January 10th, 2011 by Conor

Some thoughts from Julie Hamlin, Danny’s aunt (Ellen’s sister) from Washington, DC.

So…I went through some old photos and tried to find one that captures Dano’s spirit. (He is Dano to us—I am not sure if we gave him that nickname, but I like to think so—I would welcome corrections here.) In the photos there were common themes: Dano doe-eyed and gorgeous, curious, laughing, dapper (his Ralph Lauren phase), snuggling, on-the-go… Through the years, Dano also seems to have a thing with hats. He even went through a visor thing. (Go figure!) Anyway, I went through the requisite birthday and holiday shots, but chose this picture of him with his cousin Jesse, my sister Carol’s son. In the photo, he and Jesse are at my parent’s house in New Hampshire, and Dano is doing wheelies in his diapers. I love this photo. I think Dano has never met a wheel he didn’t like. (See: scooter 2009). It reminded me of a time when he was five or six years old and I “escorted” him on his bike ride on Old Bartlett Road. The last stretch, which runs perpendicular to my parent’s house, is steep, and people even walk it cautiously. But Dano was on his wheels—and when he rounded the corner and saw his grandparent’s house and that hill, he knew he had hit the jackpot. He took off over the hill and left me in the dust, running breathlessly after him. He executed the descent flawlessly, blasting over the bridge at an age when most kids are barely off training wheels. That day, I loved Dano’s boldness, unfettered joy, skill and pride. He thought it was so funny that I had raced after him; he is always a little mischievous. From early on it was apparent that he was going to approach his life much the same as he approached the Old Bartlett Road hill. We love you, Dano, and know you will channel that gusto to your recovery. We’ll be right there with you–or probably chasing after you breathlessly.

January 10th, 2011 by Conor

I spent the summer at Windells Camp getting working with Danny. I had heard from Moss and Paul about Danny the roommate who would be living in their room and even though I can’t remember the first time we met, Danny was that guy you just were friends with immediately. He was so nice and had a great smile…let alone the funniest laugh you could hear doors down. I remember one day just sitting on a couch with Danny watching him work on Shreddy Times logos and stickers, enjoying seeing him get creative and running ideas out for discussion. That’s the best thing about Danny, he’s just the sweetest guy to hang out with. Even if it’s watching him work on a couch. Eventually when I saw him ride on the mountain, I was blown away at his talent and magnitude of riding. I caught photos of him all summer on the jump line at Windells like this one.

I haven’t seen Danny since camp ended but we’ve spoken on chat and kept in touch the past couple months. He’s still that sweet guy that you can’t wait to high 5 and hear his laugh. It’s been rad to watch Shreddy Times explode and get stoked on Danny’s riding.

Danny love you…be strong.

January 9th, 2011 by Conor

Thinking of number 3, we love you Danny!

January 9th, 2011 by Conor

It’s sunday afternoon. Danny is resting and Wayne is our nurse. He had the PEG (percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy) tube put in this morning. He handled it very well. The procedure seems to be relatively noninvasive. They shine a light, from the inside out, through his stomach to find the best entry point from the outside. Now that the PEG is in there, it will be there for no less that six weeks. This doesn’t mean that he can’t leave the bed or eat during that time, it just takes that long for the feeding tube to heal properly before you can pull it out without fluids from the stomach leaking inside his body. Since the procedure, things have been smooth. The doctor warned us that there is a likelihood of developing pneumonia because of all of the stuff going on. They have detected it in small amounts and are treating it with antibiotics. Although this stuff is routine or common, it is still very nerve-wracking. There are no black or white answers with TBI.

Yesterday’s nurse brought up that we have an amazing neurosurgeon for Danny, Doctor Gorsuch. That is something that we did not choose. It is whoever is on when the accident takes place. Gorsuch has been truly a great communicator with Danny’s family and friends. The other day, when he came out of the operating room to give us an update, he sat right down on the floor and spoke with us until we ran out of questions. What a humble and down to earth guy!

January 9th, 2011 by Conor

How did you meet Danny?

I met Danny and Conor when my boyfriend and I were out in Tahoe visiting one of my best friends, Eliza Simoneau winter 07. Eliza is friends of theirs from their hometown, North Conway, NH, where Eliza and I also met. I was really impressed with how you guys up and moved to Tahoe, bought a trailer and were pursuing a dream, and were willing to do whatever to make it happen and you were.

Then, When I came back to live in Tahoe with Eliza winter 08 we hung out one night and it was amazing to see how much you guys had progressed even from just a year earlier when I first met you. I remember Danny was winning huge competitions and Conor was filming, doing management stuff & scheduling for Danny. It’s obvious how close you guys are, and have such a blast together and work so well together as a team. Conor, he’s lucky to have you sitting there by his side even if so many other people, like you said, are physically so far away.

