Media tends to brings us all the bad stuff that happens in the world, this is sad because there are many, many good things going on that are worthy of a mention but, of course, will not sell papers.
A friend of mine posted a story about a retired police officer from Derrington who was riding LEJOG. He was determined to complete the 1,000 miles to raise cash for Help for Heroes when the unthinkable happened, 400 miles into the ride he was blinded by sunlight and hit a curb sending him over the handle bars.
I have seen people come off their bikes in every way imaginable; sometimes I am amazed when the actual get up again and carry on. These types of accidents are normally preceded by a wince and a big ‘Oooo’ from those witnessing it. Other accidents seem very innocuous but result in nasty injury. Unfortunately for Stuart, his accident was in the latter category. He suffered 4 broken ribs, a broken shoulder blade and collar bone plus a punctured lung, which subsequently became infected.
Despite Stuart’s grim injuries, he felt he had let the charity down and was determined to complete the ride when he recovered. I was fortunate enough to avoid an accident on my LEJOG ride (although there was a couple of close calls) but I can imagine how he must be feeling, I felt a big responsibility to complete the ride and raise as much as possible for my charity. If, for whatever reason, I couldn’t complete the mileage I would have been totally disappointed; gutted, I think, is a better description. Stuart, you have let no one down.
The other thing that struck me was his ‘can do attitude’, he wanted to get back on his bike and get the ride completed once recovered. Raising money and awareness for his charity was clearly of the utmost importance. Many could take a leaf from Stuart’s book; the world would be a better place. Read his synopsis of the incident on his fund raising page and you will see what I mean.
