ADAPTIVE CYCLE EXPO

June 25, 2024 -- York, PA

This June, as part of the Statewide Active Transportation Summit being held in York, PDC is collaborating with several PA-based adaptive sports organizations and the Center for Independent Living Opportunities of York, Adams, and Franklin to offer an Adaptive Cycle Expo. PDC Annual Conference attendees, Active Transportation Summit participants, and the general public are invited to come see what different types of adaptive cycles look like, learn about how cycling can be an accessible option, and consider how inclusive mobility options of all kinds are important to communities, families, and individuals throughout their lives. The event is taking place on Tuesday, June 25, from 4 to 6:30pm on Brooks Robinson Plaza outside of the York Revolution Ballpark, the afternoon before a home game.

What is Adaptive Cycling anyway? Adaptive devices are physical equipment/mechanical devices that permit people with disabilities to engage in the activities they want to do but can’t achieve without assistance. Cycling is a healthy, fun, and useful activity that may not be an option for some. But with a little ingenuity, it can be available to many more people. Adaptive cycles are designed to permit people to play to their strengths, whether that means hand propulsion, balance assist from a third wheel, a variety of seating and support options, or a way to co-ride. These sorts of adjustments (adaptations, if you will) can make cycling available to people who are partially paralyzed, those who are blind or low vision, or those who have vertigo, developmental issues, or different limb strength. For some, adaptive cycling is more accessible than driving.

Adaptive devices can be unusual, hard to come by, and expensive, but there are increasingly organizations working to make them available, whether on a trial/sharing economy basis like Twin Cities Adaptive Cycling or the Charlestown Riders’ Club or as a custom design engineering challenge like the Adaptive Cycling Foundation for veteran athletes.

Learn More About Adaptive Cycling:  https://www.ameridisability.com/adaptive-bicycles-pave-the-way-for-riders-with-disabilities/

 

Organizations in Pennsylvania that offer adaptive cycling (and other adaptive sports) support include the following. Those in bold will be at the Adaptive Cycle Expo with equipment on display. A catalogue of the adaptive gear being presented can be viewed here.

 

Entities that do these sorts of things regionally or nationally include:

 

Related programs include the international initiative Cycling Without Age and various Commonwealth-based opportunities to get people who use wheelchairs out on bike trails as passengers on different types of cycles, like trishaws, wheelchair tandems, or wheelchair-ready cargo bikes/trikes. There are two Joy Riders operations in southwestern PA currently, one in Pittsburgh and the other cycling on several regional trails east of the city. Cycling Without Age programs equipped with trishaws exist in Pittsburgh, Johnstown, and a couple of retirement communities in central PA so far, with a number of other locales working to fundraise for gear. (Locations are marked on the global website landing page.)

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