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Man plans one-handed drive for Bristol charity
Despite having a major stroke in 2014, Eddie Ruskin’s wasn’t going to let that stop him from being passionate about all things cars and driving.
He is now planning to drive the 874 miles from Lands End to John O’ Groats on June 21 to raise money for the charity Bristol Area Stoke Foundation. And, if the challenge wasn’t already great enough, he will have to drive one-handed after the stroke caused one of his hands to stop working.
His car, a Mitsubishi Mirage, has been specifically designed for him to be able to drive unassisted. To maximise his chances of success, Eddie will embark on his journey on the longest day of the year.
Eddie’s strokes have impacted him severely. After suffering a stroke at 45 in 2014, he was left with left-side paralysis, and even though he is now able to walk with the aid of a stick, his arms have very little movement.
But this just made Eddie even more determined to drive, and he took up the challenge of completing the necessary training and reassessment to be able to gain a license again. He is now an advanced driver with the Institute of Advanced Motoring.
“My phone dropped from my hand,” Eddie says of the moment he had the stroke. “I was alone in the workshop and it was dark and cold. Realizing an ambulance wouldn’t find me where I was meant that the only thing to do was to drive home.” He says that his doctors are unsure how he managed to drive home, or why the stroke happened.
Since the stroke, Eddie has realized that even though he is lucky to be able to continue his dream, the same can’t be said for many survivors. That’s why he has decide to raise money for the Bristol Area Stroke Foundation: a charity that supports over 700 people who suffer from strokes a year in the local area.
Read more: Interview – Nick Butter
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