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First update from Robert himself from Syracuse New York 3-16-08

Hi everyone,

First I would to thank all of you for your prayers and messages. They are great to hear. My mom reads them to me everyday. It really sucks sitting in a hospital bed in the middle of New York so far away from all my friends. I can't tell you how much I want to get up and go RIDE!! I have a shit load of doctors that are taking great care of me. I had my physical therapist in today (they were 2 hotties :) and they helped me to sit up on the edge of the bed. My mom & I work on getting my legs stronger everyday. I flexed my right thigh today and my left upper leg is super strong. I still have alot of work to do to make my feet work. I will be going into surgery on Monday to hopefully finish sewing up the gapping wound in my back. Once that is done and all healed up I should get out of here by the next Monday. Then its off to Albany New York to be with Team South Side near a spinal rehab center. I have a long road to recovery but with my will & determination and the inspiration of Aaron Loyer we Alaska boys can get through anything.

Love to all
Graeber 84

Hi Everyone, 3-18-08

I just got out of surgery @ 7:30 pm eastern time Tuesday. It was a huge success. The rocking Plastic Surgeun Dr. Loftus was able to close up my back. He pulled the skin together that was about 4-5" apart on my back and stitcher up. ( I asked if he could give me six pack abs) Don't ask me how he did it but its done. That should be the last surgery. So No skin grafts. The doctors are amazed at how I'm healing up. It was definetly better then the first prognossis a week ago on Monday. I asked my surgeons if I could have the pictures of the hardware they put in my back and they said they even had some of the first night that I was in trauma when they first saw me. I can't wait to see how bad it really was.

I have been working on getting my legs stronger. My P.T. comes in everyday and my mom & I work them 3 times a day. My left upper leg is strong I can do knee bends and my mom was scratching the bottom of my left foot last night and it tickled for the first time. They say thats a sign that the nerves might be coming back down there. In my right leg I'm able to flex the quad muscle (thigh) and it is getting stronger everyday. I will be able to go down to the P.T. gym on Thursday and really start working on the legs and getting those toes a moving.

I wanted to thank everyone again for the out pouring of support for me. They tell me they are doing fund raiser up in Alaska. Howie Theise with the Arcitc Man is working on something for the Arctic Man weekend and Roxanne Boylan & Kent Harrington are also working on an auction. My paypal account & Wells Fargo account are getting donations. The Blanchards of Rival Motorcross Park have donated $10 of each T-shirt sales and have listed them on Craigs List. Amanda P & Chris Ackerman of www. 139designs. com and many others at RMR raised a bunch of money for my doctor bills this last weekend at the race @ Barton. It means a lot to me & my family for everything. My insurance only covers 80% and it will really help my mom & dad out.

I hope to be going to a spinal cord rehab center over in Albany next week sometime. They tell me there is no way I can fly commercial so I will do most of my rehab down here close to my friends at SouthSide.

Well thats it for now.

Thanks Again for everything that you are all doing it means alot to me & my family.
Later
Robert Graeber # 84

Robert Graeber update 3/21/08
March 21 Day 11
Yesterday I had a little set back pulled a muscle up in my sternum from trying to do to much and it was probably the most pain that I had felt this whole week! Anyway today had a great day. Bruce, Cathy, Bobby Gaspardi & Tomo from team Southside came over from North Adams to visit. I hadn't seen then since the accident. They brought arm fulls of stuff for me to keep myself busy. I finally got some street clothes on, which was awesome after being in a gown with your a** hanging out for a 10 days. Then I got into my wheel chair and we all went down to the gym. My P.T. had me set on the side of my bed with my feet on the floor to see if I could hold myself up. That was not a problem so then he had Tomo & I play catch with a ball from about ten feet away. My P.T. saw that it was to easy and asked if I wanted to try stand up on the parrallel bars. I told him heck ya! So I we went over to the bars and with his help and my upper body I stood up and held myself up in a standing position. I did this 3 different times. I couldn't believe how tired I got just trying to stand up but it felt great. The doctors are going to clear me on Monday to get out of here and then I am on my way to Albany for spinal rehab. I will be working hard on trying to get my lower legs and toes moving. Anyway off to sleep the rest of team Southside Jr, David, Chris Melanie and a bunch of them are coming to see me tomorrow. Thanks Again for all the prayers and support I REALLY APPRECIATE IT.

