KRISTY Banks faces a lengthy rehabilitation from spinal injuries sustained in a race fall at Toowoomba last Saturday night.

Banks, in her early 30s, sustained a fractured back, spinal cord damage and a punctured lung in a fall from August Bishop in the opening race at Toowoomba.

She was rushed to the Princess Alexandra Hospital in Brisbane and underwent five hours of surgery into the early hours of Sunday morning.

"The doctors have painted a pretty bleak likely future for Kristy to walk again but there is a ray of hope," Banks' father Graham said yesterday.

"We won't know the full picture until some of the swelling goes down. Kristy thought she had some feeling in her hip yesterday so we haven't given up hope she might be able to get some leg movement.

"She's a tough kid and in good spirits so we are just waiting now to see how things come through in the next few days."

Banks has been a tremendous ambassador for women riders. She is one of the hardest workers at the track six mornings a week and had tremendous passion for racing.

Despite constant weight battles which limited some opportunities for race rides, Banks has a career total of 311 winners including 15 in the current racing season.

Banks, who is married to horse breaker Dale Groves, was a star on the show-riding circuit before starting an apprenticeship with her father. She rode her first winner in 1996.

She had a long association with father-son training combination Darryl and Tony Gollan and rode scores of winners for them over the past 15 years.

Her most recent winner was Big Jet Plane at Toowoomba on Christmas Eve and her last city winner was Carry Me Bluey at Doomben on September 17.