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July 16-18, 2010 • Carson, CA
The Home Depot Center Sports Complex
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Ben Hopkins Training for 2011
Injured Athlete From SoCal Stages His Comeback
Ben Hopkins put his name on the CrossFit map with a breakout performance at the SoCal Sectional. His dominant performance earned him the second overall spot. However, shortly before he was due to compete at the Southwest Regional Ben was in an accident that abrubtly ended his Games dreams. A motorist cut off Ben's motorcycle and sent him flying. He bounced off of a number of other vehicles before he slid to a stop. Ben suffered a shattered collar bone and road rash, but he recognizes things could have ended far worse. He credits his physical resilience to his training.
Ben is now 3 months into his recovery. He is training hard, opening an affiliate, and looking forward to the 2011 CrossFit Games Season. He sent us the following update.
I had surgery on April 28th to repair a badly broken collar bone. My left collar bone was shattered into 4 pieces, and even broken in half on a vertical plane as well. It was a hot mess in there. But I was given a great surgeon, and he fixed me up. A plate and 7 screws later, and i'm hitting WODs again. 5 weeks after my surgery, i was back in the box. I took it slow and scaled a lot of stuff, but the recovery went fairly quickly. 6 weeks of physical therapy also helped break up scar tissue, and regain my mobility. I healed very quickly (I credit fish oil). The only thing slow to come back is overhead lifts, like OH Squats and Snatching. Everything else seems to be strong.
The accident made me step back and look at what I was doing, not just with CrossFit, but with my career, and life goals. I recently made the decision to quit my job as a furniture designer, and open a box in LA with Matthew Aporta, a really good friend of mine. I got my level one certification a week after the games, and plan on adding a lot more certs to my resume. Matt and I are currently looking for the perfect space to open our box, and have a lot of great ideas in store for it.
I have been doing CrossFit for 1 year and 9 months to date. I have a massive amount of room to grow, and am looking forward to next years sectionals, regionals, and games. This years games made me realize the level of dedication it takes, and I am ready to take it there.
7 comments on this entry
1. Adam Kayce wrote...
Good on you, Ben; way to get back after it. And good luck on your new career path!
19 August 2010 / 8:13 a.m.
2. Scott Lewis wrote...
Great comeback Ben. Good luck with everything.
19 August 2010 / 9:15 a.m.
3. Pat Sherwood wrote...
Good luck, Ben. Be smart, listen to your body, and take it slow. You will be 100% before you realize it. I think one of the toughest things for a CrossFitter to do is NOT work out, even when they know it is for the long term good. I wish you the best with your training.
19 August 2010 / 12:54 p.m.
4. Z wrote...
Kick ass, Ben! Great to see you're doing well.
19 August 2010 / 2:47 p.m.
5. Kimberly Malz wrote...
Great display of perseverance Ben~keep up your fantastic comeback!
Best wishes to you and your buddy Matt for a very successful CF Box.
Best,
Kim Malz
20 August 2010 / 3:30 a.m.
6. Ed Hopkins wrote...
very proud of you Ben, keep up the hard work and give thanks and praise to the only one who is worthy. Amen.
22 August 2010 / 4:19 p.m.
7. Glissel wrote...
Praise God! Your determination will get you back in no time! Good luck & best wishes to you!
26 August 2010 / 12:30 p.m.