Chase – Born To Race Despite Epilepsy

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From Wheelchair to the Cockpit – Nothing Can Stop Him!

At age 14, Chase Rief was admitted to a Colorado hospital after being rushed there with Parkinson’s symptoms. Quickly the teen was diagnosed with Prescription Medication Toxicity, he could no longer walk – suddenly life included a wheelchair. He did not take medication that wasn’t prescribed to him, in this day and age this type of diagnosis is frequently the result of a doctor prescribing a medication wrongfully or without due diligence. Concerta, given after an ADHD diagnosis at age 12, was the culprit. Like many folks, the family didn’t think of Epilepsy at first.

Many don’t think of nonconvulsive seizures being a culprit for behavioral diagnostics such as ADD or ADHD – but quite often it is. What happens next is doctors prescribe medications known to be ‘pro convulsive’ or can actually cause a seizure.

From age 12 to 14 multiple medications were given and failed. Then came the Concerta and that long list of warnings we all don’t see. On Treato, an online health site, I found that there were 18 posts from people that experienced paralysis as a side effect of that Rx Medication.

What’s worse is that Chase was subsequently diagnosed with Epilepsy after that hospital stay, meaning that all of those ADHD drugs did nothing but cause seizures and likely could have caused the epileptiform pattern to emerge during puberty when it quite often does without the help of a pharmaceutical that can cause seizures.

As a matter of fact, a quick search found the FDA Label that warns: “Do not use Concerta with patients known to have seizures, it will lower the threshold. If a seizure occurs discontinue the medication immediately.” {FDA Product Insert} By far, it’s not uncommon for me to run across an Epilepsy patient that has been prescribed a pro convulsive medication and is taking it now and seizing due to it.

Quickly after Chase was discharged from the hospital he was diagnosed by a neurologist. “Thankfully he knew what CBD and Cannabis oil did and had no problem recommending it for him,” says his dad Ken Rief, “We no longer do prescription medications because Chase refuses them and for good reason.”

Before CBD/Cannabis oils came into Chase’s life they were living the prescription medication horror story most of us have grown to dislike so well.

“He was having hallucinations back then, it was so bad they wanted to psych admit him over it” his dad went on, “he kept blanking out and staring off but the doctors said it was pseudo or false seizures and didn’t want to admit it was problems with the pills.”

Finally when the diagnosis came in of Generalized Epilepsy the family, who had been a crucial part of the race Martini Racing team’s Steve Bennett crew for years, went to only nature and nothing else. Who is Steve?

Steve is the owner of a medicinal cannabis facility called Freedom Farms who sponsors Chase’s Hill Climb race truck.

Steve’s also the grower of CBD and much more in Colorado that has supplied him with the life-changing medicine, not only to Chase but also his Dad Ken who was Bennett’s first medicinal patient. “We didn’t even try a seizure medication after that all happened, we couldn’t. Chase won’t take them and we don’t want them.

We’ve seen what prescription medication does to our son, ” says Dad, “He used to stay up all night and get bloody noses all the time from them, that’s all stopped.”

Steven Bennet, the man with the naturally grown plan that was one of many that helped Chase make a dream come true is a past vice president of Colorado Hill Climb Association – a very well respected Internationally known group.

Ray Robinson, a veteran Hill Climber and so much more, leads this big team that saw Chase’s dream and had to make it a reality. A humble man, Robinson won’t take the credit I give him as a former driver myself.

A past champion Ice Racer and Pike’s Peak International Hill Climber – building cars and racing is definitely his thing!

Without a doubt, Chase has started off with a powerhouse of a team and crew. But, the very first project to attack was stopping the seizures and keeping control for a long period so he could get his driver’s license.

“The search was on for what would stop those seizures for good,” his dad told me, “He grew up around racing and around Steve so the answer was simple.”

It took the Cannabis plant to make the difference. “It’s night and day when I look back at how he was before using nature as medicine. His grades were D’s and now they’re B’s,” his dad goes on “He’d been through so much and still kept fighting through it all.

“At one point the county questioned what we were doing,” Said his dad, “We made it very simple to see that prescription medication caused his problems and nature gave him answers,” his dad told me when I asked if he’s ever taken flack for the method he and his wife chose for Chase.

Many think of Medicinal Cannabis and immediately think that Colorado or California for example would be their answer – that if they go there they’ll have no problems.

