Dayton scoots around pretty quickly on his leg stumps, which are protected with rubber liners containing a gel when he's competing or practicing. Dayton uses the same technique to recover fumbles as a nose guard for his youth football team. He drives his beloved go-kart with prosthetic legs and steers with special gloves made with Velcro and that same gel.

But it's on the wrestling mat where Dayton really shines.

"I like wrestling better than any other sport," he explained as a smile spread across his impish face that's topped by a blond buzzcut. "I like using my strength and being fit. And I don't have to rely on other people to do stuff for me like you do in football. Sometimes when I watch my teammates in certain situations I wish I had hands, but I just try to do things my own way."

Indeed, Mike and Natalie Webber, a homemaker, treat Dayton just like his brothers, Tyler, 17, and Justin, 6. They push a chair in front of the kitchen sink in their Charlotte Hall, Md., home so Dayton can climb up to wash the dishes.

"I'm human like everyone else," said Dayton, who wants to be a priest or a Secret Service agent someday. "I get in the same trouble at home. I have the same rules.''

Dayton can deftly unscrew and replace the cap on a sports-drink bottle. And the rising seventh grader writes neatly in print and cursive with the scarred stumps of his arms.