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Speedway rider 'thankful' for after crash

Galya Dimitrova
BBC News
Ross Heaton
BBC Sport
Speedway rider 'thankful' for after crash

A speedway rider has praised ers after they started a crowdfunding campaign to replace his broken bike following a heavy crash.

Oxford Cheetahs rider Cameron Heeps has been recovering since hitting an air fence at high speed during a fixture on 28 May at the Oxford Stadium.

He did not break any bones in the crash but the Oxford Speedway ers Club is raising money to help replace his severely damaged equipment.

"I can't say how thankful I am," Heeps said of the .

Steve Edmunds Rider Cameron Heeps walking away after the crash. His team are surrounding him. He is holding a bottle of water.Steve Edmunds
Heeps said he was "managing the pain" and was "confident" he would overcome the issues

Speedway bikes have one gear, no brakes, a clutch, a 500cc engines running on methanol fuel and can accelerate up to 60mph, faster than a Formula 1 car.

Heeps said the incident "felt like forever".

"I knew I was going in, it was just [about] when it was going to stop.

"By the time it stopped, I felt I was going very fast and it knocked the wind out of me."

He went to hospital straight after the meeting. His his X-rays had all come back "all clear" but he had been "in quite a bit of discomfort".

"The doctor said I'm going to be very sore and said I have a lot of internal bruising," adding that he was "managing the pain".

"The first two days I didn't really move ... it was horrible, I felt useless but I'm staring to get back on my feet."

Heeps said initially his back, ribs and stomach had hurt the most.

"That's all coming down now and it's more my ankle."

Oxford Speedway The damaged speedway bike propped up. It is covered in mud and dust.Oxford Speedway
Oxford Speedway ers Club have raised more than £3,000 so far to help replace his damaged bike

Heeps said he hoped to be back "as soon as I can", potentially for the meeting at home to the Edinburgh Monarchs on 18 June.

He said he was "confident" he would get over the issues.

"It might take one or two races to calm down a bit and not be so tense on the bike.

"But if you are riding well previous to your crash, then it will all click back in and you will be straight back into the swing of things."

Oxford Speedway ers Club have raised more than £3,000 so far to help replace his equipment.

"I can't say how thankful I am," Heeps said.

The club said it was "relieved" that he had not suffered any breaks even though "Cam says he feels like he's been hit by a train".

"We wish Cam a speedy recovery and look forward to seeing him back on track soon!"

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