By . Simon Tomlinson . PUBLISHED: . 02:04 EST, 12 April 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 02:58 EST, 12 April 2012 . A fearless adrenaline junkie has conquered some of the world’s most extreme challenges including skydiving, paragliding and mountaineering - despite being paralysed and confined to a wheelchair. Extreme sports fan Barry West, 35, lost the use of his arms and legs in a car crash as a teenager and has no feeling from the neck down. But he has refused to let his disabilities hold him back and has since been paragliding, skydiving, abseiling, kayaking, skiing and has summited Mount Snowdon four times. Scroll down for a video interview with Barry West . Rock hard: Paraplegic Barry West shows no fear of mountaineering as he takes on some of the world's most extreme challenges . Sky's the limit: The 35-year-old paraglides in his wheelchair over the Lake District as he lives the dream . Determined: Mr West had to endure years of painful recovery after breaking his neck in two places when he crashed his van in 1996, but he refuses to let his disabilities hold him back . He has even become a qualified scuba diving instructor and learned to paint beautiful pictures by holding a paint brush in his mouth. The brave quadraplegic is now bidding to scale Mount Kilimanjaro - the highest peak in Africa - for his latest daring challenge. Barry said: 'People say to me, would I have been doing the things I do, had I not had my injury? 'Obviously, I cannot say for sure, but definitely the goals I score now are far sweeter than anything I could have done previously. 'It was tough at the beginning - I cannot pretend it wasn’t. But I have always had in my mind that you have just got to get on with it. 'Whether you have a disability or not, we all need a boot up the arse sometimes to get out there and do stuff - that’s what I hope I show others by doing all the mad things I do. Nobody likes a miserable sod do they?' Treading life's path: An ascent of Ben Nevis is no match for the adrenalin junkie . Breath of fresh air: Mr West enjoys a spot of scuba diving in the Red Sea last year . Ice way to go: Mr West uses a modified mechanism to take part in a skiing trip in Sweden in 2010 . Barry, from Uckfield, East Sussex, grew up competing in rugby, boxing and even ballet and was running his own landscape gardening business by the age of 19. But that year, 1996, he crashed his van into a tree and broke his neck in two places when he swerved to avoid a badger in the road. The horrific crash left him paralysed from the neck down, unable to move his arms and legs. He was confined to a wheelchair and had to endure years of painful recovery - but his life changed forever in 2007 after a conversation with a paralysed friend. Barry said: 'He told me he had just done a skydive - I was gobsmacked. 'How did he do that? I pictured him landing in his wheelchair, like they had tipped him out the back of a Hercules or something.' Canoeing in Exmoor: Mr West grew up competing in rugby, boxing and even ballet before his devastating crash at the age of 19 . Skydiving over Oxford: He was inspired to take on extreme sports after hearing about a paralysed friend who had done a skydive . Barry was inspired to follow in the footsteps of his friend and spinal injury charity Back Up arranged for him to do a parachute jump in 2008. He said: 'The worried doctor wouldn’t let me do it at first. He said the adrenaline could send my blood pressure sky high and I would be dead before I hit the floor. 'It took me a year to get that no turned into a yes - I felt a bit immortal after that. 'I am not good with heights, but even with arms and legs you’re really just ballast aren’t you?' That jump got Barry hooked on adrenaline-fuelled sports and his achievements since put many able-bodied couch potatoes to shame. Dive training in Hampshire: Mr West qualified with the help of charity the Scuba Trust and spent a week in Egypt diving the reefs of the Red Sea . In the Red Sea: The former landscape gardener manages to swim with the help of pals who never leave his side . Athletic: Mr West before his crash in 1996 . He has now accomplished paragliding - while in his wheelchair - sailing, and kayaking. He has been sky-diving from 12,000ft and has even gone skiing three times in Sweden. The talented competitor has played Bobby George at darts and abseiled off a bridge. During his mountain climbs Barry is pulled along in a wheelchair by a team of supporters. In 2009, with the help of charity the Scuba Trust, he became a qualified diver and spent a week in Egypt diving the reefs of the Red Sea with a group of paralysed friends. He manages to swim around underwater with the help of pals who never leave his side. Barry, who lives with his dog and permanent live-in carer, said: 'It took me a year of sessions in the pool. But at least I have got my open water qualification now. 'I would like to do my advanced next. I won’t bother with the rescue bits - I could hardly rescue myself can I!' Despite being bedridden Barry has also become an accomplished artist. A tutor drops by for a few hours each week to help him, but he initially taught himself by watching YouTube videos. Pictures cover the walls of his home - all done by holding a paintbrush in his mouth. Paralysis . causes secondary conditions so Barry is in and out of hospital, yet he . still manages to travel the country giving after-dinner talks. Inspirational . Barry has recently been chosen as an Olympic Torchbearer on July 18 . this year as it travels through Rye, East Sussex. He has also set his sights on climbing to the summit of Kilimanjaro next year. But the one thing the selfless hero really wants to do - is ride a horse. Barry . said: 'I would really like to ride a horse. Not just sit on it - but . ride around a paddock without anyone holding the reins.' Extraordinary: Mr West has learned to paint beautiful pictures at his home in East Sussex by holding a brush in his mouth .
Barry West, 35, lost use of arms and legs in horror van crash as a teenager . But skydiving, abseiling, kayaking and skiing prove no barrier to his dreams . Has climbed Ben Nevis and even become a qualified scuba diving instructor . Can also paint beautiful pictures by holding a brush in his mouth . 'Goals I score now are far sweeter than anything I could have done before'