I want to thank my Sis Mindy for updating my website:
www. robertgraeberracing. com

Later
Love to all
Graeber #84

We Moved!! 3-24-08

We got cleared this morning by the Doc to move to the other side of NY to Sunnyview Rehab near Albany. We hade to have a wagon, wheelchair and 3 people to bring all of the stuff that people had been sending to get it all downstairs this morning. :) We could barely fit Robert into the Ambulance we almost forgot him. ( I joke). We got to the new place around 1 pm. It is a great facilty with lots more room. We are trying to adjust to the new nurses and doctors. It seems like we had just learned everyone at the University Hosp. and now we get to learn a whole new set of nurses. Robert will be on a schedule of 3 hours daily rehab here with the P.T. and O.T. to get him back to walking and doing everyday things like getting dressed etc...

The biggest news of all was this morning in the chaos of getting him ready he says look at my foot Mom. He was moving the top of his left foot. He can do it until the muscle gets tired and then he can do it when he wants. He sits there and looks at it move. That was a big deal today.

He also got interviewed by the local paper and the story ran today here is the link check it out:
Link is above SYRACUSE NEWS ARTICLE

I will let you all know how the next few days go. Hopefully none of the new P.T.s have any blackeyes.

Thanks again for all the support and prayers.

Chris Graeber aka mama graeber

3-27-08
I have been getting my A** Kicked by the P.T.'s!!! They have me on a schedule starting at 9:30am in 30 min sessions. We have been working on stretching, standing, working the lower legs and this afternoon they gave me some electric therapy on my right lower leg to try to stimulate the nerves and muscles. I'm starting to have the slightest movement in my right and left lower legs & tops of the feet.

The P.T.s say that I'm doing really well and that I should be able to start getting night passes to get out and about.

Next weekend April 5th or 6th I should be able to get a day pass to go see all of my buds at MT Snow the last RMR Race of the season!
Kathy & Bruce G came over last night and took my mom back over to North Adams so she could sleep in a real bed for a night. It was the first night that she hasn't been by my bedside since 3/10 when I came out of surgery. I missed her not being there "I'm not gonna lie" :) . My dad gets here tomorrow so that mom can go back to AK on Sunday. He gets to have the second half of the recovery. I will be in Sunnyview for 4 weeks so I should be back home around April 24th give or take a few days . Then I can start outpatient P.T. I can't wait to get back and sleep in my own bed.

Thats all for now
Thanks for all the prayers
Check out the website for updates and donation info
www. robertgraeberracing. com

Later
Love to all
Graeber 84

Robert Graeber recovery 4/1/08
Hi All,
Just wanted to let you know whats up..

My Dad got here on Friday. It was great to see him. Amanda P came down and hung out with me Fri. & Sat. It was really great to see her. On Sat I had alot of vistitors. Mark brought Joshua by to hang out. He brought some brownies that Emily made for me. Also Josh & his girlfriend stopped by and brought a plate of cookie. I think they are just trying to get me fattened back up. Also Brad & his Dad came down from Vermont to see me. The Lemouix stopped by also. Mikalaya is doing great in her recovery. She stayed here at Sunnyview for awhile during her recovery. I just wanted to say thanks to everyone that stopped by. My Mom went back to Alaska on Sunday so my Dad will help me finish my rehab and take me home sometime in late April. Sunday they let everyone rest no P.T. :)
But Monday I got a real work out on my legs. They are getting stronger all the time. I�m hoping to get OK�d to get in & out of a car on Tuesday that way my Dad & I can start going out to eat for dinner. It would be nice to get out of this Hospital for a little while at a time. They also took all of the bandages off of my back so it is healing up nicely. I put some pics from the accident on myspace so check them out if you have the stomache for it.
Roxanne is working really hard on the Auction that they are having on May 10th in Alaska to try to raise some funds for my Doctor bills. Also they are working on stuff for Arctic Man and auctioning of a new 2008 Polaris Race sled for me.

