One-Armed Racer’s Training School Hit by Thieves: A Gut-Punch to Disabled Rider Progress
It takes guts to race a motorcycle with one arm. It takes even more to build a training school that opens the throttle for disabled riders across the UK. Chris Ganley, former British Army soldier turned one-armed road racing hero, has done both — but a recent break-in at his Cheltenham-based school, CC Motorcycle Training, has left his plans for adaptive motorbike instruction in jeopardy.
While Chris was doing what he does best — racing at the Cock o’ the North meeting at Oliver’s Mount on Sunday, June 22 — a group of thieves were busy ransacking his premises. The timing couldn’t have been worse. Chris had just come off the track when he noticed a slew of missed calls lighting up his phone. “I saw 15 missed calls from my landlady and I just knew. I didn’t even finish packing up. I just wanted to get back,” he shared.
The thieves had used power tools to force entry, making off with four Yamaha MT-07s and two virtually brand-new MT-125s, both with less than 50 miles on the clock. But it wasn’t just the bikes they took — they also gained access to a safe containing keys, cash, CBT certificates, and the stamps used to verify them. For a small independent training outfit, that’s a brutal hit.
Chris, known for converting bikes to enable disabled riders — including adapting throttle and braking systems for one-handed use or thumb operation — had earmarked those MT-125s for specialised modifications. One was destined to be a left-hand-only control bike. Another was set to feature custom thumb controls for shifting and braking. That dream is now on hold.
“I’m not leaving anything of value anywhere near the site anymore,” Chris said. “We’re actively building new security measures that won’t be so easy to crack.” In the meantime, he’s had to press two other MT-125s into CBT service — bikes that were also intended for future accessibility conversions.
But the racing and biking community has shown once again that it's more than a collection of lone riders. A fellow racer has launched a JustGiving fundraiser to help soften the blow, aiming to raise £2,000 to get CC Motorcycle Training back on its feet. It’s a rallying cry not just for Chris, but for the hundreds of would-be riders he inspires — particularly those who’ve been told motorcycling wasn’t for them.
At Motorbike Mad, we believe two wheels should be for everyone — regardless of ability. And Chris Ganley’s work is a shining example of how motorcycling can change lives. If you’d like to contribute to the fundraiser or help spread the word, now’s the time.
Because no one should have their throttle cut short by the selfish actions of others.