Waikato hoop Darren Danis is on the sidelines once more after sustaining a fractured neck following an incident at the Waipa trials last Monday.

Danis was about to ride Beau Miller in his first trial for trainer Janenne Dalley, but the three-year-old gelding showed his greenness when entering the gates and took fright, dislodging Danis, who suffered whiplash in the process, resulting in his injuries.

“I was riding a first time trialler who got scared going into the gates,” Danis said. “I (fractured) my C4 and C5 (vertebrae), which is right in the middle of the neck, and I have torn some ligaments there. The doctors reckon it is from whiplash.”

Danis is now forced to wear a body suit brace for the next six weeks while his injuries heal, which is proving to be a frustrating process for the active horseman.

“I am in a body suit, which is like a neck brace but continues down to the chest,” he said.

“If someone comes from the side to say hello, I have to turn my entire body to see them, and I can’t drive because I can’t check my blind spots.

“Sleeping is the worst. It feels a bit claustrophobic with this thing on 24 hours a day.

“Luckily, I have got Hayley (Hassman), my partner, she has been helping me out a lot.”

Major injuries are nothing new to the 32-year-old Singapore native, having broken his back several years ago in another riding incident, and he said last week’s pain was nearly identical.

“In the ambulance, I was telling the lady (paramedic) that my neck hurt and it was the exact pain as when I broke my back,” Danis said. “I could pinpoint which vertebrae and which spot, it was a similar sharp pain, so I knew it was broken.

“But I could feel my fingers and toes, and all the sensations, so that was a good sign.”

With multiple injuries over his riding career, Danis said he has built up a high pain threshold, and it’s the limiting ability of the body brace that is the major frustration at the moment.

“They were asking me if I wanted more pain killers in the hospital, but I told them it was okay. I have got a high pain threshold as I have been there and done that,” he said.

“It is only the brace that is annoying because even when I broke my back, I didn’t have to wear this, I was back up and walking within two weeks.”

Danis has recently returned from a riding stint in Singapore and was working hard to reestablish himself in New Zealand’s riding ranks, something he has been forced to do on several occasions.

While he still has a passion for horses and riding, he said it will be another test of his tenacity to break into the competitive Waikato riding scene once more after he has healed.

“I have been unlucky, it happened just as I started to get on a roll again,” he said. “It was a bit quiet when I came back from Singapore and as I just start to get more rides this happens at the trials.

“It has been quite a rough ride with these injuries. There is a lot of competition nowadays and you have to get a roll on and the moment you step out of the scene you lose your spot. That is the difficult part about it.

“I still love the game, and I still love the horses. I just have to keep my spirits high and keep my options open.”