12-Year-Old Boy With Autism Conquers Fears At Kennywood
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- He is a boy with autism – once afraid of heights, noise and fast-moving things – but he conquered those fears by riding on roller coasters at Kennywood.
Rides like the Phantom's Revenge could scare the wits out of anyone. But for Logan Joiner, visiting Kennywood with his parents, roller coasters have the opposite effect.
Joiner, a 12-year-old with autism, was fearful of loud noises and public places until he rode his first roller coaster and loved it.
During his trip to Kennywood on Thursday, he rode the Sky Rocket and rated the coaster for his YouTube audience.
"The launch was fun," Joiner, from Cincinnati, said. "The top part was very cool. It was just very awesome. I'd probably rate it 3.5 out of 5."
Logan's dad shot video of his son's 8-day journey to 10 theme parks. His Koaster Kids YouTube page has had more than 2 million visitors.
"It just makes me feel happy that other people know who I am, and it just makes me feel special that people actually support me in what I'm doing," he said, "and it just feels great."
The Koaster Kids campaign aims to help other kids face their fears just as Logan faced his own.
"It just feels so good that I'm actually making a difference in someone else's life," he said.
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