it’s March 12 2018 I’m standing halfway
up this beautiful mountain got my red
white and blue jersey on snowboard
strapped to my feet and I’m just moments
away from sliding into the start gate
for the gold medal round of the
boardercross event at the Paralympic
Games in South Korea and I paused for a
moment just to just to soak it all in
and I get this big old smile on my face
because in my mind I’ve already won
everything that I’ve been through
adapted to and all those opportunities I
decided to take a chance on they all
brought me to this moment raising for a
gold medal for Team USA dang I think
about this this is nuts I just mentioned
two key words that have been really
significant to me since I became an
amputee adapt an opportunity now adapt
is to adjust to a new environment or a
condition kind of like you when you get
thrown into a new uncomfortable
situation and you’ve got two options you
can sink or you can quickly learn how to
swim you can just get by and survive or
you can really make the most of it and
you can thrive see we don’t always have
a choice in the situations that were put
in but we always have a choice and how
we react to them so make the most of it
choose to make the most of it the other
word is opportunity which is a favorable
juncture of circumstances a door opens
up for you and you’ve got a chance to do
something really awesome if you’re up
for it and willing to take a chance see
we have opportunities coming in front of
us quite often but more times than not
we just let them fly right on by because
we’re not willing to get out of our
comfort zone we think the risk is too
high and we’re afraid to fail don’t be
afraid to fail the most successful
people in this world occasionally fail
but the difference is what they do with
it and learn from it and typically don’t
make the same mistakes twice and then
they don’t give up on it until they’ve
achieved what they’re trying to
accomplish hey you know this reminds me
as I’m working my way up through the
ranks of snowmobile racing
I made a lot of mistakes I learned a lot
but I never gave up eventually I reached
my goal I became a professional and I
was living my dream racing against the
best the best in the world
I had a great few great years which
brings us to December 13th 2008 we’re in
northern Michigan at a national
snowmobile event first race of the
weekend I get a horrible start and I’m
charging through the pack about halfway
through the race I hit a hole funny and
I get pitched off the side of my sled
I’m flying through the air and impact
the ground feet first at about 35 miles
an hour so and on impact my left knee
buckles 180 degrees and I go tumbling
off the side of the racecourse I stopped
moving and I’m on my back and I looked
down and I see sold my boot on my chest
and I just grab it and I throw it down
it just freaks me out instantly in the
most severe pain of my life a few
moments later the EMTs finally get to me
and they can see that my leg is broke
it’s flopped over the side and they
reached down to get a closer look
zip open my pant leg and I just remember
that sound is so the compound fracture
that had happened it had severed the
main artery that supplies my lower leg
and my pant leg filled up with blood and
I’m bleeding out on the side of the
racecourse and at that moment I I knew
this was extremely serious
they got me wrapped up into a sled and
brought me down to the ambulance at that
point I met up with my wife Sarah who’s
a nurse she immediately went into nurse
mode and did everything she could to
keep me calm
as I’m freaking out we get loaded into
the ambulance go to the first hospital
unfortunately they weren’t able to take
care of my situation so they had to set
up a transfer to a trauma center but
unfortunately the snowstorm had moved in
and the helicopter couldn’t fly so we
had to get back in the ambulance and
drive across northern Wisconsin through
snow storm to Duluth Minnesota
five and a half hours after my injury
happened I finally make it to a trauma
center I’m barely hanging on after all
the blood I’d lost in the pain that I’m
going through
the doors swing open to a team of nurses
waiting to roll me in and in that moment
I knew that I can relax I’m finally in
good hands
and everything kind of faded away from
me for the next couple or a few days I
wake up or my entire family’s in the
room around me
my wife’s by my side the doctors right
there and they continue to to tell me
that Mike we got if we got a tough
decision to make here
we’re running into some major
complications and we’re having a hard
time with circulation we’re pumping
blood in 45 units of blood to this point
but it’s not continuing on through your
body and your tissues dying and it’s
poisoning your kidneys your kidneys are
shutting down and you’re in a really bad
spot and at this point we think it’s the
best case or the best option is to
amputate your leg just above the knee
I’m like amputate are you kidding me
from a knee injury I mean this this was
not on my radar at all at this point but
he continued to you know explain the
severity of it and me as an athlete to
hear this it blew my mind you know it’s
my job to be physically fit and active
but as he further explained it and my
leg is not worth my life so let’s move
ahead later that day we amputate my leg
and we’ll figure it out as we go
I spent a total of 13 days in the
hospital five and a half weeks later
