Jason
Autism Friendly Karting Event Was A Huge Success.
This past Sunday(March 24th), Austin and the RWA team travelled to K1’s indoor karting facility in Mississauga for a very special event! In partnership with K1 Speed, Autism Speaks Canada and Racing With Autism, we held Autism friendly karting sessions for the first time ever in North America. The numbers we kept low to help make the environment a friendly one for those not comfortable with crowds and noise. All the participants signed up with a special link on K1’s website and sold out within a couple of weeks of being posted. All of the racers would be treated to two on track race sessions with Austin providing help and guidance as well as joining in with the on track fun. Doing something like this in Canada has always been a dream of mine, I can’t tell you how proud I was of the outcome. To see so many young people on the spectrum get into a go kart for the first time in their lives and drive around with their "hero" was really emotional for me. The whole morning was filled with joy, pure happiness and laughter, you could see the pride overflowing from each of the parents on hand as they cheered on their favourite new racer. Some of the racers were very fast and some were very slow, but they ALL enjoyed themselves. Just the realization that everyone there was just like them, there was no judgment, just inclusion. Everyone on the track was “Racing With Autism”!!!!!! This really was a very special event and I hope everyone involved in the organization of it realizes what we accomplished together, It is my hope that this becomes a regular occurrence at all K1 Speed locations not just here but right across North America!!
