OGDEN, Utah (ABC4) — Spike, a local skateboarder hoping to go pro, wants to go to a camp that’s run by some of his idols — but his deadline to fundraise is quickly closing in on him.

Spike is a 9-year-old self-taught athlete who dreams of skating professionally and one day going to the Olympics. To do that, he wants to train at a very special skateboarding camp this summer. The only problem is he needs to raise $3,000 in a week.

Spike has been skateboarding for just over two years now. According to Spike’s mother, Katie Bravo, her only regret was not letting him start when he wanted to.

Bravo said when Spike was five years old he started asking about skateboarding. One day, Spike took matters into his own hands after

“[Spike] had a really bad day at school. [He] came home, and went to DI. He found a skateboard, and I said, ‘All right if you can find a helmet I’ll take you to the skate park.’ And he took off from there.”

Bravo said it seemed like he knew exactly what he was doing when they got to the park. “Everybody’s like, ‘Oh how long has he been skateboarding?’ and I’m like ‘5 minutes.'”

According to Bravo, skateboarding has been a godsend for her and Spike due to his ADHD and autism.

“I feel like it’s brought more confidence to him in what he can and cannot do,” Bravo said. “And he loves being the center of attention.”

She said Spike has a naturally high pain tolerance and no fear, which helps with skateboarding. Spike has already made it to nationals with the Utah Amateur Skate League, and Bravo believes he has a good chance of achieving his goals.

“My goals are to make it into the Olympics and skate with all of the pros,” Spike told ABC4.

Woodward Camp isn’t cheap, but his mom says it will be worth it.

“Sometimes you just need that little bit of guidance to say ‘Hey, you’ve got it, but this is what you need to do to make it work,'” Bravo said.

Recently Spike met one of his idols, professional skateboarder Ryan Sheckler, who is one of many professionals who would teach Spike how to hone his skills at Woodward Skateboard Camp.

“I like seeing Ryan Sheckler because he thinks I’m a pretty good kid to watch,” Spike told ABC4.

Spike’s been selling candy and playing his guitar in downtown Ogden to make money to pay for camp but still needs to raise more than $3,000 to get there. His mom said she will work at the camp to help cover some of the costs.

“I want to support him in everything he does and I want to give him every opportunity to do better and this would mean so much,” Bravo said.

To learn more about Spike, you can visit his TikTok (run by his mother) @skaterspike1, and donate to his GoFundme.