They say that a near death experience can leave you fearful – or it can make you embrace life. Comrades finisher Skye da Silva is definitely throwing both arms around the world.
Skye da Silva is not like most runners. You know, the ones who might not feel like tying up their laces but absolutely love the feeling of a racing heart once they get going. “I actually hate it,” she says candidly. So why does she do it? “Because the ability to run was nearly taken away from me, so while I might not enjoy running itself, there is no joy quite like having the ability to do it.”
Skye is referring to the cycle accident she had in December 2022, which left her in an induced coma for three weeks, only to wake up with facial deformities from broken bones, a torn trachea and collapsed lungs, needing help to learn to walk and talk again.
She and some friends from her triathlon squad had been on a training ride in Bela Bela when the accident happened. Losing balance momentarily, she had fallen off her bike and was just registering her embarrassment at this stumble when she had a sensation of immense pressure. She had just registered that the support vehicle, not seeing her, had ridden over her – and then the pain set in. “I remember thinking that few people survive pain of this magnitude,” Skye says.
But survive, she did – despite her doctors’ expectations. “One of my doctors told me there was only so much they could do. The rest was up to me and God.”
Clearly, those doctors hadn’t reckoned on Skye’s fighting spirit. She explains that she had taken up triathlon training in an effort to shake off post-divorce blues. The fallout of her accident therefore seemed doubly cruel, and when Skye was told that she would require six months in a step-down facility to recover fully, she felt ready to give up. “I had woken up from the coma in so much pain. My face was sewn up, my jaw was wired shut, I couldn’t blink and I just felt so weak. But then, one day, an orderly wheeled me outside – just for a minute or two, on my way to an appointment with one of my doctors. I felt the warmth of the sun on my skin, and I just thought ‘This is the best feeling’. I am here despite everything, and life really is beautiful.”
That was the trigger for Skye to pour all her energy into her recovery. Although she was not allowed to leave her hospital ward, she spent hours walking up and down, practicing exercises from her speech and physio therapists – with the result that she was released just 10 days after waking up.
Now came the real hard work – and it really was hard. Skye says that it was her father who kept her going during this time, just as he had galvanised her throughout her life. “He walked with me every day, first 10 steps, then one kilometer.” By February, she was running, as she had for most of her life. Determined to celebrate her second chance at life, Skye mentioned to her medical team her goal of ultimately running the Comrades Marathon – but was warned that this was highly unlikely, as the past damage to her lungs meant they would not be able to withstand the strain. Again, it was her father who propped her up. “It was so discouraging to watch my squad training for the race, but my dad reminded me that I was running my own race; the only person I should compete against was myself.” Buoyed by those words, Skye’s lifelong Comrades dream remained as strong as ever – and so, despite the advice of her medical team, she asked her coach to help her train for the next one. His answer was unequivocal: “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
Sadly, Skye’s father, Joe, didn’t get to see his daughter clear the finish line – he passed away unexpectedly as a result of a silent heart attack just days before she was to run her qualifying race. Once again, Skye had to drag herself back from a very dark place. For a long time, she didn’t care about running – but her squad would not let her give up. “They helped me move towards the light,” she says, recalling that they urged her on until she fulfilled the Comrades dream her father had helped her nurture.
More impressive still was her decision, five months later, to get back in the saddle and ride the 947 Ride Joburg. “It was the most larger-than-life day. Training and preparing for the race, even putting my bike in the car for a ride, took an enormous emotional toll, but I ended the race confident and happy, surrounded by some very special friends. During the race, I remembered something my father told me: He said that it was one thing if I decided I didn’t want to ride again – but I shouldn’t allow myself to be ruled by fear. He told me that I must not let the accident define me. I have to write my own story.”
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Taking control
Skye’s advice for people who find themselves stuck in a dark place? “There’s a quote from a movie that’s stuck in my head. Don’t be a product of your environment, rather, make your environment be a product of you. It reminds me that every moment is about choice.”
Text: LISA WITEPSKI. • Main photo: MEGAN BRETT
