Obstacle courses are a great way to challenge myself in fighting against CP and what others usually think about people with CP. I have done a few obstacle courses so far with my family. Although they are quite harder for me than many people, I still have a lot of fun in doing them. Also, I may not be able to do the harder ones, which even my brother could do in one or two years. However, I only compete with myself in these things and I am able to do much more than when I was 6.

My interest in obstacle courses began with Monkey Trunks, which I did about five times. I don’t remember the exact age I was when I started them, but I was probably somewhere in between 5 and 9 years old. Anyhow, in case you have never heard of Monkey Trunks before, it is a branch across US. The closest one is at New Hampshire. It has obstacles ranging from very easy to very hard. I used to struggle with the easiest ones which was designed for a five year old. From what I remember the obstacles which I could do included ropes and little wooden pieces on a long block of wood. I needed a lot of help and suggestions about which way I could go through the obstacles. My favorite part were the ziplines. Monkey Trunks gave me a good foundation on obstacle courses and helped me conquer larger and more difficult obstacle in my pre-teen and teenage years.

In seventh grade, my dad began doing some obstacle races with his friends and family. One time he did one with me and my cousins, which was designed for ages 12 and up. Although I was 12 years old, he said that it was too difficult for me to do. However, I came with my brother and mom to watch him. The places had a mini ½ a kilometer race for kids aged 6-11 and also for kids with disabilities. Me and my younger brother did it after my father finished his race. They had several volunteers to help us. There were several hurdles and ladders to climb up and down. I did use some help from the volunteers, but I was able to finish the race. My volunteers were very proud of me, since most of the other kids had other disabilities (cognitive etc) and were able to do much more than me physically. When I finished the race, I got a medal and T-shirt. Yay!

In October of seventh grade, I did a 5K obstacle race with me parents, which was called Grit ‘N Wit. It was my first 5K race and I was really excited. 

Slideshow of the photos from my Grit ‘N Wit race: