First of all, here's what happened in April 2002, as i told it a few days after......
Ok, so picture the scene: it's dry, the sun is shining and the trails are
for want of a better word, fast. so, the bikes go in the car and we head off to
Cannock chase for a days blast. we stop off at LBS to pick up bits and chat
about how good the weather is etc. get to Cannock, decide to do the 18mile
longer loop as the weather is ace. the trails are dry, the roots skip you
instead of slide us, the birds are singing and you feel inspired to do every
technical downhill twice just coz we can.
THEN......
We finish the ride and decide to head off to the quarry for some jey boy jump
antics. i've already fallen off and my mates bent a wheel coz the trails are
dry and faster than we've ever ridden them before but, what the hell! so, off to
the quarry, find that the runs are faster than ever and decide to start going
for those really big airs off the lips. first, my girlfriend tries, down with
arse on the back wheel, pedal across the flat and weeeee..... she falls off on
landing after a couple of feet of air. great I think, now's my chance to show my
prowess! off i go, down, sprint, up, up, up, lift off and tap the back wheel
down for the perfect landing. at least, that's what i meant to do. you see, this
wonderful dry weather has turned the quarry surface into a sandy, rocky ice
rink. i execute the first part perfectly, but on contact with the ground, my
front wheel decides that it doesn't want to carry on and runs off sideways
leaving me hurtling through the air at 20 miles an hour. Shite!
anyway, i landed square on my jaw, which is now wired together and has three Ti
plates to boast and my lovely new bar ends caught my hand and broke my radius
whilst dislocating the elbow.
so, i did find my biggest ever air.....in a lovely orange helicopter!
The moral? bring back the muddy days of old, when shite kept me firmly stuck to
the ground!!
You can see X-Rays of said injury's
here
© The County air ambulance trust
My other chosen mode of transport! (well only once but hey, it looks cool)