Thanks you all so much for your support over the last few weeks and for ‘tuning’ into the Blog.  We are all hugely buoyed up by the lovely messages you have posted and knowing that you are all out there willing Russ on keeps everyone strong and focussed.  Tonight we have had nearly 17000 views!….Maybe we will be voted into next years BAFTA awards!

It is over four weeks ago since this horrible accident happened and not a waking minute of the day goes by without friends and family thinking about poor Russ and willing him to keep finding that famous inner strength of his to keep fighting and making progress.

You are all now up to speed with where he is, what has happened and how he is progressing but you may not be aware about HOW it happened.

Russ and Dani’s very good mate Roy has very kindly written an account:

I’ve been asked to write a few words about the day of Russ’s accident as many of you don’t know the details of what happened.  That includes Russ himself as he doesn’t appear to have any memory of the accident.  Apparently this is perfectly normal - the body uses loss of memory as a shock absorber for traumatic incidents.

For the last five years Russ has been cycling in late spring together with a group of friends, known to themselves as Team WDF.   After a dismal rainy trip to Brittany last year, it was decided that this time we would go to the sunny Riviera, and a route was devised by Russ and Alastair to combine the beautiful Gorges du Verdon with plenty of climbing opportunities. Russ did quite a good job of keeping the route secret so that the full scale of the challenge would come as a nice surprise.

This year there were thirteen cyclists taking part.  After a late arrival the night before, on Friday 14th June Team WDF gathered for breakfast on a sunny terrace near Grasse before setting off on the first and hardest day of the trip - 120 km with 2,200m of climbing.    Russ was in his element as he alternated between encouraging the less proficient members of the group such as me up the steep hills, then speeding off to test his mettle against the more competent riders.   After a coffee stop in a small ski station called Andon, we followed the Route Napoleon and then broke for lunch at Comps-sur-Artuby, a small town full of cyclists enjoying the scenery.

Setting off again in the heat of the early afternoon, the group entered the spectacular Gorges du Verdon, eventually climbing up a long and steep hill to the Col d’Illoire at nearly 1000m.  Russ was in the front group, which gathered together at the top to rehydrate and admire the view down over the Lac de Sainte-Croix far below.  It was 5pm in the afternoon.

Russ always regards a good descent as a reward for the climb that preceded it, and in perfect conditions he launched off downhill for the last leg of the trip.  The road was an average width D-road, pretty steep, and with several hairpin bends on the first section but the sort of road that Russ has descended many times before.  After sweeping through the first few bends, he was out on his own going fast, so nobody in our group saw the moment of his crash.  It seems that his luck deserted him, and as he approached a right-hand bend at speed, a convoy of Swiss motorcyclists came uphill around the corner in the other direction.

There has been a lot of debate about what exactly happened and we will probably never know.  The collision seems to have been a slight one as Russ’s bike was not badly damaged and ended up in the hedge at the roadside.  After being thrown off the bike Russ ended up face down on the road after a heavy impact. It appears he did not roll, but landed heavily in the flatter lee of the bend.  Dickon was the first to arrive on the scene and together with Quentin did an amazing job tending to Russ. He was clearly very badly hurt and in extreme pain, though he was quite conscious and lucid, and understood that the accident was severe.

The road was quickly closed and cars and coaches backed up as we all awaited the arrival of the emergency services.  But this was a remote place, and it took a long 60 minutes and several calls for the emergency services to finally arrive. Very carefully, Russ was turned, strapped to a mobile stretcher, and taken to the ambulance to be examined. Russ was still conscious at this point and was able to give his date of birth immediately when asked. The two emergency personnel were not specialists, and shortly afterwards a red helicopter arrived overhead, circled awhile trying to find somewhere suitable to land, and then lowered a medic down a rope with some of his equipment. He spent some time examining Russ inside the ambulance and thereafter things seemed to move a lot faster. Russ was taken lower down the hill to a place where the helicopter could land, then he was gently transferred inside and the helicopter lifted off above the watching cyclists to Toulon where he is now.

