[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kkYBQLAQL94[/youtube]
Something that I find very inspirational is hearing about sim racers with disabilities who are able to race with us and you would have no idea that they have that disability. One of those sim racers is 21 year old Rhys Gardiner from Australia who at birth, suffered a Brachial Plexus injury but has succeeded in life and sim racing regardless.
Rhys is a regular of TPS (Touring Pro Series) and an iRacer as well. He has some pretty impressive iRacing stats with 37 victories in 234 starts. 167 of those starts came on road course where he had 30 of those victories which means he has won in almost 18% of the road races he entered.
A few months ago, two of his friends (who are both film/photography students) approached him with a request to do a documentary on him.
Due to his disability, he can race with only one hand on the wheel because the injury he suffered at birth affected his right arm. His friends wanted to enter in the competition “Focus On Ability“, which is a short film competition for students that is designed to raise awareness of the abilities of people with disabilities. Rhys friends knew of his sim racing hobby and the fact that he raced in spite of his disability, and they wanted to create their entry to this competition focusing on him.
After a few months of capturing footage and editing, they have completed the film. It’s only a few minutes long and they did an awesome job of capturing the magic of sim racing, as well as his story and how he has the ability to compete at a high level.
Make sure to vote on the documentary to show your support of a fellow sim racer. You can do so by going to this page. http://www.focusonability.com.au/FOA/films/SouthPaw_Racer_829.html
Best of luck to Tom Moore who directed and authored the documentary on the competition and I hope to see Rhys on the track someday soon. Thanks for sharing your story with the world Rhys, you are an inspiration to us all!
I had a spinal cord injury as a teen and it left me in a wheelchair. I also sim race one handed. But, here’s the topper, I also only drive with one foot as well. Most guys I run with don’t know any of that which brings great satisfaction when I beat them. I commend Rhys for showing that those of us with disabilities can race too and be quite competitive despite our barriers. It just takes twice the work to do.
Great video. I’ve raced with Rhys a bunch on iRacing a while back. He is frustratingly quick 🙂
Yes this is a Great Video. I’ve never had the pleasure to race with Rhys in any race’s But, I’d like to very much. He seems to be a Great Guy also. This just proves that IF you set your mind to Do something IT can be done. Good Luck to Rhys in the future to ALL You Do my friend and God Bless.