I can’t even begin to imagine how hard this is for both of you right now….Try to focus on everything good…Conor, I’m sure you have endless amounts of fun stories to tell him about shenanigans you guys have gotten into together and how much he’s accomplished to raise both of your spirits while he is resting since his body is healing. It’s only going to take time to heal…. It’s not everyday you see brothers as close as you two…I am so so sorry to hear about what happened, and I’m looking forward to hearing inspiring stories about his recovery.

What was the funniest thing that ever happened while you were hanging out with Danny?

pretty sure I was cracking up the whole time about you guys and Eliza busting each other’s chops like you’re all fam.

How did Danny impact your life?

Eliza and I were talking the other day about how Danny is so passionate and driven…and how it will help him so much in his recovery.

What are you most looking forward doing with Danny when you get to hang out next?

Seeing Danny Happy and Healthy

Big Hugs!!!!!!!!
~Lisa Phillips

January 9th, 2011 by Conor

To the Flighest Fligi of em all.
I wish you the fastest recovery because you still have a lot to learn about layering your tall tees!!

praying for you big guy,
Preston Kaye

January 9th, 2011 by Conor

In recent years I have only had the opportunity to see Danny and Conor a few times a year during the holidays and maybe over the summer. When all of the kids from North Conway are home on vacation we tend to see one another out at the Parka or at the Quinn’s Annual Christmas Eve Party. It always fun seeing everyone we grew up with and laughing about old times. Last time I saw Danny I probably only said hello, there were so many of us at open mic night!

When I think of Danny I remember hanging out in Conor’s basement room and Danny coming down to tell us some crazy funny story followed by that hyena laugh. Conor would probably tell Danny to go upstairs since for some reason right when Danny walked into the room all the attention was diverted to him.

Danny and I have a few good jokes between us, although they can only really be captured by a facial motion and crazy hand gesture (followed by a laugh no doubt). Next time I see him I will make sure to bust it out so we can get hysterical with laughter.

I am thinking about you and your family all the time. Hang in there and get better soon!

January 9th, 2011 by Conor

Danny and Conor-

I have been reading about Danny for the past few days and sending
thoughts and prayers out to your whole family. We don’t know
eachother, but I saw a tweet last week to check out
dannyisthebomb.com. I did and I can’t stop thinking about you both. I
have posted your site on my twitter and gchat status just to get the
word out to people and let them be aware of what is happening. My
friends reactions are all the same- “wow, scary and so sad”.

I debated if I should write to you, not knowing you guys, but I just
wanted to let you know that there are many many people out there that
are fighting for Danny and his 100% recovery. (whether they know him
or not!)

I live in Boston, after moving here from Colorado 5 years ago. Your
group of friends remind me so much of my crew out west. I couldn’t
even imagine if this were to happen to any of my friends… but the
reality is, we live an exciting, yet dangerous lifestyle, so it is
completely feasible.

Your story and posts have really touched me and more than anything, I
keep telling myself and the people around me to enjoy life at this
very moment because you never know what can happen. So thank you Danny
for reaffirming this and keep fighting! Maybe one day we’ll be on the
same mountain and ride together!

Much love and hope,
michelle deyoung

January 9th, 2011 by Conor

The man with the goggle tan.

January 9th, 2011 by Conor

Conor-David-Ellen – Just found out about this from the kids. Our thoughts and prayers are with you! If there is anything that we can do, please let me know! I see that there is a lot of buzz around the valley.

Here’s something a little to share from another parent of one of Danny’s good friends:

How many times did I here, “I’m staying at Conor’s tonight, Danny, Conor and I are just hanging out.” Ok, I would think to my self, what the hell is going on over there, how does Ellen deal with all these kids all the time? What crazy escapade are they dreaming up now? There was always something in the works! Eventually you would find out, sometimes days, weeks, months (and now years) later the stories would come out. Crazy stuff, always flirting on the edge of dangerous, not so dangerous; legal, not so legal. Did the thought of, how much trouble are we going to get into ever enter their minds? Maybe, but not for long! Most of the stuff was harmless (except to themselves), let’s have some fun stuff. Thank God!

Many times I’m talking with Josh, and Conor and Danny come up, where are they now, what are they up to? You never quit new where or what either one of them might be up to. This is probably the longest Danny has ever stayed in one place, and I’m sure it wouldn’t be for long. That isn’t Danny!!

Here are a couple of photos, when Conor and Danny happened to blow in during Christmas back in 2007. Enjoy!

Again our thoughts and prayers are with you, let us know if there is anything we can do!

Love all of you :)!

Craig Belcher
Linda Vienneau