Shuli

 From Sergio’s Facebook post:

Well, I am going to make a very long story as short as possible and condense it into a post.

Adventures are not always as glamorous as people think. They are made of hard work, dedication, passion and a big heart. Suffering is part of the adventure and the last 2 days were some of those days.

Yesterday I took off with Shuli to cross the Bolivian side of the Atacama desert to a border pass called Hito Cajon which is the border between Chile and Bolivia. This is as remote as you can make it. Almost halfway into the desert crossing, Shuli had a crash which at first did not appear to be much of it. He had injured his left ankle but he managed to keep going. Shortly thereafter I noticed that Shuli was in a lot of pain. I made the call to turn around hoping that Shuli could keep it together and ride back to civilization. We were 45 miles into the desert and had we continued we would have been 70 miles from reaching the hot springs and 100 miles from San Pedro de Atacama where he could get medical help (all off-road terrain) so retracing our steps was somewhat a better call. Shuli fought like a lion and was able to ride his bike back to a manageable road despite the pain and the treacherous terrain he had to navigate. He was able to ride another 40 or so miles to a tiny village called San Cristobal where I found a place to spend the night.

This morning things did not improve so we went to the local hospital (quite nice and clean considering the location) where after x-rays the doctor gave us the horrible news. Shuli had broken his ankle and possibly needed surgery. Considering the size of the hospital we had to move him to a larger facility in Uyuni. We placed Shuli in an ambulance and drove 1 and a half hours to Uyuni where they confirmed the need for surgery. Shuli wisely decided against having surgery in Uyuni and rather go back home to seek better advice in the US. Shuli is safe and sound in a hotel in Uyuni where they are taking care of him. He is flying back to the US through multiple flights on Sunday morning.

Shuli never stopped smiling at everyone even when he was in a lot of pain but needless to say, he is heartbroken (and so am I) about having to quit this fantastic trip. However his health is the most important thing and going home is the best decision he has made right now. If possible, please send Shuli best wishes for a speedy recovery. He truly is a hardcore man!! South America is not going anywhere and he will be back to finish this adventure.

I would like to thank all the wonderful people of Bolivia who helped me with this ordeal. The owners of the Nativo Hotel in San Cristobal, the doctors and nurses at the three hospitals we went to, the owners of the hotel Atipax in Uyuni, the cab drivers, the random people who offered help without asking and lastly to Shuli’s family for being so helpful in working so hard to get the bike shipped back to the US.

One last word: getting hurt in remote areas outside of the western world is VERY different from home. All part of the adventure, but sometimes you tend to remember about it only after you are hurt. I included some videos to show you what we had to deal with. The videos are from the ambulance ride and from me riding back from Uyuni to San Cristobal in a Colectivo van with 15 other people (and a few chickens…..). Today was intense.