Cycling is a great way to get fit, enjoy the outdoors, relax, and just have fun. But if you’re an amputee, you may not be able to ride a standard bicycle, and specialty bicycles, trikes, and handcycles are often expensive.
Some amputees—or friends, relatives, or volunteers—find ways to adapt standard bicycles to their needs. Organizations might also help. Challenged Athletes Foundation, for example, provides free adaptive sports equipment to eligible amputees through its Access for Athletes Grant Program (www.challengedathletes.org/programs/grants). The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) also publishes a list of VA grant recipient adaptive sports organizations that may provide adaptive cycles on a permanent or temporary basis. To access the list, visit http://tinyurl.com/z5s2sq4.
If you only want to ride every now and then, parks may also rent adaptive cycles to their visitors.
Check out your options, and you could be back on the road or trail before you know it.
