Meet Adaptive Athlete: Jeffery Smith

Jeff started motocross at the age of eight, competing in local competitions in the Chino Hills area before a big invite to the World Minis in Vegas. Sadly, he had a training accident in preparation, causing years of surgeries and recovery. By the age of 12, he was able to be active again, getting involved in baseball, football, waterpolo, and swim team.

Growing up with his grandfather as a strong influence in his life, Jeff was taught to have a high level of respect for all people, especially police officers. This led him to pursue becoming a cop. He went through academy and was sworn in as an officer in May of 2007. His first job was inmate transportation with the Robert Presley Detention Center in Riverside, transporting inmates from county to state prisons and back for court hearings and the like.

He switched roles in 2008 to a patrol officer in Jurupa Valley. It was there that he became a certified Traffic Accident Reconstructionist, investigating and recreating incidents on the road. He was often getting new relevant certificates for the job.

On November 2, 2015, Jeff was on his way to an Auto vs Pedestrian class, where he would learn what the human body does when affected by another object, when he was struck on his motorcycle by a car. He flew off his bike and the woman fled the scene. Jeff jumped up and seemed to be okay. Paramedics checked him out and Jeff opted to go home after the accident. Later that night, with encouragement from his wife, Jeff went and got checked out where they discovered internal bleeding and kept him for a week to monitor the situation.

Shortly after being discharged, Jeff’s right leg began to swell. He was treated with blood clot medication and told to elevate, but the swelling didn’t stop, until ultimately his skin started ripping open under the pressure. His doctor still didn’t take action, so Jeff went to the ER where they immediately diagnosed the problem. His blood flow had gotten so poor that his leg wasn’t able to pump blood back to his heart, causing the swelling.

The surgery to save his leg was too little too late, and he was told his leg was dead. On February 23rd, 2016, Jeff opted to have his leg amputated, struggling immediately with a lot of phantom pain and having suicidal thoughts as a result. Jeff endured another four revision surgeries through the next few years to help ease the pain, moving to Texas in the meantime. Jeff chose to amputate above the knee on February 3rd, 2020 and since then has essentially been pain free.

Now, Jeff is relearning to walk as an above knee amputee, going through physical therapy three times a week, all while raising his three girls: 16, 13, and 8 years old and continuing his job with Liberty investigating insurance fraud.

During the ReDefine program, Jeff first wants to get rid of his “gangster walk”, improving issues with his gait and loosening his tight hip flexor muscles. He also wants to focus on gaining strength and the ability to manage his body better, with the goal of returning to household tasks and chores without skipping a beat. Mentally, Jeff wants to shift his thinking to what he can do, instead of what he can’t.

Beyond the class, Jeff is looking to get back into the things he loves again, like packing up his fishing stuff, heading down to a river and spending the day there. He would also love to get into rowing or kayaking competitions. His goal is to try new things and have more trust with what he’s able to do with his prosthetic.