Tyla Rattray Injury Update
Tuesday, January 31, 2012 | 8:50 PM
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CORONA, Calif. - Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasaki’s Tyla Rattray was injured during his heat race at the Oakland round of the Monster Energy Supercross. Rattray was unable to race the remainder of the evening due to his injury.
Upon further evaluation by his physician, it has been determined that Rattray suffered a concussion and a fracture to his C7 vertebrae. He will be recuperating for the next few weeks, at which time his injuries will be re-evaluated. The team will make another announcement about his recovery at that time.
"I’m really bummed out about my injury,” said Rattray, “but I’m very thankful that it didn’t end up worse. I just want to thank everyone for their tremendous support. Hopefully I’ll be back soon."
Upon further evaluation by his physician, it has been determined that Rattray suffered a concussion and a fracture to his C7 vertebrae. He will be recuperating for the next few weeks, at which time his injuries will be re-evaluated. The team will make another announcement about his recovery at that time.
"I’m really bummed out about my injury,” said Rattray, “but I’m very thankful that it didn’t end up worse. I just want to thank everyone for their tremendous support. Hopefully I’ll be back soon."
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All professional 4-sheel racing requires a Hans device or some such. We have broken vertebrae on 3 racers in 2 weeks. Leatt is releasing their research and documentation. How about the industry perform something akin to academic peer-review and see if it holds up. If so, then mandate neck braces. If not, then we need to consider other things... like maybe trying to race over circus jumps isn't such a good idea.
DAMN - hate to hear about these guys getting injured. Especially bad that we're talking about more spine fractures.
Get well quickly Tyla, Tray, and Ryan.
Get well tyla,,,you a bad dude!
Wish all u guys the best.....coulda been worse when you're dealing with neck and back injuries. Best of luck in all of your recoveries.
Give Tylas bike to Marttin Davalos and its lights out for Tomac. Davalos has been up there, if he could only ride that PC bike.
Get well fast (like you ride), Tyla. You are riding strong.
Davalos has a different problem..., beyond the machine he's riding.
He needs to 'get over' thinking about the 'Main' so much.
Just think of it as a 15-lap qualifier and he'll be on top of the box.
Hell, think of every 'Main' as a 15-lap qualifier..., for Vegas!
Get out of your head, Martin.
Get well soon, it does seem that You have bad luck! Like TC,look ahead guys.
hans devices for AMA...internal organ portection required...safer barriers... ....we dont need a Dale Ernheart moment.....just sayn.
A Neck Brace is not the solution.
If you didn't notice, about every other week, another top pro rider quits wearing a neck brace.
Sometimes Neck braces actually make the injury worse.
I know from personal experience.
Hopefully TR is back Soon.
It's a dangerous sport, that is why we all love it so much!!
Leatts need to be mandatory. 3 neck fractures in 2 weeks. It makes you wonder who's next
What is going on with all the spinal injuries lately? The injury list is getting out of control. Get well soon Tyla!!!
Pro riders quit wearing neck braces... maybe they should think again... 3 nasty crashes... the 2 (Morias, Rattray) that didn't have neckbraces on broke their necks. The 1 (Canard) that wore a neck brace and had a bike land directly on the back of his head had no neck injury. His fractured vertebrae was in his mid back, not neck. I will trust the extensive research from Leatt over these pro riders that barely have any formal education to speak of... Will be interesting to see if Morias and Tyla will be sporting neck braces when they return...
Hope they all heal quickly, and everyone can learn something from this!
Wait so these boards keep talking about all this testing that Leatt has done, but who has actually seen it? There is a reason why they settle all there lawsuit out of court. Just saying.
Get well Tyla and hope to you see you back soon!
I have seen enough real world testing the last 2 weeks... 2 broken necks with riders without neck braces... Seeing the pic of Canard with the bike on the back of his head and his head buried in his chest, is enough for me to keep the Leatt on my kid.
Nobody knows what would have happened if Morias and Tyla had a brace on or if Canard didn't. But not having a brace on didn't help prevent the injuries they got, that is for sure... To each their own...
Go to Leatt website, there is plenty of info on the testing that is performed to develop their products.
Hate watching these guys get hurt...
