Ex-wakeboarder cuts hair for cause
Former wakeboarder Brad Smeele, who was paralyzed in a training accident in 2014, is using the Keep or Cut Challenge to help raise money for the research of spinal-cord injuries.
As Brad Smeele discussed one of the primary reasons he gets out of bed in the morning, his hair would not cooperate.
Smeele’s braided, brown hair was hung over his left shoulder as he spoke. It fell into his lap, then was moved closer to its original spot — only slightly higher. No luck. Smeele smiled as the hair was repositioned over his right shoulder. That worked for a little while until it fell again.
“I don’t know exactly how long my hair got, but basically if I was leaning forward, sitting in the chair, it would be touching my toes,’’ Smeele said.
It’s a lot easier to control hair if it is attached to one’s head. In Smeele’s circumstance, that is no longer the case — not after he accepted the Keep or Cut Challenge.
The challenge begins with an Instagram story or post. A person who has been nominated or volunteers asks whether he or she should cut his hair. The voting is a good way to have fun on social media, not to mention it helps raise funds for the research of spinalcord injuries.
As of early Tuesday afternoon, about $5,300 has been donated.
Smeele, 31, was rendered a quadriplegic after a wakeboarding accident in the town of Christmas in unincorporated Orange County in 2014. He crashed headfirst into a ramp, breaking his C4 vertebra.
“Before my injury, [if ] I identified who I was, 90 percent of it would have been physical,’’ Smeele said. “So all of a sudden, I have this injury, and who am I? I had to really work through that.’’
Smeele and some longhaired friends, including wakeboarder Ben Leclair, devised the concept behind the challenge. It is tied into Smeele’s foundation, The Movement Collaborative, with details available at themovementcollaborative.com.
About 1.3 million of the 5.4 million paralyzed Americans are in a wheelchair because of a spinalcord injury, according to the most recent numbers (2013) from the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation.
“”The greatest hurdle we face is educating the public,’’ spokeswoman Rebecca Laming said. “Most people, they understand, ‘OK, you’re in a wheelchair. You can’t walk.’ But that’s just really scratching the surface.’’
Leclair, who was paralyzed in 2016, took the Keep or Cut Challenge. His curly, brown hair stayed, though.
“Getting injured myself, too, I know him much better,’’ Leclair said. “I see that he is a much stronger person than I thought he was, because now I know what he goes through every day.’’
Originally from Auckland, New Zealand, Smeele became a professional wakeboarder in 2012, and he competed several times in Orlando, including at the Wake Games.
His career ended with a trick gone terribly wrong.
“I’m no stranger to surgery and injuries, but this one was obviously a whole different level,’’ Smeele said.
Wakeboarder Guenther Oka shed about 14 inches of his hair after taking part in the challenge. Oka, who is not paralyzed, understands why wakeboarders test the boundaries of what can be a dangerous sport.
“There are consequences to what we’re doing,’’ said Oka, a part-time Orlando resident. “If you mess up, sometimes they can be very detrimental. It’s a risk we’re all willing to take in the name of progressing something that we all truly love.’’
Smeele enjoyed having long hair.
He started growing it out when he was in the hospital after his accident and a friend told him, “I’m growing my hair until you walk again.’’
Smeele joined him, so when he finally shed more than a foot of his hair, it was time.
“It feels good to have a little more freedom around my head,’’ Smeele said.