Paraplegic racing with the pros!

Claustrophobic in your own body, that’s how being paralyzed can feel (at least from my experience) AND going real fast is one of the best ways to show this feeling the door. But You don’t have to bother telling Michael Johnson and Matt Speakman this, two men with paraplegia and the only two in the world with a spinal cord injury racing at a professional level, no need for paraplegic racing. Yep, they’re what you call ‘big-timers.’

Michael Johnson, 20 years old, is an open cockpit formula race car driver from Michigan. Despite starting out racing motorbikes as a kid (and winning tons of trophies), his transition into open formula cockpit cars has been pretty incredible (he was injured racing at age 12). Last year was his first year racing open cockpit formula race cars professionally, which he did in the USF 2000 Road to Indy IndyCar circuit (with Speedicath as his sponsor. woop). Michael is the only person with a SCI in this circuit.

In the first video (a 13 minute featurette by Drive), Michael covers everything you’re probably wondering. It shows him behind the wheel, he talks about his accident and he explains his high-tech hand controls (finger movement is a must for these babies). He has to do about three different things simultaneously with his left hand as his right hand steers the ca. Now that takes skills. Watch the video

In our second video, Michael’s appearance in the Baltimore Grand Prix last summer is profiled (a race that takes place on the streets of downtown Baltimore), but he admits the tightness of the race definitely tested his hand-control abilities. The video shows him explaining his car to the public (which he’ll display in cities he visits) and talking more about his injury. Watch the clip

But the youngins aren’t the only ones having all the fun. Just last year, Matt Speakman, a 46 year old paraplegic from Australia, became the first person with a spinal cord injury to drive on the pro Porche racing circuit. He’s been in the paralyzed game for a while. When he was 26, a drunk driver hit him when he was on his motorcycle, leaving him a T6 paraplegic.

There’s no one else out there with a SCI racing Porches professionally. And as you can imagine, it took a lot of hard work for Matt to get to where he’s at, including practicing a lot. In our first video (a 5 minute clip), Matt tests hand controls made for a Porche GT3, with the camera filming him from the inside of the car (rocky shot, but awesome). It’s straightforward, but it gives you a clear idea of how agile you gotta be to drive this car. Watch him drive the heck out of it. And check out our second video, an in-studio interview with Matt (from ABC News) in Australia talking about his injury and getting back into racing. Watch the video

SPINALpedia member Patrick Rummerfield is another noteworthy racer with a SCI. He’s  the only man with incomplete quadriplegia (he can walk) to participate in any professional motorsport. In 2009, he raced in the dragster ADRL World Finals. Watch a video

Remember, driving at high speeds is fun, but should only be done on a track. While Michael, Matt and Patrick all have the right idea (heck yes racing is a blast), just remember – the pros are called pros for a reason.

Have you seen any paraplegic racing? Have you raced anything after your injury?  Who taught you the skills?

Watch the videos!

– Watch Michael drive in paraplegic racing and explain his hand controls

– Michael doing paraplegic racing in the Baltimore Grand Prix (news clip)

– Matt, famous for paraplegic racing, test driving a Porche GT3

– ABC 13 interview with Matt