Man Breaks World Record for Getting Hit, Thrown By Car

Matthew McKnightMatthew McKnight holds a death-defying world record that not even the most courageous daredevil would seek to break.

Six years ago, Mr. McKnight of Fayette County was struck by a car doing 70 mph (112 km/h) along Interstate 376 in Monroeville while he was trying to aid two accident victims. He was thrown 118 feet (36 meters) -- about the height of a 12-story building -- and lived to tell the tale.

Mr. McKnight became the holder of a Guinness World Records mark in 2003. And just last month he discovered that his feat -- unsolicited as it was -- finally earned a hard-copy entry in the encyclopedia of superlatives' 2008 edition.

Mr. McKnight remembers nothing but snippets of the first few hours of his ordeal. He spent two weeks in the hospital and another 80 days between two rehabilitation centers. He took his first steps Jan. 14, 2002, and returned to work that April.

"I was devastated. There was talk that I may never walk again," Mr. McKnight said. "I was determined to prove them wrong."

To see Mr. McKnight today, one wouldn't guess that he had once broken his pelvis, shoulder, lower leg and tailbone. He walks without a limp, said he pops only an occasional over-the-counter painkiller and is back to fighting fires and rescuing those in need.

Mr. McKnight said he wouldn't hesitate to stop by the side of the road to help someone again and, in fact, has done so several times.

Source: Post-Gazette
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