{"id":24743,"date":"2026-07-15T09:10:53","date_gmt":"2026-07-15T09:10:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=24743"},"modified":"2026-07-15T09:10:53","modified_gmt":"2026-07-15T09:10:53","slug":"hayden-bodybuilder-crushed-by-dump-truck-releases-new-book-about-comeback","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=24743","title":{"rendered":"Hayden bodybuilder crushed by dump truck releases new book about comeback"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"storycontent\">\n<p>\t\t<!-- Paywall enabled--><\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t<!-- Paywall item:  669346 --><\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t<!-- is_paywall_preview = False --><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t<!-- story_counter = 1 --><\/p>\n<p>Eric Hess battles arthritis. There\u2019s no cartilage in his shoulders. He also has a prosthetic hip.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Yet the Hayden man, 54, pumps iron at least six to seven days a week.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBeing in the gym is my therapy,\u201d he said. \u201cIt always has been and it always will be.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>All the weight the bodybuilder lifts now, however, dwarfs in comparison to what he\u2019s endured. In 1994, a 5-foot, 11-inch tall, 240-pound Hess was nearly crushed to death by a 56,000-pound dump truck. He highlights the harrowing incident in his newly published memoir, befittingly titled \u201c56,000 Pounds.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Hess, then 21, was installing a sanitary line in Bainbridge, Pa. At some point, Hess knelt down beside the massive truck when the driver didn\u2019t see him and began to accelerate. The truck, soon dragging the young Hess over stones as he hung on to its front bumper, eventually rolled over part of his body.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Hess said he was conscious the entire time.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI just watched the tire drive up my legs, over my knees, upward to my pelvis and it eventually stopped around my belly button and torso,\u201d he said. \u201c(The driver) had seen one of the guys in the backfill crew running down the street waving, \u2018Back off, back off!\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ensuing X-rays showed Hess had an unrecognizable pelvis. Pumped full of morphine, Hess\u2019 doctors told him he might never walk again.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI had six fractures around my pelvis. Both of my sockets were completely shattered,\u201d Hess said. \u201cBest way to describe it is if you took a hammer and hit a pane of glass and it just shatters, that\u2019s what my pelvis looked like. You couldn&#8217;t tell by looking at an X-ray what you\u2019re looking at.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Hess then found himself lying supine in his father\u2019s house in Quarryville, Pa, for eight weeks. A friend of Hess would come over regularly with VHS cassette tapes to help distract him from the trauma, he said.<\/p>\n<p>But despite the incredible injuries and multiple surgeries, Hess defied the odds. \u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Less than two years after the accident, doctors having surgically removed any final residual hardware from his body, Hess was back lifting weights and body building competitively while he opened his own gym.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>By 1997, in fact, Hess broke a powerlifting juniors world record in bench press. He would also be featured in Muscle &amp; Fitness Magazine for his triumphant comeback.<\/p>\n<p>It was about 12 weeks ago when Hess, who moved to North Idaho between 2001-2002, decided to write a book about going from crushed to cranked. He said he\u2019d wake up around 4 every morning, write, go to work as a real estate agent, then stay up until midnight writing some more. When Hess finished the final product, he had a story detailing his decades of recovery, resilience and his journey into fatherhood.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>According to Hess, he wants his readers to not only become inspired by this arduous voyage, but to better understand life\u2019s hardships.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI want them to feel motivated,\u201d Hess said of his readers. \u201cI want them to feel hope, that they\u2019re not alone. Many people in the gym now, they\u2019re battling things that we have no clue about. Some big, some small.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In addition to his real estate career, Hess spends his free time in the gym with his 12-year-old son, Hudson. Meanwhile, he said wellness is always going to be a part of his life, \u201cbecause if I don\u2019t exercise, I hurt.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPain motivates me,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>Paperback and e-book copies of \u201c56,000 Pounds\u201d can be found on Amazon online at <a href=\"https:\/\/a.co\/d\/02OVlVe6\">a.co\/d\/02OVlVe6<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"inline inline_photo\" id=\"543830\">\n<div class=\"fr-img-space-wrap\"><span class=\"fr-img-caption photo fr-fic fr-dib\" style=\"width: 302px;\">\u00a0<span class=\"fr-img-wrap\">\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/cdapress.com\/photos\/2026\/jul\/15\/543830\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/hagadone.media.clients.ellingtoncms.com\/img\/photos\/2026\/07\/14\/IMG_0276d.jpg.2044x1362_q85_box-0%2C0%2C4088%2C2725_crop_detail.jpg\"\/><\/a> <span class=\"fr-inner\">\u00a0Eric Hess, of Hayden, performs a curl at Planet Fitness in Coeur d&#8217;Alene.<br \/><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"inline inline_photo\" id=\"543832\">\n<div class=\"fr-img-space-wrap\"><span class=\"fr-img-caption photo fr-fic fr-dib\" style=\"width: 302px;\">\u00a0<span class=\"fr-img-wrap\">\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/cdapress.com\/photos\/2026\/jul\/15\/543832\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/hagadone.media.clients.ellingtoncms.com\/img\/photos\/2026\/07\/14\/71aPgna1sL._SL1499_.jpg.500x749_q85_box-0%2C0%2C1000%2C1499_crop_detail.jpg\"\/><\/a> <span class=\"fr-inner\">\u00a0The cover of &#8220;56,000 Pounds,&#8221; a new book authored by Hayden local Eric Hess.<br \/><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/cdapress.com\/news\/2026\/jul\/15\/weight-july15-2026\/\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Eric Hess battles arthritis. There\u2019s no cartilage in his shoulders. He also has a prosthetic hip.\u00a0 Yet the Hayden man, 54, pumps iron at least six to seven days a week. \u201cBeing in the gym is my therapy,\u201d he said. \u201cIt always has been and it always will be.\u201d All the weight the bodybuilder lifts [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":24744,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-24743","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-news"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Hayden bodybuilder crushed by dump truck releases new book about comeback - World Bodybuilding News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=24743\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Hayden bodybuilder crushed by dump truck releases new book about comeback - World Bodybuilding News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Eric Hess battles arthritis. There\u2019s no cartilage in his shoulders. He also has a prosthetic hip.\u00a0 Yet the Hayden man, 54, pumps iron at least six to seven days a week. \u201cBeing in the gym is my therapy,\u201d he said. \u201cIt always has been and it always will be.