Andrew Spence - Recovering from Spa Accident

[macca]

Practise on friday - if you want a high-res, just pm me your e-mail.
Great to see you out there.



Paul M

[Alan Morgan]

I've recently come back from the pre-lunch meeting of the Formula Junior Association, and it was heart warming to see Andrew achieve his goal of walking into the room.

The biggest round of applause of the day was reserved for Sue, who received two richly-deserved awards. She achieved a miracle in getting the Elva back together in time for Goodwood, and it sounds as though she and Andrew have great plans for next year.

Go Girl!.....

[terence]

And I should have thought Sue deserves an award for the "Other" work she has obviously performed over the last year or so!

[Sue Spence]

Thanks to everyone for all your good wishes. I was pleased as punch to receive my awards, both totally unexpected. Also thrilled by Andrew's demonstration of walking with sticks, a short distance but I guess that's where we have to start. What an end to a magnificent year.......

We are looking forward to, what will be our first 'normal' Christmas since the accident, a drink or two and maybe we'll have the slot car track out to get some miles in ready for the new season! Bags I the 250F.

Hope you all have a very happy Christmas and may the New Year bring you your best racing season yet!

Sue and Andrew x

[delta]

It was great to see you Sue and for your advice for me and my back injury.You and Andrew have been so posative these past 2 years its a real insperation to us all.

[racechiel]

Hello to you all on this forum and of course to Andrew and Sue.
I’m new on this forum and i was very interested to read the hole story about the recovery of Andrew. Maybe strange for somebody from Holland, but i was on the Radillion when the accident happened and i was shocked to see it happening. After the crash first i thought this is a very bad accident ,because Andrew was not moving, but than i saw he was moving again and later he was talking to other people.
The day’s after the accident i was looking on internet, to vind information about the driver, but there was find little information about the incident.
Now i know what happend to Andrew and i’m happy to read that he is recovering step by step.
Why i send this reaction is that i have foto’s and video of the crash !!
I realy don’t know if Andrew is interested in seeing such bad memories again ? Thats why i send this reaction to the forum.
I hope to see Andrew race again!!

Michiel Lemstra

[Peter Mallett]

Hi Michiel,

Welcome to the forum. I'm sure someone will respond to your suggestion, however don't just wait for a reply here, why not take a look at the other threads, there's lots about Spa among other things.

It is good to read about Andrew's recovery and we await the latest installment.

[terence]

I too saw the accident happen but do not have it on film.I think you will find that Andrew and Sue would be interested in the video,just to confirm what they now think happened to cause it. Welcome to 10 Tenths by the way.

[LYNX]

Welcome - I'm not sure how much time Sue gets to check this site. I suggest you send her an email via this site and then she can decide if she wants to view the footage. I know they are very keen to gather as much information as possible - the last I heard from Sue was that they were investigating a possible mechanical failure. As Sue will be driving the Elva it is important to identify any weak point with the car.

[Eddy V]

I've have already contacted Michiel to send me the footage. I will have a look at it and see if it is an option to make it public, otherwise it will only go to Andrew and Sue, if they want it.

[Sue Spence]

Hi everyone,

sorry I seem to have been in hibernation for a while, must have needed to recover after all the excitement at Goodwood!

I have emailed Eddy to ask for copies of the photos, I think I would like to see them before any are made public, I know we are interested but I have to think of the inpact they may have on family and friends. If any film exists it would be interesting to see that too.

We are now pretty sure that the cause of the accident was the failure of a steering arm. Spotted by Stuart Rolt, we thought it had broken as a result of the accident but there were signs it had been cracked. All such components have now been crack tested and it will now be part of our pre season prep to do on an annual basis.

The car needs a little prep from me for the season but I hope to take it out for some testing in March with a view to getting out on track for the first race towards the end of April. Wheelchair accessibility at the tracks, distance away by car and possible weather are all new factors to consider in deciding where we go play.

Andrew continues to improve day by day, it seems such a hard slog sometimes. He is continuing to push hard with exercises to improve his stamina and strength. Biggest challenge at the moment is balance as the feedback from his feet is still poor. He can on a good day manage 20mins on the treadmill at 1kph so we don't put the stop watch on him yet.

We are both looking forward to getting out with the car again and if you are at the same meeting please come and say hello it would be nice to meet

Sue

[TorqueWench]

Hi Sue and Andrew - it was lovely to share a garage with you at Brands this weekend, and great to see the car with Sue out there going like the devil

Well done - a lovely rebuild, I'm sure you are very proud!

See you at Mallory?

[Sue Spence]

Hi Sarah, thanks for the message of support. Yes it was good to share a garage even if my side had had a bit more Castrol R floating about than yours! That's why I was going like the devil, nothing like a bit of oil on the back tyres........
Looking forward to next outing on the 17th, also at Brands, so I should know my way round. Spent the weekend fixing leaky oil pump and backfiring engine. Andrew's on the case of the wobbly wheel drums which produced alarming braking into Paddock Hill!
It was good to hear about the 11 ladies out at HSCC meeting recently - we'll be able to demand that pink flag soon!

