Good news! Three and a half months after he was admitted to hospital in a critical condition, Kevin Pearce has been released. He will now continue his treatment as an outpatient.

An update posted yesterday on the Facebook page, Well Wishes to our Frend Kevin Pearce reads:

“Snowboarder Kevin Pearce was released from the inpatient Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) Program at Craig Hospital on April 14, 2010. Kevin will continue daily outpatient therapy with Craig Hospital while residing in the Denver-area home that has been generously loaned to the Pearce family for the last several months. Kevin’s outpatient treatment is expected to be the final step in Colorado before returning to his Norwich, VT home in the upcoming weeks, where he will continue to make strides toward a full recovery.

The “Well-Wishes to our Frend Kevin Pearce” Facebook fan page remains the preferred outlet for Kevin, his family, and friends to post official updates and notes. The Pearce family would like to express their profound gratitude to Kevin’s treatment team at Craig Hospital for their expert care and rehabilitation. In addition, the family credits the continued outpouring of support and well-wishes from family, friends and fans, as well as messages sent to Kevin throughout his recovery, as lifting Kevin’s spirits and helping speed up his progress.”

The question everyone is now asking is, will Kevin be riding again? According to a recent story in the New York Times, the answer would appear to be ‘yes’.

“I don’t know that he’ll be doing halfpipes, because we don’t want him to hit his head,” said Dr. Alan Weintraub, medical director of the brain injury program at Craig Hospital in Englewood, Colo. “But he’s going to snowboard. I can pretty much guarantee it.”

“Everything has been getting better,” commented Pearce’s father, Simon. “It’s been across the board.”

It should be noted that Kevin still has a way to go to make a complete recovery. He is walking again, but stiffer than before (“not as relaxed,” as his mum Pia put it). His famous sense of balance is also not quite as it was, and he is currently using a special pair of glasses to help his eyes keep track. Nevertheless he is expected to get behind the wheel of a car again before the end of the year, and friends and family are convinced that the willpower which has driven his recovery so far will see him through. His mum is particularly grateful for all the messages of goodwill they have received:

“All the support — it feels like this groundswell of energy — has really helped Kevin move forward in a remarkable way,” said Pia Pearce, Kevin’s mother. “I have nothing but gratitude for all the people in our lives, the people we know and the people we don’t know, that have been pulling for us this whole time.”

We at Whitelines are thrilled at the latest news and wish Kevin and his family all the best for the coming months.