Fractured Vertebrae Sidelines Bell for Season
Thursday, August 23, 2012 | 2:00 PM
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CORONA, Calif. -- GEICO Honda rider Zach Bell will miss the remainder of the 2012 Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship series as well as the Monster Energy Cup in mid October after suffering compression fractures in both his T3 and T4 vertebrae. The 18-year-old rookie was injured during an accident in the second moto of last weekend's Unadilla National in New York.
"I came off the track and I really wasn't hurting that bad," Bell said. "I really thought it was just a muscle strain or pull. We went home and got some initial x-rays and they didn't see anything. We had another doctor look the next day and he saw the fractures."
The highly-touted Georgian had just joined the GEICO Honda team following a brilliant amateur career, capped by being named winner of the prestigious AMA Racing Motocross Horizon Award at the Loretta Lynn Ranch in Hurricane Mills, Tenn. Bell ended his amateur career by winning all three 250 A class Motos.
In his brief pro career, Bell recorded a pair of holeshots and led a handful of laps in two out of the three motos he contested before getting injured.
"I'll use a back brace and they say a couple of months of recovery time," Bell said. "I really don't feel that bad at all. I want to ride Steel City. But I have to do the smart thing and listen to the medical professionals."
Doctors expect a full recovery for Bell, who will use a back brace for 8-12 weeks. No surgery will be required.
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another one down!!!
hopefully 2013 is ALOT different
Get well Zach...remember you have to be in it to win it. Good luck in your recovery son...
Back & neck fractures where a scary trend this year. Rough way to start to your professional career Mr. Bell, get well soon.
Where are the knuckleheads that were making jokes about his crash a couple of days ago? I stood trackside watching him lie there for several laps before being carried off, and I didn't think he left unscathed. Some fast riding in his first few pro motos ... hope he makes a full recovery and comes out swinging in '13.
You’re very fast but you need to back it down a notch kid…. Your time will come when you win it all.. Good luck..
Wow. Am I the only reader wanting to save this kid from himself? He has already sustained several major injuries and he's only had a few professional races in his very young life. Until he realizes that he can't ride over his head and go the pace he wants to go, this is going to continue to happen.
@motodog
Have you ever heard of Mike Larocco?Pretty sure he knows much more than you do. When was the last time you won at Lorettas?Give the kid a break he has a bright future.He will be racing nationals, while you spew diahrrea out of your keyboard.
@Motodog, your a goon.
So what if the young man is excited, he led at his first motos as a pro, did you do that, or have you ever raced....anything.
Bell has a bright future and will do great things.
@Handlebar........ its Sidelines not sideline
motodogg1977 you are right. Bell must be a protege of JS7. They ride "so far" pretty much the same......sprint to the lead.......eat S$*tttt. If I was him I would load up my stuff from the Reality show and head over to the Carmichael Ranch and start riding with Dungey. Just sayin. Hate to see him get hurt.
And the award goes to Motodogg1977!!!!,,1st place for bringing up stewarts name,,and you get bonus points on top of that,,his name was never mentioned in the article!!!!!!!!!!!,,,,nice
HandlebarDragger - Who gives a "shit" about your or you're - You must have been picked on badly as a child and now always look for fault in people. Also, are you seriously faulting (yet another) regarding vertebrae? You seriously need to get a life - You're (is that correct?) a complete moron...
Motodog - Are you serious about ripping on this kid? You must of got your ass beat by him or he must of beat one of your family members ass badly. This kid has a ton of talent, heart and desire to win. When was the last time we seen a rookie kid with so much promise.
Z. Bell - this guy is classless and you rock. Thank you for the great rides and leading the "best" of them in the fastest class of all time. Heal up soon, can't wait to see you tearing it up again. Hopefully J. Martin can garner some of the success you showed in only a couple of rides, though he looks to be more like Kyle Peters than yourself of Bogle.
Note to team managers. When you have a young kid, you need to make it clear to him a top 20 finish is all your looking for. And on the pit board you need to say, "tired, slow down, lifetime of racing ahead of you." Once they have been of the circuit a year or two, then you can start pressuring them for wins. This kid has the skills to be one of the best. He just needs his body to catch up to his ability, and that only happens once you are done growing, and working with the Bakers and Rynos of the world.
Scrub - You too need to get a life - These are message boards designed to simply post comments - Again whoever gives a shit about proper English on a message board has real issues... I've left you a number of an EAP help line to seek assistance 800-helpme4
Zach Bell Rocks!!! - Great job in the Pro ranks bud. 99% of all amatuers can only dream of doing what you've done in your couple races this year. See ya on the track "ripping" soon.
Can I get a Hell Ya for the 2012 CRF 250 Hondas? They are tearing up the 250 class this year. Geico Honda riders rule the earth...
Vetrider 19,
A lot of people give a "shit" about proper english usage. I am one of them. The inability to write correctly is a sign of a uneducated person. Uneducated people wind up working most of their lives in menial jobs with dismal futures ahead of them.
Stantdm - Really, you felt you needed to add/reply to this post regarding a open forum? - You coudln't be further off from the truth regarding successful people needing to be educated. Success come from the ability within, not a piece of paper that says I've graduated from college and i'm ready to take on the world. I know plenty of college grads that aren't close to making successful livings and plenty of non-college grads making that own their own companies, Sr VP's of companies etc. What's your point really Stantdm...How do you fit in this equation? Again one last reminder - This is an open talk forum, so who gives a "SHIT"...
When will the AMA take a hard look at the speed these guys are going? Nobody seems to want to accept the truth that the modern mx machines have FAR, FAR eclipsed the ability of the riders. Are we waiting for a Ryan Dungey, James Stewart, or a Chad Reed to get killed before the AMA wakes up?. The bikes need to get slower.... plain and simple. I predict 2013 will be an even worse year for injuries, and will be a wake up call for the AMA to do something.
Restrict the speed of Motocross bikes? Really? Hummmmmm....
Is the sport just for people under 25? Trainers should be training. Injuries happen at any and all levels. Kids need guidance and sometimes they make mistakes. He will either learn or keep getting hurt, just like everyone else.
Love the discussion about the English language. It is one of the hardest to learn, but just like motocross, practice makes perfect. I think @handlebardragger was correct to state to the writers of this column that they need to learn. It is their chosen profession and there is no excuse for poor proofreading and editting their copy.
Anyhoo, glad to see there are some intelligent bloggers out here willing to teach each other.
ahh this sucks! this guy had the speed for the front, sucks he got injured :/ should be good to see him back in 2013!
on a side note, why is everyone sayin to everyone to get a life?