After joining the shocked motorcyclists in helping the police with statements at 7.30pm I rejoined the rest of our sombre group at the hotel where we tried to take in what had happened

A huge thanks to Roy, Dickin, Quintin and the other chaps. This would have been a horrendous experience for you all too. Thanks for staying with Russ and doing all that you did xxx

Message from Danibelle:

Russ very sleepy this morning and back on the ventilator. Also, the “balloon” that prevents him speaking has been inflated again so no chance of him being able to talk; he just has to listen to us banging on incessantly, poor guy. Mum and I had an appointment with one of the doctor’s this afternoon in order to get a current update. It was a different doctor to the ones we’ve seen in previous weeks and this particular doctor is of the view that it will be another 2 weeks until he is finally weaned off the ventilator. He also thinks it will be another 2 weeks after that before they will deem it safe to remove the tracheotomy. The messaging we’ve been getting from the specialist hospitals we are looking to repatriate Russ to in the UK is that they will only admit him once he is off the ventilator and the tracheotomy has been removed.

Soooooo, looks like we’ll be a few more weeks in Toulon. I’ve now spent so much timing living at the Holiday Inn here that I think I am fast becoming the “Alan Partridge of Toulon”. I am due to return to London next week for 5 days to sort some stuff out for the girls; just as well as I think I am nearly at the point where I might be tempted to start dissembling vacuum cleaners in my room….

Anyway, time here has been put to good use (aside from, of course,our twice daily visits to Russ). We have now established who is the best UK consultant and hospital to transfer Russ to when the time is right so that is a bit of a relief. He’ll be going to the London Bridge Hospital (huge thanks to the winning combo of Tom Carrell, Dan White and my dad for sorting this out).

This morning in Toulon!

Russ, Amber and Russ’s older bro, Alwyn…AKA Chief bollock wallah!!! xxxx

Dear all
Not a lot to say other than it has been a very quiet day. Russ was very tired this morning as yesterday had been a very strenuous day for him and he had achieved a great deal. He was off the ventilator when we arrived but was very sleepy so was put back on it.
He continues to be quite naughty with regard to trying to pull out tubes etc. In fact he managed to pull out the 'feeding tube' from his nose and had a telling off from the nurses!!
So not much more to tell but will update tomorrow.
Dear love to you all
Jenni xxxx

Today’s update from Danibelle:

Got to the hospital today and Russ was off the ventilator. Pretty bright and breezy for the morning visiting session albeit still frustrated at not being able to make himself understood.

Between visiting times, the medical staff had deflated the balloon in the tracheotomy device which restricts speech. While the medics said it takes a day or so to start making audible noises again, Russ typically was exceeding expectations and was able to mutter a few words when Alwyn arrived at 4pm. Also, typical of Russ, rather than restrict himself to a couple of monosyllabic words, he went the whole hog and, in response to Alwyn telling him some brief details of something, asked him to “elaborate”. Four blimming syllables!

Anyway, clearly exhausted after his efforts, he indicated to Alwyn that he was hot and wanted to rest. So, Alwyn duly obliged by removing his sheets (under which Russ is fully naked) and fanning him to cool him down. When I arrived, I did catch Alwyn telling Russ that when he can speak, he mustn’t tell anyone he was “fanning his bollocks for two hours”. He has since been nick-named “Chief Bollock Wallah”.

More tomorrow!

Alwyn, myself and the girls arrived at the hospital this morning to find Russ being tended to by two rather stunning physiotherapists (typical Russ!) so we had to leave for a while for them to finish. Alwyn put in a bid for them “to give him whatever Russ was having” which humoured Russ (and the physios!).

