After riding the Darkfest line for two days in 2021, Ike attempted a flip and crashed really badly. He broke his femur and dislocated his shoulder. He undertook the long road to recovery and now is feeling strong and back riding with his usual style.

“The crash was a tough one as I missed my first year racing World Cups, and there’s only two years in junior racing so the first year is important. We knew the risk of doing Darkfest before the season, but I was definitely not going to skip it as it's my favourite event of the year. Mentally it was weird, going from feeling as good as ever on a bike, to physically not being able to sit up or move without help for a week or two. Luckily I had motivation to get back on a bike so went straight into the rehab process. It was a frustrating one as the injuries were more complicated than we thought so took longer than expected. It was strange going from training in a gym to get stronger, to now having to train to walk again.It was a long and hard 6 months but once you get on a bike again your brain forgets about the more difficult times. Fortunately I had a good team around me getting me up to speed but the struggle of getting confidence back is a slow process and takes a lot of patience. Riding Darkfest again was definitely scary but getting through the week was a huge boost for confidence and solved many problems. Happy to be back and somewhat ready for the season.”

- Ike Klaassen