The day started like most others, except on this particular June morning, 14-year-old Hayden Stinchfield was running a little late to his first class at Washougal High.
Normally, Hayden would have worn his bicycle helmet. And he wouldn’t have been going as fast as he was, biking down the hill on “M” Street between his house and his school.
“I was in a rush that day,” Hayden says, remembering the morning of June 16. “When I hit the pothole, my wheel detached from my bike.”
Not realizing what had happened to his wheel, Hayden hit his brakes. Hard. But only the front brake engaged. The rear brake had disconnected.
“I tipped off and went into the curb,” Hayden says. “I landed on my face and slid about 10 feet.”