Ricky “Bobby” James, the 20-year-old phenom from Murrieta California, is like no other race car driver at the speedway.
James, who won the 2008 West Coast Pro Truck championship at Toyota Speedway of Irwindale, proved to himself and others that being a paraplegic was not going to stop him from becoming a champion.
At the age of 16, Ricky James broke the T7 bone on his spinal column in a motocross accident that left him a paraplegic.
But that didn’t stop him from continuing to pursue his dreams of driving a race truck. Instead it fueled a fire in him to continue what he had always dreamed about as a youngster.
Ricky uses hand controls to race his truck around the half mile track at Toyota Speedway.
Watching him maneuver his truck around the track you would never know that he had any kind of a handicap.
He rides a specially prepared dirt bike, while at the same time inspiring other paraplegics that if you set your goals, and put your heart into it there is nothing that is impossible.
One by one he is going down his list and working hard to accomplish the goals that he has set for himself.
James is also currently working on a documentary video about his life story, which will be used to reach out beyond his immediate area that there is hope and a life after a spinal cord injury.
James has risen above the rest while choosing a road that has taken him to a whole different realm. A realm that was probably never thought of before that fateful day in March of 2005.
Ricky’s next goal is to someday race in the late model series, and by what he has already accomplished, it shouldn’t be to long before he adds that to his list of accomplishments.
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