WINNIPEG -- A Winnipeg race car driver was left with several injuries, including a collapsed lung, following a severe crash on Saturday at a Missouri race track.
Amber Balcaen was racing in the POWRi National Racing Series when her car flipped multiple times into the fence.
"I don't remember anything, I completely blacked out," said Balcaen.
"When I came to, I kind of remember the medics around my car."
Balcaen was loaded into an ambulance and taken to the hospital. On the way, she was given a shot of adrenaline because she couldn't feel her limbs.
"My fiancé, Jordan and I, we are engaged, and all I could think of was, ‘I want to be able to walk down the aisle, and I might not be able to because I can't feel my legs,’" she said.
She also suffered a severe concussion, limited mobility and a few small burns.
Balcaen noted her two CT scans came back okay, and she's on the mend.
"The nurses took care of me, and I'm getting better every hour," she said.
Balcaen believes that without the proper safety gear, the crash would have ended very differently.
She said her x-rays are complete, and her lung is looking better. She expects to be cleared to leave the hospital on Monday.
In 2016, Balcaen was the first Canadian woman to win a Nascar-sanctioned race and was presented with an outstanding achievement medal from the City of Winnipeg.
When asked if she would continue racing once she got better, she said, "I'll take it day by day."
