It Takes One Second to Die: The Story of My Bike Accident

It Takes One Second to Die: The Story of my Bike Accident

By: Deji Yesufu

It has been my desire to take Christian missions a notch higher in Ibadan, and transportation is obviously a vital aspect of this pursuit. So, after making enquiries on the type of bike to buy, I got myself a Honda CBR – 250CC. I was told it is a good beginner’s bike: it will serve the purpose of covering long distances, lower fuel consumption, and riding at a faster rate. The challenge, however, is that I have never ridden a motorbike before and thus must learn the art. My instructor ensured I got all my riding gears – helmet, boots, and body armour. Saturday, 13th April, was to be my first day riding a motorbike. That day, I covered paddling the bike: balancing it under my weight without power. Then I rode the bike around on gear one – concluding the day with balancing myself on the bike, after powering the machine and gaining some speed.

The following day, a Sunday, the assignment was to build on my previous day speed, still riding on gear one but working on making turns with the bike, both to the left and to the right. I had driven an hour into the day when the accident happened. Before the accident, my younger brother, who had introduced me to power bikes, had told me that I needed to have all my gears on. It was a bit cumbersome transporting all the gears from one end of Ibadan where I lived to the Challenge area where the training was to hold. To solve this problem, my instructor told me to come with only my gloves and helmet. I brought along a boot, too.

After an hour of riding, my instructor told me that bikes become increasingly stable as they gain speed. My assignment now was to build up some speed but still operate at gear one. Prior to telling me this, I noticed I had challenges making turns – particularly to my left. I sort to solve these problems of speed and left turning in another round of riding. Off I went. I rode for a little while and then gained some speed. Then, I tried to make the left turn on that speed level. Unfortunately for me, I was nearing an obstacle that I became fixated at avoiding. These two conflicting thoughts were on my mind when, while turning to the left, I pulled the front brake to the full. The next moment, I saw myself screeching to the floor. The first thing that hit the ground was my head – but thankfully, since I wore helmet, all I heard was the sound of the impact to the concrete floor. Then I think the bike fell on my left leg. As I struggled to lie flat, awaiting my instructor’s rescue, I discovered a terrible pain shooting out from my lower left leg.

My instructor and two other gentlemen picked me up, but I couldn’t walk. The pain in my leg was fantastic. I requested to sit down while they sorted out first aid on my leg – pulling it but only making the pain worse. Eventually, I found a Bolt cab that took me to UCH’s accident and emergency.

At UCH

At UCH and with the help of a colleague, I was placed on a stretcher and taken for X-rays. As many of the doctors had guessed, I had a fracture. My fibula bone in my left leg was fractured and slightly displaced. I would eventually get a cast on the leg and was discharged from the hospital Tuesday afternoon. But that is not all my experience at UCH.

About the time I came into the emergency department of the hospital, a boy was rolled in. He could not have been more than 22 years old. He was unconscious. The answers I could glean from the discussions the family was having with the doctors was that the boy was riding okada and had an accident in front of IITA. He had no helmet on. As they rolled him into an inner room for more intensive care, I saw blood streaming from his head down. About the same point, I had hit my own head on the ground. The doctors were telling the family that he would be fine, except that it would require a great deal of money to care for him.

As I thought on this young man’s plight, I could not help but think that if I had no helmet on, that first impact my head had to the ground could have been my end. It takes only a second for a man to die. My instructor said that our heads are like water melons. Riding a bike without a helmet on is high risk for sure.

What Will Happen to My Quest to Ride a Bike?

My instructor told me that bike riding is extremely risk free, if you follow the guidelines. As a first-time rider, the possibility of falling is 100%. It means that I should have followed my brother’s instruction to be fully geared up. The twist to my leg, which resulted in fracture, was because I was wearing oversized boots. A more fitted boot would have prevented the turning of the leg and subsequent fracture. Thankfully, I had my helmet on. If not, I would have been sending this article to you from the land of the dead.

My quest to ride a bike remains. As soon as I get better, I return to my lessons. Except that this time, I would have my gears all on, and I would get better fitted shoes. Every endeavour in life comes with risks and setbacks, and only quitters lose the fight. Riding a lower powered bike on the streets of Ibadan will solve for me the challenges of cost of fuel, ease of accessing rural communities, and promptness. It will be “gospel on okada”, a reality show I am already thinking of in the same guise with Itchy Boots, except that I will not be traveling from Holland to Nigeria; but taking the good-news to inner communities of our society. My accident is a small setback at achieving this great ideal. Join me in thanking God for a great deliverance while praying God’s mercies on my trips as I seek to reach the nations on two wheels.

Deji Yesufu is the Pastor of Providence Reformed Baptist Church Ibadan, situated at the University of Ibadan. He is also the author of HUMANITY.