Cody’s Story

On July 17th, 2021 I was hit and run over by a car.

I was riding my bicycle in a bike lane on Venice Blvd in Los Angeles on a clear sunny day less than one mile from my house. I was admitted to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center for 14 days for the following injuries:

Broken Bones:

  • Left Femur

  • Left Clavicle

  • Left Scapula

  • 10 Ribs (3 more displaced)

  • C7 Vertebra (non-displaced fracture)

Additional Injuries

  • 2 Punctured/Partially Collapsed Lungs

  • Left Hip 3rd Degree Burn

  • Abdomen soft tissue contusions

  • Facial Laceration (16 stitches)

  • Extensive Road Rash

  • Possible Lacerated Spleen

Bike touring had become a significant part of my life before the crash.

I biked across the United States in 2016 with an affordable housing organization called Bike & Build, and another regional tour with the same organization around Washington state a year later. At the time of my crash I was working on a 10,000 mile tour/documentary project planned for summer 2022 exploring the the covid-19 pandemic’s after-effects around the country. I was actually on my way to a Bike & Build alumni event in Santa Monica the morning of my collision.

My first year of rehab went remarkably well!

Despite a mostly negative experience with physical therapy and going through an additional out-patient surgery in February 2022, I was able to have a remarkably impressive physical recovery in my first twelve months post-crash. I road a bike for the first time post-crash around a parking lot on July 16th, 2022 - one day before I celebrated a year of recovery.

But recovery is a long, slow, meandering process that took it's toll.

10 days after celebrating a year of recovery I was rear-ended exiting the 10 highway again in Santa Monica. While I was, thankfully, inside a car this time, I was diagnosed with my 4th concussion and dealt with Post-Concussion Syndrome for another 5 months.

With my recovery momentum stopped the Post-Traumatic Stress, Anxiety, and Fear caught up to me and I began to retreat indoors and inside my own head. Unable to find peace, purpose, or adequate support in Los Angeles, I moved back to my hometown of Portland, Oregon at the end of 2023.

Five years later though, it’s time go back to doing big things.

Slowly, but surely, I’ve been rebuilding my mind and body to the point where I now feel ready to go on another grand adventure. To be clear, I’m nowhere near “cured”. The physical and emotional pain is still a daily struggle. But I’m tired of not being brave, and it’s time to do something about that.