30 ft ground fall at Pilot Mountain NC

Hey Everyone!  My name is Michael Hall and on August 1st this year I was attempting an onsight of COWBOYS AND HEROES a climb well within my comfortable range when I took a fall that resulted in two cams blowing and me taking a 30 ft ground fall. It's taken some time for me to be ready to share the full story on here. Currently, I'm working on a comprehensive report that I plan to share with the AMGA and AAC  and will share with you guys too.  HERE is a news article on the fall. 

For now, I wanted to share a bit of a high-level overview with all of you.  

• The cams failing was likely the result of poor weather conditions, mixed with a desperate placement. 
• I had two climbing partners with me and they reacted quickly to the fall. One attended to me while the other contacted 911.
• The Park Rangers, other climbers, and EMS responders were great at making me comfortable and assisting with getting me out on a backboard. 
• WakeBaptist Health was awesome.
• I had a broken sternum and an open/compound tibia fibula fracture.
• We decided to use an external fixator rather than internal hardware for a variety of reasons. 

I'm almost at 5 months post-fall and doing well but still have 3+ months to go. Unfortunately, for a variety of reasons (mainly covid), I was uninsured at the time of the accident and have twice been denied Medicaid. Some people may ask about helping out so I wanted to share a couple of links.

• If you have a TikTok, please take a moment to like and comment on THIS video. Youtuber David Dobrik is currently doing a giving campaign that i have a legitimate chance at benefiting from. 
• If you don't have a Tik Tok you can still click on the link to watch/share the video. 
• HERE is my GoFundMe. I just updated it today and you can see more of the journey there. No donations have come in that way in a while but id still appreciate them! 

[Mods if posting my own GoFundMe is unkosher please alert me and I can remove it] 

Merry Christmas Eve everyone! 

Michael- I hope the swift passage of time provides you and your loved ones complete healing and recovery. Thank you for sharing the story of your misfortune so that others might benefit. Stay strong and Merry Christmas.

B Travenwrote:

Michael- I hope the swift passage of time provides you and your loved ones complete healing and recovery. Thank you for sharing the story of your misfortune so that others might benefit. Stay strong and Merry Christmas.

What information presented here would be useful to others? Seems like OP is just asking for financial help. I would be interested to know how a desperate placement could occur on a 5.7 if that is well below his level, and judging by the photo the route looks like it would eat gear.

Stories like this make me so grateful for universal healthcare up here in Canada.

Delaney Bray-Stonewrote:

What information presented here would be useful to others? Seems like OP is just asking for financial help. I would be interested to know how a desperate placement could occur on a 5.7 if that is well below his level, and judging by the photo the route looks like it would eat gear.

Stories like this make me so grateful for universal healthcare up here in Canada.

Delaney Bray-Stonewrote:

What information presented here would be useful to others? Seems like OP is just asking for financial help. I would be interested to know how a desperate placement could occur on a 5.7 if that is well below his level, and judging by the photo the route looks like it would eat gear.

Stories like this make me so grateful for universal healthcare up here in Canada.

"What Information...?" Well, maybe nothing to you since apparently you already have the whole incident figured out; I suspect the AAC considers the complete and detailed narrative - which presumably neither of us have read - of some value. Ever read "Accidents in North American Climbing"? 

Merry Christmas up there in Canada, I hope nothing bad ever happens to you out in the great wilds. If it does, you might have to discover the value of empathy. 

(Peace.)

Hope you continue to heal up! Healthcare in this country is a fucking travesty.

B Travenwrote:

"What Information...?" Well, maybe nothing to you since apparently you already have the whole incident figured out; I suspect the AAC considers the complete and detailed narrative - which presumably neither of us have read - of some value. Ever read "Accidents in North American Climbing"? 

Merry Christmas up there in Canada, I hope nothing bad ever happens to you out in the great wilds. If it does, you might have to discover the value of empathy. 

(Peace.)

I did not make any assumptions about the incident (you on the other hand are quick to make assumptions about myself). I responded to your comment because your praise of the utility of the post was unfounded, but more importantly because I think OP will have greater success in obtaining donations if he can provide insight to the events leading to his accident. Decking on a 30-foot G-rated route that is well below your level does not make sense.

