Daily Record Sports Writer
ORRVILLE -- Casey Followay and Mekio Jarvis sat filled with anticipation as the track official raised her arms to start the 100-meter dash at the Orrville Middle School Invitational on Thursday afternoon.
When the gun went off, they weren't just racing -- they were making history.
Casey, a seventh-grader at Edgewood Middle School, and Mekio, an eighth-grader at Orrville Middle School, sped down the track in their Invacare Top End Eliminator chairs for what many believed was the first school wheelchair track competition in Ohio.
Both boys have been disabled since birth. Casey was born with spina bifida, which affects his body from the hips down and Mekio was born with muscular dystrophy, which affects his lower legs.
Casey, who's been actively racing since 2005, won the 100 with a time of 18.65, followed by Mekio (20.88), who has only been involved in the sport for six weeks.
The boys also competed in the 200, which Casey also won clocking a 35.45, while Mekio finished in 39.40.
"I am proud and excited," said boys coach Brett Followay, who is also Casey's father. "We want to get this out in front of as many eyes as we can, because someone has to know somebody who is in a chair that can do this too in our area."
"It is really cool to see Casey out there racing," said Kevin White, a Wooster seventh-grader and teammate. "For him to go out there and race really fast like that, is really awesome. It would be really cool to see a lot more wheelchair events at track meets, and to actually have a wheelchair division of a race."
Thursday's races were about much more than first place, as Brett Followay and White indicated, they were about spreading awareness for a sport which has given both boys so much.
"Our ultimate goal is for this to be commonplace in track meets across the state of Ohio," said Lisa Followay, Casey's mom, who, along with her husband started the Adaptive Sports Program of Ohio last April. "Our goal today is to create awareness and maybe one of these other seven schools has someone with a disability that would like to be involved in school sports."
While Casey is a member of the Edgewood track team, he cannot score points or race against footed athletes. According to Deborah Moore, an Ohio High School Athletic Association associate commissioner, Casey is the first athlete to seek an accommodation from OHSAA to race in a track event. Mekio is not a member of the Orrville track team, but it is a goal of his, especially now with his improved grades.
The OHS student found out about wheelchair track racing from the Followays, and it has changed his life for the better.
"Mekio really likes the competition," said Mekio's grandmother, Pam Jarvis. "He's tried other sports but has gotten discouraged, but when we found out about this we were so excited. It has helped improve his grades and his attitude, he has more confidence. It has done really good things for him."
The Orrville Middle School student has gone from almost failing grades to A's and B's, according to Pam Jarvis.
"It's helped my grades, just being in something so disciplined," Mekio said. "I like being out there competing."
Many area supporters of the Adaptive Sports Program of Ohio as well as fellow wheelchair track athletes came to cheer on Casey and Mekio, including state Rep. Ron Amstutz, R-Wooster.
"I am looking for how we can encourage the expansion of opportunities for students who want to compete," Amstutz said. "We want to try to do it in ways that creates wins for everybody, which is always the challenge. We are still reviewing what other states are doing, things that maybe we have not done in Ohio, but it is still in the research stage."
One wheelchair athlete, Medina County resident Jeff Fisher, has competed in several marathons, including the Boston Marathon, which he completed in a time of 1:41.
For Fisher, watching the two boys compete made him wish there was a program like this back when he was injured in 1991.
"I wish there was somebody that I could have turned to when it was my turn to start, because I was a grown adult when I started in 1995," Fisher said. "For four years after I was injured I did nothing and I was a runner before.
"I am glad they are doing it, and I think they will be glad that they are doing it, too," Fisher continued.
The boys will compete in the Ohio Wheelchair games May 13-16 at Groveport High School in Columbus. The weekend of May 6, Casey will race at the Dixie Games in Tampa, Fla.
Eventually, Casey and Mekio would like to be members of the United States Paralympic team.
"It is the thing I am working for right now, to get the times to qualify for that," Casey said.
"We're hoping for London 2012, but we'll see," said Brett Followay. "We'll see how his times progress, but he has a chance of making the team."
Mekio has his sights set on the 2016 games in Rio de Janeiro.
"For all these years we didn't have anything," Pam Jarvis said. "We didn't have anything around them for these kids to do. It's really exciting."
Christy Johnson can be reached at 330-287-1624 or
[email protected]
Daily Record Sports Writer
Great story! Good luck to both boys!!
Are helmets a uniform violation?
Great story. I wish them both the best in pursuing their dreams.