Uncle's neck broken - paralyzed and can't ski

Sorry to hear that man. Always sucks to lose any skier. I wish him the best of luck.

Vibes and prayers to your uncle and his family. I couldn't imagine that happening to me or someone I know.

damn sorry to hear that man. Hopefully within a few years he gets out on a sit-ski. sending vibes

That really sucks. Vibes to your uncle. but it also is sad that that park is being destroyed just because someone was doing an inherently risky sport and messed up and is now having them destroyed for everyone.

While my condolences go out to this guy and it's definitely a really sad story, the facebook post you linked to just tries to deflect blame off of your uncle and towards the "unsafe" bike park ("no warning signs".. really?). I honestly can't find myself sympathetic to your cause if this is how you feel.

Fact of the matter is this: when involved in any action sport, it it solely up to the rider to use his/her discretion when hitting features, and by participating in said sport you acknowledge that there are risks, and that things like this can (and will) happen. By ignoring this and pointing fingers at the park, you're giving the city and its lawyers further reason to ruin something that many people probably enjoy, and more importantly, you're discouraging them from ever building something like this in the future. Is that what you want?

Again, not trying to be a dick, but this is the reason we can't have fun things in this country.

1kewldewdThat really sucks. Vibes to your uncle. but it also is sad that that park is being destroyed just because someone was doing an inherently risky sport and messed up and is now having them destroyed for everyone.

this summed it up perfectly.... action sports aren't risk free and doing them should mean you inherently know the risks. It's a huge bummer that happened, but stuff isn't always shaped perfectly. It's your friend's uncle's mission to have the park destroyed? Dunno, I just can't agree with that sort of mission whatsoever.

Truly tragic. Hard to comment.

I was at a BMX track at a park once (but with some really steep jumps.) Innocent enough: regular park, riding a regular bike ready to catch a bit of air. But therein lies the trap. Bikes have a tendency to roll forward in the air and it doesn't take a large jump at all to end up on your head at high force (especially if there is a second jump on the other side.) A helmet won't do much to protect the neck.

I took some air and came off the bike but in some reflexive response I used my arms to stop me (it was a while back: that's how I remember it.) It could've been a lot worse now that I think about it.

BMX riders make it look so thrilling.... lessons:

- (weird one) start doing action sports young (and encourage kids) - I think the problem is when adults try to do things they've never done before and try to emulate younger people or their heroes. This includes motorcycle riders who get a motorcycle due to a mid-life crisis -- they often crash. I've even seen middle-aged people crash on rollerblades and bicycles doing nothing more than go off a gutter or try to stop.

- don't try to directly emulate your heroes. (don't go into a halfpipe and try a double-cork 1260 after seeing Shaun White do it (personally I find the whole idea of having heroes in the first place and then trying to emulate them quite repugnant.))
- you can never be too careful
- look for worst case scenarios before trying anything new and somewhat dangerous: don't be the worst-case scenario.
- have someone around to ask for tips
- start very small
- know your skills and what you can safely do (it's an ongoing thought process)
- you've got to look after yourself

ADRIA-T.PIMP- (weird one) start doing action sports young (and encourage kids) - I think the problem is when adults try to do things they've never done before and try to emulate younger people or their heroes. This includes motorcycle riders who get a motorcycle due to a mid-life crisis -- they often crash. I've even seen middle-aged people crash on rollerblades and bicycles doing nothing more than go off a gutter or try to stop.

You nailed it right there!

Kids are reckless...Seriously, they will find the most dangerous object, then proceed to hurt themselves in the most original ways.

I want to blame it on an overprotective society where we should be scared of...everything. From bacterial and viral to food that we eat and activities that we do, Do you know why fat people are hilarious in action sports? Why we love watching fat people fail on youtube? Because they havent mastered basic motor skills or risk calculation due to the fact of staying indoors and replacing coordination with less interactive activities. While the less fearful of us, we play sports to reinforce coordination and overall health.

If we introduce kids to dangerous sports, we have to introduce them as young as possible so they learn safety practices and to then be able to recognize the different dangers. Kids as young as 5 can recognize danger, but still cant connect the dots just yet. How many got their first blade at 6? how about a gun at 8? Not too many...but in some parts of the world, a 5 year old has more experience with a knife that I have had over 25. Some native tribes let kids as young as 5 to handle weapons. And know what? handling accidents are rare, cuts in older children are non-existent.

I owe a lot to skiing. I started at 3, got into moguls at 12 and rode park until 19. I moved out west for powder at 24 and now at 27, I can proudly say, I have never gotten hurt yet in either skiing, biking or rock climbing.Turning back and accepting responsibilities of actions are what define riders and characterizes the rider's experience in the field. Luck has some thing to do, but skill and clarity of decision making can save your life.

On an other note, my sympathies to your uncle. Make sure to remind him that he matters to everyone and to work around the problems as best as he can. Significant progress in medical sciences gives him hope. If he can give back to the sport, it is the best way to honor a sport he loved while being cheered on the sidelines. Watch "The Crash Reel" for inspiration.

That sucks, and vibes to this guys uncle, it looks like he used to shred pretty hard.

But as mentioned, trying to squarely blame it on the bike park for not having signs up is completely bogus and epitomises everything that is wrong with society today. Yes, the outcome totally sucks, but since when did we need warning signs to tell us about every possible hazard? The guy was clearly not some noob, he would have had a pretty good idea of the risks involved, even if the BMX track was pretty craptacular. Whatever happened to personal responsibility? Presumably the whole warning sign angle is in aid of some form of litigation.

Where I live you can't sue everyone willy-nilly and there's often some pretty burly features in bike parks, the most signage you'll generally see is like "wear a helmet please, we don't wanna shovel your brains off the landing"

freestyler540I owe a lot to skiing. I started at 3, got into moguls at 12 and rode park until 19. I moved out west for powder at 24 and now at 27, I can proudly say, I have never gotten hurt yet in either skiing, biking or rock climbing.

Nice. Keep it up. For each sport, it's like a you're building two databases - where it goes wrong, and where it goes right. Avoid going wrong (pain, strain fall), seek to go right (stoke, steeze.) Gradually build up the data banks.

Two main risks: when you have no prior experience and don't know what to expect or push too hard, or have a lot of experience, but get a curveball you still can't handle and aren't prepared for (maybe you misjudged yourself or the terrain.)

Reinhold Messner on climbing--

Now that I'm approaching 56, I am beginning to understand that failing is more important in life than having success. Sometimes you need success, but it's important to have a chance to fail like Shackleton failed.

I didn't become successful in my field because I'm bigger or more intelligent than others. No, I became successful because I had the willpower to fail, and to try it again, again and again.