IOWA CITY -- Linn-Mar sophomore Jordan Houdeshell set a personal record in the shot put at the Forwald Relays Thursday, but there wasn't much time to celebrate.

He had to climb off the special chair he uses in the shot put, scamper into his wheelchair, roll himself through the grass to a paved lane and get to the track.

Once there, he had to switch wheelchairs -- from his regular chair to his racing chair or "bike" -- strap himself in, adjust his helmet and wheel himself to the starting line.

He did it all successfully, with determination and self-reliance. Houdeshell is an athlete; wheelchair is merely the adjective that precedes it.

Houdeshell is a full-fledged member of the Linn-Mar boys track team, even though he cannot walk or run.

"He does exactly what the other guys do in practice," Linn-Mar Coach Ken Hopkins said. "He just uses his arms instead of his legs. He's a great competitor, a great kid."

Houdeshell ranks second among all wheelchair athletes in the state in the 200-meter dash, he's third in the 100-meter dash and he's also third in the shot put after a toss of 12 feet, 1 inch on Thursday, nearly two feet longer than his previous best.

Houdeshell is also a wheelchair basketball player and plans to work as a manager for the Linn-Mar boys basketball team next season. He got to sit next to North Carolina Coach Roy Williams at a game this season in Cedar Rapids when Williams came to watch Marcus Paige, the Linn-Mar star who has committed to Carolina.

"We were talking back and forth," said Houdeshell, a big sports fan. "He was really friendly. He shook my hand, said hi, how are you doing. Really friendly."

Houdeshell was born with spina bifida. "It's when the spinal chord isn't fully developed," he explained. "It actually depends on how bad it is when you're born. I'm actually pretty lucky."

Houdeshell has a strong upper body and a firm grip. If you've ever seen him at the Linn-Mar High School gym, you know he moves quickly in his chair. He also moves quickly on a track, and the fans at the Forwald Relays Thursday gave him a nice ovation as he raced through the 100-meter event.

He speaks openly of his physical limitations. It's the life he's been given, and he plans to make the most of it.

"I just kind of think of it as just one of those things," he said. "I don't know why God picked me. I've just accepted it."

He drives his own pickup truck with special controls, is active in the industrial tech class that Coach Hopkins teaches at Linn-Mar, and he'd like to help build a house with other students.

"People have said you can't do that. I just say, 'Watch me,' and I prove them wrong," he remarked.

His Linn-Mar teammates helped him get ready Thursday for the shot put, which involved placing four stakes in the ground and fastening straps to secure the elevated throwing chair. Houdeshell climbed into the chair without help, strapped himself in, twisted his shoulders for proper torque and let it fly.

"I think it's awesome," said Linn-Mar senior Frank Davis, a shot putter himself. "I know if I was in that chair I couldn't throw 12 feet. He's like the nicest person I know."

Houdeshell did not compete with the Linn-Mar track team as a freshman. He credits Jon Litzkow, a wheelchair athlete from Waterloo West, for getting him interested in the sport.

Houdeshell and Litzkow went to camps together and raced against each other. "I liked it the first time I tried it," he said. "I found out he races for his team at Waterloo West."

Litzkow is the premier wheelchair track athlete in the state with the top times in the 100, 200 and 400 dashes and the second-best effort in the shot put. The two friends probably will compete against each in the state meet in Des Moines next month.

Houdeshell did not have any competition in the shot put, 100 or 200 Thursday, which is usually the case. He knew he was going to win before each event began, but racing alone is not that easy.

"Usually right before each race I get real nervous," he said. "Once the gun goes off and a hear the crowd cheer, I just try to do the best I can."

Houdeshell trains five days a week, sometimes for two hours at a time. Track is a relatively safe sport, compared to competitive wheelchair basketball. He's been bloodied in basketball.

"I would smash my fingers between chairs. I've run over my own hand," he said, smiling. "It's brutal.

"People say wheelchair basketball would be a boring sport to watch, until they come and watch."

Houdeshell lives much of his life in a chair, but he's not parked in front of a television set. He's training, competing and having fun.

"I'm actually pretty lucky," he said again.