Adaptive cycling rolling with bike boom

https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/adaptive-cycling-rolling-with-bike-b...

HER first ride on an electric tricycle made Jocelyne Pambrun feel like a kid again.

“Talk about freedom!” the Winnipegger said. “It’s kind of a feeling like you’re floating, and what I mean by that is, because of the pain I have in my lower leg and the difficulty of walking, it’s like all of a sudden I realize I’m going somewhere and enjoying it without having to look at the sidewalk or slowing down or having pain.”

After dealing with balance issues stemming from multiple sclerosis and foot pain from a car accident, Pambrun hesitated for years at the thought of riding a bike again. It’s now been a year since her first trike ride — it’s made her more independent, no longer reliant on Transit Plus, and healthier. She said she’s no longer letting mobility challenges hold her back from being more active.

“The hardest part is, you don’t know what you’ve been missing till you have it, and you think, ‘why did I wait so long?’” she said.

“It’s a new adventure for me at my age, because now all of a sudden, I can join in with my grandkids and go biking.”

Pambrun is among the Winnipeggers with accessibility challenges who are rediscovering their city through cycling. Bicycle sales exploded in spring 2020 as Manitobans looked for ways to get outside during the pandemic, and adaptive cycling hasn’t been left out of the trend.

Seeing a growing need to make cycling easier for people with disabilities, sports-focused groups are now branching out to offer more public recreational equipment like hand cycles, and plans for regular adaptive cycling group meets are in the works as soon as Manitoba’s public-health orders allow. A brick-and-mortar store specializing in adaptive cycling equipment is soon set to open in Wolseley, and a virtual event for Winnipeggers interested in accessible cycling is happening later this week.

More than 60 people, about half of whom have disabilities, have signed up to take part in the June 10 event through Accessible Sport Connection Manitoba, a relatively new non-profit organization that received a Safe At Home provincial grant.

“It was the community that clearly said, this is what we want. This was people with disabilities that want to know more, like what trails are accessible in Winnipeg,” said Kirby Cote, vice-president of Accessible Sport Connection Manitoba. Cote is visually impaired and has been a road cyclist for about eight years.

“Persons with disabilities are still fairly inactive folks, and that is for a variety of reasons and the pandemic is just a new one. So for me, it’s just about creating community and... increasing opportunities to be physically active and opportunities to try new things.”

It’s been more important lately for Wheelchair Sport Manitoba to shift its focus to everyday activities after team sports were shut down because of the pandemic, said Sam Unrau, the association’s executive director.

“We’ve decided to branch out into the recreation leisure space by recently purchasing three hand bikes as well as purchasing some trainers that work with hand cycles to allow people to (stationary) cycle at home in the winter.” That equipment will soon be available for loan, along with wheelchair skis for gliding over snow.

Business partners Brian Szklarczuk and Suzanne Druwe have found a market catering to getting people with mobility challenges on wheels. Since 2019, they have operated an online store with van service, and they’re working on opening their first retail Prairie Velo store on Wolseley Avenue in a few weeks.

“We’ve seen a resurgence, and I think it’s more of an awakening, that there are ways to get everybody out and move,” Szklarczuk said.

Retired neurologist Mallory Fast is one of Prairie Velo’s able-bodied customers trying to stay active in retirement. Unbeknownst to him during his 34-year career, some of his patients were using adaptive bicycles, and even though he’d often recommend physiotherapy, he never gave much thought to helping patients participate in recreational activities.

“I’m embarrassed to say it never crossed my mind,” Fast said. That’s all changed since he started using his scooter and mountain bike.

“I think it’s just opened my eyes a little bit to the idea that helping people with disease and disability is more than just treating the disease, it’s helping them adapt to life.”

katie.may@freepress.mb.ca Twitter: @thatkatiemay