Sometimes the Industry have to take a step back and look at the facts, serious injuries increase year by year due to faster bikes and tracks that have obstacles that are on the edge of possible. Why don't the racers protest...a racer is always a racer they want technical tracks as that will make a difference in their favor, all they want to do is WIN. we have all felt sad for e.g. David Bailey, back then Pro racers did not get seriously hurt with the same frequency as today....something have to be done....we are sidelining tons of talent....how many of them permanetly. YES MX is a dangerous sport it is a fact, how can we make it safer ?
Sorry to hear about your injury Tyler and hope you get well soon. Glad you still came out of it ok as the crash looked much worse on TV.
as a fan I wouldn't mind seeing less air time and more dicing between the racers. The jumps are just to big and any mistake is unforgiving. If it isn't a neck, or back, it's broken legs, arms, wrists or hands. Physics will show that if your falling forward as in a crash on flatter ground or over the whoops the impact is lesser than when you catapulting yourself into the ground from 30 feet in the air. Lets see more of stewies corner speed or guys fighting for a corner down the hole straight. Does it mean someone is a faster or better rider because they have the BALLS to do huge triples, and risk major injury. I think not. I personally have been beaten on tracks with huge jumps by guys that I kill on natural terrain tracks because they will risk injury over huge jumps that I won't do. They gain so much time there that it can't be made up. Does that mean they can ride whoops better, or corner better, ride off cambers better. I am sick of seeing these fine young men hurt these injuries are going to haunt them for the rest of their lives. my new battle cry "TAME THE TRIPLES"
Damn,... I was hoping he got his head tucked under enough,to avoid that. He is a very lucky man, as bad as it is, it coulda been horribly bad. Get well Tyla, we pullin for ya too...joe. c-6-c7, ..T-7 t-8 l-5 s-1, now Hodaka.
@rschuite... Id get my butt handed to me at Delta,(Glass city)) usually tear my bike or gear up- then smoke the same cats at red bud, EXCEPT Alan King, all 19 Bigelow bros, Mike LaRocco, Denny Bentley, Mark Hinkle,,,,,,,, :)
Using the fact that any Pro doesn't wear one or has stopped wearing one isn't any kind of argument against neck braces. All you have to do is look at how many wear full plastic chest protection front and back to see the main focus isn't on max protection as much as it is on max comfort. Who knows if Canard suffers any fractures if he was wearing a full plastic protector, it certainly would have helped. That photo of his head kissing the seat though seems to show that a neck brace helped to some degree in preventing any serious neck injuries.
Lets just put them on 50cc and 110cc bikes to prevent the injuries that have been happening.
Let mandate wearing a device when we cross the street because someone just might hit us.
4 strokes are some of the problem with the added weight.
My LEATT...without ANY doubt...saved me from serious injury just once. And that was LONG before even the minority of riders, both pro and otherwise, began wearing them. ANY rider who doesn't wear one of the more significant devices let alone moronic parents who continue to send their kids out to do battle or even a simple trail rides should have THEIR heads examined! Simply from the multitudes of TRUE testimonies from experienced riders such as myself, 'THE INDUSTRY" doesn't need any "additional data" to prove the worth of these devices! Get off your EFFIN DUFFS American Motorcycle Association and MANDATE the use of one of the more significant devices.
THINK DALE EARNHARDT AMA...and what NASCAR FINALLY mandated...because of his NEEDLESS DEATH! Is THAT what the AMA and in fact the other governing bodies require to make logical changes?
And while we're talking about LOGICAL changes...
And Dear AMA...reconsider what pin-heads are presently designing these death traps of SX tracks, FORGET THE ENTERTAINMENT factor of the masses and DEMAND a safer venue for the rider! While you're at it...consider ditching some portion of these FREAKING TUFF BLOCK BILL BOARDS... that needlessly CREATE hazards and event ending episodes for the particular rider. I believe if Trey Canard had a viable exit from the track to deal with what he was dragging around, he would NOT have been forced into a "single,single" situation, himself creating an unexpected hazard when he is in "the valley" between jumps! Sorry RaceXonline but...F_CKING AMA! YOUR PESTILENCE & UNWILLINGNESS to do something in the overwhelming evidence of danger is REALLY pissing off those in the know! Yeah, the folks who come to these events WHO WILL NEVER GET ANY CLOSER to OUR SPORT than a can of Monster Energy Drink,a Moto-X Fox decal on their pickup truck or a jug of Lucas in their lawn mower are indeed being entertained. BUT...the trend of what OUR professional athletes must do to raise the bar to continue this level of "entertainment" for the promoters of these events...you're seeing the results AMA! Get YOUR collective PIN HEADS and IMMEDIATELY FIX WHAT IS BROKEN!
