AFTER he was crushed between two forklift trucks in a horrific accident, Bert Logan was told he would never run again.
The 51-year-old – who had completed 22 marathons and 121 half marathons – suffered a cracked pelvis and trapped nerves in his legs and needed three months of hospital treatment.
But three years later, he is confounding the expert opinions of two d
octors and one specialist by training for his eighth London Marathon in April.
Mr Logan, of Prestonpans, who has an impressive personal best of two hours and 45 minutes for the 26-mile run, said: “It annoyed me that the doctors were so adamant I would never run again. I was depressed enough without hearing that.
“I hope what I have been able to do will give hope to other people who suffer serious injury. I’m really pleased with the progress I’ve made. When I’m running I don’t feel too bad. I’ve done a couple of half marathons. My times are not quite as quick as they were. My best half marathon is one hour 16 minutes.”
Mr Logan was a warehouse manager at Vogue House Furnishers in Newbridge, where he had worked for 21 years, when he was trapped between the forklift trucks in June 2005.
He said: “I thought I was going to die. I was conscious throughout but I could not breathe. I was panicking. My pelvis and down my left leg went numb – I thought, ‘This is big time serious’.”
He was treated at Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, where there were further complications. He was told his high level of fitness might have helped save his life.
Mr Logan said: “I had an abscess in my leg. They drained that, which was quite straightforward, but then that got infected, which burst a main artery.
“That night I was half an hour from dying. I lost 15 units of blood in four hours – more than there is in the body. They were panicking that they could not pump the blood back in fast enough.
“When I woke in the high dependency unit, the doctor said if I hadn’t been a marathon runner – if I had been a smoker or a drinker or overweight – I would have had a problem.
“Two of the nurses said that when they took me away, they didn’t think I’d be coming back.”
Even after leaving hospital in August 2005, Mr Logan was confined to the house for a month before he was able to go on short walks with the aid of crutches.
But just months later, to the astonishment of doctors, he was jogging once more.
Mr Logan, who received £50,000 in compensation, said: “The doctor said after an injury like that, most people would not be walking, let alone jogging.
“I still have trapped nerves in my legs and that can be painful at night. I don’t know how long it will take to go away: it could be two years, it could be four years, or it could be never.
“But my love of running has kept me going and London will be my big test.”
