Danny Brackett, Har-Ber High School principal, said Thursday he’s still struggling with fatigue stemming from a concussion suffered in a motorcycle accident last week.
The accident occurred while Brackett was traveling on Har-Ber Avenue, just north of the school, about 7:15 a.m. Sept. 12. He’s thankful he was wearing a helmet at the time.
“I was blessed by God’s grace to have my helmet on,” Brackett said. “If I hadn’t had my helmet on, it might have been a different story.”
Brackett said he was distracted by a vehicle approaching him from a side road. When he turned his attention back to the road in front of him, the sun was in his eyes, and he realized a truck had stopped suddenly at a crosswalk.
Fast Facts
Motorcycles
w Motorcycle crashes killed 4,502 people in the U.S. in 2010.
w Motorcycle-related deaths have increased by 55 percent since 2000.
w Helmets are estimated to prevent 37 percent of crash deaths among motorcycle riders and 41 percent of deaths for motorcycle passengers.
w Arkansas requires riders age 20 and younger wear helmets.
Source: Centers For Disease Control And Prevention
He tried to get in the left lane to avoid the truck before realizing there were students crossing the road, so he tried to lay his motorcycle down.
Brackett said he doesn’t think he lost consciousness.
The concussion was at least the fifth for Brackett. Most of his previous concussions occurred while playing sports as a youth.
Because of his age and concussion history, Brackett said, his recovery time likely will be “longer rather than shorter.” He has had to work part-time some days since the accident.
Brackett said he’s been riding motorcycles for much of his adult life. He’s had the motorcycle he was riding, a Harley-Davidson, for only two weeks. Besides some scratches and a broken mirror, it’s still in fine shape, he said.
Superintendent Jim Rollins said he was shocked by news of the accident.
“We’re extremely thankful that Dr. Brackett’s injuries were not even more severe than they were,” Rollins said. “It’s clear that he’s needing some additional time to recover from the accident, but we’re optimistic that, given time, he will resume his normal leadership role at the school.”
At least two public officials from Northwest Arkansas have died in motorcycle accidents within the past year.
J.D. Shrum, a Bella Vista alderman, died Dec. 30 when he failed to negotiate a curve and ran his motorcycle into a ditch. Joe Landers, longtime Lowell police chief, died May 4 from injuries suffered a week earlier when a vehicle collided with the motorcycle he was driving while on vacation in Florida.
Brackett started wearing a helmet regularly only a week before his accident, following a conversation with a teacher who implored him to wear one.
“I don’t think I’ll ride again without a helmet,” Brackett said.