How I Got Into WCMX
My name is Timothy Lachlan, I'm 20 years old and I'm from the Gold Coast, Australia.
I was born with hypermobility and low muscle tone from the waist down, this means I need leg braces, crutches and a wheelchair to get around comfortably. I've been riding WCMX since 2009 and got into the sport after seeing videos of Wheelz from Nitro Circus. I used to roll around in a hospital chair until I broke it after doing a 12ft drop in.
WCMX & Travel
When my hospital chair broke I used a modified Mogo GJX suspension chair which lasted me until 2014, which is when I got my first Box WCMX Chair. The Box WCMX Chair changed not only the way I rode by my life as well. I could go so much faster and learn so many new tricks that I could have only dreamed of. In 2016 I received a grant from the Challenged Athletes Foundation (CAF) which allowed me to travel to Los Angeles to take part in the annual "They Will Skate Again" WCMX event. Ever since I was 12 I had dreamed of taking part in that event and to actually attend and meet everyone in person was a truly amazing experience and I am forever grateful to CAF and my parents for making that journey possible. It was the best day of my life.
WCMX & Occupational Therapy
I've always had a passion for working with people with disabilities; ever since I was a little kid I'd make friends with all the kids in wheelchairs at school and just hang out with them. As I got older this desire to help people grew stronger and in December of last year I was a mentor at Sydney's first ever WCMX clinic. Seeing children go from shy and timid, to fearless and stoked was truly amazing and it inspired me to incorporate WCMX with a career in occupational therapy. I think it would be awesome to use WCMX as a form of therapy for kids and adults because WCMX is not only fun but it provides you with useful skills to overcome everyday obstacles. Also, you don’t see many disabled OT’s so I feel like that would be an advantage for me because I could see things from my clients’ perspectives.