I was the head of a youth hockey org and if you make a piece of equipment mandatory and someone gets hurt near it, you are screwed. You need proof positive that it cant make injuries worse or cause them. We've dodged some major bullets these last two weeks, lets get the testing done. Maybe John Force would be willing to help?
Heal up Bud. Hope to see you back soon!!
XXKTM: Far and beyond my friend...the testing is over and the proverbial proof is in the pudding. Far and beyond, the instances whereas the neck and spine protection and survivability are well entrenched in our sport with the use of a SIGNIFICANT product such as the LEATT. In fact, it's on a par with...the helmet, the near mega-buck boots and so on and so worth. And, if legal concerns even were a concern for the governing body, ALL of the riders and regardless of their level of experience would be riding something with less than 10 horsepower. As I mentioned above,the governing body doesn't care about the escalation factor of entertainment designed into today's tracks and frequently by "ex-pros" and with approval by the governing bodies. If THEY don't care about the level of perfection required by today's pro in regards to track design, I doubt very seriously if collectively they give a rats rectum about the mandating of a PROVEN safety device.
And once again...
THINK DALE EARNHARDT AMA...and what NASCAR FINALLY mandated...because of his NEEDLESS DEATH! Is THAT what the AMA and in fact the other governing bodies require to make logical changes?
I would be highly surprised if the AMA doesn't highly recomend the Neck braces chest protectors etc to the riders already. We will have to see if any AMA top officials are thinking at all about what has been going on.and make.the items mandatory.
Sorry Tyla. I'm sick to death of "the norm" and have expressed so in my two previous posts. Like Trey, heal smart and make some serious considerations about not only YOUR future in our sport...but that of EVERY AMA competitor. (And, for that matter, whatever the governing scenario is in South Africa) Since the illustrious ex-pros who design these tracks that are nothing short of the... equivalent to a haunter house on fire with all the exits locks... obviously won't address and in fact escalate the f_cking obvious! Isn't it BEYOND time that the professionals of substance, like yourself...and David and Gary Bailey, the memory of Danny Chandler, RC, Emig, Bob Hannah, Rick Sieman, Doug Henry and so on and so forth...ATTACK the trend that is taking "you guys" out on a regular basis?!?!
Or, do we simply allow energy drink promoters cater to those who are no closer to our sport than what a Monster Energy Drink has...or doesn't have...to offer?
Get well soon Tyla and really hate to see all of these possible career eneding injuries!
Also didnt Michael Byrne also recently break his neck and he was wearing a Leatt?
@motodog1977, very solid points on the Leatt and safety issues. I think the detractors to neck braces point to the higher incidence of fractured clavicles. That is true and my compound fracture of the collarbone resulting in a plate and 14 screws is testament to that risk. However, I believe my horrendous crash would have been far worse without a Leatt. Broken collarbone versus broken neck and possible paralysis? Easy choice. Mandate neck braces and hard roost guards for all AMA events, pro or amateur.
motodog, There is no room in stadiums to put in exits as you suggest then we would have 30 second laps. There is a reason Supercross has gained immense popularity and its those sky jumps you want to remove. A lot of fans do not ride motorcycles and a lot of them love to see crashes as well. So if they remove the jumps they would remove 75% of the crowd because I don't see thousands of people rushing to attend flat track races.
Since supercross has been around for 35 years the amount of neck injuries is not that significant considering the amount of motos run. This is a high risk high reward sport now so the promoters are going to put in what draws and excites the crowds. As for the riders how many of you need a piped 450 but I notice most of you have one. If we keep removing things to prevent injuries then soon we will be removing trees and rocks.
Finally I wish Tyla well in his recovery but I am certain he does not blame anyone for his injury, rather he is thrilled to be doing what he loves to do because I read a couple of interviews he gave.
Maybe a "Doubles Only" rule for the 1st lap to get some separation between riders. Wow; sitting here thinking about this and it just might be brilliant.
Glad hes ok. Hope he is fully recovered and ready for the outdoors come Hangtown. The guy is an animal outdoors. When Tyla gos 450 outdoors that will be even more exciting.
