On Wednesday, Barbro Elfqvist had the worst phone call of his life.

Her 34-year-old son had crashed unhappily on a mountain bike and was flown by ambulance helicopter to Uppsala. He then hovered between life and death. Family and girlfriend packed their things and went up the same evening.

Fell in a drop

Alexander was at the Järvsö mountain bike park facility with two friends when he crashed at a so-called drop - a jump from a ledge with a height difference downwards.

According to a witness, it looked as if Alexander braked just before the ledge, the mother says.

- I do not know why he did it, he has cycled mountain bikes before and knows that you should not do so. But something happened.

He fell so badly that he suffered a severe brain haemorrhage. A doctor and a firefighter who were at the scene helped keep the neck fixed until an ambulance arrived.

Third accident

Alexander is the third person to be seriously injured in two weeks. All accidents have occurred on the trail "twist twist". A so-called red course, the second most difficult on a four-point scale. Two of the accidents also occurred at the same location.

The track is now closed but Barbro Ellqvist believes that it should have happened earlier. She believes that the facility should at least have informed visitors that there have been accidents on the trail in question in the past.

- People must have a reasonable chance to be able to think, I will go here.

She experiences frustration that no one takes responsibility for the accidents and questions the facility's safety routines. She is now considering making a police report to get a proper investigation.

- Alexander would never have gone there if he knew that the track was in an accident, she says.

Certificate requirements

She believes that there should also be some form of control so that not too inexperienced cyclists can get into the most difficult tracks

- I do not think that anyone should be allowed to go there. One should review whether any form of training and certificate is required.

Alexander's condition has stabilized somewhat but the future is still uncertain. He has moved to Lund to be closer to his family in Falkenberg.

- We hope for a miracle, that he will wake up and that we will get him back, says Barbro Ellqvist. 

Read the interview with the CEO of Järvsö mountain bike park here.