Sometimes life throws you a curveball.
For Michael Clark, his curveball struck Dec. 4, 2009.
Clark was riding home to his wife and kids on his motorcycle when a station wagon pulled out in front of him. As the driver of the station wagon started to make a left turn, he saw Clark coming and froze.
Clark hit the side of the station wagon going 45 mph. The van sped off, leaving Clark lying on the side of the road.
“I never lost consciousness. The accident made me think about every moment. After hitting that station wagon that pulled out in front of me, I sat there for a minute on the ground and I took the time to notice how blue the sky was, how white the clouds were and how beautiful everything was—and then everything turned black,” he said.
Clark was rushed to Miami Valley Hospital, where the surgeons worked for 30 hours trying to save his leg. But, the final verdict was that his left leg would have to be amputated.
After the amputation, Clark said he didn’t miss his leg as much as he missed seeing his family.
But life for Clark, changed immensely. Before the accident, he coached basketball and baseball. The first year following his accident, he coached basketball in a wheelchair, and could only be an assistant baseball coach.
He wondered how his wife would perceive him because he was disabled. He wondered how he would still be a coach for his four kids.
“We were still best friends. Nothing in our relationship changed. All of my worries were put to rest. It was kind of like ‘what is she going to think of me now that I have one leg and disabled?’ But nothing has changed. My kids still love me and climb into my lap every time they get a chance,” he said.
The Future
After the accident, Clark took his second chance at life and enrolled at Sinclair. He plans to get his degree in Language Arts, and hopes to teach middle or high school age students Chinese/Mandarin.
Clark now has three prosthetic legs that are designed to give him the ability to walk, run and ride his bicycle.
He said he overcame his obstacle because he set goals. Goals that were easy to attain, that motivated him and set him on his path to success.
The goals that he set helped him defy his doctors by being able to walk two months after his accident.
“No one remembers their first steps. But it was very special to me to be able to stand up and give my wife a hug on Valentine’s Day. It was the type of experience that brings tears to your eyes. If you have the chance to take your first steps again, you’ll never forget it,” Clark said.
The day the accident happened, the police found the driver that hit Clark a couple blocks from the scene—he only stopped because he realized he had a flat tire.
Clark said he found out the police had to make the man stop changing his tire. The driver was 84 years old at the time. But Clark said he doesn’t harbor any anger toward the man. He is angry with those people in the man’s life that allowed him to drive.
The driver was fined, at the scene, for making an improper left turn. The fine cost $80.
“I haven’t forgiven him yet, because of his age, I don’t really think that it was his fault even though he was at fault,” Clark said. “I am filing a lawsuit to try and take his license away because I just don’t want him to hit anyone else, but I do realize that to truly heal I have to forgive him and I think with time it will happen.”
The I’m READY ride
To put his goals and determination to the test, Clark is embarking on a nine-day READY ride. READY stands for Riding to Empower Amputee Determined Youth.
Clark will be riding 750 miles on his bike to raise awareness for amputees, from May 21 to June 1. The ride will start in Clarksville, OH and end in Kansas City, MO.
The money that is donated or raised during the READY ride will go toward Paddy Rossbach Amputee Youth Camp. In one of the support groups, Clark said he met a young girl that is a cancer survivor. She beat cancer but she lost her right leg above the knee.
“She has been down for quite a few years because of the cancer and because of the chemo. The money raised will give her the opportunity to be at a youth camp and be with others that have the same disability she has,” Clark said.
As he prepares for the ride, Mike said he is a little nervous, but is determined to take any opportunity to help himself or others out.
“I now have the opportunity to go to school, I have the opportunity to ride 750 miles. I have the opportunity to raise money for the youth camp, and that is something I won’t turn down. Sometimes life throws you a curveball, when it does swing, you might hit it out of the park or it might be a homerun.”