See you again soon

Sue

[TorqueWench]

Actually we'll be at Brands on 17th, John Snr will race the 18, and John Jnr will be in Race Admin!

See you there

[John Turner]

Very pleased to finally catch up with Andrew and Sue at the AMOC Brands Hatch, yesterday. Andrew, although in a wheelchair at the time, told me that he was now able to walk with sticks but that he needed to work on improving his balance. I'm sure this will come with time and it was good to see him in good spirits and making progress even if, typically for a racer, it wasn't fast enough for him!

[Sue Spence]

So where has the time gone since we bumped into John at that very wet Brands meeting? I know we have been busy with a lot of new activities in our routine, in many ways we seem to be getting back to a more normal existence- well normal for racers.
We raced for every weekend bar one in June and I am slowly getting back into the racing groove again, well at least I have made it out of my usual position of last! Had a terrific race at Silverstone with out illustrious FJ leader Duncan and two others until my enthusiasm overtook the cars limits of adhesion at Copse resulting in what Andrew described as a very ladylike spin! We are both getting the hang of the our new routines involved in each race meeting and are fortunate to have many willing hands to help us.
Big event this month has been a trip to Le Mans Classic. We just weren't sure how Andrew would cope but felt confident enough to give it a go. We went with our friends Candace and Norman Thersby who were running a Ferrari for Ned Speiker. We hired a motorhome which we drove down. All I can say is isn't the paddock up hill and down dale!!!! We both now have muscles like Charles Atlas....... Andrew was able to stand and watch the racing from the 3rd floor balcony of the control tower. All in all a great weekend, amazing to watch night racing for the first time and even more important we survived outside our comfot zone.
So tomorrow we are back to the more normal physio and our weekend away has helped us to see the new goals we need to focus on for Andrew's continued rehab.
Next outing will be Oulton Park in August- hoping my entry is successful. To keep my hand in till then I am now off to replace the drive belt on the tumble dryer..................

Sue xx

[delta]

Great news Sue , will we not see you and Andrew at the Classic.

[Sue Spence]

Hi there, I haven't entered for Silverstone, just too much toing and froing for us with car and wheelchair.

I raced at Silverstone in June and it was a real hassle. Andrew missed most of my practice session thanks to a few jobs worths who were extremely unhelpful, very quick to tell Andrew where he couldn't go to watch but no attempt made to tell him where he could go. He did see my race but two of us had to heave the wheelchair up the bank at Copse. Facilities in the infield for wheelchair users are poor or not well advertised. I suspect it is better on the outfield.
Parking is also an issue. Last time we were given a special pass to get to the FJ paddock area. We do need the car near as Andrew would need to lie down 2 or 3 times during the day, if it is wet I can't put his bed up so he would need to use the car. Sometimes it all seems too much to try and achieve!

[delta]

I watched the FJ race at Paddock today and i got to say Sue you have got the Elva well hooked up.Well done.

[Sue Spence]

Thanks for those words of encouragement, it just seems to be coming together, think I am starting to get my confidence back and the car was handling so well - must be the Spence tweaks! Had a cracking race with our illustrious leader who got past me on lap ten. Shame there is only one more race for me this year -can you believe it, our first and comeback season over so soon, just starting to enjoy myself! How did you get on in your race?

Sue x

[John Turner]

Sue, I wonder if we might have an update on Andrew's condition. I would then 'unstick' this thread which will, of course, remain open, as we would hope to be kept up to date with his progress.

[Sue Spence]

Hi John, good to hear from you.
Latest on the Andrew front is all good news. Had a eureka moment in the gym this morning when for the first time he was able to stand independently without having to use sticks, every ounce of strength he posesses and every muscle he has. Sounds such a small thing, something in normal circumstances you wouldn't think about but monumental on his way to standing and walking with one stick. He really found the sweet spot. His physio Hayley and I where cheering.
At long last the sensation is his feet is returning and he is now starting to feel the weight on the ball of his foot and in his toes so this is helping with his balance.
The pace is as relentless as ever - gym, hydro and of course the home exercises, but when it continues to show results it's all worth it.
In the gym Andrew now walks with one quadpod but still uses two at all other times, hopefully that won't be for much longer. He's pretty good with the quadpods and can now access most areas in the house, stairs are still a challenge and only tackled when I am around.
Andrew is pretty independent in the wheelchair and is now able to give me a bit of a hand in the house and workshop race prepping the Elva, it's nice to be working as a team again.
As the third anniversary of the accident approaches (26th Sept) looking at all the above makes me stop and reflect on how much progress we have made, at the time it seemed an impossible hill to climb - long may it continue.
Sue x

[terence]

Such good news Sue and of course the progress will continue,with the guts and determination you have both shown,I cannot imagine Andrew ever quiting.

[delta]

Having read your last post Sue i have to admit to having a little tear in my eye. Just fantastic, maybee next year Andrew will join me in the jog arround Spa.

[John Robinson]

Hi Sue. Seems like a very long time since we raced each other in FVee. I am really pleased to read of Andrew's progress. Please pass on my best wishes to him.