Anyway, we spent all morning with Russ and he was clearly pleased to have us around his bedside. Its still nigh impossible to understand what he is mouthing so we just try to persuade him not to even try saying anything (other than simple “pointing” antics and “yes” and “no”) as he gets frustrated and we feel awful for not being able to understand him. As we keep reassuring him, the tracheotomy will be removed sometime in the next week or so and he will then be able to speak to his heart’s content (and, no doubt verbalise what morons we’ve all been in not even having been able to understand his most simplistic of “mouthings”).

As he seems to have perfected the art of drinking water despite the tracheotomy, we asked the medical staff if he could have some ice-cream and they agreed. One “Solero” later, he was a very happy chappy. It sure must make a change from the protein goo that has been pumped into him via a nasal tube for the last 4 weeks.

For the last few days, the doctors have been taking Russ off the ventilator for a short period twice per day. The first day it was for 2 periods of 30 mins, yesterday for 2 periods of an hour and today for 2 periods of 2 hours (preceded each time with a blood transfusion to maximise the oxygen in his blood). The idea of this is to keep increasing the periods until such time as they are satisfied he can come off the ventilator altogether. At that point, the tracheotomy can be removed and he will be able to talk, eat and drink as normal which will be a huge milestone.

Whilst there had been some early concerns that Russ’s cardiac arrest when in surgery on arrival at hospital (it took them about 20 mins or so to get the heart beating again) might have resulted in lack of oxygen to the brain and some form of brain damage, these concerns have melted away. Whilst he can’t speak at the moment, he is clearly very alert (when awake) and seems to know what we are talking about whatever the subject we choose. He has also confirmed that he understands what the french medics are talking about when they are discussing treatments etc in his room (his french was always pretty good). So, we’re all confident that he is still “Russ”, down to his humour which has also been very evident during the last few days.

He understands all the injuries he has incurred as his little bro, Stuart, and I have been through them all with him. Most importantly, he knows he’s incurred a spinal chord injury and this is why he can’t feel his legs. I’ve explained (small mercies) that it is at T11 which is low down, below the naval, and that this, importantly, means he has use of all his core muscles which will count for a lot going forward, not just in terms of day to day living but, also, in terms of all the new sports Russ will undoubtedly turn his hand to in the future.

Of course, the spinal injury is something we will be getting second opinions on when Russ is fit to be repatriated to the UK but we all know that there is no surety of any “easy fix”.What absolutely amazed me about Russ’s response to me telling him of the details of the spinal injury was just how admirably sanguine he was about it. Such stunning bravery.

Anyway, as I told him, lucky that he had already completed pretty much every sporting challenge there exists on earth before he had the accident. Also, he already knows that there are an awful lot of people who are lining up to get him involved in new sporting challenges as soon as he has regained his health and been fully rehabilitated, so still everything to play for, sporting wise. In fact, James Cracknell has already emailed Russ to say that he is busily looking at stuff they can do together once Russ is ready. James and Bev are coming out to see Russ next week so no doubt plans will be hatched, time-tables prepared and wheels put in motion by the end of that visit :-s

So, some light at the end of the tunnel for us all. When I think of my arrival in Toulon four weeks ago, I was told that not only had Russ nearly died in theatre but that he might yet still not make it due to the severity of his many injuries. It was also made amply clear to us that the potential cardiac-related issues with the brain might mean that, even if he did survive, he might never wake up or that, if he did, he might be brain damaged. We’ve come a long way since then and it is clear that the doctors here are amazed and impressed.

I know there is still a long road ahead but I have never been more proud of Russ and the sheer “fight” in the man. As everyone knows, I love him endlessly. And what has been so lovely to know is that there are literally hundreds of people (both family and friends) who do too.

Thank you to everyone for all their amazing messages of love and support throughout this ordeal. It has been of such huge comfort and I know that it means that Russ, I and our beautiful daughters can all feel very positive about the future.

