For her birthday this month, perennial bluegrass hitmaker Irene Kelley thought that a bike ride through Cade’s Cove in east Tennessee sounded like a perfect day out. Lovely fall scenery, and a near certainty of encountering deer in quantity, was all that she had planed for the day.
Irene left from her cabin in Gatlinburg, the one she named “Hills of Home” after a song she wrote with Ronnie Bowman, with three others expecting a scenic and invigorating day out.
Unfortunately, while riding her folding e-bike, it unfolded on its own, sending Irene to the road bed, face first. She tells us that the right side of her face was pretty banged up, including a black eye, and she broke her right arm and elbow, requiring surgery that left her with a plate and pins in her arm.
Kelley says it was a disaster, especially on her birthday.
“I was riding my folding electric bike at Cade‘s Cove, my favorite spot in the Smokies, when my handlebars folded out from under me slamming me down to the road. I was with three friends, thankfully, and a retired medic happened to be driving by, and she drove me to the Blount County hospital like a roadside Angel. She was really incredible.
There’s probably a song in that, and I’m hoping maybe my new bionic arm will get me just a little bit closer to playing like Tony Rice (lol).”
Irene expects the cast on her arm to be removed this week, but physical therapy will be required afterward, with no guitar playing in her immediate future.
For an artist accustomed to accompanying herself on guitar, this is more than a minor inconvenience. But fortunately, she has family and friends to assist while she recovers, and it’s the slow time of the year.
“I have a gig on November 7, and my friend Scot Neubert is going to play guitar for me. Then I’ve got another weekend coming up soon where my daughter Justyna is going to play for me. After that I’m going to try to get well enough to be able to start playing on my own.”
Best of luck, Irene, and get well soon!
