“Sitting here in disbelief asking myself how is this happening to me again? How many people wash their front tire mid turn and just pick their bike back up?” wrote Dean Wilson today on his @DeanWilson15 Instagram account.
The news is bad again for Dean, who has endured countless injuries since winning the 2011 250 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship. But, if you want to count, he hurt his shoulder battling Eli Tomac for the 2012 250SX West Region title, broke a rib and punctured a lung during the 2013 250SX East Region Championship, did in his shoulder again when his 450 cut out in a practice crash that summer, and then sliced himself up good tumbling down one of Glen Helen’s huge downhills when his bike cut out at the 250 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross opener in 2014. Then he tore his ACL after Round 2 of Monster Energy Supercross last year. Now, exactly a year later, the same injury has occurred again.
“This one really stings me as I gave up everything this offseason,” he continued. “With training, sleeping, eating, riding, testing and doing everything in my best possible way to be prepared for the season. I started off the season strong and I felt by round five I would be where I wanted to be. So came A2, I was putting in a fast lap in timed qualifying which would be my last lap of that practice as I only had a minute 30 seconds to go on the clock. I had a solid lap going all the way until I got to the turn before the finish and my front tire washed. Nothing crazy but I felt my knee pop and buckle. At that very moment I put my hands together prayed to God and asked him that I didn't just blow my knee again. I hobbled up went to the truck just praying and unsure what was wrong but I wanted to see if I could ride the next practice. So I went out for the next practice and knew right away my knee was blown. As tears ran down my eyes under my goggles, I picked up my mechanic Matt ride through the tunnel and back to the pits. I went into the truck and pretty much just broke down. Feeling that this was a year for me to make it happen and come back strong and show KTM why they hired me in the first place, I feel like I let all of my sponsors down and including myself. I felt like this could be the last time I ever race a supercross for a factory team.”
We talked to a source at KTM over the weekend at Oakland and got word that Dean was going a different route for surgery this time. While in Europe last summer searching for a cure for endless arm pump, Dean met the Claes family, a prominent family of surgeons. When the bad news came this time, he elected to head back to Europe for the fix.
“Monday came by and I got an MRI and results where a torn ACL,
meniscus and sprained MCL. My trainer @tylarattray and team do not want to mess around, they set me up to see the best knee doctor there is, Dr S.Claes in Belgium. So I have had that surgery done now and am now recovering.”
A year ago, when Dean tore his ACL for the first time, he put out a more somber vibe, writing on Instagram, “Yesterday while I was on the way to the hospital looking out the window at the mountains I was contemplating on quitting and just get a real job and live a normal life. It just seems to be a continuous streak lately and the disappointment is just killing me as a person… But I know how much I am capable of achieving and how much I love this sport when things are going good.”
This time, he’s much more positive.
“This injury has not discouraged me and I am going to do everything I can to come back strong for outdoors,” he wrote today. “I hope that I can set a good example for people and kids that have unfortunate luck and injuries who feel like they want to quit that just because there are some bumps on the road we push through them and become successful. For me I believe the light is still shining at the end of the tunnel and I am willing to do what ever it takes.”
Dean’s post is below.