Love Danielle xxxx

Hello everyone,

 Good evening everyone
Today was good again. Russ was very alert this morning and enjoyed seeing his beautiful daughters and was even more alert and " with it" this evening.  Alwyn arrived from America tonight and will see him tomorrow. Russ has remembered that Alwyn is coming so the short term memory is looking good.
Dani has asked me to tell you all about Russ' fixation with the cabinet at the end of his bed. It is quite entertaining. He stares at it and motions to Dani to move it, which she does. When we return in the afternoon, the nurses have moved it back and we go through the whole procedure again. Dani was at pains to show him what is in the drawer but he is obviously "hung up" about it!
So, Russ looks stronger each day and we just can't wait until he can speak as he will feel much less frustrated, understandably.
The girls have been so wonderful with Russ and we shall miss Lily being here. She is going on a sailing trip around Sardinia. Fortunately, Amber is staying and she is being her usual amusing self with Russ, quite bossy actually.
Anyway, that's all the news.
Love to you all
Jenni x

Below is the latest from Maman Jenni.  I spoke to ‘France’ today and Russ’s tracheotomy is still preventing him from talking despite the deflation of the balloon contraption.  Hopefully he will have the trachy for only a few more day and then he will just be reliant on an oxygen mask.  Dani has taken an A3 card and some post it notes spelling the alphabet back out to France with her so Russ can spell out what he wants to say but I gather that Russ is finding it easier relying on others lip reading skills!  Apparently Russ’s eyes do not leave his girls when they are visiting and his face lights up when they are there.
Russ’s wonderful parents left a couple of days ago.  They were on holiday in Canada when the accident happened and flew back to London as soon as they could get on a flight.  When they reached London they couldn’t get a flight to Marseille for a day or so, so they drove home to Wales, had a shower and a sandwich and an hour later they started the very long car journey (15 hours) from Cardiff to Toulon by car! (Having already been up for 48 hours!) They have been in France ever since and have attended every visiting time – complete Stalwarts.  They have returned briefly to Wales knowing that Russ is now out of the woods for the first time in 3 1/2 weeks.

xxx

Dear All
Russ has had a very quiet day so not a lot to report. Apparently, he had a lively night and early morning. He looked very relaxed and comfortable tho'. As he was so sleepy, Dan suggested that we take the girls to a beach that was accessed by a little ferry. It was great and we all swam and the girls loved it. Dani gave Russ a manicure tonight as his has were very chapped and now they look very smart. So that's all really.
Love to you all as usual.
Jenni x 

Dani has asked me to post these photos of Russ which were taken 9 days after the accident.

These photos are desperately unpleasant and were taken at a very critical time.  Today they are being used to promote the utter strength of character and determination that has been required to defy medical opinion and display a unique human spirit and fight for survival.

 They are very shocking as this was when Russ was in a coma and was attached to every contraption under the sun, including a dialysis machine, lung train, blood transfusion, ventilator, etc!  During this time every tube was keeping him alive. He was like this for over two weeks.  Poor Russ was in a very, very bad way….but….

The last photo of Russ with his beautiful girls at his side is how he looks today…this evening and I think you will all agree that there has been a remarkable transformation of super human strengths yet again! (He even looks a little bit like Clark Kent!).  This has only been 14 days after the other photos…..well done Russ, if you can keep up this pace you will be home in London in just  a few weeks! xxx

Hello Everyone.  I am so sorry that I have not updated the blog for 48 hours….I have been in deepest East Sussex camping without internet….yes Russ, ‘Margo’ has been camping….first time since I was 6- 36 years ago!  I gather Russ missed a weekend of camping last weekend as he was due to be going to Glastonbury with Roy.

