Cycle News

Cycle News 2019 Issue 18 May 7

Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles

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P114 Interview BRAD BAKER tion program that would leave even the toughest of us wincing in pain. The end goal: To get rid of the chair and walk on his own. "Heck, man. Rehab's crazy," Baker says. "Obviously, my back and my shoulders have gone through a lot of trauma. Three-quarters of my body is virtually useless, so the stronger I make my arms, the better. I do a lot of seated balance and core activation work, getting myself to where my core is engaging more so I got better balance. "I actually have been walking," Baker continues. "I got leg braces that lock out my knees and my ankles, and I'm able to get up with a walker, and with a little bit of assistance from a therapist, I'm able to bring my legs through. Then there's another deal where I'll be laying down on a mat table—they call it 'the cage'—where I got this full cage around me. They have anchor points where they can put my legs in slings, and I can actually move my legs when I'm laying on this table, and my legs are just hanging there with no resistance, no friction. "I do have engagement in my legs where I can make some voluntary movement. It's just very weak, but putting them in slings where there's no resistance, I can make these movements. I'm connecting my brain with those parts of my body and relearning things that way. "I could literally spend all day just doing therapy. I do three, four days a week, at least two hours, sometimes three hours a day. As I get go- ing more, it's only going to get more in-depth if I want to get myself back up on my feet. "I've got feeling. I can feel when I need to pee. I can feel when I need to poop. You can touch my foot, and I'll go, 'Hey, don't tickle my foot.' I'm pretty fortunate there. Things are coming back. I'll definitely be walking again one day." In the meantime, a man must keep busy if he's to serve his brain as his body plays catch up. And Baker, with his unique set of recently retired skills, can serve a great purpose, helping Indian Motorcycle as rider coach to upcoming stars Briar and Bronson Bauman and offering expert (Top) With "three-quarters of my body virtually useless," Baker works tirelessly on upper body strength training. (Bottom) With the aid of a walking frame, Baker can get on his feet and move about, signaling there's real hope of walking unaided in the future.

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