Even when you’re fully padded, you sometimes can’t avoid all of the major injuries. Here’s a safety check from the lovely Kayley Ashworth and how she recently got injured.
Okay, so in July 2012 I took a fall at the Royal Highland Show in Edinburgh, breaking the bone head of both my ulna and radius resulting in pinned surgery. I have to wait 12 months until the pins come back out again as they are in a ‘vulnerable’ area which means if I fall and put my hands out, the titanium will absorb the impact and break the bones around them (as bone is weaker than metal) which would then result in emergency surgery to remove the bone and pins which would leave me with one arm shorter than the other for the rest of my life…so I have to be careful!
I am however currently travelling around Scotland for 6 weeks doing shows on my bike with the team I was riding with when i fell at the highland show. We’re doing shows at primary schools to get kids into cycling and travel with a ‘give me cycle space’ campaign to show drivers how much space cyclists actually require on the road. I’m about 3/4 months from full recovery and it has been the hardest injury to deal with mentally and physically but my friends, family, sponsors and ‘The Clan’ team have been amazing, I couldn’t have done it without them.
- Kayley wears:
- Pro-tec Ankle Guards – I wear one the opposite way round to support the foot I broke.
- 661 Shin Pads
- Fuse Knee Pads
- Adidas Boxing Wrap – Support my scaphoid and pinned right arm.
- Fox Gel Gloves – I’d be unable to do these shows if I didn’t strap my arm up, it’s so weak without the straps and gel gloves.
- Capix Helmet
Kayley rides for:
Fox Girls
Superstar BMX
Zeal distribution
Rocketdog shoes
Lifer BMX Shop
Extreme Sports Company
Bawbags Underwear
