At just 17 years old, Mason Branstrator’s life changed in an instant. During what was supposed to be an ordinary day of downhill skiing in Minnesota, a bad jump left him with a broken T-12 vertebra and paralyzed from the waist down.
Doctors told Mason he might never walk again, news that was devastating for a teen who loved running, soccer, and skiing. He spent nine days in the ICU in Duluth before being airlifted to Craig Hospital in Colorado, where he completed about four months of intensive rehabilitation. Through ongoing physical therapy and repeat visits to Craig, Mason slowly rebuilt strength and learned how to adapt.
Rather than seeing his wheelchair as a limitation, Mason embraced it as freedom. After rehab, he returned home, became his high school’s homecoming king, graduated, and later enrolled at the University of Denver near Craig Hospital, where he now returns not as a patient, but as a mentor.
Though daily life takes extra effort, from driving with hand controls to navigating buildings without ramps, Mason refused to give up sports. He competes in adaptive tennis and basketball, swims using his upper body, surfs while strapped to a kayak, and trains using hand-powered bikes.
Last month, just three years after his injury, Mason competed in the wheelchair division of Grandma’s Marathon in his hometown of Duluth, Minnesota, finishing in 2:03:52.
Beyond racing, Mason has built a large online community by sharing everyday moments of life in a wheelchair. With nearly 270,000 followers on Instagram, he shows how ordinary adaptations can empower others and redefine what’s possible.
“I always dreamed of helping people,” Mason said. “Now I realize I’m living that dream.”
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