Back on Track: Logan Binggeli
Rampage:
It's no secret that last year's Rampage was on a whole different level of danger. With riders pushing the limit further and further each year, the bar has been pushed to the point of extreme consequence. To even crack the top 10 and get close to the podium, riders have to be prepared to put their lives & bodies on the line. The steep cliffs and massive drops of the Virgin, Utah terrain took out a handful of riders last year. Many straight to the hospital. One of the worst casualties however, was Logan Binggeli, and his massive backflip gone wrong off the Oakley Icon Sender step down...
Logan gives us his story:
Basically I felt like my first run was well thought out and solid. Not what I was looking for but just to make it down and put together a top to bottom run I was pleased with myself, and thought I would have done better with that run. Going into the final run I wanted to do the same thing but even more dialled and obviously flip that step down. I knew if I landed the flip and hit the 3 bangers at the bottom I would have a shot at the win.
Talk us through your 2nd run, and what was going through your head during the backflip and crash.
A shit ton of adrenaline. Ha ha. Just super focused and mentally telling myself "you got this". Honestly, everything came around better than I thought, but with that huge compression and mini runway things just didn't align. I do remember fighting to stay on track, but all too fast I was just laying there bummed that I didn't complete my line, and that I didn't know if I was going to walk. I couldn't feel my leg at all so before the medical crew told me my femur was broken I was mentally freaking out that I wasn't going be able to ride again. From there it was fighting pain and then I felt great once the drugs kicked in.
Overall, I just wanted to complete my line for myself, crew, family and friends. The recovery has been shorter than everyone expected, but it was still a life changing event for me.
Will this affect your confidence going into next year's Rampage?
Yeah, I'll be back full throttle for Rampage 2014! Going for the Win.
Hospital & Recovery:
How bad was the break?
The break is pretty serious anytime your snapping femurs, but in my case it was a clean break right through the middle. They had to put a ti rod on the middle on my bone with 4 screws total. That hardware all has a lifetime warranty too! Ha ha.
What was your recovery process like?
Recovery was 5 days a week at therapy and on the weekends I was doing as much as I could.
Was it more physical or mental for you?
It's definitely way more mental than physical for me, but I still have a solid 3 months till my body is 100% healed.
Does KHS provide health insurance?
Yeah, KHS helped me out with some medical expenses.
Back on the bike:
It has now been almost 4 months since his injury, and we are starting to see photos and even video parts surface on the web. Although not 100% healed, Logan looks strong and seems to be making an amazing recovery back on the bike. At his first race back at the Fontana winter series, he came in a solid 4th just under Aaron Gwin, Mitch Ropelato and Neko Mulally, and recently took the win out at the Mob n Mojave race out at Bootleg Canyon. Not a bad way to comeback from a horrific injury!
It's no secret that last year's Rampage was on a whole different level of danger. With riders pushing the limit further and further each year, the bar has been pushed to the point of extreme consequence. To even crack the top 10 and get close to the podium, riders have to be prepared to put their lives & bodies on the line. The steep cliffs and massive drops of the Virgin, Utah terrain took out a handful of riders last year. Many straight to the hospital. One of the worst casualties however, was Logan Binggeli, and his massive backflip gone wrong off the Oakley Icon Sender step down...
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Logan gives us his story:
Basically I felt like my first run was well thought out and solid. Not what I was looking for but just to make it down and put together a top to bottom run I was pleased with myself, and thought I would have done better with that run. Going into the final run I wanted to do the same thing but even more dialled and obviously flip that step down. I knew if I landed the flip and hit the 3 bangers at the bottom I would have a shot at the win.
 |
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Talk us through your 2nd run, and what was going through your head during the backflip and crash.
A shit ton of adrenaline. Ha ha. Just super focused and mentally telling myself "you got this". Honestly, everything came around better than I thought, but with that huge compression and mini runway things just didn't align. I do remember fighting to stay on track, but all too fast I was just laying there bummed that I didn't complete my line, and that I didn't know if I was going to walk. I couldn't feel my leg at all so before the medical crew told me my femur was broken I was mentally freaking out that I wasn't going be able to ride again. From there it was fighting pain and then I felt great once the drugs kicked in.
Overall, I just wanted to complete my line for myself, crew, family and friends. The recovery has been shorter than everyone expected, but it was still a life changing event for me.
 |
Will this affect your confidence going into next year's Rampage?
Yeah, I'll be back full throttle for Rampage 2014! Going for the Win.
Hospital & Recovery:
How bad was the break?
The break is pretty serious anytime your snapping femurs, but in my case it was a clean break right through the middle. They had to put a ti rod on the middle on my bone with 4 screws total. That hardware all has a lifetime warranty too! Ha ha.
 |
 |
What was your recovery process like?
Recovery was 5 days a week at therapy and on the weekends I was doing as much as I could.
Was it more physical or mental for you?
It's definitely way more mental than physical for me, but I still have a solid 3 months till my body is 100% healed.
 |
Does KHS provide health insurance?
