EXCERPT | ‘The end of my first life’ – Grant Lottering tells of the horrific crash that stopped his heart but didn’t defeat him

BOOK: Riding Life by Grant Lottering with David Gardner. (Tafelberg)

In 2013, champion cyclist Grant Lottering’s heart stopped after a gruesome accident in the Italian Alps. Doctors said he would never ride again. Since then, he has completed many gruelling rides through some of the toughest terrain on the planet. The first South African to complete a solo, non-stop 420-kilometre ultra-endurance ride through the northern French Alps in under 24 hours, Lottering has endured numerous rides previously thought to be impossible, while raising millions for charities. Loitering tells his story in Riding Life (Tafelberg). In this excerpt, he describes the crash that (almost) killed him.