Thanks Again for all of the Prayers and Donations.
Check out www.robertgraeberracing.com for donation info.

Later
Graeber 84

4/08/08 Update Hey Guys,

Sorry it�s been awhile since I updated my website. I have been busy with P.T. I�m working out everyday for about 4 hours a day trying to get my feet moving. I have been standing in the Parallel Bars, riding a sit down bike & working my legs with weights on them to get them stronger. My back is almost all healed; they are talking about maybe getting me into the pool in the next few days. That would mean I could finally take a shower. :) I was cleared to get in & out of the car on Friday. But then on Saturday my stomach wasn�t feeling well so I couldn�t do much. But Sunday my dad took me out to Wal-Mart and wheeled around the isles. We also found a cool Airplane museum so we checked that out. I wasn�t able to go to the last race at Mt Snow because I just wasn�t up for the long drive. But now we are shooting for the RMR Banquet on the 19th. I should be good to go for that. Today Bruce, Kathy, JR & Bobbie came over to visit. Kathy brought me some of her Chicken & Rice so I could have some really food. It was awesome. I have lost 25lbs because I�m just not up to eating much yet. So I was really stoked to get some home cooked food. I have my plane tickets home now thanks to Matt & Nikki at Hatcher Pass Polaris. I will be back on April 25th. I�m really looking forward to coming home.
My Mom & Roxanne are getting ready to go to Arctic Man this weekend. They have tons of buttons, sticker, wristbands & T-shirts to sell. Howie Theise is also letting them do an auction for the 2008 Polaris Race sled that the Polaris Race dept Donated. It will all go into the Wells Fargo Robert Graeber Recovery fund that they have set up for me. I can�t tell you how much I appreciate everyone for what they are doing to help me & my parents out. It means a lot to see everyone come together to help out a downed rider.
All right I have to get some sleep now. But I will try to update something in the next few days.

Later
Love to all
Robert Graeber # 84

Robert Graeber Update 4/18/08

I just wanted to let you all know how we are doing. First I wanted to tell everyone THANK YOU!! The Arcitc Man Auction was a huge success!! Thanks to Howard Theise for letting us have such a great auction. I wanted to thank our family & friends for helping and you know who you are so Thank You. We sold buttons, hoody�s, stickers and wristbands to everyone. At the Auction we had the Bad Ass Paul Thacker in the house auctioning everything. We had people coming up donating stuff left & right. We even auctioned the Monster Hat right off of Paul�s head and that went for $220! I can�t tell you the overwhelming response that everyone showed towards my son & family.
We are holding another Auction & Benefit for the Robert Graeber Recovery Fund on May 10th from 4pm � 7pm in Anchorage at the Kincaid Chalet. It is sponsored by Anchorage Racing Lions and we have over 40 things to auction off there with lots of food & prizes for everyone. The band A.D.D. will be playing for us all afternoon so it is sure to be a great time. Check out the website for more info www.robertgraeberracing.com

Ok enough of all that stuff. I will let you know how Robert is doing. Last week he started to walk in a walker with the help of some braces on his feet. The first day he went 25 feet then the next day he got up to 40 feet. He also was cleared to take a shower. He sat in the shower for over an hour. He said it felt so good. Since he was cleared for the shower he was able to go into the pool. He went to the pool with the PT�s 3 different times and walked along the side of the pool. On Sunday his dad & him drove over to North Adams about 1 � hours away to see his teammates at South Side Sales. He was able to see the sled for the first time and said that the handlebars & steering post are crushed. He was supper happy to get to the Gaspardi�s house where he could kick back on the couch and eat some of Kathy�s home cookin. She spoiled him rotten and made him steak and rice. J
Everything was right on track until Wednesday. Robert was in a lot of pain doing his PT and then it got more serious as the night went on. They found that he had a huge amount of fluid on his lungs and some fluid on his heart. He could hardly breath. His left lung was so full of fluid that it collapsed. They rushed him over to Albany Medical Center where the doctors took him in for Surgery Thursday morning. They place a drain tube in his lungs and heart. He is now in the ICU where they are monitoring him. They don�t know why he has all this fluid build up yet. They are doing test on him. The doctors told Robert that he will be there for at least 5 days and he wouldn�t be able to fly for another 2 weeks. So that pushes him coming home back another week. Maybe he will be back around May 2. I got to talk to him Thursday after surgery and he said don�t worry it�s just another SPEED BUMP. He will back on his feet in know time. I couldn�t be more proud of my son. He is so strong and just wants everyone to know that he needs you to be strong for him to. He should be able to go back over to Sunnyview ReHab Hospital next week for the remainder of his Physical Therapy.
He appreciates all of the e-mails and support. Check out the website for more info www.robertgraeberracing.com