\u201d All the weight the bodybuilder lifts [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=24743\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"World Bodybuilding News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-07-15T09:10:53+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/hagadone.media.clients.ellingtoncms.com\/img\/photos\/2026\/07\/14\/IMG_0276d.jpg.2044x1362_q85_box-0%2C0%2C4088%2C2725_crop_detail.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"World Bodybuilding News\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"World Bodybuilding News\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/?p=24743#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/?p=24743\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"World Bodybuilding News\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/d84bf475351cac13351c44d62b00dcd2\"},\"headline\":\"Hayden bodybuilder crushed by dump truck releases new book about comeback\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-15T09:10:53+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/?p=24743\"},\"wordCount\":639,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/?p=24743#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/IMG_0287_t1200x1200.JPG\",\"articleSection\":[\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/?p=24743#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/?p=24743\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/?p=24743\",\"name\":\"Hayden bodybuilder crushed by dump truck releases new book about comeback - World Bodybuilding News\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/?p=24743#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/?p=24743#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/IMG_0287_t1200x1200.JPG\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-15T09:10:53+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/d84bf475351cac13351c44d62b00dcd2\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/?p=24743#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/?p=24743\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/?p=24743#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/IMG_0287_t1200x1200.JPG\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/IMG_0287_t1200x1200.JPG\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":1200},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/?p=24743#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Hayden bodybuilder crushed by dump truck releases new book about comeback\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"World Bodybuilding News\",\"description\":\"Data, Rankings, Results.\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/d84bf475351cac13351c44d62b00dcd2\",\"name\":\"World Bodybuilding News\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/f3a97dc2b632583ef0db5105000be61b101080263520a02b1a9096e649f18e5e?s=96&d=initials&r=g&initials=wo\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/f3a97dc2b632583ef0db5105000be61b101080263520a02b1a9096e649f18e5e?s=96&d=initials&r=g&initials=wo\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/f3a97dc2b632583ef0db5105000be61b101080263520a02b1a9096e649f18e5e?s=96&d=initials&r=g&initials=wo\",\"caption\":\"World Bodybuilding News\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\\\/?author=3\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Hayden bodybuilder crushed by dump truck releases new book about comeback - World Bodybuilding News","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=24743","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Hayden bodybuilder crushed by dump truck releases new book about comeback - World Bodybuilding News","og_description":"Eric Hess battles arthritis. There\u2019s no cartilage in his shoulders. He also has a prosthetic hip.\u00a0 Yet the Hayden man, 54, pumps iron at least six to seven days a week. \u201cBeing in the gym is my therapy,\u201d he said. \u201cIt always has been and it always will be.\u201d All the weight the bodybuilder lifts [&hellip;]","og_url":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=24743","og_site_name":"World Bodybuilding News","article_published_time":"2026-07-15T09:10:53+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"https:\/\/hagadone.media.clients.ellingtoncms.com\/img\/photos\/2026\/07\/14\/IMG_0276d.jpg.2044x1362_q85_box-0%2C0%2C4088%2C2725_crop_detail.jpg","type":"","width":"","height":""}],"author":"World Bodybuilding News","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"World Bodybuilding News","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=24743#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=24743"},"author":{"name":"World Bodybuilding News","@id":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/#\/schema\/person\/d84bf475351cac13351c44d62b00dcd2"},"headline":"Hayden bodybuilder crushed by dump truck releases new book about comeback","datePublished":"2026-07-15T09:10:53+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=24743"},"wordCount":639,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=24743#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/IMG_0287_t1200x1200.JPG","articleSection":["News"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=24743#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=24743","url":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=24743","name":"Hayden bodybuilder crushed by dump truck releases new book about comeback - World Bodybuilding News","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=24743#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=24743#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/IMG_0287_t1200x1200.JPG","datePublished":"2026-07-15T09:10:53+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/#\/schema\/person\/d84bf475351cac13351c44d62b00dcd2"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=24743#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=24743"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=24743#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/IMG_0287_t1200x1200.JPG","contentUrl":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/IMG_0287_t1200x1200.JPG","width":1200,"height":1200},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=24743#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Hayden bodybuilder crushed by dump truck releases new book about comeback"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/","name":"World Bodybuilding News","description":"Data, Rankings, Results.","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/#\/schema\/person\/d84bf475351cac13351c44d62b00dcd2","name":"World Bodybuilding News","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f3a97dc2b632583ef0db5105000be61b101080263520a02b1a9096e649f18e5e?s=96&d=initials&r=g&initials=wo","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f3a97dc2b632583ef0db5105000be61b101080263520a02b1a9096e649f18e5e?s=96&d=initials&r=g&initials=wo","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f3a97dc2b632583ef0db5105000be61b101080263520a02b1a9096e649f18e5e?s=96&d=initials&r=g&initials=wo","caption":"World Bodybuilding News"},"url":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?author=3"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24743","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=24743"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24743\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/24744"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=24743"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=24743"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=24743"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}