‘It was so quick’: U.K. motorcyclist crashes on Hwy. 401 after wasp stings him

Martin Waring on his road trip (left) and in the hospital with his partner, Nicky (right).

A cross-country motorcycle trip for a United Kingdom man came to an abrupt end after a wasp flew into his helmet and stung him while on Highway 401 in Whitby, Ont., causing him to lose control of his bike and slam into a concrete barrier.

The incident happened in the eastbound lanes of the highway at Brock Street on Sept. 3.

Martin Waring, 67, said the collision left him with a broken leg and nine broken ribs and put an end to what had been a “wonderful” trip up to that point.

“It’s motorcycling, right? It’s dangerous. You’re naïve to think it isn’t,” Waring told CTV News Toronto in an interview, calling from the hospital he is recovering from.

• READ MORE: Parts of Hwy. 401 in Whitby reopens after motorcycle crash

Waring was in Canada for a cross-country tour—a first for the Englishman, despite visiting the country before. He says he has been biking for more than 50 years, trekking across through various parts of the world, including the Arctic Circle in Norway and the Himalayan mountain range.

He says he flew into the country on Aug. 15, picked up his rental bike in Kelowna, B.C., and started his trek eastward. Waring says riding through Jasper National Park was a highlight.

“It was pouring down with rain. The sky was black, and I could see nothing apart from the black road in front of me,” Waring said. “I turned around the corner and there was a break in the clouds, and I saw the white peak of a mountain with the blue sky behind it. It was like a eureka moment, wonderful like.”

Waring continued his drive through the Prairies, before making his way to his friend’s house in Big Bay, Ont., near Georgian Bay. From there, the plan was to continue all together toward Quebec.

After everyone was all suited and booted, Waring says, he and his two friends started making their way to Toronto before continuing eastward. He says for his entire trip—and even before—he was warned to look out for moose, elk or deer crossing the freeways.

“Going down the freeway was no moose or elk. On the freeway, killer wasps,” Waring said.

• READ MORE: What to know about wasps, as their presence persists with the warm weather

Waring says he is severely allergic to wasp stings. Last time he got stung, on his foot, Waring says it ballooned within a span of a couple of minutes.

Thinking back on that moment while he was on Hwy. 401, Waring said he had to act fast because the wasp had stung him on his face, right on his chin.

“I moved from the middle lane to the next lane, indicated left, clear, indicating the left, looking again, (and then) blacked out,” Waring recounted. “It was so quick.”

Police say he lost control of the motorcycle and collided into the concrete barrier.

By the time Waring arrived at North York’s Sunnybrook Hospital, he said he couldn’t feel his left leg and his chest was sore. He learned he broke five ribs on one side and four on the other, as well as his left femur.

“I said, ‘You’re joking,’” Waring said, adding that he “luckily” had a clean break to his femur.

Waring says there’s not much to do for his ribs apart from keeping them strapped up, making it difficult to laugh and cry. He adds that he has had surgery on his thighbone, where doctors inserted a titanium pin about 13 millimetres wide and 40 centimetres long.

His daughter, Jasmine Waring, tells CTV News Toronto she learned of the accident on Sept. 4 after speaking with her aunt.

“I had a phone call from my Aunty and the tone of her voice was immediately off—I knew something was wrong. She told us the news, albeit at that time there were still so many unknowns. Were his injuries life-changing? Would he ever walk again?” Jasmine said in an emailed statement.

“As news dribbled in slowly in bits and pieces, it became more clear that he would be okay—in pain and not without serious injury—but okay! The relief was immense!”

During his physio appointment on Tuesday, Waring said he could stand up straight, but he is hoping he will be able to return back home to Willaston, a village south of Liverpool, in the next 10 days.

As he recovers, Martin says his son, Jack, and his partner, Nicky, flew into Toronto as to be with him at the hospital.

“And, of course, (Nicky) turns up, she walks in, I start crying,” Waring said, adding it felt like a scene out of a Hollywood movie. “It’s nice to have some support.”

Jasmine says she felt helpless being all the way out in the U.K. but expressed her gratitude for her brother and the “moral support and comfort” he has brought her during this time.

“I can’t wait for him to get home! He’s made great strides in his recovery over the past 24 hours which means he may be home sooner rather than later,” she said, adding she intends to fly to Canada if he is delayed. “Hopefully he will be back soon and I can look after him in classic British fashion—lots of biscuits and cups of tea.”

Waring says he is grateful for the level of care he says he has been receiving, thankful for the insurance he sprung for the bike and trip and doesn’t mind he’s now out £2500 (roughly C$4,690) in damaged biking gear.

However, he said it is a “great shame” that this was his last big motorcycling adventure.

“All because I had the misfortune to ride in the same space as a wasp,” Waring said.