after the injury happened after a
rollercoaster of physical and mental
challenges unbearable phantom pain he
was finally finally time to try that new
prosthetic leg that we’ve been working
on for a while it was a happy day I mean
after everything I’ve gone through it
was finally time to make that next big
step I slide into this leg and the first
thing I noticed was I’ve got two feet
under me I mean it sounds pretty simple
yet right but you know when you’re
missing one you finally get one back is
like heck yeah this is a big step I did
get the walking figured out really quick
and then eventually me being me it’s
time to go riding some snowmobiles I’m
pretty quickly realized that yeah the
like he’s not going to cut it for riding
snowmobiles but I made it work anyways
but later that spring is when the next
big thing happened when I found out
about summer x-games adaptive supercross
dirt bike racing for amputees and
paraplegics I’m like yeah this is this
is me this is just for me I this is my
new life goal I’m gonna go after it what
do I need to do well the biggest
challenge was getting a prosthetic leg
that would allow me to ride the way I
did I couldn’t find anything so I took
it upon myself to solve it because I’m a
garage guy I’m a problem solver I think
back to all those experiences that I had
through my life in metal fabrication
which is my second passion is building
and creating things so I use that
experience working with all the physical
trainers and physical therapists as an
athlete I understood body mechanics and
muscle structures bone structure the
years of experience working on my
snowmobile and dirt bike equipment I
understood suspension components because
basically I’m trying to recreate
suspension for my legs so I can hit
those big jumps and ride on that rough
terrain get me back to my happy place so
I hit the drawing board I worked on it
for about a month after that I got to
the shop and I started building Park it
took me about a week to get all the
parts done that last day I’ve got the
last piece my hands are shaking I’m like
oh yeah I was like that I was like that
sixteen-year-old kid getting the car
keys for this first time I was like yeah
this is gonna be my freedom right well
this was gonna be my freedom to get back
on my dirt bike doing the things that I
loved and I was excited about it I
rushed home I am below my leg got onto
my dirt bike right away and went for
that first ride and with a minute I was
like oh yeah I was a happiest guy in the
world
I am hauling ass down the trail roughest
section of the trail I’m standing up
balanced side-to-side on my foot pegs
and I feel normal
I’m like yeah I’m going to X Games seven
seven months after my injury had
happened I’m at summer x-games adaptive
Supercross on the gnarliest supercross
track I’ve ever ridden on in my entire
life I pushed myself to limit I pushed
my equipment to the limit I scared the
heck out of myself several times but I
made it happen I brought home with a
silver medal out of that race and it was
as good as gold to me after everything
that I had gone through and made happen
in such a short amount of time it was an
incredible feeling the year following
that I continued to work on this
equipment develop it further and after
meeting so many other adaptive athletes
I realized that there’s an opportunity
here these guys need this equipment I
can help out so many others with this
and I saw an opportunity a business
opportunity I have no experience running
a business but I believe I had something
good so I took a chance and started my
company by adapt in 2010 to get my mo
Tony and eventually Aversa foot out to
other amputees to achieve their goals
and not too long after that I met up
with a veteran while I was racing
snowmobiles at X Games and he’s like
he’s above knee amputee adaptive
snowboarder he’s like hey Mike I see
this new leg you’re working on it worked
for snowboarding like I don’t know I I’m
not a snowboarder but mechanically it
should I’ll get back to you so I went
home over the next couple months and I
learned how to snowboard from scratch
and as an amputee it wasn’t pretty but I
learned enough to to meet up with Keith
later that and that spring and have him
try it out and the the reaction that he
gave me from that was unreal and that
was a big moment for me being able to
see the positive impact I could make on
someone else and he was pumped he was
one of my very first customers after
that I continued to snowboard basically
just to help other amputees learn how to
use my equipment for riding I got pretty
good at it and eventually me being the
guy that I am I’m a competitor I got
talked into racing boardercross which is
like motocross racing on a snowboard –
the handlebars and race gas it’s pretty
wild and it went well so well that in
2004
I got a phone call from the US team
coach he’s like hey Schulte I see you
got some pretty good skills there you
know I think if you really commit to it
you could be a contender at the 2018
Paralympic Games and I’m like whoa
that’s cool totally not in the direction
that I’m going with everything but wow
that’s really neat but I you know
honestly I don’t think I could I could
do that that’s a huge commitment I’ve
got this new company I’ve got a
one-year-old daughter and I’m a motor
sports guy I went home and talked to
Sarah about it a little bit or talked to
her right after that and you know we
were kind of on the fence about it
