Courageous Chris
- bistcawebsite
- Sep 6, 2016
- 2 min read
The heroes of brain injury are assembling for the BIST 5K Run, Walk and Roll on October 1st!
As we prepare for Race Day, BIST has selected a special superhero squad of amazing heroes of brain injury we will feature on a weekly basis until the big day.
Meet Courageous Chris, son of Awesome Anne, and #2 in our Heroes of Brain Injury Series.
Be sure to collect all six heroes!
Can you talk about how you acquired your brain injury?
Chris acquired his brain injury during a bike race – his first race ever – in 2010. He had just landed his dream job as head chef at a luxury hotel in Toronto, and had a five-year-old son, Jesse, at home. He and his mom, Anne, describe what happened:
Anne: His bike broke in two pieces. Christopher was lying on the ground. They didn’t have paramedics [at the race]. .. He was posturing. His feet were connected to the petals. He was still on the ground when his friends cycled past him.
Chris: My feet were hooked on to the half piece. Could you just imagine someone lying there, the first piece broken off? I have the frame still. I put all the pieces of that on to my rain bike. It’s only 15.5 lbs. and my broken frame is in my room behind my TV so I can’t look at it every day. It used to be on my balcony and I’d go out and look at it every day.
How long have you been involved with BIST?
I started going to the movies [this spring] because it’s away from home and that gave me the opportunity to go on a bus and get rid of my anxiety.
Why do you participate in the BIST 5K?
I run everyday, and running with people will help [my] anxiety. I run everyday by myself no problem. But with a group, I have problems with groups.
[I’m running] to challenge myself. This is how I was going through cooking school to become a chef. It’s all about challenging yourself to see how far you can take it.
What does being a hero of brain injury mean to you?
I can accomplish. I can go forward. Its all about going forward. It’s not slowing me down.
What are you looking forward to on Race Day?
I’m going to run as fast as I can and then [meet up with my mom] and walk the rest of it with [her].
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