By Jarrod Potter
WHEN confronted with the prospect of his son being put on prescription medicine to treat his hyper-activity, Trevor Rogers decided to put him on a bike instead.
And it has been a most beneficial move for seven-year-old Rhys.
Rhys Rogers has achieved more than riders twice his age can hope for, taking out the under-12 Freestyle BMX championships three weeks ago, making him the youngest winner of the event.
It’s an achievement that makes Trevor Rogers proud, considering what the medicated alternative for his son would have been.
“I’d rather have him burn off his energy playing sports than medicate him,” Rogers said. “The improvement in his behaviour was immediate.
“He’s in the top three in his class and his social skills have improved immensely.”
Rhys, from Devon Meadows, is able to execute a backflip on his bike; a feat his father believes makes him the youngest in the world to achieve.
“We went on the internet and the youngest we could find was a nine year-old in America, so (Rhys) could possibly be the youngest in the world to backflip a BMX,” Rogers said.
“He’s been riding his BMX, under the tutelage of Sam (Illman) at The Shed, for 12 months and on his scooter since he was three. He was able to backflip his scooter at six, so it probably makes him the youngest to do that as well.”
Rhys enjoys riding because of the thrills of jumping and performing tricks around the course at his favoured training location, The Shed, in Cranbourne.
“I like riding BMX and having fun and doing flips,” Rhys said.
Rhys’s favourite moves on his bike are “superman seat-grabs, supermans, 360s and tail-whips” and additionally to his love of BMX, he also plays “footy, karate, scootering, tennis and cricket”.
No slouch on his scooter either, Rhys is able to perform a double backflip.
Illman is amazed with how much the young bike prodigy has achieved to date.
“His riding ability suggests he is 15 years old,” Illman said.
“Most kids don’t start as young as him, some start at 12 or 13, and they’re not as good as he is now.”
Latest
Talking election: Voting cards and Bruce insights
With the election just days away, candidates and MPs are out in droves in their electorates, as their party’s how-to-vote cards tell a preferential...
