Posted: Tuesday, September 2, 2008 12:00 am
BEND (AP) - Cole Ortega is starting high school - two-handed.
The 14-year-old surfer from Bend was in the water off Pacific City in July when a fishing dory severed his arm. But friends retrieved it, still in neoprene, and doctors reattached it.
He's going through a lot of physical therapy, and his doctors still aren't sure how completely he'll recover.
But he's getting back into a teenage life - still mindful of his injury.
He's going back to school as a freshman at Summit High School, taking an occasional ride on his mountain bike. He can't play soccer yet, but he's hoping to get in some snowboarding this winter.