April 2011 - Spokes Magazine

trispokes by ron cassie ron_cassie@yahoo.com
Vigorito Working Into Shape After Frightening
Collision In Kona
As many triathletes in Maryland, the mid-Atlantic
region and around the country know, beloved
Columbia Triathlon Association race director Rob
Vigorito was seriously injured in a bicycle accident in
Kona, Hawaii in October. Vigorito was there to compete
in the Ironman World Championships for the
seventh time.
Two days after arriving in Kona, Vigorito was two
miles into an early morning training ride when a
truck pulled out in front of him as it attempted to
make a left turn onto the Queen K Highway – just
as Vigorito peddled through the intersection. The
63-year-old Vigorito wound up going over his handlebars
and plowing into the truck.
Flown to a trauma center, Vigorito was treated for
numerous broken ribs, a punctured lung and broken
shoulder, among other injuries. Thankfully, he’s recovered
from the worst injuries after a long rehabilitation.
He’s even back in the saddle now, but not yet where he
hopes to be, still suffering from some shoulder issues.
He’s also looking forward to the upcoming triathlon
season, both as director – and athlete.
Hospitalized for two weeks, it was another four weeks
before Vigorito could be flown home from Hawaii.
He’s fully recovered from the punctured lung and
rib injuries, and his left shoulder is improving. His
biggest concern at the moment is his right shoulder,
re-injured, he said, after tripping and falling a couple
of months ago.
“I’m trying to get well,” Vigorito told Spokes in
mid-March from Naples, Fla., where he and his
wife Sharon built a winter home a year and a half
ago. “I had left shoulder surgery in the first part of
December to remove a broken bone they couldn’t fix.
I’ve been undergoing physical therapy on the left arm
and shoulder, and basically it’s a little tight. But I’ve
got about 90 percent of my range of motion.
“The problem is the right shoulder,” Vigorito continued.
“I tripped and fell about three weeks after I had
shoulder surgery on my left shoulder – I’d messed
it up in the fall – and I’ve got all different kinds of
sprains and strains in there and it’s not getting better.”
Vigorito said that’s it quite possible he may need surgery
on the right shoulder, adding the specialists have
told him the injury could be related to tightness in his
neck and nerve impingement there.
“The lungs have healed, the ribs have healed, and I’m
riding with two cycling groups here, but it’s hard with
the right arm in pain,” Vigorito said.
Despite the ongoing shoulder struggles, Vigorito considers
himself lucky, and cautiously optimistic about
the season.
“Fortunately, everything below the belly button, nothing
happened,” he said, laughing. “It’s been a long
road, believe me, but I’m hoping to do some races
this summer. It’s just hard to know what I’ll be able to
do, and what I won’t be able to do right now.”
Initially, Vigorito said he was a little skittish about
getting back on the bike, but the resort community
where he and his wife reside in Naples, has about 20
miles of road riding available with very little traffic.
“I was able to slowly rebuild stamina and my comfort
level to where I felt ready to go,” he said. “The two
groups I ride with here, it’s all hammer heads, they
like to pace-line. I’ve been riding about 100-110 miles
a week, at a high pace, about 18 miles per hour, all
flat, no hills.”
As far as the accident, the driver of truck did stop at
the scene, Vigorito said, and was cited for failure to
yield, but that’s it. Vigorito said he retained a lawyer
to possibly help recoup monetary damages. However,
it took five month just to get a copy of the citation
and he’s not sure whether anything further will come
from pursuing a civil suit or settlement.
“The good part is I’m getting better, the bad part is
that’s taking a lot of time,” said Vigorito, adding that
he’s on his way back to Maryland this month. “It also
could’ve been a lot worse.”
Meanwhile, Vigorito is keeping things moving forward
at the Columbia Triathlon Association…
Columbia Triathlon Association: Adding Events
and USAT Championship Designations
The Columbia Triathlon Association is best known
for its two signature events, the nearly three-decade
and running Columbia Triathlon in late May, and
Eagleman, the hyper-competitive Ironman 70.3 event
in Cambridge in mid-June.
Of course, there’s the incredibly popular Iron Girl
event, the five-year-old all-woman’s sprint distance
triathlon that regularly attracts 2,000 participants in
August – and sold out by February this year.
But there’s much more that’s been added in recent
years, and for this season as well.
The Columbia Triathlon Association year actually
starts off with the third annual TriColumbia LIFEfest,
a running festival, featuring the Blossoms of Hope
Half Marathon, the Ulman Cancer Fund 5K and a
Kidz Fun Run.
The Columbia Celebration Sprint Triathlon, launched
last year, also returns this year, on June 26, offering
trispokes continued on p.20
18 April 2011