Then 16, James was competing in the Lake Whitney Amateur Motocross National in Texas when an accident left him completely paralyzed from mid-chest down. Determined to ride motorcycles again, he raced a quad seven months later – and has accomplished a lot more during the past year.

He’s graduated high school as a junior and has begun junior college, with an eye toward a career designing adaptive sports equipment for disabled people or motorcycle components. He’s been working on rehab from his injury with a doctor who once treated actor and activist Christopher Reeve, and he’s also back riding a two-wheeled dirt bike. On the one-year anniversary of his injury, he rode two laps on the same track and same bike as the day of the accident. And as if all that weren’t enough, the past year has also seen him snow ski as a sit-skier, and ride a 200 mph Indy car at California’s Fontana Speedway.

The media has taken notice: James has been featured on CNN and on Speed TV during coverage of the Daytona Supercross, and he’s met with Jay Leno.

James’ beginnings as a rider evolved into competitive roller hockey and then into BMX racing, in which he turned expert during his first year. From there, he graduated to local off-road grand prix, earning the Number 3 plate in the 80cc class. After a couple of years, James went on to motocross racing in late 2001 and distinguished himself as an up-and-coming young rider.