Brett Bellchambers is one of the many characters of the Tathra MTB Enduro; A Ned Kelly on wheels.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
And he’s back! But only just.
In February this year, the multiple World 24 hour Singlespeed champion collided with a black swamp wallaby whilst training in Canberra and was almost killed.
“If it wasn’t for my helmet, I wouldn’t be here today,” says the Canberran.
The amiable Bell-Chambers says he recalls nothing of the horrific accident, but has been told by his riding mates the wallaby dashed out onto the road hitting his front wheel.
Bellchambers was riding at 50plus km/h when he flew over the handlebars with his head bearing the brunt of the fall.
“The boys say I landed on the left hand side of my head and tried to rip my left ear off,” he says.
And the bike?
“The front wheel ended up near the bottom bracket as the whole frame crumpled.
“I spent seven hours in surgery. I had bleeding on the brain, I fractured three vertebrae, busted a few ribs and grazes to my arms and a bit out of my ear!
“The first memory I have is waking up four days after the accident.”
Whilst BellChambers has been quick to bounce back physically, the mental road to recovery after brain injury has been slower. Bellchambers still has holes in his memory but has not lost his positive attitude.
“My balance is fine and I got back on the bike very quickly. I did my first race in late Autumn.
“However I have a downhill speed limit. I am really conscious about hitting my head again, and this has affected my confidence.
“I went to see a neuro psychologist and that was a break through. She told me to have confidence as my higher learning brain was working, and having trust in my body and brain was my biggest thing.
“I trust that I know how to ride a bike now and I am able to relax into it.”
Having clinched Tathra’s King Nelba 100km Singlespeed race division on multiple occasions, Bell Chambers says he’s keen to race again. He concedes his downhill speed on Sunday will be a little slower, but he’s keen to re-remember the Tathra trails and fun he’s had before.
“I’m quite looking forward to the 75km, plus I know a lot of the Tathra trails. I’m quite excited to piece it all back together again because I have all these random memories from past events.
“I remember Christian choirs singing as we went up a dirty great hill, big drums and two girls sitting in decks chairs with giving me curry about something.
“Yes this year I am looking for some more nice memories of Tathra,” he adds.
Bellchambers and the 300 plus riders in this year’s Enduro will again be treated to a musical extravaganza with 10 musical and/or dance acts lined up to keep riders entertained.
The musicians will be vying for a share of $500 in prizemoney, with riders voting on the favourite act.