Overcoming the obstacles

When junior Steve Hinson walks by, he does so without hobbling or limping. It is not until he nonchalantly takes off the prosthetic appendage below his knee to show you the scribbled notes, numbers and burn marks on his rubber foot that it is even apparent he has only one leg.\nHinson, though, hasn't let the injury stop him from becoming a top-tier runner with his eyes on a world record. \nIt was May of 1992 when Hinson and his twin brother, Joe, both nine, were cutting grass at their family's home in Hebron, Ind. Joe was on the riding lawn mower when Steve fell and came into contact with the lawn mower's razor-sharp blades.\n"It was probably my fault anyways. I was playing too close to the lawn mower," Hinson said, "(The accident) was never really a big deal, it never really affected me too much. It affected my family more than me. They had a lot of issues with it."\nThe accident caused such severe damage to the growth plate in Hinson's right leg it had to be amputated a about a foot below the knee. His foot could have been saved, but the damage to the growth plate, the area of developing tissue around the ends of bones in children and teenagers, would have stopped his leg from growing any bigger. This would have prevented Hinson from playing any more sports.\nHinson said it takes most people with similar injuries about a year for the pain to subside and to become accustomed to walking with a prosthetic leg, he was fitted with a prosthesis about 3 months after the accident. The pain lasted for another 3 months.\nThe accident did not keep Hinson from participating in activities other kids his age were doing. Since the accident, he has been on numerous athletic teams including baseball, track and even played as a defensive end for Carmel High School's football team during his junior year after he moved there with his mother and brother.\n"I lost (my leg) in May, and I still played little league baseball that year," he said with a smile. "My brother ran for me, but I was still able to bat. I would limp around the best that I could."\nHinson's mother, Sharlet, recalls how her son dealt with the accident and his recovery.\n"He never let it get him down or make him feel like he couldn't do anything," she said. "He had to give 150 percent to do what others could do. He did what it took."\nHinson dedicates his time to helping others in similar situations overcome their disabilities. \nBetween sports and academics, Hinson has found time to volunteer his services to numerous causes benefiting children with and without disabilities. He volunteers with the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, where he spends part of his summer with amputee kids at a camp and then takes them skiing and snowboarding in the winter. Hinson also makes visits to recent amputee children to provide them with support and motivation, and he tutors elementary school children at the Monroe County Public Library, which is where he met his fiancée, Liz Watkins.\n"As long as I live, there isn't going to be a better person in the world," Joe Hinson said of his brother. "He'd do anything for anybody. When people see themselves at a disadvantage, Steve wants to show them how far he has gotten."\nSophomore Jen Watkins, one of Hinson's roommates, echoed these sentiments.\n"He is the nicest guy I've ever met," she said. "He's very driven and focused. (His leg) was hard not to notice. He is always waving it around."\nBy some of his antics, one can probably tell Hinson does not worry how most people react to his leg. But he cares how children react, especially kids who have not experienced anyone with a prosthetic before. When they inquire about it, Hinson jokingly refers to it as a "robo-leg" to make the kids laugh and to ease the tension.\nRespect from the children he works with is not automatic for Hinson. He earns it by showing them how he fulfills his passion -- running.\nHinson is sponsored by the prosthetic company Ossur and has competed in numerous disabled running events in places like California, Oklahoma City, Chicago and even in the Disney Wide World of Sports. \nThis summer, Hinson has one specific goal set for himself: to beat the 5K disabled world record of 18:50. \n"I should set the world record this summer," Hinson said. "It's a shitty world record. I've ran (18:50) on training runs."\nAlso coming up for Hinson in October is the Chicago Marathon, which he plans on running with his fiancée for the first 10 or so miles. It's his ability to overcome challenges that Hinson hopes will ultimately make people think of him as an athlete instead of an amputee. \n"People look at me as an amputee first and a runner second," Hinson said. "It should be the other way around"