GART Day 1 - The Kickoff!

I pretty much hadn’t slept at all as dawn began to spread its light across the sky. Through the night my mind kept spinning and I couldn’t find any quiet sleeping space. Day One of Ian’s Ride 2022 was here, and the lack of sleep made it hard for me to get going. But the visceral reality of the moment was such that I shook off the rough night and we all prepared for the day’s activities. Mom and Edwin were as helpful as ever, and Dr. B and Jimmy had all of their bases covered and showed up to load vehicles in a timely manner. Just as we were about to roll out to our rendezvous point at our nation’s Capitol, an unfortunate GI issue (perhaps spawned by last night’s fish and chips) significantly set me back. Suddenly our punctuality seemingly dissipated and we found ourselves scrambling. We fixed the problem, changed some plans on the fly, threw Jimmy and Dr. B and their bikes into the minivan with me and my mom (which required some spatial prowess) and finally took off.

Despite the unforeseen challenges, we amazingly arrived to the meeting site in front of the Capitol on time. The sunshine was abundant and it was pleasantly warm, but most importantly the group of people who had gathered to send us off warmed our hearts. To be received by such a lovely gathering of people 3,000 miles away from home was truly mind-blowing and immensely gratifying. Amidst mingling smiles and encouragement, Kevin Belanger began the rally. Kevin is the Great American Rail-Trail Project Manager and he came to Port Angeles a few months ago. It was great to meet him and spend time with him then, and it was great to see him again today here in his neck of the woods. He did a wonderful job kicking the event off and introducing me.

I spoke briefly of my past, of how I became a quadriplegic man, of the dark times that immediately followed my injury and of how getting back outside and onto trails brought me out of my shell and ultimately precipitated in me traveling the country in advocacy of increased trail access for all.

After I spoke, Monica Riley graciously stepped up to the microphone and provided background information regarding her spinal injury and spoke of how she came to be the D.C. Chapter Advocacy Coordinator of United Spinal. She was only 8 years old when she was severely injured in a drunk driving accident that tragically killed the rest of her family members. She touched upon how she rose from this hardship to promote greater infrastructural accessibility, better equipment and more community support for people facing spinal injuries.

After Monica’s inspirational talk, Jeremy Buzzell, the National Accessibility Program Team Coordinator for the National Park Service, took to speaking about the importance of greater accessibility in the National Parks and of making trail specifications more available to everybody so that more informed decisions can be made. Jeremy mentioned that the Federal Interagency Council on Outdoor Recreation is bringing a renewed focus on access and equity in the outdoors.

Finally, the closing words came from Juliette Rizzo, Rails to Trails Conservancy board member and former Ms. Wheelchair America. She wonderfully weaved together all the threads that Ian’s Ride, Rails to Trails and United Spinal are all working toward. She spoke passionately about everything that we are working toward, and by the end of her rousing speech we were ready to hit the trail and get this particular adventure started!

Thank you to everybody who made the kick off to this ride what it was. There were signs that said, “Let’s Go Ian!” and everyone gathered with their signs and cheered us on. The speakers all were great, but it also took the hard work of many people behind the scenes to make this happen. Much appreciated!

About 15 people embarked with us from the National Mall lawn and we headed toward the National Monument. From there we headed past the Lincoln Memorial and over to the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal (C&O Canal). As we went along, folks turned around to head back to whatever duties beckoned, but not before making sure we were well on our way and armed with tons of information about the trail conditions to come.

Soon we left Washington D.C. and crossed into Maryland. Buildings slipped behind and the views of the Potomac grew rockier and wilder. We rolled along Wingstem, Blue Mistflower and Pale Jewelweed. We enjoyed the shade of American Sycamores, Box Elders, Silver Maples and Pawpaws, among other trees. Northern Cardinals provided flashes of red between the branches. Dozens of Eastern snapping turtles and Basking turtles sunned on logs above the canal water. Great Blue Herons lofted about.

The first 15 miles or so of the Canal trail were pretty rough. At one point a pronounced lip on the trail caught my wheels on one side of the chair and spun me 90 degrees in an instant. Fortunately, I quickly stopped and didn’t veer off trail. Another time, during a rocky stretch, my chair just suddenly turned off. Dr. B had to hit a reset button to start it up again. The final 20 miles of the day were very nice and smooth. The trails are heavily used by bikes, so the tire washes are set up on a north-to-south bike traffic basis, and are too far apart for my wheels so I’d find one set of wheels in a tire wash and the other side would be in vegetation and weeds in the middle of the trail. These are minor notes about what I experienced. All in all, the tranquility was amazing and the trail was an absolute joy.

The Great Falls were quite impressive, as were the many views of the rocky shores of the Potomac. The views of the rocky river beds along the way were mesmerizing.

It was a long and amazing day. I can’t think of a better start to this ride. We are inspired from what we saw today and are excited to see what tomorrow brings. Special, special thanks to our sponsor of the day, The Rails to Trails Conservancy. Their planning and organization to kick us off with such warm hearted fanfare was truly appreciated. This trail we’re riding is a result of their hard work, and rail trails truly are the perfect place for wheelchairs to enjoy the outdoors. Thanks, RTC!

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