A Clevedon man who lost his arm and broke his back in a motorcycling accident has jumped back on the bike in a bid to become an elite motorist.
Former army Lance Corporal Chris Ganley, aged 29, wants to become the first ever one-armed man to compete at the Isle of Man TT – one of the deadliest events in the world.
The military man had ‘always dreamed’ of joining the army and enlisted when he was 17 years old.
During his time in the army he attended a motorcycle race meeting for the first time where he found his passion for riding.
After several years of service and two tours to Afghanistan, Chris was forced to be medically discharged after a motorcycling accident left him with life-changing injuries.
The father-of-one said: “I had a motorcycle accident in 2014 where I had a disagreement with a lamp post and a brick wall.
“My left arm was amputated at the scene and my right arm was severely damaged below the elbow.
“I broke my back in three places, had severe nerve damage down my left side and had bleeding on the brain and a punctured lung.”
Despite his brush with death, Chris spent his hospital stay trying to work out how to adapt his bike for one-armed driving.
He added: “When you join the army, you are always prepared for the fact you may not wake up one day or you might wake up and have bits of you missing.
“It didn’t hit me until I tried to go out to my back-gate, which has a double lock to it, and tried to open both at the same time. That was the realisation of what happened.
“I dragged myself off the floor, went into the garage and stripped down and rebuilt my bike, just to see if I could do it.”
Now after reaching the top of club level and placing third in his first ever competition, Chris has set his sights on branching into road racing and competing at the Isle of Man TT in 2023 – a race which has claimed 255 lives since it started in 1907.
With the support of Blesma: Military Charity for Limbless Veterans, Chris has been able to fund his motorcycling career, with the charity sponsoring his tyres and race entries.
Chris will launch his 2019 season at the Bristol Inn on March 2 from 1-5pm.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here