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More Surgery For Elite Mountain Runner Involved In Gruesome Accident On Bear Peak

BOULDER, Colo. (CBS4) - The wife of a 46-year-old trail runner who was rescued after a large rock fell on his leg near the summit of Bear Peak near Boulder says her husband was having more surgery on Monday.

Ellen Mackey said her husband David Mackey was scheduled for additional surgery at 2 p.m. on Monday.

According to the Boulder County Sheriff's Office, Dave Mackey was running on a trail near the summit of Bear Peak in an area south of the 5000 block of Flagstaff Road when he slipped and fell.

"He grabbed a large rock to stop his fall, and in doing so, pulled the rock loose causing it to fall on his left leg trapping him," the sheriff's office said in a statement.

The rock was estimated at weighing between 300 and 400 pounds.

BOULDER TRAIL RESCUE map
(credit: CBS)

"He began yelling for help, and two individuals in the area came to his aid. They called 911, rendered first aid until emergency personnel arrived, and used a large stick to pry the rock off Mackey's leg."

It took several hours to complete the rescue.

LINK: Listen To The 911 Call

David Mackey suffered a serious leg injury in the incident and was taken to Boulder Community Hospital. He was listed in stable condition on Monday.

Members of Rocky Mountain Rescue, Boulder City Mountain Parks and Open Space, AMR Ambulance, and the Boulder County Sheriff's Office all helped with the rescue.

According to competitor.com, David Mackey is an elite ultra-distance trail runner. The website reported that, "Mackey underwent surgery to repair his shattered tibia and fibula bones in his left leg. Doctors inserted a metal rod, numerous plates and multiples screws to help reassemble the leg bones, but more surgical procedures will be needed to repair soft tissue damage and to clean out the wound to eliminate the possibility of infection."

Running.competitor.com reported that David Mackey has been "long one of the top mountain runners in the U.S.," and "is known as one of the toughest, strongest and most humble athletes in Boulder."

"If there is a tougher, more bad-ass dude than Dave Mackey … well, I don't believe that," Boulder trail runner and climber Bill Wright told running.competitor.com.

Wright was one of the runners who was first on the scene and helped stabilize David Mackey before rescue crews arrived.

David Mackey recently placed second at the Black Canyon 100K in February in Mayer, Arizona, and also finished second in the Leadman multisport competition last summer in Colorado," according to competitor.com.

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