Sunday in late May.

The weather is warm, sun is shining..the “bushpigs” playing the third home game in a row at 1400, an they won last week!!

Trip ,to Town, before the game, get some supplies.

Coming home, a quick double flash of oncoming headlights, a wave in return – no speeding tickets for me!

Then, at the dreaded hill, someone I know motioning to slow down more, so I do, thinking “yes I know the train runs on a Sunday”,.

Halfway up the hill, a 4wd with horse float is parked, the driver, (whom I know is a nurse), administers to a figure on the road, someone else assisting.

Park at the top and go to assist them.

Meet Chris, the figure on the road, just as he is taking a swing at the nurse. I help to restrain him and prevent his thrashing around as gently as I can. He cannot understand why he is being held down, and keeps asking “please just let me go”. We cannot.

Looking around.. right boot has metal sole insert ripped out of it, some blood, left leg under right. Has the ambo been called? Yes.

Chris weakly thrashing around asking to be let go, us trying to assess the extent of the wounds and treat as we can. Left leg appears, his foot looks funny. Full length leathers end at the ankle, blood around the end of them, more blood on the road, where we are and further up the hill. Staunch as best we can

“Please just let me get up”. Sorry mate , hang in there...( quietly, a voice says –“ has anyone got an esky to put his foot in?” laying on the road a couple of feet away).

Where is the ambo? Come on guys!! Sirens coming, from both directions.

Hang in there Chris, hold still we can’t let you go yet.

Sirens get louder, vehicles come into vision.Turn the damn siren off!! More people arrive, oxygen mask, green stick.. Chris wants to be let up and tears the mask off if given a chance.

More people arrive, paramedics. He needs fluids, but tears the drip from left arm. Restrain and help cut jacket off, free leg kicks off the rudimentary dressing to the stump.

Splints applied to neck and drip placed in other arm, people acting as each others arms as we work, I hold the fluid bag for someone, someone else takes it from me later on, “keep the thing dripping, squeeze the bag”

People are working around each other, whos got the scissors? Here! We cut the left leg leathers.

And cut them some more to find the remains of the leg.

Missing from mid calf down, jagged bone, mind flashes to bits of red white stuff on road amongst the blood and first aid kit wrappings, more bits of leg bone, foot still in boot is put into esky. Chris has orange socks.

More dressings are applied as I hold his stump up. Chis has become quieter.

Into the ambo he goes, in a gaggle of drips and dressings and people.

I doubt that Chris will be riding motorbikes again.

I go watch the footy.

(I wrote this at the time and just came across it, I don’t know who won the footy that day.)