26 year old Adam Hari is planning to race in the World HPV (Human Powered Vehicle) Challenge which is a cycling event 800 km north east of San Francisco in Sept 2017. The training for this event requires discipline, strength and endurance. So what’s a little bit of pain in the dental chair, compared to the mental and physical tests that Adam puts himself through on his bike? We catch up with Adam about his cycling plans and the bike accident that smashed his teeth …
What do you do in your typical week?
I work for council as an electrician. I train or cycle from 1-4 hours per day in the morning and afternoon. It’s my down time. It’s about 2 hours in the gym and 2 hours cycling and the more energy I burn, the better. I do sprint training and hill climbs. I try to do everything during the week so that on the weekend I can relax and do nothing, or chill out with friends.
How long have you been cycling for?
About 7 years – I broke my ankle playing first grade soccer so I couldn’t really run after that. Cycling is a more physically demanding sport and I like it because you can push yourself as an individual to reach the level you desire.
Tell us about the HPV race and what training you’ll be doing in preparation:
It’s an event that started in America in the 80s. In the last 5 years it has grown as technology has improved the competition. There are about 25 competitors each year, with a consistent 8-10 riders who may have ridden before. The challenge is not so much a race against each other. The core of the challenge is to do your best which is aiming to achieve the fastest speed possible and if it happens to beat the world record, that’s really good.
Tell us what happened on the day of your bike accident:
I had just got back from America where I was volunteering at WHPSC 2015, I drove to work the first day back and a workmate had a friendly go at me that I wasn’t back training on my bike. So the next day, I decided to ride.
I was riding to the gym early in the morning travelling along the Pacific Highway from Narara towards Brooks Ave, Wyoming. I was about 300m from the gym when I crashed. To this day, it is unclear whether I hit a trolley that was in the turning lane.
My mate who I was supposed to meet at the gym saw me and woke me up on the side of the road. It felt like I was having a dream. As he was waking me up, I felt everything rushing back to reality in a blur. I was looking across the road and recognizing the houses, thinking “what the hell am I doing here?” and hearing my friend’s voice, thinking “hey, what are you doing here?” I was trying to mouth my home phone number but it wasn’t really working because I had no front teeth, so I had to sign it with my hand. I passed out and woke up for 2 seconds in the ambulance and then I woke up in Hospital. I was there for 4 days and 3 nights, while they ran tests. Thankfully my MRI was clear and my vital signs all present and I passed all the memory tests. They finally discharged me and then I went straight to Wyoming Dental Surgery (because my mum goes there) to find out what treatment my teeth would need.
Dr Jeanne Chong : I met Adam on October 1, a couple of days after his accident. I remember the day well because I had finished work for the day and was about to leave! Turned out that Adam had fractured his 4 front teeth with a lot of cuts and grazes to his lip. Initially, we had to pull out one tooth and repair another 3 teeth with composite (white) fillings. Eventually, one of those teeth needed a root canal treatment.
Adam saw Dr Lydia Lim in Chatswood for the placement of an implant for the missing tooth. The surgery was done before Christmas 2015. After the area was healed, we began aesthetic work, planning the final implant and rebuilding the shape and design of the front teeth with more composite resin. I couldn’t persuade Adam to get a crown over the tooth that had root canal treatment for more superior aesthetics than the composite resin. It is now May 2016 and we are awaiting the final piece. Looking forward to getting this implant in!
What do you think of your dental treatment and your teeth?
I am really happy with the result. I am very thankful that this treatment is available. It did cost a lot but I had some help from my cycling insurance. The root canal treatment and the implant surgery didn’t hurt much but it was a little bit painful when the implant impression was removed. I say “Pain is temporary, it’ll be over in hour”, though really it only lasted 5 seconds. My teeth feel really normal and it’s as if the accident never happened. I’m looking forward to seeing the final result.
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