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At the hospital I tried out quite a few wheelchairs - it was good to get a feel for the different types and see how they manoeuvred and felt when I was in them. When I left the Spinal Centre, though, I was given a standard NHS wheelchair and was encouraged to stick with it until I was certain about what wheelchair I'd want long term - choosing one is a major thing and not something to rush.

 

Once I knew what I wanted I got in touch with Aspire to help with paying for it as the NHS just don't provide the sort of wheelchair I really needed. Through the Human Needs Fund they helped pay for a lightweight wheelchair that really meets my needs. It's made to fit me and is much smaller and narrower than that NHS one. It has made such a difference - in the NHS chair there were doors in the house that I couldn't get through. And I went on a stag party to Ibiza and found that because the bathrooms in the hotel were so narrow I just couldn't get into them. Things like that just aren't a problem anymore.

 

The lightweight wheelchair I have now has given me much more confidence in getting out and about - knowing that I'm not going to have that difficulty in accessing where I need to be means that I'm more willing to head out in the first place. Whether it's getting into bathrooms and being able to turn around to close the door or pulling the wheelchair up into a car after me I feel that I've got my independence back. I had my accident racing motorbikes and still miss the sport and want to be involved. I've always had an interest in the technical side of it and so joined a racing team running the data monitoring and analysis that is downloaded after the race. It's been great getting back into the paddock and it takes me to races all over the country - the lightweight wheelchair gives me the confidence I need to do that and I'm looking forward to the challenges of the new season.

I was in a coma for a couple of weeks, and was given loads of anaesthetics while they stabilised my injuries - I've got metalwork going half the length of my spine as well as in my pelvis and femur. It was only about a month after the accident that I started coming round properly and talking sense!

 

When I first got to the Spinal Injuries Centre I was in an isolation ward and didn't really see anyone. Then a bloke in a wheelchair came in and introduced himself, telling me he had the same level of injury as me. That was a real shock as it hit home what things were going to be like.

 

I got on with my rehab, but it was really when I first saw some blokes playing wheelchair basketball that I was really motivated to put some effort into it - they were racing around, shooting with amazing accuracy and I thought, 'I want to do that'. We had a bit of a makeshift basketball set up in the hospital and we'd get together to have a bit of fun. I'd been a pretty good footballer before my accident but had never played basketball but it turns out I was a natural.

 

When I left hospital I signed up for a team and got myself a basketball wheelchair so that I could play seriously. As I improved, though, and played and trained ever more, I built my upper body up far more than it ever had been before. The wheelchairs really have to fit well and I was now too big for mine - every time I made contact with anyone else I'd be tipped over. I needed a new wheelchair but couldn't afford the expense. Fortunately, I found out about Aspire and their Human Needs Fund and they helped me buy the new wheelchair that I needed.

 

I've just finished the first season with my new wheelchair and it's been brilliant. I train with the superleage team, but play with the firsts and seconds. In wheelchair basketball you need to be able to move quickly and turn well and my new chair lets me do all that. But best of all, of course, is the fact that it fits me so much better and so I'm not constantly being tipped over.