UPBEAT PIANO MUSIC Captions by Glenna Casalme. www.able.co.nz Captions were made possible with funding from NZ On Air. Copyright Able 2015 MUSIC BUILDS GENTLE PIANO MUSIC UPBEAT ISLAND MUSIC LAUGHTER Thank you, brother! SLIDE GUITAR MUSIC Yeah! Whoo-hoo! SPLASH! ISLAND MUSIC CONTINUES Yeah! We're celebrating my 14-year anniversary Alive Day. It's very special, you know, in celebration of... 14 years of survival. And, uh` And... it's pretty significant. Stoked about it. Yeah! (GRUNTS, COUGHS) Wahey! Ooh! Bro, I just touched your knob. LAUGHTER You all right there? In about a week, it will be his Alive Day, and that's what he's chosen to call the anniversary of his accident. It's his Alive Day because he got to be alive instead of dead, which could've gone either way. And I think it's, kind of, his Alive Day because it's his rebirth. Part of Cameron's thing is that he was really reborn on that day. Like, you know, his whole body changed; his attitude, his outlook on life changed ` physically and mentally. ...two, three! SPLASH! I have all the necessities, all the tools that I use every day ` my X3 knees, my sockets ` fit around the limb ` and my arm ` my conventional, everyday prosthetic arm. And these are my everyday walking legs... called the X3. There's, like, a six-, seven-day battery life. I drive my car with these. No hand controls; just regular vehicle. Silicone liner. The liner will go over my arm... like that. And so this is a type of suspension. It's how it's suspended from the body. So you just` This little sock goes over to keep from sticking. So this pin on the end of the liner's just gonna lock down inside of this, uh, arm right here. So... CLICK! CLICK! And this is... the harness with the, uh, cable. So that's how I move my elbow. Or if I have it locked, that's how I open the hook. OK? When I shrug my shoulder, it unlocks it... or locks it in place. And so when it's locked, then I have the` the control of the hook. I'll pull the legs on, and the legs will be held on by suction. I need to get my weight up and over on the knees. If I had one leg, I would just stand up and put my weight into the leg and pull it on. But because I'm missing both my legs, I need to get on to my knees. So I'll just cross my legs... like this, and I'll make sure that I have my valves,... and I'm gonna... kick over. And then I get on to my knees like this. So now I'm on my knees. You can see my skin right here. So put the valve in there. Like that. Now I can get myself up,... (HUFFS) and I'm good to go. I remember the first time I put on my legs totally on my own. I had to figure it out by myself. I was... You know, I just had to process, to trial and error and figure out how it worked, and it took over 30 minutes just to get on one socket. It's been 14 years, and I'm doing more than I possibly could've ever imagined, um, even before, when I had all my legs and arms. Well, the police came to our door in the middle of the night, so it was pretty horrific. And... Um, it's really hard for me to think about that... scene. (SNIFFLES) FOOTSTEPS FALL, GRAVEL CRUNCHES FOOTSTEPS CONTINUE TRAIN HORN BELLOWS LOUD WHIRRING BRAKES SQUEALS (SNIFFLES) And, um... And then going to the hospital and... I think... that, uh... Well, Bill says, so it must have happened, that the chaplain came in to comfort us... because we were gonna lose our son. You know, getting hit by a train, drunk, 15 years old, that was instantly the biggest challenge of my life. Every day, you know, having to live as a triple amputee, yeah, it's a challenge. Are they still challenges? I don't know. I mean, I just like to think that... it's a... it's part of my story, and we all have our own story. The, uh, prosthetist who... they're the ones that make prosthesis,... (SNIFFLES) instead of having any kind of hope for Cameron, he just told us, 'Well, Cameron is just not gonna walk.' So we're in the doctor's office looking at magazines, and there's an article about a boy, um ` he has both his arms, but he's missing both his legs above the knee ` and he's swimming, and he's rock-climbing. He's just doing stuff. And we said to this guy` We're like, 'Well, about this kid who happens`?' His name is Rudy. We're like, 'What about this kid?' And the guys says to us, 'Oh, Rudy. He's one in a million.' We're like, 'Really? 'Bye-bye.' And we left, and we never went back to him. And then we just started doing tons of research to find out who would see Cameron as, you know` as potential and not as, like, you know, 'You're not gonna walk, so don't even try.' When I first saw Cameron, I evaluated him and said to myself, you know, 'Here's a kid with guts, energy, drive.' I said you know, 'How did they make out this kid is not going to walk again?' In fact, we said, 'Cameron, you know, literally, within hours, we can have you up and going.' So we got working with him. That evening, he walked out of our office and has never been in a wheelchair since. I was, like, amazed when` Again, guts ` gutsy young kid, did absolutely awesome. First it was really hard, and there was a lot of frustration and struggle. I melted down; I was overwhelmed; I would cry; I would wipe the tears from my face, and I would... never stay in a deep, dark depression. I would always pick myself back up with positive energy. 