Crossfit Coach Severed Spine :-(
Replies
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Would it be poor taste to suggest that perhaps their name was asking for trouble?CrossFit Unbroken owner Matt Hathcock
:-\
Generally you wouldn't to have insurance to cover yourself I believe - just what you or your kit may do to others. It may not even be regulated that you have to have it - certainly in lots of businesses you don't. In the past, due to the nature of a business (not health related) as it was low risk relatively I've not had it and accepted that if I did get sued, that would be the end of the business.That's sad, but how was he allowed to work as a coach without health insurance? I believe it's a requirement in the UK if you want to be a Personal Trainer.
But it's a moot point here anyway as far as medical bills go, of course - which I think is the majority of the issue.
There would be the POSSIBILITY of compensation if he sued the organiser of the event and could prove they were negligent.
For instance some years ago a motorcycle rider managed to sue a trackday company because they didn't make it clear that the grass was a lot more slippy than the tarmac and so crashed when they went on to it. They now make this clear in the briefing, ontop of the many things you sign.
I suspect as an instructor he would have a harder time claiming he should been advised to not do whatever he did.0 -
That's rough. I'm trying to understand what happened. Did the plates land on his back?
When he bailed the lift he let the bar go behind him and fell over backward, as near as I can tell:
[somewhat graphic]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jWJapBpKrQA 0 -
It looks like the bar landed near the base of his neck while he was on his butt on the mat? Wow.0
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http://kevinogar.com/
From the above link:
"As coach at CrossFit Unbroken in Englewood, CO and an accomplished elite level athlete himself, Kevin Ogar's focus each and every day is to help make people better. His kind-hearted personality and genuine care for an athlete's well being is what makes Kevin shine and those around him are drawn to his warmth and caring attitude.
As an athlete Kevin is no stranger to pushing himself to his greatest abilities. He is so comfortable in the uncomfortable and his ability to handle pain is far beyond that of a normal human being. A Superman in his own right. Kevin excelled in CrossFit the most, being one of the best in the sport. This is his legacy. CrossFit is a part of him and will stay that way forever. He will continue to affect people positively through CrossFit and through his triumph over this tragic event."
I would venture to guess that he wasn't from a "bad box"0 -
I would venture to guess that he wasn't from a "bad box"
I wouldn't know, it's just something I hear crossfitters say when something bad happens.0 -
Damn that sucks. i'm not a crossfitter, but very cool of their community to help raise funds for him (although i'm not sure how much will be needed to financially deal with this kind of injury)0
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Yikes, cringe, and sadness for such an unfortunate accident.
Thoughts with him and those who witnessed such a terrible event.0 -
Oh my god...0
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Nice of the Crossfit community to help him. He's got over $160,000 donated now.0
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In fewer than 48 hours, people from around the world donated more than $100,000, CrossFit Unbroken owner Matt Hathcock told CBS.
As tragic as this story is, the sentence above is an amazing thing. I hope that some day I'm fortunate enough to belong to a community this generous.0 -
This is why I don't find the photo where a bar is falling on a girl's back, funny. Everyone else here seemed to think it was hysterical. It said something like, that's what you get for leaving the kitchen??0
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Personal opinion if I may? Crossfit should be carefully treaded on. While olympic lifts are a great exercise they're also a very damaging one and unless you were born for such lifts or have a great coach who is a professional at olympic lifts, because he teaches olympic lifts for a living you should be very wary with it. Olympic lifts are a very technical lift VERY technical and it takes YEARS to form the flexibility, namely in the hips and wrists, and to get the technique down. YEARS. If any of you like doing crossfit don't throw a barbell back at my head ok? haha But sadly by pure coincidence I just heard of a not so pretty accident that happened at one of the crossfit gyms near to me.0
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Yikes.
Hopefully something good can come from it, like a reformation of the crossfit coaching certification program. I'm not blaming crossfit or this athlete for the accident- it was probably a freak accident- but crossfit coaching certification is....lenient....and maybe that will get some exposure.0 -
I wasn't dissing him. Football, hockey, basketball, all the sports have broken heros. I was just saying that doing that kind of job without insurance is kind of irresponsible. That's all. It's not a client issue or anything. I mean, it's all on him. It's horrible, the whole thing is horrible. And, it's great that people are coming to his aid with cash, but that will run out as the med bills continue. So, I don't know. It's just very irresponsible to be doing that without insurance.
