Teen pushes through paralysis
Hungry not to be defined by what he can’t do, Jayden Glentworth is powering back from a serious injury. Uma Ahmed reports.
Jayden Glentworth only knows one speed, and he never looks back, as he grips his pedals and pushes past his paralysis. At 16, Jayden has always been an adrenaline junkie. Mountain-biking is his passion, pushing himself to the limits, and on the day of his accident he was confident.
Tracking down the Jack The Ripper trail at the Arapuke Forest Mountain Bike Park, near Palmerston North, on December 12 last year, the wind was on his side.
He’d completed the ride three times before and was attempting a fourth before a competition that weekend.
‘‘There’s one big jump in the middle called the ‘ripper gap’, which is huge,’’ Jayden says.
‘‘Basically, I thought, ‘I’ve done this before. I’m going to do it.’ But this time when I did it, obviously something went wrong.’’
Jayden was thrown to the ground. His spinal cord was almost severed, the crash causing a T12 burst fracture that resulted in him losing feeling from the waist down.
He can’t remember what happened, just the aftermath. His friends found him curled up in a ball unable tomove or feel his legs.
Flown by rescue helicopter to Christchurch Hospital, Jayden underwent emergency surgery before being transferred to the spinal unit at Burwood Hospital, also in Christchurch, for three months of intensive rehab.
‘‘I remember being told I broke my back, but not once did someone say tome ‘you’ll neverwalk again’. You work that out yourself. You see the X-rays and they’re pretty decent.’’
Initially, panic threatened to take over, but the Palmerston North teenager has refused to let his injury define him.
Although others may be slow to the mark, Jayden’s acceptance of his situation came swiftly.
He had only been in hospital a couple of days before hewas searching online for videos of inspiring people who had overcome similar obstacles.
In the three months Jayden spent in Burwood, he transitioned from a broken boy to working out in the gym to build up his upper body strength for the challenges ahead.
‘‘It was all about gettingmy independence back,’’ he says.
‘‘I just needed to adapt and keep going. I want to tell people I’m still the same person, but I’ve just got a grudge against stairs.’’
Jayden was used to falling from his bike and has always been resilient and stoic when hurt or injured, says his mother, Kathy Glentworth.
This time, the recovery won’t be as smooth, but his demeanour remained the same. ‘‘He just rolls his sleeves up and gets on,’’ she says.
She and Jayden’s father, Mark, have come to termswith the accident, but it’s the attitude of their son that’s filled their hearts with pride.
‘‘Jayden’s always been such an active kid,’’ Mark says. ‘‘It’s an incredible injury which is affecting every part of his being, but his drive is just to be as active and involved as he can in his interests.’’
Mark Glentworth has watched his son persevere and stay positive.
The support of his friends and family has been a constant source of strength for Jayden as he works on healing his body to move forward with his life, but praise and compliments from others can be a bit much.
‘‘Just talk to me like a normal person,’’ Jayden says, smiling from his chair. ‘‘I’m not that different at all. I’m still functioning the same, just have a few extra bits to worry about.
‘‘There’s no hard feelings about it. Injuries are just a part of the sport and I pulled the short straw.’’
When he returned to Palmerston North, people were initially nervous around him, not wanting to say the wrong thing. Once they saw him taking on life the same as he always had they were able to relax.
Jayden has barely missed a day of school all year and the teenager continues to hang out with his friends, who carry on as normal.
He’s still kayaking, skiing and cycling his way to an adrenaline rush.
He is training vigorously for the high school’s Crest to Crest Challenge in February, a race covering more than 350 kilometres from Mt Ruapehu to Palmerston Northwith amix of climbing, running, cycling and kayaking.
He won’t do the running, but he has a power-assisted, hand-operated bike and will take the challenge with a helper at his side.
Jayden can still be found on the trails, watching and filming his friends. He enjoys makingmini movies of their endeavours, but is yet to get back on a bike for his own run.
A suitable trail bike altered for his paralysis costs about $35,000, an investment he is trying to reach so he can get back to doing what he loves.
‘‘Someonewho’s not into mountain-biking might look in and think that’s just dumb, but I love it. I’d kill to get back on the bike.’’
The trail has been shut down and reworked to avoid the jump Jayden crashed on. The jump itself is set to be destroyed, something he hopes to witness. ‘‘It’s a very dangerous jump. I want to be there when they bulldoze it, get a photo of that.’’