because of the commitment you know I was
going to pass on it but then we got to
thinking about watching the Olympics and
seeing those athletes win a gold and be
on top of that podium when their
national anthems playing that Flags
raising up on that Center Pole and
seeing the emotions in their face I
think about wow what does that feel like
I have a chance at possibly seen
firsthand I can’t pass it up this is a
pivotal moment my story where I could’ve
easily said no that’s too far from where
I’m headed what we went for it and over
the next couple years or a few years I
was on on the team racing snow racing
snowboards around the world I had some
great success but had a major injury in
2016 which sidelined me for over a year
I crushed my right heel into 15 pieces
yeah I was it was actually tougher to
come back from that one then and my
amputation almost but I wanted to see
how I could recover from it we were
about a year out from the games I could
hardly walk much less ride a snowboard
at the same level I did before but I
went for it anyways at World Champs I
ended up with a fourth place which was
it was okay but I knew I could be better
I knew I could be competing with the
guys at the top if I was a hundred
percent but I don’t know if I could have
got back to it I wasn’t sure if I could
get to a hundred percent so I was still
on the fence the next year was an
enormous commitment and we’re not making
any money at this when we get home and
and Sarah and I talked about it and you
know we come to the agreement that you
know what we’re invested in this we
can’t let it go we got to go for it so
from that point on we decided we’re
committed 100 percent over the course of
the next year I had my best season ever
undefeated in boardercross
up to the games which got me on the
official Paralympic team we arrived in
South Korea – my first unforgettable
moment when my us teammates chose me to
carry the red white and blue through
opening ceremonies it uh gives me
goosebumps every time I look at that
image it was such a powerful moment at
the ultimate honor for an athlete to
lead the country through the ceremonies
a couple days later I wake up it’s race
day I am a bundle of nerves I’m like I’m
a mess I’m like Mike hold it together
you’re falling apart here you’ve been
through stuff like this before
oh man in in yeah I was I was a mess I
was like shaking and I had my stomach
was turnin but pull it together you know
how to do this focus on the task at hand
so I calmed myself down and I made it
through the intense qualifying you win
you move on you lose you go home
well I made it all through with no
mistakes and I’m finally up at the start
gate for the gold medal round against
the Netherlands Chris Voss and I pull up
to the gate and I think to myself this
is it this is what I’ve been working for
my ultimate goal was to be able to
perform under pressure and here we are
visualizing visualize my run gate drops
I pull out with everything I got first
feature absorb press second feature
absorb press ease around the first
corner light on my edges over the next
feature oh did he just crash Oh
no focus forward focus you’re not done
yet keep on going I make my way down the
rest of the course hit my marks no
mistakes I come around a tight
right-hander at the bottom and I look
over my shoulder and I don’t see him oh
I’m gonna win no focus he’s not done yet
I make it down around the last corner
over the last jump and I fly down
through the finish line and boom I’m a
gold medalist at that moment I was hit
with the most overwhelming feeling of
accomplishment I’ve ever had as an
athlete or overall had anything not
because I just want a gold medal in
snowboarding but it was everything that
had to happen for me to get to that
point everything it was such a wild ride
and so many things happen
I on and I make this this right turn and
I look up at this 30-foot wide giant TV
and there’s Sarah jumping up and down
screaming her face off tears running
down her cheeks you know this moment is
just as big to her as it is to me cuz
she’s been by my side through all this
since the beginning we just want gold
babe
dang that was an awesome moment a couple
days later we line up for our second
event Bank slalom where we go through
this long day of exciting intense racing
against the clock I come up just a
little bit short behind my teammate Noah
I bring home the silver he brings home
the gold
but you know what I was pretty dang
pumped anyways because I built though
his leg for him and my company bio DAP
sponsors him so it was a win-win there
was a total of 15 athletes competing at
the games using the equipment that I
developed and I worked personally with
every one of them at some point so the
games there’s a lot more than just me
being an athlete it was about a much
bigger picture
he was so incredible see every
experience we go through in life whether
it’s a good one or a bad one
gives us a chance to learn something if
we’re paying attention knowledge learned
through experience
the best tools that we have to get
through life and to really make the most
of it we can use that tool to adapt to
the challenges that come up in front of
us and we can use it to wedge and wrench
our way into all kinds of new
opportunities and at some point if
you’re willing to take that chance and
keep working at it and not give up that
opportunity might just turn into a
[Applause] [Music]