It's irresponsible for anyone to go without at least catastrophic care insurance, especially now that the ACA is in effect. Even though getting the coverage hasn't worked as advertised, it is available and Colorado has one of the better exchanges. Right now, there is a social worker at the hospital where he is being treated who is working on getting him on Medicare as a disabled person. A severed spine moves you to the head of the line for disability in a way that few other things (late-stage cancer, heart or kidney failure, massive stroke, amputation of a limb) will do. The Medicare coverage will be retroactive to the accident date. It will cover most of his medical bills and praise God for the cash donations to pick up the rest. Unfortunately, parapalegics usually end up with a host of other medical problems and how he handles those is all in his attitude going forward. (And if you are wondering how I know all that, I work at a level 1 trauma center. I see it more often than I want to, but I do know that the social safety net is capable of quick catches when they are really needed.) I will be praying for him. No one expects this kind of thing and no one deserves it. Very, very sad.0 -
I wasn't dissing him. Football, hockey, basketball, all the sports have broken heros. I was just saying that doing that kind of job without insurance is kind of irresponsible. That's all. It's not a client issue or anything. I mean, it's all on him. It's horrible, the whole thing is horrible. And, it's great that people are coming to his aid with cash, but that will run out as the med bills continue. So, I don't know. It's just very irresponsible to be doing that without insurance.
It's irresponsible for anyone to go without at least catastrophic care insurance, especially now that the ACA is in effect. Even though getting the coverage hasn't worked as advertised, it is available and Colorado has one of the better exchanges. Right now, there is a social worker at the hospital where he is being treated who is working on getting him on Medicare as a disabled person. A severed spine moves you to the head of the line for disability in a way that few other things (late-stage cancer, heart or kidney failure, massive stroke, amputation of a limb) will do. The Medicare coverage will be retroactive to the accident date. It will cover most of his medical bills and praise God for the cash donations to pick up the rest. Unfortunately, parapalegics usually end up with a host of other medical problems and how he handles those is all in his attitude going forward. (And if you are wondering how I know all that, I work at a level 1 trauma center. I see it more often than I want to, but I do know that the social safety net is capable of quick catches when they are really needed.) I will be praying for him. No one expects this kind of thing and no one deserves it. Very, very sad.
I guess I would have enjoyed the information in your post without the added "irresponsible" judgement. We don't know another person's financial circumstances to decide whether he was responsible with his money or not in buying insurance. I for one would LOVE to stick to what actually happened to the guy, and solutions that do not entail judging a person who currently can not even walk. How bout that guys? What do ya say?0 -
Personal opinion if I may? Crossfit should be carefully treaded on. While olympic lifts are a great exercise they're also a very damaging one and unless you were born for such lifts or have a great coach who is a professional at olympic lifts, because he teaches olympic lifts for a living you should be very wary with it. Olympic lifts are a very technical lift VERY technical and it takes YEARS to form the flexibility, namely in the hips and wrists, and to get the technique down. YEARS. If any of you like doing crossfit don't throw a barbell back at my head ok? haha But sadly by pure coincidence I just heard of a not so pretty accident that happened at one of the crossfit gyms near to me.
I found this cautionary post much easier to read, for instance.0 -
I wasn't dissing him. Football, hockey, basketball, all the sports have broken heros. I was just saying that doing that kind of job without insurance is kind of irresponsible. That's all. It's not a client issue or anything. I mean, it's all on him. It's horrible, the whole thing is horrible. And, it's great that people are coming to his aid with cash, but that will run out as the med bills continue. So, I don't know. It's just very irresponsible to be doing that without insurance.
It's irresponsible for anyone to go without at least catastrophic care insurance, especially now that the ACA is in effect. Even though getting the coverage hasn't worked as advertised, it is available and Colorado has one of the better exchanges. Right now, there is a social worker at the hospital where he is being treated who is working on getting him on Medicare as a disabled person. A severed spine moves you to the head of the line for disability in a way that few other things (late-stage cancer, heart or kidney failure, massive stroke, amputation of a limb) will do. The Medicare coverage will be retroactive to the accident date. It will cover most of his medical bills and praise God for the cash donations to pick up the rest. Unfortunately, parapalegics usually end up with a host of other medical problems and how he handles those is all in his attitude going forward. (And if you are wondering how I know all that, I work at a level 1 trauma center. I see it more often than I want to, but I do know that the social safety net is capable of quick catches when they are really needed.) I will be praying for him. No one expects this kind of thing and no one deserves it. Very, very sad.
Thanks for this as I was going to ask what will happen long term when the donations run out.
Whilst not a Crossfit fan myself I don't see this accident as a reason to blame the sport as a whole. 20 years as an emergency nurse has taught me that **** like this can happen to anyone anywhere.0 -
That's sad, but how was he allowed to work as a coach without health insurance? I believe it's a requirement in the UK if you want to be a Personal Trainer.
It's America, we are free to do whatever we wa--...oh wait, NVM.
Under Obamacare, he is required under federal law to have health insurance. So in the eyes of the U.S. government, he is a lawbreaker injured in the commission of a misdemeanor. Literally adding insult to injury, the government will have to fine him for not having insurance.0 -
1. Crossfit Unbroken is not a 'bad box'.
2. From what I understand from other Crossfit coaches in the area (who would not hesitate to speak their minds) Kevin Ogar is an excellent coach.
3. Ogar has a background in power lifting and Olympic lifting. This is not a result of poor Crossfit training.0 -
That's sad, but how was he allowed to work as a coach without health insurance? I believe it's a requirement in the UK if you want to be a Personal Trainer.
