Qld: Tough biker jokes about mozzies, not injuries

AAP General News (Australia)
12-21-2007
Qld: Tough biker jokes about mozzies, not injuries

By Rosemary Desmond

BRISBANE, Dec 21 AAP - A trail bike rider crippled when he hit a tree spent two days
helpless and alone in bushland near Brisbane, dragging himself a kilometre on his elbows.

But when medical staff later asked 38-year-old David Roberts about his agonising ordeal,
he joked about mosquitoes rather than complain about his injuries, his doctor said today.

The father-of-two, a metalworker from the Ipswich suburb of Chuwar, broke his pelvis
when hit a tree while riding in a state forest north of Gatton on Monday.

The container in his backpack also broke, leaving him without water.

Unable to walk and without mobile phone reception, he was forced to "commando crawl"

on his elbows along a bush track in search of water and help.

It was not until another trail bike rider found him two days later that he could be
airlifted to Brisbane's Prince Alexandra Hospital for treatment.

Medical staff were astounded at his powers of endurance.

"He really amazed us," his doctor Dr Roland Assmann told reporters today.

"He's a very, very tough guy - a typical Australian.

"I asked him what was his main problem in the 48 hours he has been on his own and he
said it was the mozzies.

"At the same time, he thought he had been on his own for three days.

"But we counted the days and his comment was `you see what the mozzies did to me'.

"It's unbelievable."

Mr Roberts, who is expected to make a full recovery in several weeks' time, said during
his two days lying in the bush he was in a "little bit of pain", but never gave up hope
of being found and never called out for help.

"There was no-one there so you are just wasting your energy," he said.

"So you just wait until someone comes past because there is always going to be someone
eventually - it's just how long it's going to take."

Mr Roberts said he often went trail bike riding and camped in the bush, so his wife
was not concerned that he had been missing for two days.

And despite suffering injuries on previous rides, he was not deterred from going bush again.

"I'll give it another shot," he said.

AAP rad/lc/sp

KEYWORD: BIKE (PIX TO COME.)

2007 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.