When former professional bull rider Sam O'Connor suffered a life-changing, spinal cord injury bucking out five years ago, few would have envisaged he would be where he is today.
Doggedly determined, despite the injury and other life challenges, Sam has never let his injury get in the way of life.
Notwithstanding some dark moments where he questioned the direction he was taking, the gutsy larrikin, raised in Malanda, west of Cairns, has made a remarkable return to a profession he enjoyed prior to his accident - contract fencing, with his business, Roll Out Contracting.
"I was competing at the Rockhampton PBR on New Year's Eve 2017," Sam said.
"I was riding a bull that I had rode earlier on in the year at Mount Isa and he bucked me off at 7.9 seconds.
"I thought it would be a good rematch and was hoping he wasn't going to buck me off again."
What happened next reshaped Sam's life.
"I landed in a scorpion position and I could feel everything when I landed, but the bull jumped over the top of me. He squatted over me and put a bit of extra weight where he shouldn't have," he said.
"I felt everything break."
Having enjoyed an illustrious career riding bulls all over the world - reaching the top 10 ranked bull riders in Australia and number 40 in the world - Sam was no stranger to meeting challenges head-on.
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He was forced to draw on every inch of courage as he faced the biggest challenge of his life - complete paraplegia.
A three-year intensive rehabilitation program with the renowned Ken Ware NeuroPhysics Therapy on the Gold Coast followed.
"The doctors told me every week, there's nothing we can do," Sam recalled.
"I went to Ken Ware to get some kind of movement back so I could get up on my feet as much as I possibly could."
At the conclusion of his therapy, Sam's movement improved.
"It gave me stability to sit up in my chair and bend over," he said.
"If I put braces on (my legs), I can stand up and walk with a pair of crutches - pretty well against all the belief of the doctors."
When his relationship broke down, a former bull riding colleague and fencing contractor Mick Krienke reached out to Sam, and offered him a contract in the Northern Territory.
Fencing and yard building was all Sam knew prior to the accident, and after taking some time to ponder - and "second guess myself" - Sam decided to take Mick up on his offer.
He packed up and drove to Brunette Downs, 216km northeast of Tennant Creek, where he was soon joined by his right-hand man, Deiken "Dirt" Borg. Together they worked on 170km of fencing; Sam driving a modified vehicle and helping where he could.
They did a job at Kununurra, Western Australia, and Elliott, between the Three Ways and Katherine - all up some 240km of fencing - before returning to Queensland.
Sam credits his mates for helping him turn his life around.
"Within about a month in the Northern Territory, my mind was back to being unreal," Sam said.
"There was no second guessing myself - the crew brought back the old Sam that was there before the accident, the happy guy that was always keen to have a go and the one that would just have a go.
"The one who said, if you can't do it, work out a different way."
Sam has since based himself in Townsville and after taking a couple of fencing jobs for the CEO of the PBR, the adventure continues. He caters for town and rural jobs, with a caravan at the ready for bush trips.
"It's rolled on from there," Sam said.
"I never thought I would say it but I miss the barb wire."
Potential clients are surprised when Sam arrives to quote - perplexed at how he will manage to do the job.
"I turn up to quote and they look at you in the chair and wonder how it's going to get done," Sam said.
"Nothing is impossible. I'm pretty handy getting around in this wheelchair and have got a good crew."
Sam also serves as a sales representative for National Steel Traders - which provides a direct supply of steel products to Australian customers, again an arrangement realised through his bull riding connections.
Sam admits to missing his old life everyday - "bull riding was the best lifestyle" - yet rather than wallow in the tragedy he's proven anything is possible.
"Never say never," he said.
"There's always a way if you want to do it. If you have a bit of want about you, you can do anything."
