Sunday, October 3, 2021. A gorgeous, blue-sky morning in Sutton, Massachusetts. Rick Muhr, 64, was finishing a bike ride with three friends and his wife, Lori. He was wearing pink in honor of his sister, a breast cancer survivor. While speeding down the final hill at 40 mph, Rick saw a car taking a left turn right in front of him. He knew he would hit the car. “I thought of my wife and my two kids; I thought this is really going to hurt. And I thought I might die.”

Minutes later, Rick was rushed to the Intensive Care Unit at the UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester. He’d suffered a partially collapsed lung, fractured right clavicle, broken left arm, shattered left shoulder, left shoulder dislocation, left humerus fracture, 10 broken ribs and four compression fractures on vertebrae with varied cuts and abrasions.

Rick spent one week at the ICU, two weeks at the trauma center and two weeks at the Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital in Boston. When his 15-year-old daughter, Macie, first visited her father, she couldn’t bear to look at him with all his bandages and braces and bruises. “Macie,” said Rick, “you look at this face and this body. You watch me. You’re going to see the most epic recovery ever.”

Rick backed up his boast, thanks to the determination he had proven by having run 32 marathons, including a personal best of 2:33:13. He used the lessons he had taught the thousands of marathon runners he has coached over the years: “You can do more than you think you can. Never underestimate the power of the human spirit, especially when tested.”

Rick’s spirit was tested even further when a doctor discovered he had kidney cancer a few months after the accident. He underwent a successful surgery to remove the cancer on February 23, 2022.

Sadly, the bike accident occurred just one week before the Boston Marathon, Rick’s biggest passion. Rick couldn’t cheer on “his” runners at the 15-mile mark. Not to worry. One of his runners put a photo of his face on a stick and called it “Rick on a Stick.” A Go Fund Me account amassed over $30,000. “I never knew how much I was loved,” marvels Rick, who says the accident made him appreciate his life, his family and his friends even more.

The trauma surgeons told Rick they’d never seen anyone who had endured such a horrendous accident remain so strong and so positive. In fact, the UMass Medical Center is preparing a short video to chronicle Rick’s amazing recovery.

Rick Muhr was my coach during two of the six Boston Marathons I ran to raise money for charities. I am currently doing research for writing a book with Rick about his accident, his recovery and, along the way, his background and philosophy. As a bonus, readers will get tips for running and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Working title, “Tapping the Power of the Human Spirit: A Story of Grit and Grace, Resilience and Recovery.”

It has been fascinating to learn how a man like Rick got to be a man like Rick. How did a young boy who spent his early years in a dysfunctional family (alcoholic mother, alcoholic father) develop the grit and independence to forge such a productive life? What inspired such a fine runner to devote much of his boundless energy to motivating other runners? Why is Rick able to tackle such big physical challenges in what seems to be an effortless manner? (A few years ago, he rode a motorcycle around the country, covering 11,000 miles in 11 days.) How has his life changed since the bike accident? What has he learned about himself because of the event? How has it shaped his current daily activities and future plans?

Rick is an amazingly dedicated human being who combines a passion for helping others with a deep curiosity about learning new strategies to be his best and to share his best. I am honored to call him a friend and excited to help him tell his powerful story.

Stay tuned….

David Treadwell, a Brunswick writer, welcomes commentary and suggestions for future “Just a Little Old” columns. dtreadw575@aol.com

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