The Reason
I have been trying to pull off a big project for a few years now. Thanks to the pandemic and some other issues it hasn’t quite worked out yet That hasn’t stopped me from trying and making progress toward my goal of traversing the rim to rim of the Grand Canyon on a handcycle. One of the steps toward that progress has been researching what is available in the handcycle world.
Bike On Dot Com
I recently reached out to Bike On Dot Com to see if they could help me figure this out. After a couple of times with schedules and weather not working out, they suggested I meet them at the New England Mountain Bike Association Wicked Ride of the East event. They were going to be there with some bikes to try out. Of course, true to this whole process it rained Halloween weekend and the event was postponed. This past weekend I finally got my opportunity to check out pretty much every configuration of offroad handcycle there is on the market.
The Event
First, if you have never been to a NEMBA event you should go. It was amazing. I did not realize how huge mountain biking is There were hundreds of people from all walks of life coming together for the enjoyment of mountain biking. There was music, food, and all kinds of other vendors. They had a well-done map of various courses for people of all abilities to enjoy their day riding amongst the beauty of Harold Parker State Forest.
Bike On brought their Maddiline Crosswind-Xe, Lasher Sport ATH-FS, and Bowhead cycles. Spaulding Adaptive Sports brought their Reactive Adaptations Bomber and Reactive Adaptations Nuke handcycles. They also had other adaptive bikes that were foot pedaled. I was able to try them all around the vendor area. The Maddiline Crosswind-Xe had an e-assist installed. I have to say before I attended this event I thought that e assist was cheating and was totally against it. After the ride I took on the Maddiline Crosswind-Xe, I am now a firm believer that when you need it you need it.
The Test Ride
The awesome part about this event was that I got to take the Maddiline Crosswind-Xe out on a real offroad trail. Even
better I got to take it out with my friend Chris Collin who had just received his brand new Reactive Adaptations Hammerhead cycle two days before. We also had Lauren from Mpower help us out along the ride if we needed it. Thank you to Lauren for all the help!
The event had a designated adaptive trail that was an old dirt road. It was plenty wide enough for the handcycles but also plenty rough enough to give them a good test. Somehow along the course we missed a turn and ended up finding the hot/cold cider and candy station. We loaded up on cider and Reese’s products, See I told you this event is awesome.
Should We or Shouldn’t We
While sitting there eating our candy and drinking our cider, we consulted with the station attendants about the best route to go from there. There was a route that went behind them that we were told was probably not the best but might be possible and then there was the option to keep going on the route we were on. That would get us back the easiest. Chris and I like adventure and a good sufferfest. Chris looks at me and asks if I want to try this. I say I will try anything. What’s the worst that can happen. So I flip over. I will just get back up. No biggie. After about 30 seconds of do you want to try this talk, we decided the hard and maybe possible trail was the way to go. WOW did we get our money’s worth. We got huge rocks to climb over, long stretches of rocky. pick a line and pray terrain and waterlogged mud pits. It was amazing! This was the ultimate test for these bikes. I am sorry there aren’t any pictures but we were too busy enjoying the ride.
My Thoughts on Handcycles
Chris had the better bike for this trail He was able to muscle through with very little assistance. I on the other hand would not have made it without the e-assist and a boost from Lauren a couple of times. I can see advantages and disadvantages to both bikes. Mine was more comfortable but lacked traction. Chris has a lot more traction but the position is not as comfortable. He also didn’t have e assist but was still able to make it up anything the trail threw at him. He would be unstoppable with an e-assist.
How to get one?
I am leaning toward the Reactive Adaptations Mako with an e-assist We will see though. I still need to come up with thousands of dollars to get one. Unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be a lot of grants out there for people who were injured at birth I do apply for the Challenged Athletes Foundation grant and am very grateful they exist. That is the only one so far I have found for which I qualify. I will get there somehow. It will just take some effort and figuring out. When I do get one I think my blogs at Maine Trail Finder will get a lot more epic! I will have the freedom to go a lot more places that I just can’t access in my wheelchair.
Until Next Year!
I am truly grateful for the opportunity I had to attend this event and get to hang out with Chris. I met some awesome people who I am sure I will see and ride with again. I also plan to attend again next year for sure. Maybe I will have my own ride to test out who knows.
Disclaimer: I have no idea why I look angry in every photo. I really did have an amazing day!
Special Thanks
Special thanks to Terry Downey for the use of pictures, handcycles, and advice. To Chris Coyne, Kyle Printer, and everyone from Bike On and Mpower for the help and use of handcycles and advice.
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