A Perth trade printer has smashed his elbow into 50 pieces after a high-speed jet boat crash.

Large Format Media owner Rod Wood told ProPrint he also cracked his shoulder blade, tore ligaments and bone off his knee, fractured his shin and heel, and suffered "plenty of bruises".

Wood injured himself on 2 November. His boat clipped some tyres, flew through the air, flipped three times, crashed on to the bank and then slammed into a fence.

He said his safety gear functioned well, but offered no protection when the boat smashed into his elbow.

His elbow was treated in a three-hour operation on 5 November. It will take 12 months before it is back to 80% movement, which is the maximum recovery expected by the surgeon.

"I can't lift anything. At the moment, I'm basically taking phone calls and doing a few quotes, and I've got the other guys doing any physical work," he said.

"I can move around, which is good, but I'm sore and I get tired because I'm on a lot of painkillers."

Wood told ProPrint that his elbow was steadily getting better but that he could only work half days at the moment.

He said the crash had caused about $10,000 worth of damage to his boat – and that it was the first time anyone at his club had broken any bones since he started racing five years ago.

"I've crashed before, but only minor. I've rolled one boat over once, but nothing more than a couple of bruises are all I've ever had before."

Wood said the intense pain from the accident hadn't dissuaded him from wanting to return to the water. He added that it would be at least a year before he could race again.

[Related: More WA news]

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