I guess it flew over your head @B Traven but I also expressed empathy for the plight of OP and other Americans who have been fucked by your country's healthcare system. Happy holidays!!

Delaney Bray-Stonewrote:

What information presented here would be useful to others? Seems like OP is just asking for financial help. I would be interested to know how a desperate placement could occur on a 5.7 if that is well below his level, and judging by the photo the route looks like it would eat gear.

Stories like this make me so grateful for universal healthcare up here in Canada.

I would be lying if I said I wouldn’t hope for financial help as I am in a hard situation at the moment however that is in no way the only reason for my post.

This description of this section of the forum includes “discuss accidents” - I wanted to share my experience with ya’ll and my similar post on Reddit resulted in lots of fruitful discussion and visibility to climbers with no experience outside of a gym or top roping outside.

I certainly made mistakes that contributed to my accident.
• I didn’t place enough gear because the climbing was so easy I didn’t expect to fall.
• The route has a few endings. I got off the easy route and didn’t realize it until I got in a desperate position.
• It’s possible I could have downclimbed a bit to get out of trouble.

These mistakes were a result of somewhat inexperience (ive been climbing for between 3-4 years) Trad led 30+ climbs. Mainly though it came down to having too casual of an attitude towards a climb. I’m sure we’ve all gotten lax at some point and while a lot of times nothing goes wrong, it did for me that day.

I’m mainly  hoping that my story can help remind or teach people about what can go wrong and to respect the climb. 

Michael Hallwrote:

I would be lying if I said I wouldn’t hope for financial help as I am in a hard situation at the moment however that is in no way the only reason for my post.

This description of this section of the forum includes “discuss accidents” - I wanted to share my experience with ya’ll and my similar post on Reddit resulted in lots of fruitful discussion and visibility to climbers with no experience outside of a gym or top roping outside.

I certainly made mistakes that contributed to my accident.
• I didn’t place enough gear because the climbing was so easy I didn’t expect to fall.
• The route has a few endings. I got off the easy route and didn’t realize it until I got in a desperate position.
• It’s possible I could have downclimbed a bit to get out of trouble.

These mistakes were a result of somewhat inexperience (ive been climbing for between 3-4 years) Trad led 30+ climbs. Mainly though it came down to having too casual of an attitude towards a climb. I’m sure we’ve all gotten lax at some point and while a lot of times nothing goes wrong, it did for me that day.

I’m mainly  hoping that my story can help remind or teach people about what can go wrong and to respect the climb. 

Thanks for sharing Michael! Best of luck in your recovery. Hope you get back on the rock soon!

I had a similar experience on a 5.6 and I lead up to 5.12. Thankfully my belayer insisted on me placing another piece two moves before my foot blew (wet hold). Ultimately it is up to the climber to protect his/herself, but there's nothing wrong with suggesting your partner to place pro if you have a bad feeling on belay.

I saw that that you intend to pay your medical bills with the donations. Don't. Use donations to pay for what you need, food/shelter/meds. Your medical bills will soon become unsurmountable and you will need to declare bankruptcy and/or negotiate a payment plan with creditors.

Paying those bills is dumping money in a bottomless pit.

Godspeed.

Tradibanwrote:

I saw that that you intend to pay your medical bills with the donations. Don't. Use donations to pay for what you need, food/shelter/meds. Your medical bills will soon become unsurmountable and you will need to declare bankruptcy and/or negotiate a payment plan with creditors.

Paying those bills is dumping money in a bottomless pit.

Godspeed.

For profit healthcare is the culprit. Every procedure a healthcare provider refuses to pay is more profit. This is why it can be so difficult to get a simple MRI even when you have a “good” plan. When we finally switch over to Universal Healthcare in this country, people will look back at this archaic past and laugh at the absurdity.

List of overpaid executives.

https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/compensation-issues/17-healthcare-ceos-make-list-of-overpaid-executives.html

I wish the OP a full, speedy recovery and thank him for bringing attention to this situation.

