“Never forget that your life is always in front of you, that it’s fun and that it’s wonderful.”
A single sentence that sums up everything the race2recovery team of injured soldiers set out to prove; everything that, in fact, they did prove – in sensational style.
On Saturday evening, amid ecstatic scenes in the Chilean capital of Santiago, two members of the 28-strong team nursed their 4×4 vehicle – which they nicknamed Joy – across the hot, dusty finishing line to complete arguably the toughest race in the world – the Dakar Rally.
As they did so, Ballymena-born soldier Corporal Philip ‘Barney’ Gillespie (the co-driver) and his driver, Major Matt O’Hare, made history; they became the first ever disability team to finish the legendary event.
Twenty-four-year old Barney lost a leg when he stood on an improvised explosive device (IED) in Afghanistan’s Helmand Province two years ago.
Continue reading. – BBC
