STRUGGLING WITH SERENDIPITY
  • Home
  • About
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • Events
  • Photos
  • Press and News
  • Resources

a march snowstorm

12/13/2018

8 Comments

 
Picture
My efforts to anticipate and avoid problems failed during a Paralympic swim meet in Canada. I met Beth at the Montreal airport. She wasn’t a fan of flying but that didn’t stop her from getting on planes. Beth surprised people by traveling alone with a duffel bag on her lap and a big Harvard Swimming pack on the back of her chair.
           
I had no rental car reservation. The subway had been recommended, and it worked—if you could climb flights of steps. We decided on taxis instead. On the last morning, we rode through a heavy March snowfall to the swim meet.
           
One of Beth’s big wheels flattened during prelims, a first in seven years of air-filled tires. After her injury, I worried about many things, but a flat tire had been completely off my radar. Overly optimistic, we hoped a new inner tube in an odd size could be easily found at a local bike shop.
 
On a Sunday. During a snowstorm.
           
I left to save the day while Beth rested in our hotel room. I planned to pick her up with an inflated wheel in my hand before the last finals session. I hailed a taxi carrying the flat wheel and a list of bike shops; thankfully, Montreal had several. A friendly driver headed for the nearest one while I called others. Phone recordings said some were open though no one answered.
           
Beth called me in a panic when I left the third bike shop with the flat tire. She learned it was a big deal to miss a finals race at a championship meet, with paperwork required in advance. Time ticked away, and drivers acted as though they’d never seen snow before. Plows blocked roads and piled snow on parked cars.
           
Miraculously, the fourth bike shop had the right size inner tube. By the time they fixed the wheel, and I arrived back to the hotel, finals had already begun. The taxi driver waited while I ran up to our room with the wheel and flew back down with Beth who wore her swimsuit under sweats. Peggy called us from the pool. We might make it in time for her first race. A traffic jam tested our patience and dampened the beauty of the white wonderland.
           
Finally, I paid the driver way too much, and we rushed to the pool deck where Peggy waved frantically. Right next to a starting block, Peggy and I stripped Beth’s coat and sweats off in seconds and literally dropped her in the lane. Another quick moment, and the race began. Her hastily donned goggles came off and floated in the water behind her.
 
We laughed about it later, but it wasn’t funny at the time. ;-)
           
In hindsight, we should’ve borrowed a wheelchair from another swimmer for Beth to get to finals with Peggy. Friends on the team with prosthetic legs sometimes traveled with wheelchairs. I bought a set of foam-filled tires the next day
--the only kind she’s used since!
            
8 Comments
Jason Rhode link
12/13/2018 04:55:45 pm

Luck was truly on your side! My fam and I learned our listen about tube tires when one popped from under me getting out of the van when I was going to a homecoming bonfire. Needless to say, I didn't make it.

Reply
Cindy Kolbe link
12/14/2018 07:33:56 pm

Yes, I agree, Jason! What were the odds of finding an odd sized inner tube at a bike shop on a Sunday? Luck really was on our side!

Reply
Laura Krietemeyer
12/14/2018 09:28:58 am

I use air filled tires. After my first flat, I carry a tube with me. Always have one in my van, and if I'm flying one in my luggage. Bike shops are the best. My tire shredded when I was traveling in Yellowstone, and a bike shop found the tire to make it work. They were so proud of themselves.

Reply
Cindy Kolbe link
12/14/2018 07:48:16 pm

Thanks for commenting, Laura! I wish I had thought to carry a spare inner tube. And yes, we’ve found some very helpful people at different bike shops, too, and they’ve also helped with other wheelchair repairs.

Reply
Val link
12/14/2018 10:30:38 am

Wow! I could feel the panic and stress as I read your latest post. You are a super mom (navigating a strange city trying to find a replacement tire for Beth's wheelchair while under a time constraint)! I'm glad Beth was able to compete. : )

Reply
Cindy Kolbe link
12/14/2018 07:52:56 pm

Thanks, Val. It was a crazy day, and we were really lucky that my dash around Montreal was successful!

Reply
Amy Henry link
12/18/2018 06:09:29 pm

"My efforts to anticipate and avoid problems failed during a Paralympic swim meet in Canada."

On the contrary, Cindy, I think you succeeded marvelously in a tough moment. None of us can foresee what lies ahead, but your diligence in tracking down that inner tube makes you a contender for the Mom of the Year Award. Happy (and peaceful) holidays!

Reply
Cindy Kolbe link
12/20/2018 08:50:11 am

Thanks, Amy! I think it also made me a contender for the frazzled mom award. ;-) Happy holidays to you as well!

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Cindy Kolbe

    Sign up for my Just Keep Swimming Newsletter by typing your email address in the box. Thanks!

    * indicates required

    Categories

    All
    Accident
    Adventure
    Anxiety
    Career
    Caregiving
    Chronic Pain
    College
    Counseling
    Depression
    Driving
    Fear
    Floating
    Friends
    Goals
    Graduation
    Gratitude
    Grief
    Group Home
    Guilt
    Harvard
    High School
    High School Swim Team
    Holidays
    Independence
    Injury
    Intensive Care
    Internship
    Job
    Moving
    Occupational Therapy
    Optimism
    Paralympics
    Paralympic Swim Team
    Perspective
    Physical Therapy
    Published Articles
    Rehab
    Road Trip
    Serendipity
    Spinal Cord Injury
    Sports
    Stanford
    Support
    Surgery
    Swim Club Team
    Swim Meet
    Swimming
    Travels
    Video
    Volunteering
    Writing

    Picture

    Archives

    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    July 2020
    May 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016

    RSS Feed

    Picture

    Picture

    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture

    Picture
Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.
  • Home
  • About
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • Events
  • Photos
  • Press and News
  • Resources