Thanks to All
Chris Graeber
AKA Mama Graeber

UPDATE 5/5/08

Sorry it�s been a while since I updated everyone on Robert but I didn�t want to jinx him coming home. After all he has been through I just wanted to get my boy home.

ROBERT IS HOME!!!! He arrived at 2am on Saturday morning May 3rd in Anchorage. After a long flight and readjusting to the time change he got up Saturday morning around 11am and was so glad to see his dog Otto or should I say Otto was so happy to see Robert & his dad. We chilled out at home on Saturday and adjusted the rooms for his wheelchair and walker. On Sunday he had to go to the MX track in Anchorage. We drove into Anchorage and hung out in the Boylans trailer for the whole afternoon. All of his friends were stopping by all day to see him and say HI. It was the longest he has been out and about with out getting into his hospital bed. He was out and about for 10 hours. He showed off his mad skills with the walker. He can go about 120 ft now and then has to sit down. With the help of the braces on his feet he can put one foot in front of the other and take steps in the walker.

It was sooooo great to have my son back home. He is doing great and has a lot more mobility in his body since I left him 4 weeks ago. He has lost over 45lbs in the 52 days that he was in the hospital so he is just skin and bones. But we will be working hard on getting some meat back on those bones with some home cooking. He ate the tacos I made him on Saturday like crazy. I think he had 5 tacos that night and 3 more for breakfast. J
We will be getting him to some outpatient P.T. next week. So we will be going back and forth 3 days a week to Wasilla about 40 miles away. He still can�t move his feet or toes but can flex the left calf and make the ankle move a little. So that is great progress.

Roxann and I have been working really hard on the May 10th auction. Anchorage Racing Lions is sponsoring the event at the Kincaid Chalet Sat. may 10th from 4pm to 8pm. It is located at the end of Raspberry Rd. in Anc. We hope everyone in Alaska can join us for the event. It will be Robert�s big homecoming so everyone can see him. We have gotten over 50 auction items and they are still coming in. We have our good friends with the band ADD playing. A barbeque, silent & live auction items for everyone to bid on ranging from $10 and up to�. a big screen TV Donated by Cal Worthington Ford.
We hope to see everyone there.

Robert, Jim and I wanted to thank all of his friends, doctors and nurses back in New York who helped him get through this terrible accident. We will stay in touch and Robert hopes to get back over there some day to see all of you.

ROBERT GRAEBER RECOVERY AUCTION & BBQ Sat. MAY 10th Kincaid Chalet from 4pm to 8pm end of Raspberry Rd, Anchorage. Check out the website for a full list of auction items www.robertgraeberracing.com

Thanks Again for everyone�s prayers and help.

Chris Graeber
AKA Mama Graeber

5/25/08
We would like to thank everyone for attending our May 10th Auction. It was a fun for everyone. Roxann worked hard on getting over 100 items to auction off and everyone of them sold. The band A.D.D. rocked the chalet and everyone enjoyed the first really good day of sunshine out on the grass. I would also like to thank all of the business who donated to Robert's auction.

Robert has a 3 day a week schedule of P.T. in Wasilla. On Tuesdays he is going to the pool and swimming. On Monday & Thrusday he works in the gym. He is working on learning to walk with crutches. He is getting stronger everyday and can walk further and further everyday with his walker. We have been busy with getting him out and about to see his friend. At the rate he is recovering I wouldn't be suprised if he starts driving himself to P.T. in a few weeks. Everyone is really surprised at how well he is doing. He is really trying very hard to get better.

Again thanks to everyone.