 | Well... here it is. I know you guys wanted to see the clip. No room for error on this gap. Especially when it’s frozen. Thank you Troy lee Designs for keeping me alive...—Tom Van Steenbergen |
Tom Van Steenbergen has posted the horrific footage of the crash that left him with a broken femur, a broken rib and a punctured lung on Monday. Van Steenbergen was guinea pigging a road gap on Monday but the run up and landing were frozen solid. We don't actually see Van Steenbergen come off his bike in the clip but he comes up just short and is being bucked hard as the clip ends. He later said on Instagram that he thinks the injury happened after he was bucked but he isn't 100 percent sure.
Van Steenbergen said in
a post on Friday that he lost a lot of blood but is now home and is putting weight on his leg and lifting and bending it without painkillers. Once again, we're happy to hear that Tom is out of the hospital and back at home and we can't wait to see him sending it again.
We fired Tom over some quick questions to get some more information about the crash and his recovery:
Was this part of a video project or something you were just riding for training?
Tom: This build started out of the love I have for hitting big stuff. I did plan on shooting it with Calvin Huth for a video project we've been wanting to do.
Did the conditions make the jump ride differently from what you expected?
Tom: I’m pretty damn calculated when it comes to hitting big stuff like this. The frozen ground made a big difference in speed.
I don’t think many people know that I hit it twice. This first time was sooo close, I came up short maybe a foot and got really lucky on my crash. Then got a new bike built, went back up the next day to get it done. It’s probably a combo of being super sore and very difficult conditions.
Who was there and how did they help you?
Tom: My brother Bas and his girlfriend Vaea were there on the day of the crash. Bas helped me judge speed and they made sure there were no vehicles coming. They did an awesome job calling the ambulance and getting me help so quickly.
How long do you expect to be out for?
Tom: I have a video call with someone tomorrow to see what recovery time I’ll be looking at but I’ve been through some bad injuries and I always come back stronger. Whether it’s 3 months or 5 months, I’m going to do whatever it takes to come back stronger but also be smart about the longevity of my career. I want to be able to do this for a long time.
What can we expect in the future from Tom Van Steenbergen?
Tom: I have some really big things in the works. I’m not sure if I’ll be able to pull it off, but I’ve been trying to do a World Record jump for years now. I won’t get into details but we’re getting closer to making it a reality so I really hope I can make that happen. That’s my biggest goal for 2021. Other than this, I’m hoping to make Wild West 2 and a few more video projects.
Good going bas
- His ass crack must hurt like hell. He buried the rear tire in there deeper than I thought humanly possible.
- Pretty sure his bike had terminal rear suspension bottom out. You see it compress beyond all possible limits and don't see any rebound, probably broke the shock mount off; I'm thinking somebody is going to need a new bike.
I overshot a jump at the wrong angle and landed in the rocks, broke the front and rear triangles on my bike and my right radius into 5 pieces. but damn at least I walked away, brutal crash, speedy recovery.
Hope you heal up fast!
Heal up. Enjoy the meds. Back on your road bike in a month.