Dierks Bentley Injures Hand in Mountain Biking Accident
Dierks Bentley took a few days off the road to relax and recharge -- and wound up with an injured hand. The country star fell off a mountain bike while biking in Colorado and had to go to the emergency room.
On Tuesday (June 25), Bentley was late for an interview with Maryland radio DJ Michael J because of his ER visit. When he finally called in, he was "just walking out of the hospital," but was game to talk about what had happened.
"[I was] just trying to get my summertime on before I get back out on the road," Bentley said, "and I just took a wipe, and my wrist is a little messed up."
Bentley "tweaked up" one of the bones in his left hand, he explained, and was in a temporary splint. He had to go back to the hospital later to figure out if he'd need a full cast -- which, it turns out he did. On Wednesday (June 26), he shared an Instagram video of himself playing guitar as his daughter Evie sings, and, sure enough, he's sporting a cast on his left arm.
"But it's lucky: It's my left hand, and I drink beer with my right, so I should be good to go for the rest of the summer," Bentley told Michael J with a laugh, later adding, more seriously, "It'll be fine. It'll be all good. It's not gonna slow me down much."
In his Instagram video, Bentley adds that he's "more than fine" and "can do everything I want to do," so he won't have to miss any of his upcoming concerts.
Bentley's spending his summer out on the road on his 2019 Burning Man Tour, but he took a few days off to check out the Telluride Bluegrass Festival in Colorado and "be a fan." The singer says he's been at the event for the past few years -- in fact, it's partially what influenced his newest album 2018's The Mountain -- and finds inspiration there both as a fan and as an artist.
Bentley tells Michael J that he was using the time off the road to "reconnect with the music and my family and the outdoors." He'll take any excuse to get outside, he admits.
"I don't like being inside in general. I kind of hate being inside," he adds. "When summer rolls around, I want to be outside as much as possible," both when he's playing shows and when he's enjoying his free time.
Even if he needs to take a break from mountain biking for a little bit, Bentley always has a fallback activity: He's got a pilot's license.
"i'll stick to flying airplanes," he jokes. "It's a lot safer."
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