When skateboarder Evan Strong lost his leg, he didn't lose his drive ... or perspective
By Don Norcross
STAFF WRITER
November 16, 2005
Riding his motorcycle along the two-lane Hana Highway on Maui, Evan Strong was loving life. It was Nov. 3, 2004. Ten days shy of turning 18, he was a sponsored skateboarder, done with high school and a warm Hawaiian breeze was slapping him in the face.
In a split second, his life would be forever changed.
Strong saw a woman driving an SUV drop her head below the steering wheel as if to light a cigarette. The woman's car drifted into Strong's lane, sideswiping the vehicle in front of him. Then the SUV struck Strong. The next thing the teenager knew he was lying beneath a guardrail, his left leg shattered, one of the bones protruding from his skin.
"My thigh was split open as big as a football," he said.
As he assessed the damage, telling himself to breathe slowly or he might bleed to death, one thought consumed his mind.
My mom is going to kill me.
Three days later, Evan Strong's left leg was amputated six inches below the knee.
One year, nine days after the accident, using a prosthetic limb given to him by the Del Mar-based Challenged Athletes Foundation, Strong was riding 35-40 mph on a skateboard down the famed Haleakala mountain. Earlier that day, he turned backflips on the family's new trampoline.
"I do these things and I'm nervous," said Strong. "I don't know what's going to happen. But I felt an adrenaline rush going down one of the fastest hills on the island. I keep pushing my comfort zone, kind of surprising myself. It's new again. It just reminds myself what I'm capable of."
Fear, it would seem, is not in Strong's vocabulary. When he was 13, Strong tried riding his skateboard down a 34-step rail. Tried it six times.
"Basically, he couldn't walk (anymore), and that was the end of that," said Strong's friend, Soleil Brown.
Strong would leap off 85-foot cliffs into pools of water. Weeks after losing his leg, he tried driving his stick-shift truck, using a crutch to push in the clutch.
"I think we all discouraged him on that one," said Brown.
Minutes after the accident, Strong, who was wearing a helmet, accepted that he was going to lose his leg. He feels blessed, remembering he thought he'd lose his leg above the knee.
"I'm lucky to be alive," said Strong, who lost a massive amount of blood. "I'm really lucky not to have brain damage."
Two weeks before the crash, Strong told his mother and older sister he sensed a big change approaching, one that might take his life.
"He needed us to know it was OK, he was at peace with it," said Lisa Strong, Evan's mother. "He needed to know that we'd be at peace. He just had this attitude of acceptance and surrender."
Subconsciously, Strong said for years he sensed he would lose a limb. He pondered the possibility so seriously that he decided if he were to lose a limb, he'd prefer it be one of his feet.
"It's strange, I know," he said.
Be it because he contemplated such a disaster or because he's surrounded by a loving family, Strong has not wallowed in misery.
Recalled Lisa: "He said, 'People all over the world are losing limbs, losing lives. I didn't come in with any guarantees (bad things) wouldn't happen to me. People say, 'Why me? Why not me?' "
Humor often being the best medicine, Strong can joke about his situation. A friend made him a wooden leg and Strong dressed for Halloween as a pirate.
"If a real pirate saw me," said Strong, "he'd be jealous."
Priding himself on his all-around skill, Strong could street skate, ride bowls and drop in on a vert ramp before the accident.
"He was, by far, the top skater in Hawaii," said Brown. "He wasn't afraid to try anything."
Strong has had his new prosthesis for only seven weeks and for now he's struggling to regain his skills. His goal is to recapture that old form.
"Definitely," said Strong, when asked if he thinks he can get there. "Mind over matter."
He is attending a community college and working at a surf shop. Before receiving his prosthesis, he golfed on one leg, driving 200 yards. He'd like to become a motivational speaker.
Last month, Strong attended a Challenged Athletes Foundation function in La Jolla and was moved by socializing with so many talented athletes missing limbs.
"It shows me having a prosthetic isn't a disability," he said. "It's just another challenge. You can whip able-bodied peoples' (butts) if you want, and I can't wait 'til I do that."
