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CLICK HERE to download RT300 brochure pdf
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Phone 800 609-9166
Fax 410 878-2466 |
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Ricky JamesLEVEL OF INJURY: T7 ASIA: A CAUSE: Motorcycle accident AGE AT ONSET: 16
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The first video follows below. What do you do when you’re 16, training for a career as a professional motocross rider, and you collide with another rider at high speed? When you’re ejected headfirst over your handlebars into an embankment and feel your spine snap? What do you do when you’re lying in the dirt . . . when you can’t feel your legs . . . when you know something’s terribly wrong . . . when you overhear the paramedics call in your prognosis? What do you do when you’re young and healthy and the body you’ve always taken for granted is broken? Do you give up? Do you give in? If you’re Ricky James, you set goals. And then you set about meeting them. Today, three years after his accident, Ricky is a typical teenage boy. He mumbles. He hems and haws and “ums.” He’s unimpressed by a Hawaiian vacation: “it’s pretty but boring. That’s why they all surf.” And he’s back on his bike. Specially outfitted, it allows him to use all the factors required to win, even if his legs aren’t part of the equation. Armed with the powerful motto of “perseverance,” Ricky participates in 14 races a year, more than most able-bodied athletes. He’s also into marathons. Ricky was disappointed by his 6th place showing in his first marathon. Mere mortals would be happy just to finish. Now he’s training for the Ironman Triathlon in Hawaii. As part of his training, Ricky rides 150 miles a week on his hand cycle. He swims laps. He bikes for 56 miles. He’s in better shape than when he got hurt. And he avoids the couch at all costs. Immediately after the accident, Ricky’s parents began looking into getting him an FES cycle. After extensive research, they decided on the RT300 as the best option for the son that would settle for nothing less for his young life than everything. Now Ricky aims to use the RT300 three times a week for an hour, but that goal is sometimes superseded by his other training. As much as he appreciates the physical benefits of the cycle, he’s not shy about saying the RT300 “isn’t exactly fun.” He’d much rather be outside working on his back flip into a foam pit. But it keeps his legs healthy and toned so he can work his upper body to the full capacity of a driven 19-year-old. It balances out his hard-core training, making his fitness program a complete package. After an hour on the RT300, he knows he’s gotten a cardio workout because he’s winded—not a casual endorsement for someone as fit as Ricky. He insists the RT300 has improved his life, prepared him for his other pursuits, made him more capable of achieving his other goals. And Ricky has a lot of goals. There’s the triathlon, of course. He’s also determined to perform that back flip on his dirt bike. And if you think a back flip is impossible for a paraplegic, you haven’t met Ricky. There is one goal that’s been put on hold for the moment: a career as a motivational speaker. Right now Ricky wants to move, train, ride—not speak about something that’s supposed to stop him. But should he ever have time for a speaking gig, Ricky has a few words of advice for those recently diagnosed: “Set goals right away. Keep your mind occupied. See it as a challenge. Work toward something rather than getting lost . . . And right now, working hard is all I know.”
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Copyright © 2004-2008, Restorative Therapies, Inc. All Rights Reserved. |
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