In November 1986, Ladret sustained two skull fractures as a result of an accident while the pair was practicing a lasso lift at a rink in Cambridge, Ontario. Ladret stated, "The ice was pretty rutty. I put the lift up, and my right foot got stuck in a rut and down we went. I pulled Tuffy forward as I was falling; my first thought was to make sure she was OK. My tailbone hit first, and my neck whiplashed back." He started wearing a hockey helmet in practice but stopped after five months, finding it cumbersome. That season, Hough/Ladret returned to the national podium, taking their second bronze medal, and were assigned to their first World Championships. They finished 8th at Worlds, held in Cincinnati in March 1987.