up this beautiful mountain got my red
white and blue jersey on snowboard
strapped to my feet and I’m just moments
away from sliding into the start gate
for the gold medal round of the
boardercross event at the Paralympic
Games in South Korea and I paused for a
moment just to just to soak it all in
and I get this big old smile on my face
because in my mind I’ve already won
everything that I’ve been through
adapted to and all those opportunities I
decided to take a chance on they all
brought me to this moment raising for a
gold medal for Team USA dang I think
about this this is nuts I just mentioned
two key words that have been really
significant to me since I became an
amputee adapt an opportunity now adapt
is to adjust to a new environment or a
condition kind of like you when you get
thrown into a new uncomfortable
situation and you’ve got two options you
can sink or you can quickly learn how to
swim you can just get by and survive or
you can really make the most of it and
you can thrive see we don’t always have
a choice in the situations that were put
in but we always have a choice and how
we react to them so make the most of it
choose to make the most of it the other
word is opportunity which is a favorable
juncture of circumstances a door opens
up for you and you’ve got a chance to do
something really awesome if you’re up
for it and willing to take a chance see
we have opportunities coming in front of
us quite often but more times than not
we just let them fly right on by because
we’re not willing to get out of our
comfort zone we think the risk is too
high and we’re afraid to fail don’t be
afraid to fail the most successful
people in this world occasionally fail
but the difference is what they do with
it and learn from it and typically don’t
make the same mistakes twice and then
they don’t give up on it until they’ve
achieved what they’re trying to
accomplish hey you know this reminds me
as I’m working my way up through the
ranks of snowmobile racing
I made a lot of mistakes I learned a lot
but I never gave up eventually I reached
my goal I became a professional and I
was living my dream racing against the
best the best in the world
I had a great few great years which
brings us to December 13th 2008 we’re in
northern Michigan at a national
snowmobile event first race of the
weekend I get a horrible start and I’m
charging through the pack about halfway
through the race I hit a hole funny and
I get pitched off the side of my sled
I’m flying through the air and impact
the ground feet first at about 35 miles
an hour so and on impact my left knee
buckles 180 degrees and I go tumbling
off the side of the racecourse I stopped
moving and I’m on my back and I looked
down and I see sold my boot on my chest
and I just grab it and I throw it down
it just freaks me out instantly in the
most severe pain of my life a few
moments later the EMTs finally get to me
and they can see that my leg is broke
it’s flopped over the side and they
reached down to get a closer look
zip open my pant leg and I just remember
that sound is so the compound fracture
that had happened it had severed the
main artery that supplies my lower leg
and my pant leg filled up with blood and
I’m bleeding out on the side of the
racecourse and at that moment I I knew
this was extremely serious
they got me wrapped up into a sled and
brought me down to the ambulance at that
point I met up with my wife Sarah who’s
a nurse she immediately went into nurse
mode and did everything she could to
keep me calm
as I’m freaking out we get loaded into
the ambulance go to the first hospital
unfortunately they weren’t able to take
care of my situation so they had to set
up a transfer to a trauma center but
unfortunately the snowstorm had moved in
and the helicopter couldn’t fly so we
had to get back in the ambulance and
drive across northern Wisconsin through
snow storm to Duluth Minnesota
five and a half hours after my injury
happened I finally make it to a trauma
center I’m barely hanging on after all
the blood I’d lost in the pain that I’m
going through
the doors swing open to a team of nurses
waiting to roll me in and in that moment
I knew that I can relax I’m finally in
good hands
and everything kind of faded away from
me for the next couple or a few days I
wake up or my entire family’s in the
room around me
my wife’s by my side the doctors right
there and they continue to to tell me
that Mike we got if we got a tough
decision to make here
we’re running into some major
complications and we’re having a hard
time with circulation we’re pumping
blood in 45 units of blood to this point
but it’s not continuing on through your
body and your tissues dying and it’s
poisoning your kidneys your kidneys are
shutting down and you’re in a really bad
spot and at this point we think it’s the
best case or the best option is to
amputate your leg just above the knee
I’m like amputate are you kidding me
from a knee injury I mean this this was
not on my radar at all at this point but
he continued to you know explain the
severity of it and me as an athlete to
hear this it blew my mind you know it’s
my job to be physically fit and active
but as he further explained it and my
leg is not worth my life so let’s move
ahead later that day we amputate my leg
and we’ll figure it out as we go
I spent a total of 13 days in the
hospital five and a half weeks later
after the injury happened after a
rollercoaster of physical and mental