Adam Burch wrote:

This is unfortunately good advice.

When my infant son was in the hospital, I made the mistake of asking for an itemized breakdown of the charges.  I reviewed it for a moment, and noticed they had billed us for 600 doses of acetaminophen for one day.  

SIX HUNDRED DOSES IN ONE DAY

Of course, this seemed a little higher than I would expect, so I inquired.  Without batting an eye, they let us know that they do this because so many people are not paying their medical bills.  My son's fantasy OD invoice would help to subsidize all the wonderful folks that just don't pay.

AMAZING.  I love it.

Sounds like insurance fraud.

I want to know more before money is sent. What have you learned?

M Mwrote:

I want to know more before money is sent. What have you learned?

Thanks for considering donating anything. In addition to the points I listed above I would have to say I hadn’t realized how much of an invincible spirit I was carrying into climbing. I’m much more aware of how there’s never a moment to neglect safety especially when others safety is involved too. I’m thankful this injury didn’t happen on a multi pitch climb or somewhere more secluded than pilot. I was also really impressed with the number of climbers willing to jump in and help with the evac following the accident. 

Sarah Z wrote:

In support of the advice given above- do not focus on paying off all your medical bills. You can negotiate every medical bill to 30%+ off the original price- that is what they bill insurance and keep in mind that they have a cash pay price, indigent price, etc. Your ambulance bill is a must pay because they will sue you for that- ambulance companies are 50% out of network only and you will often times receive a large bill for your ambulance ride even with insurance. 

Im only planning to pay the essential bills now. I spoke with the ambulance company and am requesting for them to reduce the bill, it required writing a letter to the county financial officer. Not optimistic on that but we’ll see. Biggest expense I’m looking at that I’ve got to be prepared to pay is the physical therapy as that’s something I have to pay at each visit. They are giving me a self payment rate though. 

Michael Hallwrote:

Thanks for considering donating anything. In addition to the points I listed above I would have to say I hadn’t realized how much of an invincible spirit I was carrying into climbing. I’m much more aware of how there’s never a moment to neglect safety especially when others safety is involved too. I’m thankful this injury didn’t happen on a multi pitch climb or somewhere more secluded than pilot. I was also really impressed with the number of climbers willing to jump in and help with the evac following the accident. 

Glad your alive Michael.  Best of luck in making a full recovery. 

Michael 
I hope you make a speedy and full recovery.

I lived in Winston Salem for 9 years and climbed extensively in the area.  Respectfully I suggest that the only route I lead on gear at pilot was cracking up, in the amphitheater, 5.7 plus.

The  rock at pilot is crap and not suitable for trad climbing.

Best wishes 

Ezra 

Our medical system is in a sorry state, I share your frustration.

Michael Hallwrote:

Thanks for considering donating anything. In addition to the points I listed above I would have to say I hadn’t realized how much of an invincible spirit I was carrying into climbing. I’m much more aware of how there’s never a moment to neglect safety especially when others safety is involved too. I’m thankful this injury didn’t happen on a multi pitch climb or somewhere more secluded than pilot. I was also really impressed with the number of climbers willing to jump in and help with the evac following the accident. 

In addition, why weren't you insured and why can't you get medicaid? Not being judgemental or accusatory, I think people could learn from those mistakes as well. Navigating these aspects can sometimes be the most difficult part of recovery.

Short Fall Seanwrote:

Hope you continue to heal up! Healthcare in this country is a fucking travesty.

Fuck you. Healthcare coverage is a travesty. We working on the caring end of healthcare have nothing to do with that mess.

It’s the best system targeted political donations can buy, I’m sure ;).

Good luck in your recovery, damn sorry you have to worry about this other shit, OP.

Tradibanwrote:

In addition, why weren't you insured and why can't you get medicaid? 

OP provided some details in the first post. 

Tradibanwrote:

In addition, why weren't you insured and why can't you get medicaid? Not being judgemental or accusatory, I think people could learn from those mistakes as well. Navigating these aspects can sometimes be the most difficult part of recovery.

NC didn't expand medicaid.