David Burdus plans trip on special motorbike

Jan 8 2009 by Dan Warburton, The Journal

A WHEELCHAIR user is planning a 1,600-mile trip across Europe on a specially designed motorbike more than two decades after he fractured five vertebrae in a horrific crash.

Days before his 21st birthday, David Burdus, of Corbridge, Northumberland, broke his back while riding a motorbike at a roundabout in Spennymoor, County Durham.

He spent 10 months lying in a hospital ward and endured a further two years of tests, surgery and physiotherapy.

But in May, more than 25 years after the accident, Mr Burdus, now 46, will re-ignite his passion for motorbikes.

Thanks to a modified machine designed for wheelchair users, the access consultant is back on the road and plans to travel across Europe.

And last night he said the thought of being back in the saddle made him feel born again.

He said: It sounds amazing. I planned a summer trip just before my accident 25 years ago and this is just another thing that is happening to me that means I can get back in the bike.

Im still a bit anxious about the whole thing, though. There will be a little bit of roughing it and a lot of hours in the saddle but Im looking forward to it.

Im excited about the camaraderie. I was totally blown away to get on the bike again. I feel born again and I cant wait.

Mr Burdus, who lives with his 52-year-old fiancee Janet Pallister, a communications officer, is undertaking the mammoth trek in order to raise funds for the disability charity Capability Scotland.

He will leave their base in Edinburgh on May 9, and travel to the ferry port in Hull. From there he will travel to Zeebrugge in Belgium, before making stops at Peronne and Bonn. On May 12 the team plan to arrive in Wolfsburg, Germany, and then on to their final destination of Berlin the following day.

And not even a severe bout of tendonitis in Mr Burduss shoulder which put his trip in jeopardy can stop the access consultant fulfilling his ambitions.

He said: The muscles in my arm and my shoulders are starting to wear-out Ive had tendonitis in them for a while now from pushing a wheelchair.

Its left me with a dilemma because I dont want to let the opportunity pass me by. It would be a significant landmark in my life for me, to be able to get back on the bike and do something that I never thought I would be able to do.

It will be one of those things I can look back on and take some very special memories away with me. I never thought I would be able to do anything like this.

In order for Mr Burdus to combat the tendonitis, he will need a cruise control device, costing nearly s500. He is also seeking s1,500 of sponsorship to help pay costs for the trip.

To sponsor Mr Burdus, please log on to www.justgiving.com/transglobemoto