It was a chilly morning for our last Cycling Saturday ride of the season at Fred G. Bond Metro Park in Cary on Saturday October 19.
It warmed up considerably when Eric Schoch from Triangle Velo surprised the group with a generous check in support of the BIIS Adapted Cycling program. Triangle Velo is a non-profit organization of elite amateur cyclists based in the Research Triangle of North Carolina. They use cycling and their presence in the community to raise awareness of sponsors and charitable organizations.
“In our search for organizations to support, we learned about Bridge II Sports and the great work you’re doing from fellow Triangle Velo team member Steve Blanchard” Eric explained.
“We were impressed with all that the volunteers, stokers and riders are doing…something that resonated with us at Triangle Velo was the the idea that people with visual impairments and disabilities had the opportunity to get OUTSIDE and ride, not just have to use indoor trainers. Cyclists know how much they hate riding on the trainer!”
After the presentation, it was time to hit the trail! Eight BIIS athletes with visual impairments teamed up on tandem cycles with their pilot riders along with 3 athetes using handcycles/recumbents for a 20+ mile ride.
To celebrate another successful adapted cycling season everyone enjoyed a good old-fashioned picnic cookout upon return sharing stories and laughs.
A very special thanks to Robert Nash, BIIS Tier 1 Volunteer, who has taken the reins of the adapted cycling program along with super volunteers Jack and Neal to grow it to what it is- a true cycling community bringing people with and without disabilties together with a shared love of riding. They have developed a dedicated team of volunteers that consistently show up and help create wonderful experiences with our athletes.
If you are interested in getting involved with adapted cycling as an athlete or volunteer contact Wes Hall, Director of Programs, at programs@bridge2sports.org
