Daniel Muse

Daniel Muse was riding a MX track Sunday March 30, and is now paralyzed from the chest down. There is a triple that we had just been rolling all day, we had all already decided it was not jump-able and needed to be re-worked a bit before anyone jumped it. Daniel continued rolling it trying to convince himself he could hit it. About the time all the other guys decided to take a break for water, he decided it was time to do it. We were all sitting next to the landing (shade tree to sit under) and did not think he was really going to do it. We heard him rail the corner and never let off the gas till he was mid air. The lip kicked his back end up, and being that the face of the jump was about 6'5, it launched him a good 10 foot over our head. Since he was so high, the back end kept going higher, and the nose kept diving. By the time he hit the ground, the front had dove so low the back tire was more forward than the front. He basically did half a front flip. He rode it straight into the ground; the bike pancaked him literally in half. Immediately we knew this was bad, first thing we did was grab his legs to see if he could feel it. He could not feel anything, no pinching, no pulling, and no pain really all the way to his nipples. They care flighted him straight to Parkland ER here in Dallas and gave us the news. He fractured his sternum and broke several vertebrae in his neck and back. The C6 and C7 are fractured. T1 and T4 are fractured and he shattered T5 . Originally they said T5 had shattered into his spinal cord, which is causing the paralysis. The hospital did an MRI and finally gave us a small bit of hope, it revealed that the T5 did NOT puncture or sever the spinal cord, but it has a ton of swelling around it. The MRI also revealed he has a hematoma around the cord at T5. The hematoma was causing pressure on the cord which may be what is preventing movement or feeling.

He had back surgery today (April 2nd) to have a cage built from T4 to T6 and fuse all the vertebrae in between for stability. We are praying that the swelling is the cause of the paralysis at this point and that it is only temporary. During surgery the doctors were able to drain off some of the fluid buildup and put a drain to prevent any more buildup. He had a blood transfusion during surgery, but is stable and now in a room. He is in great spirits and is already joking about getting a 4 wheeler, and as he put it "bolting some boots to the side so his legs don't flop off and trip someone."

They have moved him to room 571 in Parkland. The doctors said they will be putting a brace on him today which should allow him to sit up in the bed, rather than lie flat on his back. We are all very excited by the news of his spinal cord being in good shape on the outside layer. We are praying the nerves on the inside are in just as good of shape. It could take days, weeks, months or possibly years, but if everything is okay inside, he could very well have a 100% recovery.

www.supportingdaniel.com has been created to share Daniels story and keep updated with his condition. He has no medical insurance and we are doing everything we can to raise some money for him. We race with the TCCRA and the organization is donating money to him from a bucket at sign-ups and at the gate. Many of you do not know him personally, but we are asking for any support we can get. Whether it is $1 or $1000, anything helps.

As his best friend and fellow racer, my heart is bleeding for him, seeing him hit the ground is all I see over and over in my head. Daniel was one of the most happy go lucky, would not hurt a fly, sacrifice anything to help someone type a guy. He has an adorable and incredibly smart 3-year-old daughter, Peyton. He has only been married to his wife, Heather, for about 6 months. Daniels family lives in Atlanta and have all come to support and help him in his time of need. Daniel is going to need long term support and prayer to keep his spirits high. His family needs all the support they can get, and will continue to need it throughout this journey.

Again, he is in room 571 at Parkland Hospital and the more visitors he has, the better his mood should be!

Thank you to everyone that has donated so far, please keep him in you thoughts and prayers. God bless.

-Dusty

The doctors came in and have put the brace on Daniel. Heather said he is slightly uncomfortable, but he is sitting up. He has been lying on his back since Sunday, so I am sure sitting up feels great.

-Dusty

Daniel had a ton of visitors last night, 4/3. It must feel good to see such a strong support system and so many people standing behind him. The brace that allows him to sit up is making him very uncomfortable. It is a back brace wit ha built in chin/neck support. Every time he raises the bed to sit up, he slides down. The brace keeps creeping up and digging into his neck and throat. You could tell he was very frustrated and very uncomfortable. We got him to eat a chicken nugget and he killed a McDonald’s chocolate shake. Overall he is doing pretty well, he just has sad written all over his face.

We joked about painting his toenails because, well, lets face it, they were gross! He protested for a minute, but we did it anyway. He now has nice purple toenails for everyone to see. I told him it would give him something to smile about every time he sat up. Besides, it's not like it's the first time they have been painted.

Everyone keep thinking and praying for him, the hard part is about to begin. Heather told us the doc is guessing he will have another 1 to 2 week stay in the hospital. It really all depends on how well he does with moving around and sitting up.

Thanks again for everyone’s support.

