Tony Shaw reins ultimate race

Crash survivor cheats death

Striding out on a treadmill in his tracksuit, he could be any sportsman preparing for a weekend match.

The man beside him is no ordinary personal trainer, however, and the headgear he's wearing isn't to protect him for a friendly sparring match.

It's a life-and-death battle that Tony Shaw's been fighting, and when he takes off the headgear his impossibly sunken head is scary proof of that.

But here, in Hamilton's Guardian At Phoenix Rehabilitation Unit, one of harness racing's most popular names is winning the most important race of his life.

One month after 'Shawsy' was smashed up in a crash at Auckland's Alexandra Park, he's making a miracle recovery.

There might still be a huge piece of his skull missing, and only a thin layer of skin protecting his brain, but every day the Cambridge trainer- driver continues to amaze the doctors and rehab staff.

And, in a few weeks, when surgeons operate to replace the section of skull they removed to save his life, it's likely Shaw will be back home for the next stage of his recovery.

That, says Phoenix's occupational therapist Kim Metcalfe, is remarkable, considering how close Shaw came to dying, and the severity of his brain injury.

"When he came in here a week ago you'd have said it might be a year before he came right.

"You would have expected him to have trouble with his speech and with walking."

There's no sign of any of that as physio assistant Satish Lakavathu supervises Shaw's 15-minute session on the treadmill.

While Shaw still needs to wear a brace to protect his neck from over- extending, Lakavathu says his patient's co-ordination and balance is good. His next test will be on uphill and uneven surfaces, but a betting man would have Shaw a hot favourite to clear that hurdle.

While luck has obviously been on his side - glance round the room and many of his companions are in wheelchairs and struggling to regain their speech - Metcalfe says Shaw is very determined.

"His attitude has helped and so has the support of his family and friends." Shaw is fielding so many visitors each day Phoenix manager Josie Reid told Shaw's wife Hayley she was very concerned it might tire him out.

"Tony's so well known, even more than I thought. He's such a likeable guy and has no enemies." Hayley Shaw says she's been overwhelmed by the number of people who have volunteered with both hands-on help and donations. "Everyone's chipped in. Even some of the parents from the kids' school have dropped off meals."

When Tony came home for the day last Sunday to celebrate his 41st birthday he even found new fences on their farm. "My dad's been doing the fences and the cows," Hayley Shaw said. "Tony's dad has been doing the horses at Morrinsville. Peter (Ferguson) has been driving the truck . . ."

"Tony really enjoyed being home for the day and though he was quite lethargic we had a lovely time. We had a roast lamb lunch and feasted on ice-cream cake.

"The kids couldn't stop hugging Tony and wanted to sit beside him. But that's because he's been such a hands-on dad, the children are with him all the time."

Incredibly, Shaw has made further gains in just the last few days - even enjoying a cafe lunch with friends last Wednesday - and his tired spells have all but gone. Last Thursday night, he watched the Cambridge trots at his sister Joanne's place. And tomorrow, during a family meeting, some new goals will be set for the next recovery phase. It's been a draining four weeks for Hayley, juggling visits to see Tony, tending to their three young boys, meeting with doctors, and doing chores on the farm.

Another of Tony's sisters, Sandy, has shouldered a lot of the work at home, but now she's due to return to Malaysia, Hayley has found a live-in nanny to help out.

"The kids love her and it will be nice to have another pair of hands."

Her big problem now will be trying to slow Tony down when he comes home.

"He's making great progress but he has a little way to go yet," she says.

As for Shaw, he says he can't wait to get back in the cart. "When I got to this place I couldn't stop thinking how long it would take to get back to where I was. But I'm not tired any more and a lot of the stuff I'm doing is getting easier."

Don't expect the smash to weigh on his mind either.

"I've seen it on DVD and it didn't look that bad," he says nonchalantly.

"I'll be back driving before that horse gets back to the races."

- © Fairfax NZ News