Sport mod driver Hunter McCloud lost his left arm in a trucking accident in May. Nearly five months to the day later, he returned to victory lane, winning at Mountain Motor Complex in Whitesburg, Kentucky. While the time span may be short, the road to this point was long.
What Happened to Hunter McCloud
“I’m a student in college — I go to University of Pikeville — I’m going to be a middle grades math teacher,” said Hunter McCloud, 23, of Paintsville, Kentucky. “I was driving a dump truck on the side to make some extra money. On May 22, in Hindman, Kentucky, I lost brakes going down a hill. The truck turned over and pinned my left arm under it, between the concrete and the truck. I never lost consciousness. I just put my faith in God.”
McCloud chose the teaching profession so that way he could get summers off to race. It’s no wonder what was on his mind on the ambulance ride to the hospital.
“The first thing I said when my brother, Garet, got there, ‘I’m going to be the one-arm bandit,’” McCloud said. “I said until I can get back with it, I want him to drive [my car]. Not an hour after it happened, [racing] was on my mind.”
After doctors patched McCloud up, reality set in. He had lost his left arm below the elbow.
“I could have just given up,” said McCloud. “It was hard not to. But I had my brother, my dad, my wife [who] were there to bring me up and say, ‘Everything is going to be all right.’ Everything happens for a reason — that’s what I tell everybody.”
His Comeback
While on the mend, McCloud attended races supporting his brother, Garet. In one of his first times back at the track, he found a dose of inspiration at Willard Speedway. Ryan Davis, a Weston, Michigan, late model racer missing part of his right arm, competed at the Kentucky dirt oval. He had drove nearly six hours to attend the race.
“We had talked,” said McCloud. “He was born with it. He said you just got to adapt.”
Adapt he did. McCloud returned to racing late July at Willard Speedway.
“The tear-offs were one thing I didn’t know how I was going to do,” McCloud said. “We have a button that goes on my nub, on my [left] arm, and we got an adapter that goes to my helmet. To pull a tear-off, I just flick it with my arm.”
McCloud had to make other adjustments.
“I had to get a longer shifting rod to shift it into gear,” said McCloud. “I have to let go of the steering wheel to shove it into high [gear]. That’s one thing — I can’t get crossed up. If I get crossed up, I’m in trouble.”
Hunter McCloud seemed to have figured it out. He won at Mountain Motorsports Park in late October.
His Future in Racing
McCloud’s racing schedule extended through the end of November, when he attempted to run his sport mod with the modifieds at The Leftover at 411 Motor Speedway in Seymour, Tennessee. He looks to continue racing in sport mods next season.
While McCloud has enjoyed his time back in the car, he now seems to race with a bigger purpose than merely visiting victory lane.
“I’ve had several people come up to me and tell me, ‘What you’re doing is an inspiration,’” said McCloud. “I feel like I can be an inspiration and that’s what I want to be. A lot of people give up — you can’t do that. Just put your faith in the Lord and keep on grinding — that’s all you can do.”
@huntermccloud13 Who needs 2 when you only got 1!!!! #onearm #dirttrack #worldofoutlaws #amputee #wontstopme ♬ original sound – HunterMcCloud
Hunter McCloud in action at 411 Motor Speedway.
The Outside Groove Executive Editor has covered motorsports since 2000. His many awards include the 2019 Eastern Motorsport Press Association (EMPA) Jim Hunter Writer of the Year and the 2013 Russ Catlin Award for Excellence in Motorsports Journalism.