-Dusty

His pain is getting better and they are giving him something for pain
that doesn't make him sick. He's pulling himself up and can sit
comfortably at almost 90degrees. He's starting to eat, the doctor
said he can have anything he wants to eat. The main idea is he needs
to eat. They are going to give him some blood this afternoon to help
with strength and should remove the drain in his back shortly. They
will probably call him 'Medically Stable' this weekend, which will
then get him in queue for going up to 8E which is the Rehab
unit. He'll probably have the brace on for 12 to 16 weeks.

We're going to work on a regular schedule this weekend so we can
start planning. Should get some Idea next week of what he will need
going forward and when.

That's about it for now. Thanks for all the help and support. I'll
keep you updated.

-Dusty

Today was a great day for Daniel, the best he has had all week. He had physical therapy this morning and said it hurt but at the same time it felt good to move around. He recieved some blood yesterday which seems to have really given him his energy and color back. He is finally eating and all he wants to eat is cereal and fruit, which is better than nothing. He seems to be alot happier today than earlier in the week, even since yesterday.

The good news just keeps coming. It may seem like no big deal, but he found out he can take the huge back brace/chest protecter/neck brace thing off each night to sleep. He is also able to pull himself up quite a bit without much pain and is supposed to roll on his side every two hours for circulation. He still has to work on getting all his strength back though. His hand has been very swollen and blue so they finally x-rayed it Thursday. It confirmed what we already knew, its fractured.

Daniel has had an overwhelming amount of visitors, prayers, and candy (of course)!!! We cannot thank everyone enough for all the support that has been given to him. Please continue to pray for Daniel and his recovery, he will continue to need it for a long time.

-ash

Short update.....

Daniel's doctor came in this morning and said that he is medically stable, which means he is ready to move up to the 8th floor to start his rehab. That is great news, the sooner the better. As soon as the next bed becomes available he will be moving up stairs. (We are thinking Monday sometime.) Once he gets there he will be there for about 5 to 6 weeks.

Also, he said that he is supposed to get in his wheelchair and roll down the hall tomorrow. A change of scenery will be nice for him.

-ash

Daniel is doing very well today. He is moving to the rehab floor, 8E at some point during the day.

He is learning to balance himself sitting up more and is moving around easier and easier each day.

Keep praying for 100% recovery, and thanks again for all the support!

-Dusty

Daniel is on the rehab floor! They moved him to the 8th floor in room 834. The room is a double, and he has no roommate right now. It is so much nicer than what he had on the 5th floor. You can see parts of downtown out of his window, unlike the other room where all you could see was the other side of the building.

They did not move us to the 8th floor until after 10:00 last night, and it was about 12:30 by the time everything was settled and they were through poking, prodding, asking questions, and doing other "nurse" stuff. Ash and I stayed with him last night and it seemed like he finally got some really good sleep, they do not bug you near as much on this floor during the night. The nurse explained that he has pretty much freedom to do whatever he wants. He can be wheeled around, taken outside, go to the activity room etc. etc. A few of the nurses were blown away that he was only a little over a week out from the accident and never would have guessed it by how well he is doing.

When they got him in the wheelchair this morning he rolled himself all the way down the hall to therapy. It was great seeing him out of bed and moving around. I forgot to get the correct phone number for his room, but it is no longer the one he had on the 5th floor. He will be doing at least 2-3 hours of therapy throughout the day, which started at 8:30 this morning. I'm sure he will be very tired by the end of the day.

Thanks again for all the encouraging words and support for Daniel.

-Dusty

Spoke with Daniel on the phone just now. He is very tired and feels like he has a cold. He has been getting nauseous and staying extremely tired. In therapy this morning the therapists worked with him on rolling over in bed by himself without assistance. He got a little sick in the middle of it, but the therapists told him that may happen since he had been lying down for a week.

He said he can barely stay awake to talk on the phone and just looking around makes him more nauseous. We told the head nurse that he has a pretty bad cough and congestion; hopefully they can get it taken care of. His cough really hurts due to the broken sternum, and he can only lightly cough, which makes it impossible to clear his throat.

And to everyone that saw the "spit sucker," he got a fresh new one last night. He already had a mix of cheetos and laffy taffy to give it a little spice!

-Dusty

We went to see Daniel Sunday morning. I actually think we may have woke him up. Heather was still curled up in a ball on the extremely comfortable fold out chair-bed thing. He is definitely ready to go home. He said the days are long, and the 2 hours of therapy per day is getting old. His sternum and hand are keeping him from being able to do everything he would otherwise be able to do. He does not want to stay there and wait until they heal just to prove he can do the moves. We were not there very long, the nurses came in to take him for a shower. We wish they could have waited, but they may have not given him one if we postponed it to visit.

He said he is sleeping better, which is great. The nurses do not come in the middle of the night near as much as they were. One nurse is actually trying to get him left alone until 6:00 am. His eyes are not black anymore and his nose has healed up. He is down almost 20 pounds since the day he was brought in.

