‘Without our helmets we’d be dead’

The two men were among three riders who came off their bikes when one of them hit a pothole on Ford Rd in Shepparton about 9.15am on May 15.

Mr Frizzell and Mr Hofmeyer were both taken to The Alfred trauma unit in Melbourne, while a third cyclist was taken to Goulburn Valley Health.

Mr Frizzell has a broken neck and one broken vertebra, as well as a broken hand, and spent about 17 days in hospital in Melbourne.

Mr Hofmeyer has a cracked pelvis, eight fractured ribs, a broken collarbone and a slight bleed on the brain, and spent 10 days in Melbourne.

While home now, the recovery for both men will be a long one.

Mr Frizzell has to wear a custom-made BOB brace around his torso, with parts of it also used to keep his neck and head in place.

The best-case scenario is he could be wearing the brace for two and a half months. The worst-case is he will need surgery and his recovery could take until the end of the year.

Either way, the journey will not be an easy one.

Mr Hofmeyer’s recovery is still expected to take about four months.

“It’s like a marathon — I tell people I’ve run 15km and I’ve still got to get to 42,” he said.

Mr Frizzell remembers the crash well — saying the body of the rider who had gone down in front of him was “like a speed hump”.

“It was like diving into a pool” is how he described going over the handlebars and hitting the asphalt.

“No-one died, but we’ve been pretty badly injured,” he said.

“I’ve had crashes before, and usually you heal quickly. But there is no end in place (after this one).”

While older — Mr Hofmeyer is 76 years old and Mr Frizzell is 69 — both men were fairly fit and active before the crash, which they say will aid their recovery process.

“I’m lucky because I’m super fit. I’ve been riding for many years,” Mr Hofmeyer said.

“When they did the pelvis operation they said they wouldn’t normally do surgery on someone my age.”

While badly injured, Mr Hofmeyer is also well aware his injuries could have been worse had he not been wearing a helmet.

“Without our helmets we’d be dead,” he said.

Despite having been a keen cyclist for the past 15 years, Mr Hofmeyer said his days on two wheels were over.

“I will never ride a bike again because I wouldn’t want to put my wife and family through it again,” he said.

Mr Frizzell thinks he may not be able to ride a bike again because of his injuries, but said “never say never”.

Before the crash he had done triathlons and was a runner who had completed 239 parkruns.

His first goal in his recovery is to be able to volunteer at parkrun, before eventually getting back to take part as a participant himself.

Mr Hofmeyer said the route they were riding in a cycling bunch that day was one regularly used by cycling groups in Shepparton.

While this particular pothole has since been fixed, he thinks it is important that Greater Shepparton City Council keeps on top of filling in potholes in the area — particularly ones on well-used cycling routes.

“I hope to make the council aware to fix the potholes on the roads,” Mr Hofmeyer said.

“I’m hoping the authorities will make sure it never happens again.

“The stress on your family is enormous. And it’s no fun being in the trauma centre.

“I wish they’d make sure the road was safe, and we wouldn’t be where we are now.”

Mr Frizzell’s wife, Glenys Frizzell, also a cyclist, said it would help if council marked around potholes in paint as a warning.

A council spokesperson said council officers continually aimed to inspect, identify and maintain any issues that arose within the road network.

However, they said council officers “will consider undertaking more regular inspections on known cyclist routes to help alleviate any potential issues”.

The spokesperson said if cyclists became aware of any potential hazards in the roadway, they were encouraged to call council on 5832 9700.

“The area will then be inspected and any maintenance works can be actioned accordingly,” the spokesperson said.