Man Loses Nearly Half His Body Weight to Ride Roller Coaster and Boy With Cerebral Palsy Walks Marathon for Charity

A man from Ohio has lost over 85 kilograms so he could ride a new roller coaster.

Jared Ream, 35, from Dayton, chose to lose the weight when Kings Island amusement park in Mason, Ohio, said on August 15, 2019 that it was building a new ride called Orion.

Ream loves roller coasters and had already been on nearly 300 in his life. However, after getting a desk job and picking up some unhealthy habits, his weight increased dramatically.

His size had stopped him from going to amusement parks because, at 195 kilograms, he had become too large for the seats of some rides.

But when Kings Island — the park Ream grew up going to — announced Orion, he decided he had to ride it on its opening day.

It took him 10 months to lose enough weight to make sure he could go on the ride. To do so, he went on a diet, exercised daily, and slept eight to 10 hours every day. When it heard about Ream's effort, the park asked him to come to its media day, so he could ride Orion, his 300th roller coaster, a day early.

He said the thrill of the ride was worth losing the weight and he will be riding it again. "It was a motivation for me to change my life, and I'll think about that every time I ride the ride."

Orion is one of seven giga-roller coasters in the world. This means it has a height of over 90 meters. It's the tallest, fastest and longest roller coaster at Kings Island. Four of the world's giga-roller coasters are in the US, while Japan, Spain, and Canada have one each.

Now we go to a different story about a boy that won against his illness and that proved that body doesn't make an athlete and a hero!

A nine-year-old English boy with cerebral palsy has walked the length of a marathon to raise money for his school and a local children's hospital.

Tobias Weller, from Sheffield, walked the 42.195 kilometers over 70 days using his walker. When he began, he could only walk 50 meters a day, but by the end, he could walk 750 meters.

Weller had hoped to raise 500 pounds, or around $630, but he has made over 125,000 pounds ($158,000) for Sheffield Children's Hospital and his school, Paces, which works with children living with cerebral palsy and other disorders.

Weller had initially planned to do a 1 kilometer walk in his local park in May to raise money, but that was cancelled because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Inspired by Captain Tom Moore, who did 100 laps of his garden before his 100th birthday for charity, Weller suggested doing a marathon by walking up and down his street instead. Captain Moore's daughter, Hannah Ingram-Moore, even made a video to congratulate Weller, calling him "Captain Tobias."

Weller finished his marathon on Sunday, May 31. According to The Guardian, police closed the road for him, and his neighbors decorated the street. They cheered for him as he completed his challenge. Weller's mother, Ruth Garbutt, said her son wanted to keep going and make it to 50 kilometers.

Weller said, "I can't believe I completed a marathon. It's just awesome. I love it when my neighbors clap and cheer for me and getting stronger and stronger every day is such a good feeling."