Flopped Iron Mule, Broke my neck

lantraxco said:

:drinkup

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:notworthy

Just seeing this today. Glad you make it out with your life. The same exact thing happened to my brother and he was not as fortunate. Things can and fo go wrong and it happens so quickly ......prays to you and yours on a speedy recovery.

Probably should update this. I have always been lucky enough to heal fast. After 8 weeks my C1 vertabre was healed. Yes C1. For some reason I thought it was C2 but it was C1. I used the neck brace for a couple more weeks when I was working on something that could possible cause me to slip or bump my head. Today 10 weeks later my head turns 90 degrees each way side ways and getting better and goes up and down as good as it every did when my Debby gives orders. Life is back to normal.

Praise the Lord!!!

Glad to hear your back on the saddle! And a little wiser I'm sure.

old-iron-habit said:

...and goes up and down as good as it every did when my Debby gives orders.

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Good man!

old-iron-habit said:

Probably should update this. I have always been lucky enough to heal fast. After 8 weeks my C1 vertabre was healed. Yes C1. For some reason I thought it was C2 but it was C1. I used the neck brace for a couple more weeks when I was working on something that could possible cause me to slip or bump my head. Today 10 weeks later my head turns 90 degrees each way side ways and getting better and goes up and down as good as it every did when my Debby gives orders. Life is back to normal.

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Prays your way on your good fortune And you're good health.You are very lucky, it's not often you walk away with your life when the ordeal you went through happens....

Catching up on old threads I've never seen, glad you are ok after all that @old-iron-habit !

Were you buckled in when it started to go? I rarely wear my seatbelt when I'm in the backhoe and you always hear varying stories from people in cars who are buckled or not buckled in. I'm curious if the seatbelt helped or hindered, or would have?

quite a story I had not read this before glad all worked out. that mule still running?

aighead said:

Catching up on old threads I've never seen, glad you are ok after all that @old-iron-habit !

Were you buckled in when it started to go? I rarely wear my seatbelt when I'm in the backhoe and you always hear varying stories from people in cars who are buckled or not buckled in. I'm curious if the seatbelt helped or hindered, or would have?

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There was no seat belt in this machine. Later when I looked close, I seen holes under the seat on the part that swivels with the seat. I am certain it had a seat belt when built. It had been removed because it probably caught on everything and kept the seat from turning easily when not being worn. A proper seat belt would have held me in position in the seat fine. Probably would have been injury free except I may have been stuck by the sticks and brush poking thru the rollover structure. I rarely use it anymore except to move firewood around the homestead from time to time. If I were to use it in the woods again in nasty country I would install a good seat belt and also install the doors which I have now recovered from the original owner.

petepilot said:

quite a story I had not read this before glad all worked out. that mule still running?

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The old mule is still a great workhorse. I broke the boom swivel off at the ears where the boom attaches a couple years ago. I turned a new piece of 4-5/8" solid shaft and rebuilt it with state of the art synthetic bushings and added a high zoot turning plate for it to swivel on. There is a post on here about that project. The head was worn enough before I rebuilt it that it was introducing more stress on the head section. My clutch is now getting close to needing replacement. That might be a next spring job. Looks to be a bit of a challenge in that solid tub. Time will tell.

Glad your doing well! Would like to hear a bit more, like what took place between "oh crap" and "laying in the hospital bed".

zhkent said:

Glad your doing well! Would like to hear a bit more, like what took place between "oh crap" and "laying in the hospital bed".

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After I zig zagged staggered out of the hilly woods about 1/4 miles traveling in spinning, multi colored, psychedelic stars, with my SIL helping me he tossed the chains over our 3/4 filled gooseneck trailer load of wood and secured it. I was cleared up visually by then with a pounding headache. I drove my F-550 the 3 miles out of the woods to the township road and then the 45 miles home to Moose Lake where the nearest hospital is. No cell reception at all where we were. My neck got stiff on the way and my head did not want to turn. Part way home we passed thru the small village of Askov where their yearly town celebration was going on. At the towns stop sign an elderly lady started to cross in front of us. After looking our way part when part way across the street and getting a strange facial expression she turned around and went back to the crowd. I said to the SIL, "wonder what's wrong with her"? He replied that I probably scared her with my looks. I leaned over, best I could, and looked in the mirror. I was a bloody mess. We proceeded home and after washing up my face and at the wife's prompting I went down to the ER. They checked me over, x-rayed my bruised knee and told me to take it easy for a few days. I said what about my head, I want a MRI to make sure I don't have a bleeder. My best friend hit his head hard and had a micro bleeder for months that almost killing him 4 months later. The doc said, "You need a Cat Scan to see a bleeder". "Well, give me a CT then", I replied. He said, "I will have to find out what day the truck comes and get you scheduled." I told him that I built this hospital and that he had both a Cat Scan and a MRI right behind us in the adjoining rooms. In fairness he was a doc from some distance away and was filling in on the day after Thanksgiving. They sent me for the CT and a bit later I was back in the ER room. The doc came in and he was nervous as heck. He said that I had a broken neck and they needed to get me to a trauma center. He put a color on me. He then asked me if I had a neurological surgeon that I preferred. I replied that I had not broke my neck before and did not know any. I then said I want one about 35 to 40 years old. Old enough to have done a bunch of them but young enough to know and embrace the latest and greatest stuff. He came back a few minutes later with three names. One was a doctor from Sacramento that he said comes to Duluth once a month for specialty surgeries. He happened to be in town for a few days. I said, he's the one I want. If they are bringing him in for the tough surgeries he's good enough for me. They rolled me out to the ambulance and the rest is history.

I'd click the like button but I can't say honestly that I ever like hearing stories like that. Congratulations on surviving.

John C. said:

I'd click the like button but I can't say honestly that I ever like hearing stories like that. Congratulations on surviving.

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I understand fully, I have the same problem myself sometimes. And, Thank you.

I have been following this thread since it started.
Terrible ordeal OIH !
Nice to read you are ok!
Good thing you built that hospital. Or there may have been a different outcome.

Tinkerer said:

I have been following this thread since it started.
Terrible ordeal OIH !
Nice to read you are ok!
Good thing you built that hospital. Or there may have been a different outcome.

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I always felt good about building hospitals. I figured in some small way, if I did my job proper, my work could help people. Never really thought about it maybe being me.

Holy **** just read the whole story.

Life hits us sometimes totally unprepared and then you have to pull and fight to get out with as less damage as possible..

I am happy that you didn't suffer any permanent injuries..