This is the story of how our family began. We hope you enjoy it.
Outer Limits ATV Racing is a simple motocross family who enjoys riding and racing ATVs. The love for this sport began with Tim back in 1988. Tim ran local and national events around the Southeast on a Honda 250 Fourtrax built as big but legally as it could. In 1994 Tim and Stephanie met. She fell in love with the sport immediately. Both of us have a natural riding ability and are very competitive. We married in 1994 and continued to ride and race. But in 1995 Stephanie had a riding accident in a woods race that made us decide to hang up ATV racing for a while.
In 1999 we welcomed a son into the world and named him Christopher. He was a precious and sweet child but as he grew we noticed he was not like other children. He had terrible fits, was quiet, withdrawn from others, and did not seem to understand things children his age should. He was very slow to speak and if he did it was very difficult to know what he was saying and there were many more issues that concerned us. Yet he quickly learned to crawl and in no time took off walking and then running.
As he grew he could run, play, climb, swim, and more with the best of them but he still was quiet, withdrawn from social scenes, heightened sensitivity especially to noises, a very picky eater, sensitivity issues, and had allot of difficulty understanding the world around him. After years of special education, speech, occupational therapy, IEPs, evaluations, all sorts of testing , and more he was diagnosed at age 9 with Autism (the Apsergers type). Because he was so athletic and active we tried all types of sports like, football, soccer, t-ball, baseball, and basketball. But due to his Autism and other mental challenges he would find himself left on the bench or the coaches would not want to take the time to work with him.
A couple of years ago Christopher's grandparents purchased an ATV for him and he loved it! As parents of a disabled child we were worried about how he would do but he immediately showed natural talent and good riding techniques. August of 2010 Christopher asked if he could try racing. We took him out to the local practice track and he demonstrated he had the ability to handle himself. On August 23, 2010 he raced his first motocross event on his 70cc Panther with other built 90cc mini quads. You talk about nervous...as parents we were really worried that first race! He raced every event from there on out in that series and placed 5th overall. At the end of that season his little ATV was no longer suited for racing and was unsafe. So on November 4, 2010 we gave him a 2008 APEX 90cc MXR Pro mini quad. After he learned to trust his bike and got comfortable he began to really open up as a mini quad racer.
Christopher had many obstacles to overcome for him to be able to race. If you've ever been to a motocross event its loud. Due to his Autism he was sensitive to loud sounds. Anytime he was around his mini quad while it was running he had earplugs or his helmet on to muffle the sound. He has since adapted and no longer needs ear plugs while at mx events. He's had to learn to trust himself, focus, and make basic decisions for himself on the track. It has also helped with his socialization skills and he rests better at night after riding or racing his quad. This sport has taken him to a new level!
He still has some trouble if our routine changes, which in motocross can happen at any time. He has a hard time understanding verbal instructions. His comprehension is at a much lower age level than his age. We have found using drawings or actually putting him on the bike and physically showing him what to do or not to do helps him greatly. He watches videos of ATV racing in general or recorded video of him racing. He also has a mentor and friend named Dustin from the track that races a big quad. He helps out so much and Chris trusts him. We have found he has improved greatly with the use of a GOPRO HD Camera mounted on his helmet. We all sit in front of the TV or computer and we are able to hear and see everything from his point of view. This little camera has made a difference in how we help Christopher improve on the track.
In April 2011 Toy Hauler Adventures online magazine did an article called "MEET CHRISTOPHER". It talks about racing, Autism, & family. You see it by clicking here http://www.toyhauleradventures.com/2011/04/meet-christopher/
Christopher has really come along way placing 2nd overall in the Toyota of Kingsport Hot Summer Nights SX Series for 2011. He has raced a total of 33 events in 4 states since 8/23/10, put in countless hours of practice time, and raced in his first ATV mx national at Loretta Lynn's Dude Ranch in Hurricane Mills, TN August of 2011.
Christopher gives 110% in all that he does but he truly loves riding and racing his mini quad. His next adventure is to race the ATVA MX Nationals located in TN, KY, GA, IL, MI, NY, OH, MD, and PA.
There are so many children out there that race mini quads and a lot of them are better riders than Christopher but we feel he stands out from the rest. With all the challenges facing him he doesn't ask for anything different. He feels and wants to be the same as everyone else when he races.
We asked him recently if he was willing to take on the ATVA MX National schedule. We talked and explained that he was going to have to be committed to this. After we talked with him he said one sentence that moved us..."My heart loves to race and I want to do it!" We said ok Let's Go Racing!
Update:
Racing the 2012 ATVA MX Nationals is questionable now due to the removal of his class the "90cc CVT Limited". This was the safest & fairest class for his skill level. Will keep posting how the first 2 or 3 races go.
Loves to play MX vs. ATV on the XBOX & Wii
