RAREFIED AIR: Aaron has become one of the best wheelchair motocross athletes in the world, perfecting his form and his tricks. From carving and grinding to hand planting and power-sliding, there's nothing the fearless Wheelz won't try. His attitude has propelled him to an international career as an premier extreme-sports stunt rider.

Aaron "Wheelz" Fotheringham is an athlete from Las Vegas, Nevada who invented wheelchair motocross. Wheelchair motocross, or WCMX, is a sport in which wheelchair athletes perform tricks adapted from skateboarding.

Aaron was born with Spina Bifida, a birth defect of the spinal cord, which resulted in him having no use of his legs. He is the third of six children, all adopted. Aaron never lets anything stop him through the power of manifesting his incredible spirit. Even as a baby and small child, he did anything anyone else his age could do; he just had to figure out how to make it work for him.

Aaron rolled over, sat up, and even crawled (on hands and belly, no leg action) pretty much on schedule. Within days of receiving his first walker, he was off and running. Next came crutches, which he mastered quickly. He would put on a Superman cape and blast down the hall on crutches believing, as any other 4-year-old, that he could fly.

Aaron started riding at skateparks at the age of 8 when his older brother Brian, a BMXer, said he should drop in. He had been going to the park with Brian and their dad for weeks, but Aaron would just watch from behind the fence. The first time was scary, and he fell hard, but he was never one to give up just because it wasn’t easy. So, he tried again and from then on, he was hooked.

At the beginning of his career, Aaron entered and won a few BMX Freestyle competitions, including the legendary 2005 Vegas AmJam BMX Finals, but for Aaron that was always secondary to the joy of riding and hanging out with friends at all the skateparks in Las Vegas.

Over the years, Aaron has challenged himself to pioneer even more difficult stunts. In 2005, he perfected a mid-air 180degree turn. Then on July 13th, 2006, he landed the first wheelchair backflip. Four years later, on August 26, 2010 at a camp in Woodward, PA, he landed the first ever double backflip. Since then, he has gone on to perform live on tour with the Nitro Circus. As if this is not enough, on February 9th, 2011, he landed his very first front flip in New Zealand, and on August 25, 2012, he shocked Brazilians by jumping and successfully landing a 50-ft gap off of the Mega Ramp in his chair. He is a four-time winner of the WCMX World Championships and has recently executed the first wheelchair flair/backflip 180.

After posting that first ever backflip on the internet, life has changed for Aaron; he has had the opportunity to travel globally, both performing and speaking. He has attended summer camps for disabled children as a coach/mentor. He has been featured in magazines, newspapers, and sports television. He receives and responds to e-mails from all over the world.

"There is always some kind of blessing you can look on and you can notice from each situation."

Aaron enjoys showing young kids with disabilities that a wheelchair can be a tool, not a restriction. He loves helping younger children learn how to handle their chairs in new and different ways and teaching them a trick or two. Someday he hopes to design and build the most wicked chair in the world.

Aaron has a passion for what he does. Not only is it a lot of fun, but he wants to change the world's perception of people in wheelchairs and to help everyone see their own challenges in a new way. Aaron's appeal is universal. You certainly do not have to be handicapped to be inspired by what he is able to do.

Since we got the information from his website (aaronfotheringham.com) that Wheelz has given us permission to print, he has competed in America's Got Talent: Extreme, coming in second place in the AGT: Extreme GrandFinal. He has been in Guiness Book of World Records five times, including for the longest wheelchair ramp jump.