Nearly two years ago, B.C. motocross rider Bruce Cook found himself lying in a hospital bed unable to move after a life-altering stunt jumping accident left him paralyzed from the waist down.
But even after doctors told him that he wouldn’t be able to walk, the Kelowna man knew his time on the track wasn’t over.
“Since Day One in the hospital bed, it was like well, I definitely want to get back on the bike,” Cook told CTV Vancouver.
And that’s exactly what happened. Less than a year after his accident, Cook was back on the very same bike that he crashed, but with a few minor adjustments. A small cage was added around the bike to protect Cook’s legs in case of a tip over.
His comeback journey hit a peak in Toronto last month when he performed a successful backflip on a motorcycle -- the first ever completed by a paraplegic.
“The arena was electric,” he said. “It was pretty overwhelming.”
Cook continues to perform stunts at motocross events across Canada, including the Nitro Circus Live being held at Vancouver’s Rogers Centre on Sunday.
His admits that he experienced plenty of struggles between the hospital bed and the motocross track, with everyday tasks like taking the stairs and walking down the sidewalk becoming daily challenges.
Cook says he persevered by eliminating one four-letter word from his mind.
“Just keep ‘can’t’ out of your vocabulary and just push to better yourself,” he said.
With the backflip mastered and his goal of competing in motocross satisfied, Cook says the next frontier is relatively simple; he plans to relearn how to walk.
“There’s no doubt in my mind it will happen,” he said. “It’s just a long, slow process and [I have to] try and be patient, which I’m not very good at.”
Aside from walking again, Cook says his mission is to show others how far a little perseverance can go.
“If I can even inspire one person, then it’s a good day,” he said.
With files from CTV Vancouver
