MUM Lynn Wilding today called on youngsters to wear proper safety gear for dangerous sports after her cyclist son nearly died in a fall.

Thomas Hardye School pupil Scott, 13, suffered a fractured skull and underwent an emergency, three-hour operation to save his life after he came off his BMX.

The bike somersaulted over him on a steep hill at Maumbury Rings in Dorchester and the handlebar rammed into the back of his head, narrowly missing a major artery.

Scott, of Fortress Green, Dorchester, said: "I was going down this hill and my wheel came out of the track. I fell forward and the bike came over me. I remember I got up and I felt really dizzy."

Scott's friend Billy-Joe Ward, 13, rushed to help and put his hand over the wound to stop the bleeding.

Billy-Joe, 13, of Kings Road, Dorchester, said: "He was going down the hill when his wheel came out of the track and the bike came down over him.

"It landed on the back of his head.

"I went over and put my hand on the back of his head, where it was bleeding. There were some people nearby with a first aid kit so I led Scott towards them."

First aid-trained youth leaders Anthea Wickens, Sandra Hewish and Debbie Winn were at the site with a youth group and applied medical wadding to the back of Scott's head.

Mrs Wickens, of Vespasian Way, Dorchester, said: "He must have landed on something jolly hard and it broke a hole in the back of his head. It was pretty serious."

They alerted Dorset ambulance and Scott's mum Lynn, 34, who said: "It was panic, real sheer worry. They said Scott had gashed his head open."

The youngster was taken to Dorset County Hospital before being transferred by ambulance to Southampton General Hospital.

Doctors carried out an emergency operation after Scott's condition worsened.

Lynn said: "They said it was life-threatening. I broke down. I thought we were going to lose him. His dad Julian and sister Sarah, 12, were also crying and in shock."

Hair and fragments of bone had been pushed three quarters of an inch into Scott's head.

Lynn said: "He was very lucky, because it was a fraction away from the main artery in the head. It just missed the brain. He is very lucky to be here.

"Now I feel relieved, but very frightened. It's a very nasty experience to have to go through.

"It's a message that's got to get out to youngsters and their parents - please be very careful on in-line skates, skateboards or bikes and make sure you wear full protection, otherwise you could be as unlucky as Scott was."

Scott said: "If I was wearing a helmet I wouldn't have had this. I'd say to my friends wear a helmet ."

They thanked staff at both hospitals and those who helped Scott at the scene.