'What am I gonna do? Focus on my goal, and eventually, I'd get there.' I was able to transform from a train wreck into an athlete of multiple sports. Yeehah! (GROANS) CHEERING, CLAPPING CHEERING LAID-BACK UKULELE MUSIC Cameron pushing boundaries ` that's, like, his whole life. But, yeah, this was a whole new world ` a world of amputees and prosthetics. And then once he learned how to walk,... From here to there to there. well, we said, like, 'What else you wanna do? You wanna run? OK. Let's get you running. 'What else d'you wanna do? Walk up and down the stairs? OK, let's do that.' I was raising the bar. I was pushing the edge of the envelope of... what a bilateral above-the-knee amputee had ever done, like walking downstairs without holding on to a hand railing ` just step over step. Whoo! We're going down` We're going down 16! Whoo-hoo! Cameron works hard at doing what he does. But he pushes us even harder. His expectations are very very high. So he has helped us pioneer new concepts. Stuff like sockets ` how the prosthetic device interfaces with his body. He comes up with ideas on how to make it more flexible, more dynamic ` you know, areas inside the socket that as he's walking and as he's running, that his muscles can fire into the various compartments, that he can be very very active with the the prosthetic device. So he pushes us, and as a result, he has helped, I would say, literally thousands of other prosthetic users both in the United States and around the world to be very successful with their prosthetics. The hills kind of start over there. We don't have to drive. We can just walk up there and run up. Do a couple sprints up and run down, sprint up. I have an immense amount of gratitude for my family, because all that we have been through. And so my` my return of` is to participate in the half-marathon and to show that, you know, 'Hey, I've been able to make it. You know, this is who I am today, 'and I couldn't have done it without your help.' And to run side by side with my sister is going to be a pretty amazing experience. OK. So I'm gonna switch out to my running legs here. This is, um, a carbon-fibre running foot with a 3S80 running knee. It's specifically designed for running. So I'll just pop it on. I'm just gonna tighten these set screws and get 'em nice and tight. Push on it. There you go. Yeah. That little part, you just flip it up, and now it's locked. Does this part rotate inside here? No. Your regular legs have a computer chip for a knee. Exactly. Right? Yeah. These ones are just hydraulics and` Yup. Hydraulics. As soon as that knee flexes, it's gonna swing forward instantly. And so it's going to be there for you. The only time I ever fall is when I get lazy and I catch my toe, and I just trip. Then my foot will not come forward because I catch my toe on something. And then, boom, I'm down. Runners will tell you, like, when you` you know, you have your runner's high or whatever, you get into, like, a rhythm, and definitely after a few miles, you kinda lose yourself. And with Cameron, like, his mind has to be thinking about every step, for hours, which has gotta be hard. (LAUGHS) SURFING MUSIC I mean, I kind of run to get away, to` you know, to not think, and Cameron, I think, it takes a lot of thinking. SURFING MUSIC BUILDS I do enjoy the running. However, I'm thinking about, you know, the technical part of it, the techniques, what's going on underneath me, if I'm doing all of the preparations so that I'm not chafing my skin and getting breakdowns. So there's a lot to think about, but, you know, ultimately, I get to a place where I am just running and I have that rhythm, and I'm just` I'm in the zone; I'm in my element; and, uh, I'm thinking really positive thoughts. ENERGETIC MUSIC I gotta... take care of something. Gotta take care of some business? Yeah. Should I`? Should I turn around? (LAUGHS) No, I just gotta drain some fluid. Eurgh! (LAUGHS) Oh! (GIGGLES) SWEAT TRICKLES (GUFFAWS) > Oh yeah. That felt amazing. (LAUGHS) > That felt pretty good. (GIGGLES) Game on. Gross! Well, the weather's starting to cool down a little bit. Feels good. JAUNTY SLIDE GUITAR MUSIC MUSIC CONTINUES On the way to see the family at my mother and father's for brunch, and I'm super stoked. Everyone's getting together, reuniting. My mom is such a tough lady. And she has got... so much love for all of us kids, all of her children. Um... And she just exudes love for us. And my mom has been very tolerating of all of my bullcrap and all