All the news coming in is showing Russ is still little by little recovering.  News from mum in chronolgocial order starting with Monday:

Dear everyone
So sorry to be so late in sending this e mail but we left the hospital late and went straight to a restaurant for supper. Of course as you all realise, both Amber and Lily came here with Danielle last night. It was the first time Lily had seen Russ since his accident. When we arrived at the hospital it was very frustrating, particularly for Lily as they weren't able to see Russ for over an hour. He was, in fact, having physiotherapy. When Danielle and Lily and Amber went to see Russ, he was extremely sleepy, so we felt that the girls were a bit upset.
However, fortunately, this afternoon, it really was a different matter. Russ was very much awake and quite obviously delighted to see " his girls" . He watched them all the time with a lovely smile on his face. Lily and Amber were quite superb and really didn't want to leave his side. Very beautiful to observe.
So once again we are pleasantly optimistic as every day is a little step towards recovery.
Must have a sleep now.
Dear love as always
Jenni x 

Today:

Dear everyone
Another good day. Russ was very alert this morning and was propped up a bit more in bed,almost in a sitting position. He is very aware of noises and people coming into the room and curious as to what is in such and such (like a drawer).
The nurses also seem pleased with him, which is very reassuring. He continues to give everyone lovely smiles which is always so comforting.
So each day there seems to be a noticeable improvement.
Love to you all
Jenni x

Oh God, forgot to mention Murray won Wimbledon yesterday! Amazeballs!

x

Good morning!  It’s another stunning day here in the UK and we are all getting prepared for the Wimbledon final. Today Dani will be returning to France with Lily and Amber in tow.  It will be a very special reunion today as Lilstar hasn’t seen Russ since his accident.  Now Russ will have all his girls with him to smooth out his brow.

Very important message Russ for you from Jayne Creamer:

Hi Russ, just making sure you know that Chris Froome won Stage 8 – from Castres to Aix trois Domaines – an amazing stage in the Tour de France yesterday (or overnight for those of us viewing from Australia!) – that means of course another Brit in yellow 🙂 with every chance of holding on to it for some time if not all the way. I can’t believe it was almost  year ago that I was sending you texts about the cycling at the Olympics – when it was going through Richmond Park 🙂
I also can’t believe we are getting regular updates on the news about Will & Kate’s baby! What odds are you giving that the child will be a ginger?
It is terrific to read this blog about you and to hear of your continuing improvements – and of your persistent cheekiness – it must be really frustrating not being able to talk and to be taking the mickey about of others without words – still, you’ll be giving it your best we know. It sounds like you’re doing a really good job pulling through, so just keep on keeping on.

We think about you all the time big fella, lots of love, Ads & Jayne xxxx (those kisses are from Ad I’m sending a big hug)

…and now for the news from France:

Dear All
Just a line or two to say that Russ remained very alert all day. He waited until his Mum left the room and confided in Stuart that he wanted to get out of the hospital. Stuart said he is definitely planning an escape. Stuart had to explain that it wasn't a good idea and that he had to concentrate on getting better first!! He had another go at writing and this time was making bigger letters but because he couldn't properly see the paper he was writing on, it was difficult. He was very, very pleased to see Pia and Cliff. He really made great strides yesterday.
He may be tired this morning or he may surprise us. I'll let you all know later today.
With love
Jenni x

…and a little bit more later today:

Hello everyone
Russ has had a good morning. He is more tired than yesterday but very calm and peaceful and interested in any news we have for him. At 6.00 this evening he is having a component, like a balloon, deflated from the tracheotomy which will allow Russ to talk. We have been told his voice will sound different but so good for Russ to be able to communicate. He seems very happy with this news.
We are really looking forward to seeing Dani and the girls tonight and Russ just beamed when I told him they would be coming to see him in the morning.
So things are progressing!
Dear love to you all
X

Dear all
Just back from the hospital. Russ is very tired today and having a restful early evening. The nurse deflated the balloon as mentioned earlier today and then after half an hour they 
re- inflated it. I understand they will continue to do this.
Dani and the girls returns very soon which will be great. 
Russ gave us a few smiles when we talked to him which was heartwarming.
Love to you all
Jenni x