The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
A group of intermediate to expert off-road handcyclists will take part in the Adaptive Sports Center’ Handcycling Adventure Weekend, this September 3-6, 2010.
The Adventure Weekend is being held in place of the Off-Road Handcycling Championships, originally slated for August 27-29. The event has been custom-tailored for the athletes, who preferred to take part in a weekend of adventure riding, collaboration and information-sharing over a competitive event.
All participants will ride off-road handcycles, including several custom-built by local resident and handcyclist Jake O’Connor and Chad Belyea with CB Ironworks.
Handcycles allow individuals with disabilities to cycle with the use of just their arms on off-road terrain that would not otherwise be accessible to them.
“When I got hurt I never thought I would get back into the mountains again. I thought I was going to be limited to paved rec paths,” O’Connor said. “With a handcycle, I can go anywhere. I can get to rivers to fish, I can go across rivers, and I can do it all myself. Pure and simple, it’s just freedom.”
In addition to a weekend of riding, the High Altitude Performance Lab in Gunnison is offering visiting athletes the opportunity to take part in performance testing at their facility in Gunnison. Riders may participate in part or all of this long weekend, with a cost of $25 per event.
For more information, please contact JJ Hanratty at (970) 349-2296 or jj@adaptivesports.org.
Schedule of Events
•Friday, September 3, Riders arrive; evening rider get-together.
•Saturday, September 4, 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., Ride on Mt. Crested Butte. This will be day of exploration on the mountain, followed by an evening mixer.
•Sunday, September 5, Reno Divide backcountry ride. This will be a supported backcountry ride of Reno Ridge via Deadman’s Gulch, back to Cement Creek Road.
•Monday September 6, Individual performance testing with the High Altitude Performance Lab in Gunnison.