challenges unbearable phantom pain he
was finally finally time to try that new
prosthetic leg that we’ve been working
on for a while it was a happy day I mean
after everything I’ve gone through it
was finally time to make that next big
step I slide into this leg and the first
thing I noticed was I’ve got two feet
under me I mean it sounds pretty simple
yet right but you know when you’re
missing one you finally get one back is
like heck yeah this is a big step I did
get the walking figured out really quick
and then eventually me being me it’s
time to go riding some snowmobiles I’m
pretty quickly realized that yeah the
like he’s not going to cut it for riding
snowmobiles but I made it work anyways
but later that spring is when the next
big thing happened when I found out
about summer x-games adaptive supercross
dirt bike racing for amputees and
paraplegics I’m like yeah this is this
is me this is just for me I this is my
new life goal I’m gonna go after it what
do I need to do well the biggest
challenge was getting a prosthetic leg
that would allow me to ride the way I
did I couldn’t find anything so I took
it upon myself to solve it because I’m a
garage guy I’m a problem solver I think
back to all those experiences that I had
through my life in metal fabrication
which is my second passion is building
and creating things so I use that
experience working with all the physical
trainers and physical therapists as an
athlete I understood body mechanics and
muscle structures bone structure the
years of experience working on my
snowmobile and dirt bike equipment I
understood suspension components because
basically I’m trying to recreate
suspension for my legs so I can hit
those big jumps and ride on that rough
terrain get me back to my happy place so
I hit the drawing board I worked on it
for about a month after that I got to
the shop and I started building Park it
took me about a week to get all the
parts done that last day I’ve got the
last piece my hands are shaking I’m like
oh yeah I was like that I was like that
sixteen-year-old kid getting the car
keys for this first time I was like yeah
this is gonna be my freedom right well
this was gonna be my freedom to get back
on my dirt bike doing the things that I
loved and I was excited about it I
rushed home I am below my leg got onto
my dirt bike right away and went for
that first ride and with a minute I was
like oh yeah I was a happiest guy in the
world
I am hauling ass down the trail roughest
section of the trail I’m standing up
balanced side-to-side on my foot pegs
and I feel normal
I’m like yeah I’m going to X Games seven
seven months after my injury had
happened I’m at summer x-games adaptive
Supercross on the gnarliest supercross
track I’ve ever ridden on in my entire
life I pushed myself to limit I pushed
my equipment to the limit I scared the
heck out of myself several times but I
made it happen I brought home with a
silver medal out of that race and it was
as good as gold to me after everything
that I had gone through and made happen
in such a short amount of time it was an
incredible feeling the year following
that I continued to work on this
equipment develop it further and after
meeting so many other adaptive athletes
I realized that there’s an opportunity
here these guys need this equipment I
can help out so many others with this
and I saw an opportunity a business
opportunity I have no experience running
a business but I believe I had something
good so I took a chance and started my
company by adapt in 2010 to get my mo
Tony and eventually Aversa foot out to
other amputees to achieve their goals
and not too long after that I met up
with a veteran while I was racing
snowmobiles at X Games and he’s like
he’s above knee amputee adaptive
snowboarder he’s like hey Mike I see
this new leg you’re working on it worked
for snowboarding like I don’t know I I’m
not a snowboarder but mechanically it
should I’ll get back to you so I went
home over the next couple months and I
learned how to snowboard from scratch
and as an amputee it wasn’t pretty but I
learned enough to to meet up with Keith
later that and that spring and have him
try it out and the the reaction that he
gave me from that was unreal and that
was a big moment for me being able to
see the positive impact I could make on
someone else and he was pumped he was
one of my very first customers after
that I continued to snowboard basically
just to help other amputees learn how to
use my equipment for riding I got pretty
good at it and eventually me being the
guy that I am I’m a competitor I got
talked into racing boardercross which is
like motocross racing on a snowboard –
the handlebars and race gas it’s pretty
wild and it went well so well that in
2004
I got a phone call from the US team
coach he’s like hey Schulte I see you
got some pretty good skills there you
know I think if you really commit to it
you could be a contender at the 2018
Paralympic Games and I’m like whoa
that’s cool totally not in the direction
that I’m going with everything but wow
that’s really neat but I you know
honestly I don’t think I could I could
do that that’s a huge commitment I’ve
got this new company I’ve got a
one-year-old daughter and I’m a motor
sports guy I went home and talked to
Sarah about it a little bit or talked to
her right after that and you know we
were kind of on the fence about it
because of the commitment you know I was
