The Christmas list for Lac La Biche’s Ken Staples includes a wish to have his neck brace removed.
Staples, known locally and around Western Canada as a race car enthusiast, defensive driving instructor and the organizer of the long-running Lac La Biche Winter Festival of Speed, was in a highway crash last month, leaving the 76 year old with two fractures in his spine.
A month after the collision, as his body repairs, Staples was ready to give an account of the incident and his recovery.
He said crash took place on the evening of Sunday, Nov. 10 at the intersection of Highway 28 and Highway 63. Staples says he has no recollection of the actual impact, but a police investigation has shown that a pickup truck may have driven through a marked intersection and collided broadside with Staples’ 2017 Toyota Camry.
Staples was the only occupant in the car.
Never saw it coming
“It drove dead square into the side of my car,” he said, explaining he only has second-hand information and several photos of the damage to tell him anything about what happened.
“I personally have absolutely no memory of the event,” he told Lakeland This Week, explaining that doctors have told him the memory loss is a pretty good sign that he had suffered a concussion, and that his brain is blocking it. “I never even saw the other vehicle that hit me.”
The seasoned driver is no stranger to bumps and bangs in his professional racing career – but for those, he’s wearing a helmet, protective clothing and surrounded by re-enforced safety structures.
The impact from the collision kept Staples unconscious while rescue crews and passers-by pulled him from the wreck of his vehicle. He told the Lac La Biche POST newsroom that he woke up and found himself lying in the ditch beside his vehicle with emergency crews around him. He remembers being placed onto a board, secured in place, and taken into an ambulance.
At hospital, Staples was diagnosed with two fractures to his C1 vertebra at the base of his skull, broken ribs and severe bruising.
The spinal fractures resulted in Staples being fitted for a specialized head and neck brace that has totally immobilized him to give his injuries a chance to heal.
Although he was initially told that he would need to wear this head brace for a period ranging from 6-8 weeks, he says with a little luck, it’ll be off before Christmas.
“I’m getting x-rays done on December 20, and the doctor will determine then whether it’s healed enough that I can remove it.”
Ready to race
Since the crash, Staples has been trying to stay as active as possible, though when he does too much, he said, he finds himself running out of energy. The local race car driver explained that he has a way to go before he is recovered, adding that his ribs are still extremely sore. But he also adds that he’s ready to get back behind the wheel as soon as he gets the all-clear – and not just for driving to the grocery store or for errands. He’s hoping he will be healed up enough to get behind the wheel of his red 1995 Honda Civic ice racing car at the upcoming Lac La Biche ice races that are part of the newly re-named Lac La Biche Ice Festival from Feb. 28-March 2.
“I can’t risk hurting myself ... but if the doctor gives me the green light, I want to have the car ready at least for the Lac La Biche race,” he said.
RCMP have laid charges against the driver of the pickup truck that hit Staples car.
“The other driver, the police have told me that there were charges laid against him, but they won’t disclose what they are,” he said.
While the local racer, community volunteer and family man realizes he is fortunate to even be considering getting back behind the wheel after such a crash, he says he is more fortunate that no one was with him on the night of the collision.
“It was lucky it was only me,” he said.
-- with files from Rob McKinley