of my shenanigans and my being a hooligan growing up. And she is damn resilient. Whoo! Here we are. Home sweet home. Yeee! LAID-BACK ISLAND MUSIC I never saw any point in eating, like, three bowls of spaghetti, but, yeah, get some carbs and... just drink a lot of water. Hydration. > And eat your veggies. That's about it. But I'm on the egg department here. Egg-cellent! He doesn't have that overachiever personality where he's gotta be better than everybody else and everything he does and... but he just has the drive to` to do the things he likes to do. It's hard for me to comprehend that ` that he can actually run 13.1 miles. Yeah. I mean, a` a mile is, like, insane. Like, 'Really? You can do that now?' < We're all, like trying really hard not to` I know. Ohhh, I love you. He doesn't have anything to prove to anybody; he doesn't have anything to prove to his family; we all love him, and he's more than proven himself to us, you know, a million times over. Not that he ever had to, but he has. He wants people to perceive him as capable. But that's always been his goal since his accident ` that he is capable in the world. It's the... beginning of his recovery when he was younger. Uh, so much of the purpose was just to` was physical. Now he's building up his insides, because that allows him to give to give to other people. And that's what he's all about ` is being able to give to other people. And now he has also extra purpose in his life. Not only is he living his life; he is living his life in honour of his brother, Jesse. To... our family, to life and to the marathon tomorrow. May it be a good half-marathon, Camille. My brother is with me in every fibre of my make-up no matter where I go or what I do. Because not only am I, like, an exact duplicate, like, you know, model and creation of my brother, being identical twins. So we're` We're one and the same. We shared a womb together. We were born and, you know, we were brought up. But also in that spiritual sense, you know? In my heart, in my soul, he's` he's always there with me. And that gives me some comfort and really gives me a peace of mind. Cameron and Jesse were very... fun, uh, active,... um,... popular... hooligans. (LAUGHS) Very sweet and generous boys, both of them. But they did like to live life on the edge, those two. You know, both of the boys struggled with, uh,... um,... (TUTS) their substance abuse, and, uh, you know, that's what,... uh,... caused Cameron's accident, or led up to Cameron's accident. And, uh, so Jesse definitely struggled with that. And it was hard for him, you know. Um... And unfortunately, that's the way things turned out for Jesse. Yeah. I know... deep down inside, in my heart, in my soul, that my brother Jesse ` my twin brother ` did exactly his part... in my life story. And I am forever gravely indebted to his service to me. Because I wouldn't know that` that true brotherhood and love that two twins and twin brothers have without that experience. Now,... I could've been a lot better of an example in other respects, in regards to my own decisions. Of course, you know` Did I portray a good example in my rehabilitation as a multiple-limb amputee and learning how to walk and become independent? Yes, I was great at that. But it didn't mean that I made other good choices. I made a lot of mistakes. I'm not perfect; nobody is. But I've learned a lot, and I absolutely have changed a lot since my brother passed away. And that's another part of why I'm grateful for where I'm at now ` because I've learned so much from him. I've learned that if I live that lifestyle, I'm no better than dead. You know, I almost died, and I'm lucky, because I have a second chance. Yeah, I've lost three limbs, but it's` it's... it's an opportunity. Now I can learn from my mistakes. I don't have to repeat that cycle of destructive behaviour that's going to eventually kill me like it did my brother. And so he, in turn, saved my life. I` I` I wasn't able to do that for him. All that I've been through, I couldn't do that for him. But godammit, he can do it for me. OK? That` That is why my brother is so important to my life story. There's nothing that I can do but live a life absolutely to its fullest and to make good decisions and not waste my life. WAVES ROAR How're you feeling about tomorrow? I'm a little bit nervous,... (INHALES DEEPLY) but I'm really excited. Are you mentally there? Are you physically there? I'm mentally there; physically, I'm prepared. Yeah. Yeah. Be a good way to celebrate my ampu-versary. (LAUGHS) In the amputee world, we call it ampu-versary. The ampu-versary! But that's my Alive Day, you know? Yeah. And it's a... It's absolutely,... you know, something to celebrate ` life. Yeah. You know, personally, for me, i-it's been a process, and... after my accident, I` I had a lot of guilt and shame for myself, because, you know, I had caused such turmoil in our