Cody Carpenter and Jacob Lanier, Casper-based electricians, were headed for a job in Evanston, Wyoming, on Monday when they noticed a plume of dust billowing up from the roadway in the distance ahead, around 20 miles east of Farson.
They arrived to discover a man lying face-down in the gravel on the shoulder of Wyoming Highway 28 and a crumpled motorcycle 20 feet away.
The man’s shoes were missing, and he was bleeding through his white socks. His hands and arms were also red with blood, and his helmet was cracked down the back.
“He was unconscious when we first got there, and face-down. First thing I thought was, ‘Oh man, this guy's probably dead,’” said Carpenter, expressing his relief when he heard the man groan.
They got 911 dispatch on the line and followed instructions to keep the man talking and not let him move around. Carpenter was glad when the man began talking, but it was clear he’d suffered a head injury.
“He was out of it,” Carpenter said. “He kept asking the same questions over and over again. What happened? Where’s his bike? What happened?”
Half an hour later, EMTs arrived and transported the man to Farson, where he was airlifted to the University of Utah Hospital. He’s now being treated for multiple head traumas, six broken ribs and other injuries.
The man’s name is Bob Newman.
He’s a retired deputy sheriff from Roundup, Montana, and he was on his way to visit his youngest daughter, Megan Cartwright, who lives in Green River, Wyoming, where her husband is a trona miner with the company WE Soda.
These electricians don’t see themselves as heroes.
“I don't feel like we did anything above what's expected, in my opinion,” said Lanier, 32, “We just happened to be the first ones there.”
But Cartwright is convinced they were Heaven-sent.
“I tear up thinking about them, because I feel like they're my dad's angels,” said Cartwright, sobbing while speaking to Cowboy State Daily from the Intensive Care Unit at the University of Utah Hospital.
“If it wasn’t for them, there could have been a different outcome,” she said. “They were amazing, and they were in the right place at the right time.”
What Caused The Crash?
On his way to Green River, Newman called to say his back hurt and that he’d need to rest overnight, so Cartwright got him a hotel room in Lander.
The next morning, she said her father exhibited signs of confusion when he called to explain that he was behind schedule again for a different reason.
He had driven in the wrong direction leaving Lander and hadn’t realized until he arrived in Dubois, which came as a surprise considering he’s driven the same route to Green River multiple times in the past.
Newman, 70, is a diabetic who has suffered three heart attacks in previous years.
Cartwright believes it was the combination of these health conditions and prescription drug side-effects that ultimately caused him to lose consciousness on Highway 28 near Farson.
Wyoming Highway Patrol troopers said Newman rode through gravel on the highway shoulder for about 25 feet before the bike's left footpeg struck the ground and sent him airborne.
First responders conjecture the crack in the back of his helmet is the result of an airborne collision with the motorcycle, which was dented in multiple locations and leaking fluids when the electricians arrived on the scene.
Newman is a member of the Patriot Guard Riders of Montana biker club, where he’s known as “Buffalo Bob.”
He usually drove his RV to visit his daughter in Wyoming, but told her his days of motorcycle riding would soon be behind him and wanted to maximize his time in the saddle before hanging it up.
“He's been thinking about selling his bike and he wanted to get one last ride before the summer is over. Turns out it was his last ride,” Cartwright said.
Paying If Forward
Cartwright now is waiting nervously in the ICU for signs of improvement.
“They took his breathing tube out today, and we’re waiting to see how he does without it. I’m excited to hear his voice again,” she said.
It’s not possible to say whether Lanier and Carpenter have altered the outcome of Newman’s accident. But the experience will survive in their own memories, heroes or not.
The moment has led Lanier to reflect anew on a motor vehicle accident from his childhood. As a 10-year-old boy, he was hit head-on by a drunk driver while riding in a car with his grandparents.
He now remembers the Samaritans from that with a renewed sense of appreciation.
“They helped get me out of the car, gave me a blanket and sat with me until the officers and the fire department showed up,” he said. “I was just a little kid, and I think about it, and I really appreciate those people for stopping to help back then.”
Carpenter reflects on the moment with gratitude for his own health, and unwavering humility.
“They’re trying to call us heroes, but I wouldn't say we're heroes. I'd just say we're just two average guys just doing what we thought was right,” he said.
Contact Zakary Sonntag at zakary@cowboystatedaily.com
Zakary Sonntag can be reached at zakary@cowboystatedaily.com.
