Jason Pearson Injury update 5-18-07

Some of you may remember last year at Winterset, when Jason Pearson suffered a first turn crash that resulted in him breaking his neck. As bad as that was, there was some fortune in it. His injury was really, really close to paralyzing him from the neck down. According to witnesses who saw the crash, they say that it looked like a simple fall and everyone expected him to just get right up. Unfortunately that was not the case. He did not get up but instead was rushed to the hospital. Jason underwent surgery and was placed in a "Halo". For those of you who don't know what this is, it's a device that is literally bolted to your head. They actually screw this thing into your head in several places to keep you from accidentally moving while you are healing up. Basically it's a living hell and Jason Pearson was living in it.

I was not at the event when it had happened and only heard about the accident through his family and some friends. I had the pleasure of riding with him many times before the accident and remember always having a great time riding with him. He was definitely picking up speedand I was impressed with how fast he had really gotten. I had an injury myself during the summer of 2005 so I had not really been to anyevents, rarely making it to any practices. I had made it to one about a month before his accident and could not believe how much he had improved as a rider. He was looking much more confident and he had really picked up the pace. So when I heard about the crash I just could not believe it.
Saturday May 12, 2007 while at The Farm MX in Indianola, Iowa I saw a familiar face that I had not seen in a long time. That face was Jason Pearson. I also saw his father, Bob Pearson and younger brother, Chase Pearson. To top it off all 3 of them were riding. I told Jason "It's good to see you out there having fun again." He responded with "I love it, I'm not racing tomorrow but I am riding today and it's great"
Well this past Wednesday the 16th Jason had another mishap. I spoke with him about what is next and here is that interview:

Question: Last year you broke your neck at Winterset in the first turn, a simple crash turned out really bad. So how long were you in the Halo?
Jason: I was in the Halo for 2 months. Then I was in a soft collar for another month.

Question: How does you neck feel now? Do you have full mobility or do you feel restricted?
Jason: My neck still hurts every once and awhile. The pressure from my helmet usually makes it sore. It still is not used to having any weight put on it. I have full mobility of my neck though.

Right-click here to download pictures. To help protect your privacy, Outlook prevented automatic download of this picture from the Internet.

Question: Last weekend at The Farm MX was the first time I had seen you ride in along time. How did it feel to ride on a big track again?
Jason: Um......it felt okay, I’m not riding nearly as good as I was before I broke my neck. I get really tired after a lap or two. My confidence is really low right now.

Question: So in practice Wednesday you had another get off, this time you broke your collarbone. What happened?
Jason: I was hitting the big catapult jump in the back of the track. I was riding really well and on the last lap I wasn't paying attention to my corner speed and under jumped it and landed right on top of it and went over the bars landing right on my shoulder.

Question: How long will this set you back?
Jason: This is going to set me back six to eight more weeks.

Question: Is the possibility of racing again in your thoughts or do you plan on just doing it for fun from now on?
Jason: I’m totally not sure about all that yet. I’m done with racing for awhile I am just riding to have fun. I wanted to start up again but now I just don't think I’ll ever have the confidence to do well again.

Question: If you are done with riding and racing what do you want to do? I know you've made some motorcycle videos. Any chance you'll head down that career path?
Jason: I just graduated from high school and I got accepted at the University of Nebraska-Omaha. I am trying to get into the Peter Kewit Institute to become an engineer. I’m still kinda undecided with my majors and stuff. I love making and editing my movies, but I just don't have much time to make them. They are pretty time consuming and take alot of work, but fun to do.

Question: I know how much you love this sport and everything to do with it. Do you see yourself staying involved with motocross somehow?
Jason: I would love to stay involved in the sport but I'm just not sure about what path I can take to do that. I just wish I could be back racing but I don't see that in my future anymore.
I love this sport more than anything but I’m just worried because I have the worst luck. I’m always hurt and it's always pretty serious. I’m tired of crashing. I wish you all of luck in racing and riding you will see me around, I don't know if I will be riding or not but I’m not going to leave my friends and family out there alone!

Well Jason what ever path you choose, I wish you only the best.
Get well and remember, you never stop learning. This is just another step
and with every step comes another, so keep your chin up and always do the best you can.