Don Norcross: (619) 293-1803; don.norcross@uniontrib.com
By Don Norcross
STAFF WRITER
November 16, 2005
Riding his motorcycle along the two-lane Hana Highway on Maui, Evan Strong was loving life. It was Nov. 3, 2004. Ten days shy of turning 18, he was a sponsored skateboarder, done with high school and a warm Hawaiian breeze was slapping him in the face.
In a split second, his life would be forever changed.
Strong saw a woman driving an SUV drop her head below the steering wheel as if to light a cigarette. The woman's car drifted into Strong's lane, sideswiping the vehicle in front of him. Then the SUV struck Strong. The next thing the teenager knew he was lying beneath a guardrail, his left leg shattered, one of the bones protruding from his skin.
"My thigh was split open as big as a football," he said.
As he assessed the damage, telling himself to breathe slowly or he might bleed to death, one thought consumed his mind.
My mom is going to kill me.
Three days later, Evan Strong's left leg was amputated six inches below the knee.
One year, nine days after the accident, using a prosthetic limb given to him by the Del Mar-based Challenged Athletes Foundation, Strong was riding 35-40 mph on a skateboard down the famed Haleakala mountain. Earlier that day, he turned backflips on the family's new trampoline.
"I do these things and I'm nervous," said Strong. "I don't know what's going to happen. But I felt an adrenaline rush going down one of the fastest hills on the island. I keep pushing my comfort zone, kind of surprising myself. It's new again. It just reminds myself what I'm capable of."
Fear, it would seem, is not in Strong's vocabulary. When he was 13, Strong tried riding his skateboard down a 34-step rail. Tried it six times.
"Basically, he couldn't walk (anymore), and that was the end of that," said Strong's friend, Soleil Brown.
Strong would leap off 85-foot cliffs into pools of water. Weeks after losing his leg, he tried driving his stick-shift truck, using a crutch to push in the clutch.
"I think we all discouraged him on that one," said Brown.
Minutes after the accident, Strong, who was wearing a helmet, accepted that he was going to lose his leg. He feels blessed, remembering he thought he'd lose his leg above the knee.
"I'm lucky to be alive," said Strong, who lost a massive amount of blood. "I'm really lucky not to have brain damage."
Two weeks before the crash, Strong told his mother and older sister he sensed a big change approaching, one that might take his life.
"He needed us to know it was OK, he was at peace with it," said Lisa Strong, Evan's mother. "He needed to know that we'd be at peace. He just had this attitude of acceptance and surrender."
Subconsciously, Strong said for years he sensed he would lose a limb. He pondered the possibility so seriously that he decided if he were to lose a limb, he'd prefer it be one of his feet.
"It's strange, I know," he said.
Be it because he contemplated such a disaster or because he's surrounded by a loving family, Strong has not wallowed in misery.
Recalled Lisa: "He said, 'People all over the world are losing limbs, losing lives. I didn't come in with any guarantees (bad things) wouldn't happen to me. People say, 'Why me? Why not me?' "
Humor often being the best medicine, Strong can joke about his situation. A friend made him a wooden leg and Strong dressed for Halloween as a pirate.
"If a real pirate saw me," said Strong, "he'd be jealous."
Priding himself on his all-around skill, Strong could street skate, ride bowls and drop in on a vert ramp before the accident.
"He was, by far, the top skater in Hawaii," said Brown. "He wasn't afraid to try anything."
Strong has had his new prosthesis for only seven weeks and for now he's struggling to regain his skills. His goal is to recapture that old form.
"Definitely," said Strong, when asked if he thinks he can get there. "Mind over matter."
He is attending a community college and working at a surf shop. Before receiving his prosthesis, he golfed on one leg, driving 200 yards. He'd like to become a motivational speaker.
Last month, Strong attended a Challenged Athletes Foundation function in La Jolla and was moved by socializing with so many talented athletes missing limbs.
"It shows me having a prosthetic isn't a disability," he said. "It's just another challenge. You can whip able-bodied peoples' (butts) if you want, and I can't wait 'til I do that."
Don Norcross: (619) 293-1803; don.norcross@uniontrib.com
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