family. And, you know, having the family witness what I went through and to have such emotional trauma for everybody, you know, I know that was painful. And so for me to, um` to have this opportunity now, to have go` really... come so far from that point in time, um, you know, this is a re- kind of a healing process for me. Everybody feels guilt. You can't live your life thinking about the what-ifs. Everybody ` you, me, Mom ` I mean, everybody has to stop thinking about the what-ifs and just live your life cos... Yup. And, kind of, let go. I mean, it's in the past. You know, you can't change what happened, but you can change who you are now and just move forward and` Exactly. ...continue on. Yeah. Every day is a new day. Absolutely. And that's what Jesse always told me. Mm-hm. He said, 'You know what? No matter what, tomorrow the sun will rise again. 'You're guaranteed it's a new day.' Yup. So I always remember that. PLAYFUL UKULELE MUSIC JAUNTY WHISTLING MUSIC INDISTINCT CONVERSATIONS Today we have 1652 participants, and we have 17 different countries. And give a big round of applause for the crazy people running the full marathon. 314 of them will be... HUBBUB In the beginning, I was nervous. I haven't run that much distance races with Cameron. There's so much stuff going on. We didn't even go get over to the crowd till 5.59. So when, you know, the gun went off at 6, we were just barely ready to go. Five! Four! Three! Two! One. Good luck, everybody. CHEERING, CLAPPING Everything went smooth. Everybody loves seeing him. He got a lot of` He got a lot of props from runners and from spectators. UPBEAT UKULELE MUSIC HUBBUB PLAYFUL SCAT MUSIC LAUGHTER, CHATTER PLAYFUL MUSIC CONTINUES PLAYFUL WHISTLING AND KAZOO MUSIC He's really slow uphill, but then when he hits a downhill, I can barely keep up with him. Like, he's really fast. Running next to him for two hours and 45 minutes, I think you get a really good grasp of, like, 'Wow, this is his life, like, every second of every day.' You know what I mean? Just being side by side, listening to him and just, like, feeling his vibes. Everything that he's having to do to run that we take for granted, I think just really reminded me, like, 'Wow, this is his life. It's pretty difficult' And being right next to him, doing that whole thing just reminded me of that. Um... Two hours, maybe. I got two hours right now. We've got 3` 3 miles to go. A little bit more than that. I'm covered in sweat. But there's people in the community spraying with hoses, cooling us down, passing out apple, bananas and water and really` Oh! WOMAN: Oh shit! It's really hard for him to walk. He's gotta run. Easy. Here. Let's go. Go. Hold on. (SPEAKS INDISTINCTLY) All right. Wanna lean on me? Hold on, yeah. All right, we gotta run. Can't be standing here walking. (LAUGHS) Cameron thanks every single person that hands him water. He thanks every single person. He waves and acknowledges everybody on the side of the road that's cheering for us. He acknowledges every person. He's like his own personal messiah. Like, he just says, 'Blessings. Blessings,' to everybody. (CHEERS) Yeah! CHEERING, CLAPPING Blessings! CHEERING CONTINUES Thank you for your support! He's just really thankful and really aware of everybody that's encouraging him. WHIMSICAL VIOLIN MUSIC Yeah. Whoo. His whole life is full of hard work and dedication, you know. He goes around the world and mentors kids, mentors adults. Getting a little hard right now. (LAUGHS) You're hanging in there. His whole life is a challenge. Like, he doesn't have to do this kind of challenge, but he takes it on himself. My muscles are about fatiguing right now. Gotta push through. I, for sure, learned to, um, don't sweat the small stuff, because there's definitely harder challenges to deal with. INDISTINCT PA ANNOUNCEMENT MAN: Here comes Cameron Clapp right here. LIVELY STRING MUSIC Whoo! Cameron's here! CHEERING, BELL JANGLES INDISTINCT PA ANNOUNCEMENT Thank you. Good job. Good job, man. Got it. Thanks. Congratulations. It definitely makes you feel like you have somewhat of a purpose to` to brighten people's, you know, day or` or give them, you know, good attitude, right? I am so happy it's done! Whoo-hoo! Yeah! Maybe they're kinda hung up on petty little things that, really, in the big picture is not a big deal. And they see me, and it just changes their whole attitude, you know, of, really, what the perspective is in life, you know ` to, um... You just live life to the fullest. You know, I come out here, everybody is pushing themselves to the limit. That's what I love about it. This year's 9th Annual Attitude Awards will be held on December 3rd. Join us at the Viaduct Events Centre in Auckland to celebrate the achievements of NZers with disabilities. Tickets are on sale now. For more information, go to... Captions were made possible with funding from NZ On Air. Copyright Able 2015