@claxton your 100% right! Get well soon Tyla, I'm a big fan and I'm pull'n for you in the outdoors this year. Thank god your in great shape and as tough as you are because that crash was gnarly and would have crushed most guys.I'm not for or against neck braces, what the hockey coach said is 100% true, as soon as the AMA mandates neck braces the liability would destroy the the AMA in no time! Also anyone who has used knee braces knows that when you take the flex out of one area it will show up somewhere else (the spine). So its kind of a pick your poison type of deal. Ultimately the danger is in the racers hands on how far they are willing to ride over their head to win. Motocross is a very dangerous sport and one of the very few that is growing in these tough economic times and when people talk about taking out the jumps is crazy, it would kill the attendance. MMA is another growing sport could you imagine if they took out strikes to the face. What do these two growing sports have in common, they are very DANGEROUS!!
saying neck braces are more dangerous is like bringing up how some folks believe they "would have died if they were wearing a seatbelt during a car cash." yes, there will be exceptions. yes there will always be racer "shop talk." but neck braces are a good thing.
the tracks today are actually less dangerous than yesteryear, in my opinion. previous decades there were lots of sharp peaks and straight up and down stuff you don't see anymore. it is a dangerous sport but accidents do happen. we are just more connected via blogs and media to know when things go wrong.
knee braces: don't be a goof ball about the different area that absorbs the impact. soft connective tissue surrounds your knee. a broken femur, in the rarest case people make seem so common, is better than a broken knee. and many of the hits that would destroy the knee are a piece of cake for the femur to endure. protect the bone joints at all times. period.
neck brace: safer. period. just because ricky carmichael wouldn't wear one should mean nothing to his followers who tout about his open opinion that braces are not proven to be safer. there are a few racers that go through their career with minimal serious injuries. ricky is one of them. examples like him and the reasoning behind his comments shouldn't be a point of reference.
mandates: a little over the top. don't think you will see braces required in motocross/supercross.
since this is about tyla, let's focus on encouraging him. the guy landed directly on his head like a pogo stick. i don't think that kind of compression would be lightened by a neck brace. watch the tape. next time i bet he knows the moment to jump off the bike instead of hanging on that long in an endo.
just my two cents. best to all.
Maybe they should just make the Supercross tracks a flat oval with left turns! Oh wait a minute, thats flat track and speedway, not much of fan base there. Hopefully Tyla has a quick recovery, it would be great to see him on a 450 in the outdoors.
I see alot of people that would like to take away our freedom of choice. Its a dangerous sport and people are going to get hurt or even die from it but the risk is our choice to make. When all the dogooders try to make our world perfect it ends up hurting us all. If you want to wear a brace then wear one!! ( I would) but that should be YOUR choice. Don't try and ruin such a great sport!!! Injurys happen no matter what. Its a fact. Get well Tyla.
the sport is just waaay too dangerous, maybe it should be outlawed by the government and we need someone to protect us from ourselves? im being facetiuos............but you guys sure love to be regulated. my opinion is that the tracks are the most contributing factor( the jumps, and narrow lanes) and also the motorcycles ( fourstrokes)>
A race promoter or sanctioning organization has a vested interest in both the health of it's participants and the public's perception of the sport. It is the norm to require boots and a helmet, yes? If we find that a neckbrace offers a similar protection proposition, how will that be any different? Same thing,
Okay, for those you saying neck braces don't help. Trey was wearing a neck brace, does he have any neck injuries? No. Tyla and Ryan were not wearing a neck brace and if i'm not mistaken Ryan has a neck injury and so does Tyla. Neck braces might cause a shoulder blade injury or something like that, but definitely help against neck injuries. Do you think the company's that make neck braces are researching cats? No they research how the neck works and what they can use to reduce injuries to the neck.
Any way I wish every racer who is sitting on the sidelines get well soon and I wish you a full and speedy recovery. Can't wait to see everyone back out racing!
@penguinbob Trey didn't have a neck injury, but he did have a spine injury and thats exactly what some people are worried about with neck braces. They think that when you take the movement out of the neck that it puts more pressure on the spine. ( I have never used a brace so I don't know whats the best way to protect yourself from neck and spin injuries) Also with Tylas crash he is lucky he is not 4" shorter and in a wheel chair. That was a serius impact and thank God that he didn't get hurt worse. I'm a huge Tyla fan and hope to see him back out there ASAP.