HURLEY -- Jim Piilola said that teaching the snowmobile safety class to area youth will be different this year because the reality of an accident has hit home.

Jim and wife Georgia were on the trails March 12 for a final ride last season. Georgia was thrown from her sled as it tipped going around a corner. Her injuries were extensive -- a broken back, multiple rib fractures, punctured lungs and a pelvis fracture. She had back surgery to fuse two vertebrae and had to have fluid drained off her lungs.

Teaching snowmobile safety this year has taken on new meaning. Jim has been teaching the class for 10 years and Georgia has been his assistant.

The couple will continue to teach the class to help teens and pre-teens earn the mandatory certificate they need to drive. Jim said he will use Georgia's accident as a teaching tool to emphasize the necessity of being careful.

"If I can get into an accident, anyone can," said Georgia, an emergency medical technician who always carried a first-aid kit on her sled.

For the full story, pick up a copy of our print edition or subscribe online. Click here for more details.