Quadruple bypass surgery scheduled
Brent Thomson, Godfather and Trail Master of Bootleg Canyon suffered a heart attack last Saturday while riding the trails that he has famously cut into the mountains surrounding Boulder City, a stone's throw from Las Vegas, Nevada.
"I try to stay in reasonable shape, and was even riding when I started to feel chest pain and severe shortness of breath," said Thomson while awaiting surgery. "My assistant Andrew helped me out and my son Barret got me to the hospital pretty quickly. Now I'm just waiting to go under the knife."
Thomson was scheduled to undergo the second quadruple bypass of his life on Wednesday. Sixteen years ago he had the same surgery performed due to an unusually high hereditary cholesterol build-up.
Bootleg Canyon Mountain Bike Park consists of an extensive network of downhill and cross country mountain bike trails located in Boulder City, Nevada. The area draws riders from as far away as Japan and Germany. The International Mountain Bike Association (IMBA) has certified one of the cross country trails as an Epic Ride, a title given out only 18 times so far.
Bootleg Canyon has also hosted the popular Outdoor Demo Day associated with the Interbike Trade Show, held annually in September.
Thomson's dedication to creating, maintaining and promoting the trails of Bootleg Canyon has created one of the most lauded riding areas in the Southwest. Unfortunately his position comes without a health insurance policy and his expenses are expected to total several hundred thousand dollars. Those wishing to donate to help Thomson can be do so via Paypal (to barretstudio@gmail.com). Well wishers may send messages of support to St. Rose Dominican Hospital - San Martin ER c/o Brent Thomson, 8280 West Warm Springs Rd., Las Vegas, NV 89113 USA.
