How racing car legend Mark Skaife changed one boy’s life

Supercars changed Sam Henderson’s life and now he wants Adelaide to find its voice for the Superloop 500.

Sam Henderson is organising a save the V8s rally at Parliament House on Saturday. Picture: Tom Huntley

It was the moment Sam Henderson’s life changed. He was five-years-old when car racing legend Mark Skaife hoisted the young Sam onto his lap during an autograph session at the 2005 Adelaide 500 V8 race.

Sam told Skaife: “I am going to drive your car.’’

Which was remarkable because it was the first time Sam had spoken a complete sentence to anyone. Sam had been diagnosed with autism.

“I wasn’t supposed to speak,’’ the now 20-year-old university student from Elizabeth Park said.

“I wasn’t supposed to show affection to people, look after myself and all that stuff.

“Basically, and from that moment on, it was just like, the, the world just opened up for me.’’

THE MOMENT; Sam Henderson’s life changed when he met racing car driver Mark Skaife: Picture: Supplied

Such can be the power of sport. When Premier Steven Marshall last week pronounced the Adelaide 500 dead, Sam, felt he had to do something, so he has organised a protest rally to be held on the steps of Parliament House at 11am Saturday.

Sam said around 230 people have committed to attend but he is hoping for many more V8 fans to show their support.

Sam’s mum Wendy said her son has always been a car nut but when he saw Skaife in person, rather than on TV, he made an immediate connection.

“My husband Craig was shocked,’’ she said. When the pair returned home and the story was told, she “burst into tears and squeezed the daylights out of him’’.

“It was massively emotional. Still is.’’

Wendy is right behind her son’s campaign. She doesn’t want other kids to miss out on the experience her son had.

CRUSADE: Sam Henderson is organising a save the V8s rally at Parliament House on Saturday. Picture: Tom Huntley

“It’s so unfair to deny those kids, of all neural diversities, the chance to be up close and personal with their heroes,’’ she said.

Wendy said the loss of the Adelaide 500 was also another blow to the northern suburbs which had been hit hard by the closure of Holden’s Elizabeth plant in 2017.

“To lose Holden altogether, and then as a sponsor, and then lose the 500. It will decimate the area, the city, I think.’’

Sam, who has raced go-carts, is in the third year of a mechanical engineering degree at the University of South Australia and sees his future in the world of motorsport.

“My dream is actually to either work for a supercars team or racing supercars, maybe even both,’’ he said.