That simply isn’t the case, it’s taken the better part of the last 5 years for state agencies to realize that giving children nature instead of chemicals in prescriptions is saving and changing lives for good.

It’s people like the Rief’s that are breaking the stigma – especially by putting that Freedom Farms Race Truck on the track with the cannabis leaf and all! I love it.

Let’s continue his story. In order to race he had to go seizure-free for a period of time to qualify and stay seizure-free. Between Robinson, Bennett, his dad, and others they had to definitely make that happen as part of the whole plan. Chase got his license!

Bennett and his Dad were not sure how the Colorado Hill Climb Association would take to a Cannabis Car – especially with a young driver that has Epilepsy.

As the story goes Steve Bennett decided to give his medicinal cannabis grow the special name of “Freedom Farms” in hopes that if they threw that name on the car as a sponsor the racing crowd, generally anti-cannabis as a whole, would go for it. Sure enough, the crowds and fellow racers from around the world are showing massive support across social media.

A simple posting of him in his Race Truck at his first event was shared in excess of 10,000 times and not just to the Cannabis Community. Race fans abound are talking it up about the teenager in Colorado with Epilepsy that’s strapped into his rig and ready to race next weekend. It’s literally making racing history paving the way for future sponsors.

Without a doubt both Bennett and Robinson had so much history with their racing buddies that nobody even questioned it, instead it’s all-out support coming from every aspect of racing. Here’s Ray Robinson along with Chase – racing builds much more than a friendship – it builds a brotherhood – a family.

Ray Robinson is the wheel guiding chase as he prepares him for future victory. In racing, it’s taking the checkered flag that means victory – finishing the race. It’s not always about where you finish, it’s about the love of sport and the rushing feeling of the competition between your racing buddies. It’s amazing what nature and love can do. This story is definitely about the combo of the two.

It’s intense how life changes when Cannabis as medicine steps in and fills the place of medications that failed. Quickly Chase got his license and started preparing to race. Hill Climbs are against the clock but definitely are an intense sports event. Cars and trucks roll, casualties occur.

All of us racers, current and former, bow our heads as we think of the losses of our fellow comrades in fire suits. “We considered the risks involved in racing and since Hill Climbing is less dangerous than a trip to the convenience store the decision was made that he should be allowed to live his dream,” his dad told me a few weeks ago.

And that’s exactly what Chase did at Monarch, Colorado only 10 days ago. Finishing 2nd place in his first run. Without a doubt, Chase proves the point that we should never give up and no diagnosis can ever define any of us.

Chase’s girlfriend Torie, definitely deserves a very honorable mention if not more. I, for one, know what it’s like to be in a wheelchair and also know what it’s like to have Generalized Epilepsy and to seize.

At that young age to find someone that stays by your side through a challenge such as this is much more than unique or heartwarming – it’s downright beautiful. And, because she’s stayed by his side through this battle, she’s now the one that will be waiting for him to enter Victory Lane coming up on the 11th-13th at the Grand Junction Hill Climb. Chase, not only races, not only got his license, and not only is working different jobs here and there – he has love – which is rare in this world. The message this sends to everyone is that you are not the label a doctor or society put upon a document. You’re not a disease nor is anyone a list of symptoms. We are our dreams… it’s just up to us to live them. What seemed like it could never happen, did.

Chase and Torie at his first event with Ray Robinson taking a look in and giving a few pointers.

Chase has been racing in his mind for over a decade – I know what that’s like growing up in a racing family.

Epilepsy crushes so many dreams – the fact he’s able to strap himself in and make the race is a victory for all 65 million of us with Epilepsy across the globe.

The ‘Survive By Nature’ Freedom Farms Race Truck, Chase’s Rig!

As a former driver that left the track after a brutal wreck in 1995, Chase makes that racer part of me come back to life. At first, I was a bit hesitant about his story because it scared me that he’d get hurt too. I’m not used to that emotion when it comes to racing or anything.

When I was first talking to his dad Ken I thought “This is how I got hurt”.

Should we live our lives fearing the worst outcome of everything we do or should we go into everything with positive thoughts?

After thinking about Chase’s dream I thought about my own in wanting to drive a car someday again – just to the convenience store. His dad’s words are still in my head.

Racing is indeed safer than a trip around the corner. The bottom line is every last dream we have is on the other side of the fear we have. Cannabis as medicine has changed the lives of so many like Chase – there are so many untold stories.