"I had nothing moving below my neck so I had to undergo intense physical and occupational therapy."
It was back to the drawing board for the daughter of Te Awamutu dairy farmers who had built a rapport with horses from the age of 4.
Things she once took for granted just became another process to tinker in a bid to return to the original template.
She went through a grieving chapter as well, every so often dragging herself into that imaginary witness box to subject herself to a grossly unfair cross-examination of "Why me?"
"You go through an angry phase."
No doubt Jones (nee Young) eventually arrived at a point of acceptance that dwelling on her cataclysmic mishap wasn't going to change anything.
"I realised this could happen to anyone. You could be driving and a car hits you. It happens every day."
She engaged in a fierce battle with her inner demons to shrug off the shackles of dependency on family and caregivers to gain a sense of self-worth again.
It wasn't until 2008, when she overcame a bout of post-natal depression in Hamilton, that it dawned on the mother of Ela, 10, and Astin, 7, she needed to embrace something her body was innately programmed for and still yearned - sport.
"I was very sporty so my husband said I should find something that suits."
Enter wheelchair rugby, a sport that caters for neck injury.
It didn't just become a pressure valve for physical exertion but also a mental one.
She represented Waikato in wheelchair rugger for six years before moving to Hawke's Bay two years ago after her husband, Glenn Jones, got a job here.
Jones, among a dozen athletes in those days, gleaned skills from Wheel Blacks coach Peter Martin.
The problem is the code is in dormancy in the Bay.
She wishes to rekindle a fire New Zealand men's wheelchair rugby captain, Sholto Taylor, had stoked here for almost a decade before moving to Christchurch four years ago.
Jones says: "Wheelchair rugby is actually called murder ball.
"It's awesome. It's not just a sport I love but it's an opportunity to interact with others in the same situation."
She is working with Sport Hawke's Bay to establish a Bay representative team and has set up a Facebook page (Hawke's Bay Wheelchair Rugby).
Having mustered six custom-built wheelchairs from around the country, she is indebted to Bay firm Hooker's and Toll Transport for delivering them free to her.
Jones, who this year is playing for the Manawatu team, welcomes donations to help foot the cost of travelling to tournaments as well as buying and maintaining equipment.
The provincial stage offers five competitions a year so it's an opportune time for the disabled to travel around the country.
Training three times a week with Lisa Ju, of Peak Fitness in Havelock North, she hand cycles from her Frimley home about 40km to 60km a week.
"It keeps me healthy and free from sickness," she says, adding tetraplegics are susceptible to viruses.
"You're also paralysed internally so the fitter and stronger you are the easier it is to repel illnesses."
Not only does it boost the upper-body strength but it does wonders for one's confidence.
"We're all in the same situation so we learn from each other and forge great friendships."
Wheelchair rugby isn't just about crashing and bashing into each other. It commands technical nous and mental fortitude.
Players must veer their way to half court within 12 seconds and score within 40s.
"Every 10 seconds you have to bounce the ball."
The thought of injuries are not accommodated.
"We've all broken our legs so we don't get hurt but you do need to be fit," she says with a grin.
