Happy new year all!

In the spirit of charging hard into 2017, I ask you as a proud High Fives athlete to join me in supporting this amazing foundation. Please consider contributing to our last big fundraiser of the year!!

My athlete fundraising goal: $2,000
Fundraising link: https://support.highfivesfoundation.org/jpines

The “Safety Net for Mountain Athletes” - The High Fives Foundation has been behind my return to sports and mountain adventuring every step of the way. Not just financially, this community of men and women have helped set the bar for me for what it looks like to truly live with a spinal cord injury. From my pursuits in hand cycling to sit skiing to rock climbing, High Fives athletes who have come before have helped point me towards what’s possible.

A small anecdote: 4 days after I hit the tree skiing in Tahoe, Roy Tuscany, executive director of the foundation, walked...

Gratitude

The biggest headline from my P4P experience is the overwhelming generosity poured out by you, my friends and loved ones, in support of Craig Hospital. I was left without words as I witnessed the continued stream of gifting that came flooding in. In all, we raised over $20,000 in essentially 5 days time (final tally here). Thank you, thank you, thank you so much for rising to this occasion; you beautifully reflected how much I deeply appreciate the people and the great purpose of Craig Hospital.

Craig race video

The Story

At 8:30am on June 18th, my fearless & devoted compadre Isaiah and I launched into what was planned to be a 50K (31 mile) bike ride in the foothills of Boulder, CO. Isaiah had flown in from NYC for the ride, and at 10 weeks post-injury I had spent the better part of the last 4 weeks mildly training for what was to be a very big day. My longest ride to...

This coming Saturday June 18, 10 weeks from the day of my skiing accident, I will be riding (hand-cycling) 31 miles in the Boulder foothills in support of Craig Hospital. And in support of a life of possibility.

Motivated by the event, all it represents, and the incredible organization and people of Craig, I finally wrote down the story of my injury. You can find it, in full, on my P4P page here.

Craig Hospital has restored me and quite literally shaped the future course of my life.

If you would also take a moment to help me give back to Craig, it would mean a lot. Anything you can give in support would be greatly appreciated!

Direct link to support Craig and my 50K ride

What’s up

It’s been a long time since the last post. JP’s schedule has been packed, nearly 10 hours of rehab therapies and conditioning per day. But he’s made an amazing amount of progress in learning to deal with SCI. In fact, his slogan since April has been putting records out of reach. Whether it’s besting circuit records in group fit class by over a minute, acquiring wheelchair transfer skills months ahead of schedule, or raising the bar for mano a mano beachball in the pool (check out the link), Justin has thrown himself into the day’s challenges with his usual competitiveness, playfulness and gusto.

The days at Craig have not been without their challenges. Because the clinical effects of his injury are effectively at T2 (~2 inches below the armpits), Justin is re-learning to do things like shower and put socks on without the use of his core muscles. Even getting in and out...

Hi all,

The first three weeks at Craig have been even more than we could have hoped for. The days here are filled with hard work (lots of it :)), positivity, and progress - all wrapped within a wonderful community. We’ve been surprised and grateful, both by how attentive, knowledgable and upbeat the staff are and by the optimism and openness of the other patients. Everyone here is working relentlessly towards recovery, or supporting those who are, and it is truly inspiring.

Justin has been working very hard every day and has made tremendous progress learning how to live with his injury. His doctor team continues to be impressed by his fervor for pushing his limits, and have quickly learned about his competitive nature. He spends ~4-6 hours every day working out - in physical therapy, occupational therapy, group fitness classes, wheelchair classes, mat classes, and his own...

If you want to get ahold of us, here are the mailing addresses:

Mail to Justin:

Craig Hospital
3425 S. Clarkson St.
Englewood, CO  80113
Attn: Justin Pines
c/o Guest Services 413

Mail to Larry, Randi, Kayla (this will likely change over time):

Larry Pines & Randi Pines
or Kayla Taylor
3427 S. Emerson St.  404
Englewood, CO  80113

4/24/2016

This past Wednesday, Justin was successfully transferred from Renown Hospital in Reno, to Craig Rehab in Englewood, CO (right outside of Denver). The transfer and flight went as well as we could have hoped for - there were clear blue skies with no turbulence, and Randi, Justin and I were accompanied by a wonderful team of medical transport nurses and pilots.

Upon our arrival to Craig, we were greeted by many of the nurses on Justin’s doctor’s team (each doctor has a team of nurses that stay with the patient during the duration of their...