going to pass on it but then we got to
thinking about watching the Olympics and
seeing those athletes win a gold and be
on top of that podium when their
national anthems playing that Flags
raising up on that Center Pole and
seeing the emotions in their face I
think about wow what does that feel like
I have a chance at possibly seen
firsthand I can’t pass it up this is a
pivotal moment my story where I could’ve
easily said no that’s too far from where
I’m headed what we went for it and over
the next couple years or a few years I
was on on the team racing snow racing
snowboards around the world I had some
great success but had a major injury in
2016 which sidelined me for over a year
I crushed my right heel into 15 pieces
yeah I was it was actually tougher to
come back from that one then and my
amputation almost but I wanted to see
how I could recover from it we were
about a year out from the games I could
hardly walk much less ride a snowboard
at the same level I did before but I
went for it anyways at World Champs I
ended up with a fourth place which was
it was okay but I knew I could be better
I knew I could be competing with the
guys at the top if I was a hundred
percent but I don’t know if I could have
got back to it I wasn’t sure if I could
get to a hundred percent so I was still
on the fence the next year was an
enormous commitment and we’re not making
any money at this when we get home and
and Sarah and I talked about it and you
know we come to the agreement that you
know what we’re invested in this we
can’t let it go we got to go for it so
from that point on we decided we’re
committed 100 percent over the course of
the next year I had my best season ever
undefeated in boardercross
up to the games which got me on the
official Paralympic team we arrived in
South Korea – my first unforgettable
moment when my us teammates chose me to
carry the red white and blue through
opening ceremonies it uh gives me
goosebumps every time I look at that
image it was such a powerful moment at
the ultimate honor for an athlete to
lead the country through the ceremonies
a couple days later I wake up it’s race
day I am a bundle of nerves I’m like I’m
a mess I’m like Mike hold it together
you’re falling apart here you’ve been
through stuff like this before
oh man in in yeah I was I was a mess I
was like shaking and I had my stomach
was turnin but pull it together you know
how to do this focus on the task at hand
so I calmed myself down and I made it
through the intense qualifying you win
you move on you lose you go home
well I made it all through with no
mistakes and I’m finally up at the start
gate for the gold medal round against
the Netherlands Chris Voss and I pull up
to the gate and I think to myself this
is it this is what I’ve been working for
my ultimate goal was to be able to
perform under pressure and here we are
visualizing visualize my run gate drops
I pull out with everything I got first
feature absorb press second feature
absorb press ease around the first
corner light on my edges over the next
feature oh did he just crash Oh
no focus forward focus you’re not done
yet keep on going I make my way down the
rest of the course hit my marks no
mistakes I come around a tight
right-hander at the bottom and I look
over my shoulder and I don’t see him oh
I’m gonna win no focus he’s not done yet
I make it down around the last corner
over the last jump and I fly down
through the finish line and boom I’m a
gold medalist at that moment I was hit
with the most overwhelming feeling of
accomplishment I’ve ever had as an
athlete or overall had anything not
because I just want a gold medal in
snowboarding but it was everything that
had to happen for me to get to that
point everything it was such a wild ride
and so many things happen
I on and I make this this right turn and
I look up at this 30-foot wide giant TV
and there’s Sarah jumping up and down
screaming her face off tears running
down her cheeks you know this moment is
just as big to her as it is to me cuz
she’s been by my side through all this
since the beginning we just want gold
babe
dang that was an awesome moment a couple
days later we line up for our second
event Bank slalom where we go through
this long day of exciting intense racing
against the clock I come up just a
little bit short behind my teammate Noah
I bring home the silver he brings home
the gold
but you know what I was pretty dang
pumped anyways because I built though
his leg for him and my company bio DAP
sponsors him so it was a win-win there
was a total of 15 athletes competing at
the games using the equipment that I
developed and I worked personally with
every one of them at some point so the
games there’s a lot more than just me
being an athlete it was about a much
bigger picture
he was so incredible see every
experience we go through in life whether
it’s a good one or a bad one
gives us a chance to learn something if
we’re paying attention knowledge learned
through experience
the best tools that we have to get
through life and to really make the most
of it we can use that tool to adapt to
the challenges that come up in front of
us and we can use it to wedge and wrench
our way into all kinds of new
opportunities and at some point if
you’re willing to take that chance and
keep working at it and not give up that
opportunity might just turn into a
[Applause] [Music]
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