Cowling man airlifted to hospital after motorsport accident (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)

Cowling man airlifted to hospital after motorsport accident

7:00am Tuesday 19th March 2013 in News By Kathie Griffiths, T&A Reporter

A man has been airlifted to hospital after a sporting trials car he was competing in flipped over during a hill climb challenge in Worcestershire.

Duncan Walker, in his 40s, of Cowling, near Keighley, was undergoing surgery yesterday to repair his broken pelvis after he was flown by air ambulance from the Shelsley Walsh motorsport venue to Birmingham City Hospital.

Mr Walker had been the passenger in a car driven by his friend Martin Grimwood, of Allerton, Bradford.

Speaking to the Telegraph & Argus yesterday, Mr Grimwood said “accidents happen” but his pal of more than 30 years was in a stable condition.

Garage owner Mr Grimwood, who gave up motorbike drag racing because of broken bones ten years ago to start sporting trials instead, was the least seriously injured of the two in Sunday’s accident when the car landed on top of them.

He was given medical treatment at the scene for head injuries but was back home in Bradford yesterday recovering and getting ready for his next event in a couple of weeks.

Sporting trials is where cars, which have motorbike wheels on the front and normal car wheels at the back, have to try to get up muddy, grassy hills.

The passenger is a human “movable ballast” pitching about, often hanging out of the side of the car, to help it complete the course. There are no seatbelts or roll cages. Mr Grimwood, 52, said: “It’s a thrilling sport. Why else would people do it? Accidents will happen but in the past ten years I’ve only been over twice.”

The pair had tried to climb nine hills in the Peter Blankstone Memorial event earlier that day and were attempting the first run of the afternoon when the car flipped right over.

“There’s an event on this weekend but I don’t think I’ll be there. I definitely will be at the next week but I don’t know about Duncan, it’s a nasty injury,” said Mr Grimwood.

In the sport, scores from each hill attempt are added at the end of the event – the lowest total wins. The higher a car gets up a hill, the lower the points it is awarded.

“We’d nearly done it, we’d almost got to the top of the hill when it happened. There’s a lot of Chinese whispers about how Duncan is going but he is going to be fine,” said Mr Grimwood.