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An “industrial accident” in 1995 left me unable to walk and in chronic pain, putting a stop to some 20 years of riding motorcycles. Learning to live as a severely disabled biker has not been easy, for me or my family. Things kept getting worse and worse with my legs and riding again became a dream I clung too, as the reality of the situation seemed to give me no chance.
Summer 2003 saw me in hospital (again). This time to have both my legs amputated above the knee. Scary as it was, it’s turned out to be the best thing that’s happened in years. I’m now out of pain and doing well with prosthetic legs. And turning that dream I clung on to into reality.
I bought a Harley Davidson Lowrider as I knew the low seat and centre of gravity would help, as it was never going to be easy to learn to hold up the bike with prosthetics. A good choice. After a chat with the very helpful Keith at Kliktronic, a gear changer was supplied through NABD and fitted at West Coast HD in Glasgow before delivery. Jim Kane and the staff there have been brilliant. I decided on a thumbrake rear, but hit a problem when the kit from NABD turned out not to fit a Harley’s 1 inch bars. After much searching, a thumbrake was superbly designed and supplied by Richard Vanags of P3 Unlimited whose expertise in braking is second to none, along with his willingness to help. (For anyone in a similar position, contact him at www.P3unlimited.com).
I put in hours of practice just holding the bike up and getting myself familiar with the new set up before my first ride. The big day came and my nerves and excitement were off the scale. It took only a few miles for me to feel quite comfortable though.
Everything worked well together making the bike a real joy to ride. Here I was at last, riding a bike of my dreams on the remote rural roads where I live and have longed to ride for so long. What a mixture, a grin a mile wide and tears produced by more than just the wind and the famous Scottish midges! Even without my own legs, I was more whole than I had been for many years...
Thank you big time to NABD, my family and everyone else who helped and supported me.
Andy Roughton
This NABD grant of £800.00 was sponsored by a donation from
Roughley’s Stockport Bike Show
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