Costa Rica Trek To Aid
Recovery
A 250-mile trek across
Central America will
help signal the recovery
of a former triathlete
after a near-fatal
accident more than 10
years ago. Rob Hughes,
32, from Merlins Bridge,
Pembrokeshire, suffered
extensive injuries in a
bicycle accident in
1997.
In March he plans to
hike, cycle, raft and
kayak across Costa Rica
in a week.
After 10 years of
recovery from acute
migraines, amnesia,
dental and lower back
pain he is training hard
for his latest
challenge.
"I'm really looking
forward to it and will
put everything into it,"
he said.
He has been following a
training program which
has been developed by
the Prince's Trust
charity.
"It consists of off-road
mountain biking, running
and cross-training in
the gym, and it's been
quite effective," Mr
Hughes added.
"I'll need to be very
well prepared
physically.
"I need to train across
all disciplines for
hiking uphill, cycling
and kayaking and I'll
need a good overall
stamina to cope with the
heat."
Mr Hughes is raising
money for the charity
and he needs to get a
minimum of £3,000 in
order to participate in
the event.
He came off his bike,
suffering extensive
injuries including a
fractured skull, facial
injuries, broken teeth,
back muscle injuries and
amnesia.
It took him almost five
years of being in pain
before he recovered
fully.
"I was out training on
Boxing Day for the
Pembrokeshire triathlon
and next thing I woke in
hospital with no memory
of what actually
happened at all," he
said.
"I just awoke with the
doctor putting stitches
into my head," he said.
Mr Hughes had to stop
working in the building
industry and retrain in
business IT after the
accident and now works
for Siemens in Cardiff.
"Doctors told me I could
never box or play rugby
after the accident - but
I've defied them
really," he said.
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