[5]" Poppen was injured in a wrestling accident on February 18, 1990, while visiting a Christian church camp located in Lake Hume, California in the Fresno Mountain range of the Central Valley.

Poppen attended Millikan High School, in Long Beach, for his senior year shortly after his accident.

[2] He was also one of the players on screen in "Murderball," an award-winning 2005 documentary about quadriplegics who play wheelchair rugby and the rivalry between the U.S. and Canadian teams leading up to the 2004 Paralympic Games.

[11] He found his love for addressing children while competing internationally and speaking to students attending the competitions in locations such as New Zealand, Athens, Beijing, and Buenos Aires.

He has been written up in many different outlets, including Paso Robles Magazine,[12] Sports 'N Spokes: The Magazine for Wheelchair Sports and Recreation,[9] The King City Rustler,[13] Ventura County Star,[14] The Long Beach Press Telegram,[15] and has been a keynote speaker at California PTA's Statewide Convention in 2013.