It's America, we are free to do whatever we wa--...oh wait, NVM.
Under Obamacare, he is required under federal law to have health insurance. So in the eyes of the U.S. government, he is a lawbreaker injured in the commission of a misdemeanor. Literally adding insult to injury, the government will have to fine him for not having insurance.
What color are the U.S. Government's eyes? Does the U.S. Government wear glasses, contacts, or bifocals?0 -
Green, bifocals, incurable cataracts.0
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That's sad, but how was he allowed to work as a coach without health insurance? I believe it's a requirement in the UK if you want to be a Personal Trainer.
It's America, we are free to do whatever we wa--...oh wait, NVM.
Under Obamacare, he is required under federal law to have health insurance. So in the eyes of the U.S. government, he is a lawbreaker injured in the commission of a misdemeanor. Literally adding insult to injury, the government will have to fine him for not having insurance.
No.
The mandate doesn't go into effect until March, and not having insurance is not a crime (misdemeanor or otherwise). There's a tax penalty for not having coverage, but it's not a criminal fine.0 -
one bad snatch and your life is ruined0
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That sucks.
I guess if he was doing oly lifts in a hardcore gym, we'd be gathering torches and pitchforks against hardcore gyms, right?
Maybe we can tackle...(heh heh)...high school football next.
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I read on one of the Crossfit discussion forums that the bar bounced off those bumper plates, rolled back and hit him, and that is when he reacted visibly. Terrible accident. Also read that this event followed several others, including three miles of running with kettlebells (2/1/0), so I'm guessing fatigue might have played a role. This was either a 3RM snatch or a snatch ladder? But reportedly it was his first rep. Big point being made over there is the importance of having public safety personnel on alert. We always had to do that for our high school football games, makes sense to me.That's rough. I'm trying to understand what happened. Did the plates land on his back?
When he bailed the lift he let the bar go behind him and fell over backward, as near as I can tell:
[somewhat graphic]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jWJapBpKrQA
@jof, I see no torches or pitchforks on this thread....0 -
@jof, I see no torches or pitchforks on this thread....
Patience.0 -
I wasn't dissing him. Football, hockey, basketball, all the sports have broken heros. I was just saying that doing that kind of job without insurance is kind of irresponsible. That's all. It's not a client issue or anything. I mean, it's all on him. It's horrible, the whole thing is horrible. And, it's great that people are coming to his aid with cash, but that will run out as the med bills continue. So, I don't know. It's just very irresponsible to be doing that without insurance.
It's irresponsible for anyone to go without at least catastrophic care insurance, especially now that the ACA is in effect. Even though getting the coverage hasn't worked as advertised, it is available and Colorado has one of the better exchanges. Right now, there is a social worker at the hospital where he is being treated who is working on getting him on Medicare as a disabled person. A severed spine moves you to the head of the line for disability in a way that few other things (late-stage cancer, heart or kidney failure, massive stroke, amputation of a limb) will do. The Medicare coverage will be retroactive to the accident date. It will cover most of his medical bills and praise God for the cash donations to pick up the rest. Unfortunately, parapalegics usually end up with a host of other medical problems and how he handles those is all in his attitude going forward. (And if you are wondering how I know all that, I work at a level 1 trauma center. I see it more often than I want to, but I do know that the social safety net is capable of quick catches when they are really needed.) I will be praying for him. No one expects this kind of thing and no one deserves it. Very, very sad.
I guess I would have enjoyed the information in your post without the added "irresponsible" judgement. We don't know another person's financial circumstances to decide whether he was responsible with his money or not in buying insurance. I for one would LOVE to stick to what actually happened to the guy, and solutions that do not entail judging a person who currently can not even walk. How bout that guys? What do ya say?
I'm with you!!0 -
I'm fortunate enough to go to a great box. The owner teaches on ramp classes (intro class for a month before you join). He goes above and beyond to teach proper technique. His coaches go through extensive training for over a year before allowed to coach. We push but at our own pace. Our wods are scaled based on our abilities. This is an example of a box that does it right. There are some that push to hard to fast with too much weight and those are the ones that give CF a bad rep. The community within each box has a big impact too. Lot of support and encouragement amongst members and it'll be a better and safer environment for all. Nothin but positive thoughts and prayers for him and his family right now.0
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That's sad, but how was he allowed to work as a coach without health insurance? I believe it's a requirement in the UK if you want to be a Personal Trainer.
It's America, we are free to do whatever we wa--...oh wait, NVM.
Under Obamacare, he is required under federal law to have health insurance. So in the eyes of the U.S. government, he is a lawbreaker injured in the commission of a misdemeanor. Literally adding insult to injury, the government will have to fine him for not having insurance.
this sounds uninformed0 -
@jof, I see no torches or pitchforks on this thread....
Patience.
With a lacing of schadenfreude?
Yeah, I can see a few denizen of MFP might be along for that.
Or are they banned now?
Be safe people.0
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