Williams Lake motocross racer Marcus Deausy is in good spirits and looking ahead, despite having to drop out of the Triple Crown Series earlier this summer due to being seriously injured in a crash.
“My injuries were pretty gnarly,” he said. “I’m healing now, I’m back on the bike.”
Deausy was hospitalized for a week after crashing during a practice before a fourth round in Walton, Ontario on July 3.
He collapsed both his lungs, broke four ribs, broke his pelvis, broke his sternum, separated his shoulder and acquired a concussion during a practice at a third-party track. Yet, he plans to compete in a local Kamloops Future West Moto race next weekend (Aug. 27 and 28) and at the Williams Lake Future West Moto race on Sept. 10 and 11.
Prior to the injury, the 18-year-old racer completed three rounds in the 250 Pro class of the Triple Crown Series. After the first round in Kamloops, he celebrated his solid 9th place overall finishing position. In Drumheller, Alta., the track was hard-packed and felt unfamiliar but Deausy did relatively well in the three races which earned him a 15th place finishing position for that round.
The final round Deausy competed in was in Pilot Mound, Manitoba.
He liked the track for its large jumps and “flowy” design, but it was a challenging day with heat surpassing 40C. He finished 15th in the first race but crashed during the second, which ripped open the skin in his hand. This prevented him from finishing the second race and bumped him down to an 18th place finishing position.
Deausy said finishing the round left him hungry to win as he healed from his hand injury during the drive to Ontario. He and some friends arrived in Walton a few days early and practiced at Gopher Dunes track in Courtland, Ontario when he crashed on a watered-down section of track during a practice, sliding up the face of a jump and going over the bars, then the bike fell on him.
Deausy is back home now with his supportive parents and is working his day job at a local mill. Doctors originally estimated he would need three-to-four months to recover before racing again, but he began practicing on his bike again two weekends ago (Aug. 13).
“I’m feeling really good,” he said. “I had experiences collapsing my lungs before so I kind of knew what was going to happen. I was in a really good hospital over there, but I also think that is why I healed so fast, was just being positive.”
Motocross is a dangerous sport, so most of the people who win big have experienced some form of serious injury and Deausy’s mindset is informed by their example, he said.
Deausy is grateful he can race locally without having lost many of his skills. After the upcoming Kamloops race, Deausy will also compete in a Williams Lake Future West Moto race during the Sept. 10 and 11 weekend. He hopes to be a serious competitor in October at the indoor Future West Moto Canadian Arenacross Championship in Chilliwack. Deausy will also return to the Triple Cross Series next year, armed with an increased awareness of the importance of injury prevention as a racer who intends to stay competitive for the long haul.
https://www.instagram.com/p/ChiPi38s2mf/
Do you have a comment about this story? email:
editor@wltribune.com
Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.