By Sunnie Huang
Soon after his motocross accident, Pauly Plewa was given a brochure and asked to pick the colour of the wheelchair that he would soon get.
With a devastating back injury that required his vertebrae to be fused together with metal rods, he was told that his chance of regaining any sensation below his chest was less than two per cent. 
Three years later, not only is he able to walk on his own feet, he is also getting ready for a 10-kilometre run.The 19-year-old, originally from Stoney Creek, Ont. and now living in Canfield, will take part in the Wings for Life world run in Niagara Falls in May to raise awareness for spinal cord injuries.
“This run is to educate the general public about what it is like to have a spinal cord injury, what the side effects are and how it really affects your life,” he said. “I think it would make people a lot more grateful.”
Doctors fused Pauly Plewa’s vertebrae with metal rods after his motocross accident. (Submitted by Pauly Plewa)
The star racer’s career took a detour on March 18, 2012, just weeks before his 17th birthday.
After qualifying as one of the two Canadians to race in the Arenacross World Championship in Las Vegas, he went to New York to practise. After hitting a rough patch, he went head first over his handlebar and landed on the ground. His bike – 113 kilograms of metal with 80 km/h of momentum – landed on him, essentially snapping his back in half.