Everyone keep your hopes up for him and don't forget, he can have all the visitors that can fit in the room!

-Dusty

Just a quick update-

I met another rider named Adam, turns out, Adam has some friends that have been through similiar problems. Some of you may know his friend, David Bailey! Adam is also friends with Ernesto Fonseca and all the guys from RacerX. Bailey gave Daniel a call at the hospital yesterday and spent some time on the phone with him. David has had a 21 year journey in his wheelchair and could not be more positive! Adam, myself, and LJ have pooled some info about Daniel together to be featured this Friday, April 18th on the Racer X website (www.racerxill.com) under the Friday Racerhead.

The info has a link to Daniel's page as well as a brief explanation of what happened to him. This is incredible, he is going to get some national exposure from a huge website in the motocross world!

Thanks again to all who have helped, and remember to check out www.racerxill.com and www.suportingdaniel.com !

-Dusty

Not much news today. We do have a projected discharge date from the hospital, 4-29. Hopefully this will work and and we can get him back at home where he will be more comfortable.

Thanks again to all who have donated and helped support Daniel. Today is the day he should be on www.racerxill.com under the Racerhead. Keep checking throughout the day and read it!

Also, don't forget to check out the pics of Daniel by clicking "Photo Blog" in the top right corner!!

-Dusty

At the Crafton race Melanie Deen will be selling 1.25" helmet stickers with Daniel Muse's number N3 on them. The price will be $3.00 each. All proceeds will go to Daniel and Heather Muse. If you don't race, buy one to put on your 4 wheeler or mule. You can purchase these from Carol Broom or Melanie Deen. Look for the AdvoCare sign and that's where you will find the stickers at the race. Also, Todd Tarver has some at his store for purchase, and there might be a booth at sign-ups.

The stickers are a "mini" numberplate that many graphics companies include with your graphics. CutNEdge graphics are the providing company, so big thanks to them for the great work. I have attached the computer version of the sticker, this does them no justice, the quality of CutNEdge is second to none.

For people that do not attend races, you can contact Melanie Deen at:

melaniedeen@aol.com
(940) 733-7966

I had told several people that they would be available here, that information was incorrect. I apologize. Please contact Melanie directly. Again, please do not request stickers or send the $3 via the paypal link.

-Dusty

Just got back from seeing Daniel at the hospital. Walked in the room and there he was in his wheelchair! It is great to see him up and mobile. He seemd like he was in great spirits, but he was really tired. The nurses have been giving him heck throughout the night, waking him up, constantly messing with him, etc. We both had a good laugh, his Dr. put a sign on the outside of the door that reads "Do not disturb between 2200 and 0600." The nurses moved it on the inside of the door on the back! He said since the sign whent up they have been bugging him non-stop!

The checkout date is still tomorrow, April 29th. He is ready to get out of there! I believe Heather has gotten them an apartment in Addison, which is a great midway point between the hospital and everything else.

FYI regarding donations, I took a large portion of the cash donations we have recieved and gave it to Daniel for the neccesities that come along with being released. We have requested the withdraw from paypal for all other funds that have been dontated. Thank you again to everyone who has helped. If donations continue to come in, we will start doing a weekly withdraw to get it to them ASAP. Again, thank you so much for the overwhelming support you all have given. Ash has kept a master list of everyone that has donated, we will give it to Daniel.

-Dusty

DANIEL HAS BEEN RELEASED FROM THE HOSPITAL!!!!!!

Now that Daniel is out of the hospital, I have linked the donation button directly to his paypal. Everything now goes directly to Daniel so he has immediate access to it.

Thanks again to everyone who has supported him during this time.

-Dusty

Gates open Friday at 9 am Fun, Food, Camping and riding in a family environment.
We will be raising funds for a fallen police officers children's scholarship fund and http://www.supportingdaniel.com/

If you ride TCCRA don't miss this ride this is the June 28 & 29 race track.
You will get a head start on everyone else.

If you race TORN or TORX you have never seen a track like this.
150 foot climbs, steep downhills, sand, trees, snake canyon and the devils backbone...not to mention Table Top Rock...30 feet up and nothing but air....

Then the fishing in 5 private lakes and the bonfire that Saturday evening.

Tired of the same old track come out to Thunder Mountain...

CAN YOU SURVIVE THUNDER MOUNTAIN.

From Ft Worth take I-20 west
Exit Strawn (SH 16)
Go north to north side of Strawn
Turn left on SH 207
Follow SH 207 to deadend (SH 717)
Turn right then back left on SH 207 again
Go 3 miles
Watch for County Road 137 on left
Turn left on County Road 137
Follow County Road 137 to the gates of Thunder Mountain.

Contact 254 559-2964
Email jay_marcom@WTCONNECT.COM