Getting Back On The Mountain: A Recovery Journey With Kat Parks
You know, I’ve never thought of myself as any sort of an athlete but people keep calling me one. I didn’t grow up playing sports like most young people but instead found myself building forts, climbing trees, and romping around the north woods of Wisconsin. I grew up canoeing, camping, fishing, and hunting. When I turned 15, my entire family got into mountain biking which was really the first sport that resonated with me in a way that other activities never did. And, I feel like I have mountain biking to thank for all of my subsequent outdoor activities.
My partner and I moved to Washington State in 2013 and we haven’t looked back. We got to know our home mountain ranges (The Cascades and Olympics) mostly by hiking and backpacking that has now morphed into scrambling and off-trail routing. I came to skiing as an adult learner; determined to add that as a new way to enjoy the mountains I love. Resort skiing is great but my heart really is in the backcountry. The process of following forecasts, trip planning, talking about the snow, setting skin tracks — I love all of that just as much as I love the turns. Skiing just made sense to me and reminded me so much of riding my mountain bike. Honestly, the two sports complement one another remarkably well. Additionally, I practice yoga and I am a year-round bike commuter who also runs to stay in shape. I am a certified mountain bike instructor and serve on the Board of Directors for the local mountain bike trail organization in my area.
The Injury — March 6, 2024
PHEW what happened…I had an incredible day in the backcountry with my husband and two of our friends the day before my injury. We don’t get many champagne powder days in the PNW but it was cold smoke all day for us. The next day was a resort day and full-on blue bird. Temps were pretty cold and we decided to check out an area of the resort called Powder Bowl. It was absolutely heinous. Powder Bowl is steep anyways but it was also tracked out and the moguls were HARD because it had been so cold. I went to put in a turn and just fell sideways over the tips of my skis. I tumbled 3 times and each time, I felt more and more of my bone break. It was a low-velocity fall so my bindings didn’t release (yes, I had them tested after the injury). I knew immediately that I wasn’t ok and instructed my husband on how to support my leg and had him call patrol. Before Patrol arrived, I had taken my first set of vitals and did an initial assessment where I felt crepitus and a deformity. The break was bad enough that I spent the night in the hospital so I could have emergency surgery the next day. My surgeon, Dr. Moore at Olympia Orthopaedic, was absolutely amazing and when all was said and done, I woke up with 2 plates and 17 screws in my tibial plateau.
Finding Don
I remember laying in a bed in the ER hallway, waiting for my room in the Ortho wing, getting pumped with Dilaudid every 2 hours, and being asked by medical staff if I planned to ski again after getting so hurt. It was such a weird question to me but it made me realize that I move through the world differently than most people do. And I told myself in that moment that I’d refuse to work with anyone who doubted my goals of getting back to the activities that define who I am as a person on this planet.
The first thing I asked Dr. Moore when he visited me post-surgery in my hospital room was if I’d be able to mountain bike and ski in the upcoming season. Understandably, he couldn’t give me an answer but informed me that recovery for an injury as extensive as mine is long but he was hopeful I’d be able to return to the things I love doing at some point. When I met with him 4 weeks post-op, I asked him the same thing again and he told me that it could be at least a year before we would know what my knee could handle. I looked at him and replied, “That timeline’s not gonna work for me. I already bought my Ikon pass for next season.” He smiled at me and said, “Well, you’ve got the right attitude.”
I started following Don a couple of months prior to my injury at the suggestion of my husband who began following him because of Joey Vosburgh. A few weeks post-op, I messaged Don on IG with zero expectations. We began talking, and he asked me to send him detailed information about the injury, X-rays, post-op care, the name of my surgeon, etc., and we set up a virtual session shortly after our first message exchanges. During that first meeting, I knew that Don was the right person for me when the only acknowledgment he gave to my injury was “That’s a lot of hardware!” then immediately went into his approach on how to get me back to activities. I explained early on in our partnership that I am in tune with my body in a way that most don’t understand, with the ability to feel internal processes at a molecular level when I want to. Don never questioned this and created space in our plan to honor and trust that my body would be the ultimate guide as we went through this recovery journey together.
Soon after beginning work with Don, I also began seeing an in-person Physical Therapist named Nicolas. Don and Nicolas corresponded early on in my recovery to make sure they were complementing one another in their approaches. I give each of them updates as needed and I appreciate how they’ve continued working together on my recovery care.
At exactly 6 weeks to the day of injury, Dr. Moore told me that I could begin putting full weight on my leg. Sure, walking felt great, but I missed my bike more than anything. It took time to gain enough flexion to pedal but by mid-June I pedaled my mountain bike again and I rode on dirt for the first time on June 22. Slowly stacking bricks (as Don says), I progressed with each ride, carefully erasing and re-drawing my limits. By mid-July, I felt the flow really coming back as I began being able to corner harder and even get small amounts of air off of features. As Fall approached and I felt stronger and stronger on the bike, I set my sights on skiing.
Just shy of 9 months post-injury, complete with a whole bunch of hardware, I put in my first turns of the season. It was magic.
I’ve never been a big goal setter, I just let my body and heart guide my adventures and time in the mountains which I will continue to do as I progress with my recovery into 2025.
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Photos by Cayman Waughtel
