A national level professional bodybuilder, Nepal based Sukadev Karki is also a biker. He and his KTM Duke 390 were inseparable. One day, while practicing knee-down and cornering on a relatively empty road, Sukadev met with a near fatal accident.
Sukadev and his friends were shooting a video of him performing this knee-down. The video, which has now been viewed widely on Youtube, shows Sukadev starting off, and collecting speed to enter the bend. But, on the road there are now a few women and children who are walking. These women were walking on the edge of the road, which could have been the inside line for Sukadev’s perfect knee down. As the women were walking, he decided not to pursue his knee-down attempt and rather get some distance from the walking girls. But, in all that, he failed to realize that there was a Toyota Hilux pickup coming from the opposite direction. With Sukadev already in the opposite lane, there was nothing much he could do at that speed to save himself from a head-on collision. Below is the video of his accident, which has garnered over 2 million views on Youtube alone.
The Aftermath
The KTM Duke 390 was badly damaged, so was the front left part of the Hilux pickup. Sukadev was flung into the air and landed a couple of metres away. Unfortunately, he was not wearing any protective riding gear, except for helmet and gloves. Thanks to the helmet, his head was saved from getting any injuries. But, his entire body had received multiple injuries. His friends soon called for an ambulance. His mother arrived at the accident spot before ambulance. She traveled with him in the ambulance to the hospital. Sukadev tells that this was a very painful experience (the ambulance journey), even more painful than the pain he was in. The reason – his mother was crying the entire time while she was with him in the ambulance.
18 Fractures
X-Ray scans showed that he had broken bones all over his body. Both his legs had multiple fractures. There were fractures in his hand, chest and so on. In all, 18 of his bones were fractured. Doctors started performing surgery. Soon days passed, doctors started seeing recovery. But, doctors said that he will not be able to go to the gym ever again for weight training. This meant that his life as a professional weight lifter was over.
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Coming Back To Life
He celebrated his birthday with friends and family on his bed, as he was not able to walk yet. Slowly, he started training his body for strength. More than 3 months after the accident, Sukadev managed to stand on his legs again. It was time to learn walking, all over again. It was a painful process as the metal implants were still in his knees and legs. They were like big needles, staying in your leg all the time.
Sukadev Today
Today, Sukadev is a professional body builder, biker, traveler, photographer and a drone pilot. He is learning everyday, on how to do more things in life. He also remembers the near-fatal accident, and thanks to that, is now a biker who is looked up to in the community. Not only does he wear safety gear while riding, he has also become a road safety promoter.
Just yesterday, 23 months after the accident, Sukadev announced that the last of the implants have been removed from his body. He still has one more ACL surgery scheduled. His story has been one of the most inspirational, not only for a biker, but for any of us.
There are days when we are super strong and there are days when we need support just to stand on our own feet. But this…
Posted by Sukadev Karki on Friday, 17 November 2017
https://www.instagram.com/p/BYiX6UoBu5E/
https://www.instagram.com/p/BXxacKBBNuR/
His old bike – KTM Duke 390
https://www.instagram.com/p/BZdpJ4uhZvL/
His current bike – Benelli TNT 300
Watch him explain his journey in the video below.
