,800 feet out of 14,450 ft. We decided to call it quits after we realized we could not go further. It was very cold outside, and with the piercing wind, probably near 0 degrees. There was blizzard like snow coming (it was snowing, but not at the force of a blizzard...yet.) We had no water, and power bars consisted of our diets. My feet went from freezing----->numb--------->more numb, which is not good. I think I suffered from moderate hypothermia, as is described here

"As moderate hypothermia takes over, normal activity becomes uncomfortable because your blood vessels are severely restricted. At this stage, you have poor coordination and trouble keeping your balance. Your speech may become slurred and you will appear to be in a state of intoxication. You will no longer be able to make responsible decisions and will experience feelings of apathy and confusion. Your breathing will become shallow and you will experience an overwhelming urge to sleep."

This describes my behavior perfectly. Everytime we stopped to rest, I was sleeping...or trying to. Without my brother TJ, and the other 2 guys, I would have died. There is no joking around with this, I would have died. I could not take care of myself, and I especially credit my brother. He had to make the 9 mile hike down the mountain while watching over me.

Well, we made it, even though it seemed like we never would. The site of that Blue Malibu was comforting to us all. We were all wet, cold, and just wanting to warm up. By this time, I was feeling better, the further we descended. We decided to head back to the hostel we stayed at to see if we could shower. The generous people there let us shower, and we packed the car to start back east, as we were warned that the blizzard was only going to get worse.

This is the part of the story where life gets just a little more interesting...

TJ starts driving back home. Leadville (the city we stayed in) is 25 miles from I-70, then its basically highway all the way back. The speed limit for the road to get to I-70 was 65, and I kid you not, we didn't drive faster than 23. There were many factors into the blazing speed of 23: Extreme Cold, Snow, Ice, overcast skies, etc. TJ had to drive with his blinkers on while natives of the state flew by us in the left lane in their SUV's with snow tires. Poor TJ had to turn the emergency blinkers on, and bless his heart, endured the hour and a half it took to drive 25 miles. Yes, I said it, an hour and a half. That would drive even the most calm person insane, and it got to TJ. On the first exit (Frisco) on I-70, Tj decided he was done driving. So we fueled up, and my idiot self decided that I would drive. Gary (Jarod and Chad's dad) told us we NEEDED to get to Denver, because the blizzard was coming on our backs fast. So really thats why we decided to keep going.

As soon as I got on I-70, it was very clear as a driver that 20 MPH was the fastest I would be able to go. There was 3-4 inches of slushy-like snow on the ground, creating for very poor traction in his car. So the emergency blinkers came back on, my hands clamped on the wheel tight, and I focused as best as I could. From the on ramp we were 13 miles from the Eisonhower tunnel, the NEXT closest exit. We were hoping that once we made it to the tunnel, the weather would get better. With it approaching 6:30, it started to be dark. The highway to the tunnel was inclined, meaning we were climbing uphill by the mile. Remember this, as its an important part later in the story. After 4 miles, it was clear I could not go any further, as I was speeding at 5 MPH, and we decided to pull off on the side of the road, and be towed to the tunnel.

TJ called Allstate, our insurance company, to get a tow. Our insurance company covers the first $100, and we cover the rest. They basically have a local company come get us, yaddi yatta. So they plug is into J.D.'s towing service, a company out of Breckenridge, CO. He says with the weather the way it is, he will be 45 minutes. We say, sure thats fine, see you then. OVER an HOUR later, J.D. comes strolling by, parks in front of the car, and comes to the window. I preceded to roll it down, and here goes the following conversation:

JD- Hey guys, I'm JD, and I'm here to tow your car (in a twangy accent)
Me- Ok, cool. Can you tow us to Georgetown? (Town 5 miles after the tunnel)
JD- Sure, sounds good. Ok, I only have room for two of you in my truck cab, and I can't just leave the other two of ya on the highway. So that means 2 of you will need to ride in the car, which is illegal, but I'm forced too.
Me-Erm....ok...Well, whatever. Thats fine.

From there, Jarod and Chad go get in the cab of the truck, while I am instructed by JD to pull the car up a few inches, and get it lined up with the truck. Its important to note that I had to cock the wheel a little to the left to "straighten" it up with his truck, which was incorrectly parked in the first place. An important note is that good ole JD did NOT put any blocks on our tires, or anything. Remember the part about us being on an incline? Yeah.....From here, JD instructs me to put the E-Brake on while he connects his wench cable to the car. After he gets it all hooked up, and tightened, he comes back to the car. I'm still in the drivers seat, while TJ is in the back. We pick up the convo once again:

JD- Ok, I need you to go ahead and take off the e-brake, put the car in neutral, and then get in the back seat with your brother. I can't tow the car while anyone is in the front seat. (Seems weird eh?)
Me- Well, ok, sounds good.

I release the brake, put it in N, and hop in the back seat with my bro. We are sitting there as JD goes back to his truck to turn the wench on. He turns it on, and it starts to pull our car up onto the bed of the tow truck (its a flatbed). Our car moves slowly forward, as expected....until suddenly I hear a loud SNAP! A quick check of things and I realize that the snap was the wench cable, and our car was suddenly in a freefall BACKWARDS rolling down the highway. Yeah, remember? That highway with 4 inches of slush, the highway thats pitch black, some cars driving 65 MPH even in blizzard conditions. I thank God He gave me the heads up to leap up, stretch my front hand to the foot brake, and push it down. The car finally stopped, and rested about halfway into the right lane of the highway.

Just a few seconds later, our buddy J.T. opens the front door, while I am still stretched from the back seat, hand on the brake. He then says, as non-chalantly as anyone could ever say anything, "Oh, let me get that e-brake for you"......GEE THANKS JT. He didn't say, "Hey, I am so sorry for almost killing you and your brother. Or I'm sorry for snapping a cable thats supposed to hold 8500 lbs."

Needless to say, after catching my breath, doing double take to make sure I was still alive, I became a little peeved at that comment. JD did have the "smarts" to get us out of the middle of the road, and we finally got pushed back to the guardrail. Well, TJ decided to talk to JD, and get his business card (JD got smart, realized WHY he was asking for the card, and casually said "oh, I didnt bring any") From the inside of the car I was able to hear JD say these EXACT words: "I cannot believe I just drove an hour for nothing."

DID HE REALLY JUST SAY THAT? REALLY?

ANywho, we finally got a tow (2 hours later) for being on the highway for a grand total of 4.30 hours. We stayed in a hotel that night, and got up the next morning at 5 a.m. It was another horrendous morning of driving until east of Denver. We finally made it home Friday morning, 6:15 a.m.

The End.