From a press release issued by Proforma:

CRAIG CONNELL: ON THE ROAD TO RECOVERY

Australian roaad racer Craig Connell has been recovering for the last four weeks from his horrific accident on Friday, August 20th at Round Five of the Parts Canada Superbike Championship at Circuit Mont Tremblant. Craig tucked the front end of his Suzuki GSX-R600 in the high-speed turn one and slid into a trackside wall protected with an air barrier, but it is suspected that his motorcycle followed him in and caused the majority of his injuries. Craig was rushed to a hospital in nearby St. Agathe, where he had emergency surgery to investigate the source of internal bleeding, which turned out to be minor. That evening, Craig was transported to Hospital du Sacre-Coeur, the number one trauma facility in Montreal. Craig was diagnosed with multiple breaks in his right femur (slightly compound), right tibia and right fibula bones, a fractured right hip socket, five broken ribs and a broken pelvis with approximately 15mm of separation.

At 2:00am Saturday morning, Craig was taken to surgery where doctors inserted titanium rods and screws in the broken femur and tibia. While not punctured, Craig’s lungs were being pressured by his broken ribs, which necessitated a chest tube. After five days in intensive care, Craig went to surgery again, where a plate and screws were installed to close his broken pelvis. Craig was moved to an intermediate care room afterwards, where his wife Helen and other vistors could spend time with him, and he started feeling better day by day. Because Montreal is in the French province of Quebec, French is the predominant language, but Craig designated his room “English Only”, and the doctors and nurses were required to practice their English whenever they entered his room.

On Friday, September 3rd, Craig was released from the hospital and transported to the home of Joe Skidd, Team Manager for the Coors Light Racing Blackfoot Team Suzuki, outside of Toronto. Craig was even able to attend the final round of the Canadian Superbike Series at Shannonville on that Sunday afternoon to sign posters and encourage the team, in a wheelchair that the boys rigged up with a special Yoshimura silencer. Issues regarding his insurance coverage in Canada have resulted in extensive medical bills that will not be covered. When the paddock and race fans found out, they went about collecting funds on Craig and Helen’s behalf. Due to the efforts and generosity of the people at Shannonville that day, almost $6,000 was raised!

Over the past two weeks, Craig has been recuperating, getting physical therapy on his leg and working on his strength. He is still limited to how much weight he can put on his legs, but he has started to use a walker to get around as much as possible. On Tuesday, September 21st, Craig and Helen will say goodbye to their friends in Canada and fly to San Francisco, where Craig has an appointment with Dr. Arthur Ting, who will evaluate Craig’s progress and make recommendations for the near future. Craig and Helen plan to stay in the United States until the end of October, when they will return home to Australia.

“It’s such a shame this happened,” said Craig. “The team is just fantastic, and I was starting to get on with the bikes really well. Since the accident, so many people have rung up and e-mailed and visited, and the fund-raiser at Shannonville really showed the kind of great people there are up here. Helen and I didn’t really know what to expect, coming to Canada to race this year, but we’ve had a good time. The series up here is good. You’ve got a lot of good riders and teams, and the competition’s tough. I feel like I’ve got unfinished business here.

“We made so many good friends over the course of the season, but there are a few people that were just unbelievable through all the ups and downs. My teammate Clint McBain and his girlfriend Jackie Matechuck, who we stayed with when we first got here. Our team manager Pat Chambers and his wife Vicky really made us feel at home from the beginning. Nathan and Catherine Naslund with Suzuki went out of their way to help us get situated with things. And Joe Skidd, who has gone way above and beyond, letting us stay in his home for the last few weeks, cooking and taking care of us, it’s just awesome.”

Notes and donations to Craig’s recovery efforts can be sent to [email protected].