We were three days deep in the biggest white water race any of us had competed in. An outrageous purse awaited us at the end, and we had our sights set.

Brice and Derek went ahead to scout what route we should take over the falls or if we should hike around. An hour later they returned.

"We got this. The drop is only 20 feet, my only concern is for the gear boat. I'm thinking Marcy, Shawn, The two of you can pack the gear out. Brice, myself, Zack, and Class Five Rick here can take the run."

Marcy and I looked over at the mound assessing our task, then to each other and nodded.

"Sure you wanna take that line, Derek?"

He rolled his eyes at me and smirked.

Derek was a good guy, crazy daredevil of an SOB, but a stand up guy. I knew he had more experience than any of us and could handle this.

It was getting late, and this situation called for full daylight and coffee.

The next morning Marcy and I finished maneuvering the gear for the hike down as the guys topped off the rafts with the K-pumps.

"We shoulda named our team Deez Nuts, that way we could call out, 'Deez nuts pounded the hole!!'"

"Dumb ass, Derek", I playfully chided.

The party split ways, the guys up river, Marcy and I down. I had dry bags clipped to my waist for when we got below. The guys agreed to give us a 30 minute head start so we could pull rescue if there was a swimmer.

I was ahead, "Watch your footing, make deliberate steps!!", I called. "These boulders are loose!!" The trek was steep and unstable. The damn pack digging into my neck, i gritted my teeth and kept on. It wasn't much farther.

Certain words make you just react,

"ROCK!!" Was one of them. Marcy's shrill voice rang out. I instinctively dove at the only crevasse I saw. Gear smashing my face into the unforgiving volcanic rock as I felt the full weight of the boulder crush my shin bone as it bounced down the steep passage.

Below the first raft was making the falls. Their angle on point, but they hadn't the speed. The raft nosed straight down. Derek and Rick leaned back with a tight grip on the perimeter rope as the R2 plummeted beneath the roiling wash. As the raft shot back out, only Rick emerged with it.

"SWIMMER!", Rick's cry echoed off the tight canyon walls as he scrambled for the throw rope. He stood on his knees anticipating Derek's neon green helmet to surface.

Derek shot back up gasping for air as the second raft breeched the lip of the falls only to come crashing down upon him in perfect carnage.

Rick's second cry, "SWIMMER!!!"

Zack and Brice scrambled to eddy out and waited at the ready with throw bags in hand.

It took Marcy a frantic ten minutes to make it below. She scrambled the last boulder to find the three men standing at ready to throw the rescue rope.

The river took it's time releasing Derek from his life and from her clutches.

The evac crew arrived late, but it was still light. I'd soaked through all of our dressings, and couldn't feel anything below my right knee.

They clam shelled me and lifted me into the helicopter and I passed out.

I awoke two days later, shy half my leg and all of my heart.