Yeah, KHS helped me out with some medical expenses.
 |
Back on the bike:
It has now been almost 4 months since his injury, and we are starting to see photos and even video parts surface on the web. Although not 100% healed, Logan looks strong and seems to be making an amazing recovery back on the bike. At his first race back at the Fontana winter series, he came in a solid 4th just under Aaron Gwin, Mitch Ropelato and Neko Mulally, and recently took the win out at the Mob n Mojave race out at Bootleg Canyon. Not a bad way to comeback from a horrific injury!
 | I'm motivated more than ever now. I've probably trained harder than I ever have just to get back to the pace I was at. I feel like we're going to be turning some heads this year. Excited for 2014. - Logan Binggeli |
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"Yeah, KHS helped me out with some medical expenses."
That wasn't reassuring. I was hoping to hear, "I didn't drop a dime!" If you're putting yourself at serious risk for your employer, there is no way that you should be paying when the inevitable happens. It must be difficult to fully sponsor a rider, but health insurance is #1.
And being Canadian doesn't help when you're competing in the USA. Get Pro Athlete insurance! I'm dealing with medical bills from Rampage myself. Insurance companies always find ways to not pay for a percentage of costs. Red Bull hasn't helped me out at all either, Red Bull's stance has always been that it is the responsibility of the athlete to cover their medical expenses.
@khsfactoryracing - glad to hear you look after your people.
the riders are taking enormous risks, don't get anything if they get injured, and the prize money barely covers the expenses for the winner if he has to fly his 3 man build crew from Europe and rent a house and cars.
The industry sponsors would like us to think that their riders are living the dream so you kids will continue to drink the Kool Aid and buy their merch. The reality is, the vast majority of these guys end up broke and broken when the dust settles and their sponsors will drop them the instant they aren't a profitable commodity. I've watched this happen to more friends than I care to mention. Friends that I promise you have every bit as much talent, passion, & drive as Mr. Binggeli. And please do not misread this thread as a slight against Logan, my heart goes out to him and his dreams. I respect his goals and his talent immensely.
I don't want to dash anyone's dreams, but if you have parents that are pushing you toward a boring corporate cubicle life of demeaning obligations and suburban bliss if you just graduate college, they might be offering up some advice worth listening to. Find the balance point between your dreams and reality is all I'm saying. Just be realistic. Don't go for the cubicle, but don't go for the life of a rock star because I assure you both end in the same dismal fate.
I have ridden moto my entire life, and mountain bikes the last 18 years, and he should be stoked KHS covered his medical bills. In motocross, the factory teams DO NOT cover medical. When a rider signs his contract he is considered an independent contractor, just like the guy who comes and services the air conditioning, so the rider is responsible for supplying his own medical/accident insurance. I'm pretty sure at AMA events there is a form of insurance for participants. And Yamaha, Honda, Kawasaki, KTM and Suzuki are way more "crazy huge" than Specialized or Trek.
www.huffingtonpost.ca/bacchus-barua-/canada-health-care_b_4065817.html
Want a real world example? My wife and I recently had our first child. We opted for a natural childbirth but wanted the safety of a hospital so we had the baby at the community hospital down the street (a private, christian university run hospital). We had an amazing experience with some of the friendliest nurses and doctors on earth. We stayed 3 nights and ate surprisingly delicious food provided by the hospital. Guess how much I paid? -- $0.00!!!! I went to college, worked hard, and found a job that covers 85% of my families medical expenses. So, I pay way less than your average canadian family does for your "free" state run garbage care. The difference? In america there is still the belief amongst many that personal accountability should play a role in ever aspect of life, and that government doesn't need to be involved in every aspect of our lives--until now! Now we have Obamacare. My premiums went up, I was forced to changed carriers, and luckily my employer is increasing their contribution to try and help offset increased costs. So much for my "free" government healthcare right...
@protour you are 100% that obamacare was written by the insurance giants, but it is being enforced, regulated and mandated by the government--basically classical fascism. If we had a true one-payer social health system that would definitely be the lesser of 2 evils. Like one commenter said, healthcare is a complex issue that will not be solved in the pinkbike comments thread. My personal opinion is simply that i'd rather keep my money and decide how to handle my personal healthcare as opposed to being lumped in with every cigarette smoking, mcdonnalds eating, wiskey drinking, tv watching fatass american--being forced to pay for their retarded life choices. Get it?
glad to hear the healings going well, look forward to seeing your laps at rampage 2014
In light of LB injuring himself for nothing given they called the 2nd round off at Rampage you sometimes wonder what sort of goodwill it would of generated if Redbull had helped out. As Andreu Lecondeguy exclaimed after his run that he had risked his life for nothing. Watching the event and feeling sick with some of the runs being put down and the consequences if they went wrong you got the feeling that Redbull really gets its moneys worth from these athletes risking their life.
And LB-good work to get back and keep it up and good luck in 2014 Rampage. And KHS if you did pay all LB's medical expences-kudos even if you seemed a bit snippy at Redbull!
i.imgur.com/PSaHm9A.png