5> Shriners (NAPSA)—Ross Cramer knows all about obstacles. While he faces the wooden and concrete variety every day as he practices trials biking,it’s the ever-present physical obstacles that define whohe is and give him the drive and determination to succeed. Ross was born with a condition called “false joint”—spongy bone that would not heal—anda dislocated hip. After hip surgeries and multiple cast changes, doctors recommended amputation. Ross’ mother wanted another opinion. She brought him to the Intermountain Shriners Hospital where doctors proposed more hip procedures and inserted metal rods down the bones in Ross’leg. He learned to walk at 18 months and, at two, he was already performing his first stunts on little trike. Then, in 1997, Ross was riding his bike when his foot slipped off the pedal and became trapped. His leg was fractured and the metal rod inside bent. Ross spent six more months in casts and leg braces. When he was in high school, doctors cut the ball portion of his femur and placed it correctly in the hip socket, adding more plates and screws to keep everything in place. About two years ago, Ross had all the hardware removed. Around the same time, he becameinterested in tri- als bikes. Trials bike enthusiasts negotiate over fallen logs, rocks, dirt hills and other obstacles. Points are awarded in competition for remaining upright on the bike while clearing all the obstacles. Performing on his custom bike at Shriners Hospital seems easy for 18-year-old Ross Cramer—until you consider he was never even supposedto walk. Now that the surgeries are over, Ross can concentrate on life. He is enrolled at Colorado Northwest Community College and plans on competing in futuretrials. “I hope to be world champion,” Ross says with a grin. For more information on Shriners network of 22 hospitals that provide medical care and services totally free of charge to children with orthopaedic problems, burns and spinal cord injuries, write to: Shriners International Headquarters, Public Relations Dept., 2900 Rocky Point Dr., Tampa, FL 33607, or visit the Web site at www.shrinershq.org. Treatment is provided to children under age 18 regardless to race, religion or relationship to a Shriner. If you know a child Shriners can help, call 1-800-237-5055 in the United States or 1-800-3617256 in Canada.
