A Tale of Two Mountains

There has been a lot of excitement around here, between preparing for the ride and attending some really cool events this August. This will be brief, and I'd like to focus on two events for this blog: Ride Ranier and Ride the Hurricane. Both were awesome in different ways.

Ride Ranier is a wonderful little event organized by myself and Marsha Cutting that draws a bunch of folks in wheelchairs up to the Paradise area of Mount Ranier to explore some of the accessible trails this national park has to offer. Last year, it was attended by 9 different chair users and this year we got up to 11. The trails we explored were not long, but they were challenging. Lots of steep climbs that are a bit difficult for manual chairs without assistance. We were always rewarded with incredible views from these steep climbs and being up on that mountain with other chair users is always so special. Everyone seemed to have a great time and we are looking forward to getting back up on Mount Ranier in 2019.

Enjoying a beautiful day on the mountain.

Me and dad.

Ride the Hurricane is a horse of a different color. This event is near and dear to my heart because it happens right here in my backyard on the road to Hurricane Ridge. Once a year, they close the entrance to Hurricane Ridge off to vehicles and allow thousands of cyclists to climb this 5200 foot mountain. For the past two years I have joined these cyclists and attempted to climb this beautiful mountain in my power chair. In 2017, I began the ride at the entrance gate to the Olympic National Park. From here it is a 12 mile ride to the summit with about 4000 feet of elevation gain. I was unsuccessful on my first attempt, making it a half a mile from the summit. I could hear the drums beating at the top and could see my destination, but the batteries would go no more. I was determined to reach the summit on my next attempt. On August 5 I had that opportunity.

Optimistic at the bottom of the hill.

I thought a lot about my first failed attempt and how I could ever reach the top. My solution was additional batteries. I purchased a lithium-ion battery for the ride from Idaho to Port Angeles and figured this would be the perfect time to test it out. With this additional battery on my back I was super confident (perhaps overconfident) I would achieve my goal. One small problem was that we had the new battery but not the charger for it. I assumed the battery was shipped with a pretty decent charge and hoped for the best. We started 5 miles lower than the previous year making it a 17-mile climb with just under 5000 feet of elevation ahead of us. I keep saying we… I should take a moment here to mention my trusty companion, Josh Sutcliffe. I'm super lucky to have someone on my team who is in good enough shape to jump on a bike and do a 5000 foot climb and stay lighthearted about it the whole time. He's a great friend.

We began the climb and everything looked great. Our spirits were up, our confidence was high, and the mountain was beautiful. The additional 5 miles we added on, turned out to be one of the steeper sections of the climb. It really wiped out some battery power. We were undeterred when we made it to our usual starting spot and just kept climbing. We switched over to lithium after 7 miles so we could see how well the new battery performed. My other batteries had started to slow down a bit and when I switched over my speed went right back up to 7 mi./h, my max speed. Much to the chagrin of Josh, we were flying up that hill! This continued for the next 5 miles. Then the chair stopped. I'm assuming the problem was lack of charge on the new battery and not underperformance by my new investment. We switched back to my main batteries which got me another 3 miles and then I was out of juice.

Chugging along.

We made it 15 miles and over 4000 feet in elevation, but ultimately we were unsuccessful once again. We could've made it from our normal starting point and we may have made it the whole 17 miles had I had a fully charged back up battery. It was a humbling day. I so wanted to reach the summit, but alas I'll have to wait until next year. It's like my white whale and I'll be strategizing until next August on the best way to reach the top of that mountain.

Roll on Capitol Hill

I wanted to put a quick post together on a special trip I just had the opportunity to take. It was not a long ride, instead a trip to our nation's capital to advocate for disability rights. I am posting this here because it was my first trip representing Ian's Ride in an official capacity. One of my closest friends, Kenny Salvini, went to the Roll on Capitol Hill organized by United Spinal in 2016 and 2017 representing his nonprofit The Here and Now Project, which I'm also on the board of. He told me what an amazing experience it is, and I figured I had to see it firsthand. I was skeptical at first because the two prior times he has gone, his chair did not return in one piece. I had only flown once before, and it was successful. I'm thinking Kenny was hoping we could have similar luck on this trip.

The flight there went great, it was a very early morning flight and we were both wrapped in something called a comfort carrier that helps the airline staff move us from our chair to the aisle chair and then from the aisle chair to the seat. We both looked a little like Hannibal Lecter, but our bodies and chairs made it to DC unscathed.

After arriving, the heat and humidity quickly reminded me that I was no longer in the PNW. We made our way down to the Metro where we caught our first train heading towards our hotel. We managed to get ourselves lost a few times but eventually found our way. The Metro is quite accessible but also quite time-consuming for a pair of large power wheelchairs to navigate. The main problem is the elevators. You generally take one from the street to the mezzanine and then another from the mezzanine to the train level. These elevators are old, rickety, often smell like urine, and in no way would fit both chairs. So, we would do the elevator dance one at a time. Overall, the Metro was a great way to get around, and if I lived in DC I'm sure I would use it often.

Day two of the trip involved cramming a lot of knowledge into our heads about policy, interacting with legislators, and scheduling the next day. United Spinal did a fantastic job of organizing the day so that different panels could discuss different policies so that we would be in the know when we spoke to our senators or congressperson. The main topics we discussed were: keeping the ACA intact, opposing limitations on the ADA, and supporting laws that make air travel more accessible. I learned a ton and met some amazing people. Speaking of the people… I met so many wheelchair users with incredible attitudes that are undertaking such cool stuff! Many of them have their own nonprofit, many others are instrumental in causing change in their communities, and all of them held themselves with style and grace. I was honored to be among them. After meeting the good people and learning a ton, my mom and I had a couple hours to see the sights. We saw the White House, the Washington Monument, and tried to get some birding in. The sightseeing was much more successful than the birding. The parks were small, and the most exciting thing we saw was a grackle. I'm determined to see more of the countryside next time I'm out that way. We finished the evening having dinner with a good friend of Kenny's wife Claire, and I got to sample a couple local beers.

On the third day we rolled on the Capitol. I visited the offices of two different Washington state congressman and spoke with staffers of both Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell. I felt they were quite receptive to the message we were delivering, and they encouraged us to continue speaking out if we really wanted change to occur. After the day of advocacy, we had a wonderful reception at the Capitol where I got to meet even more great people in the disabled community. One person of note was a man named Earl Powdrell. We had joked that I was likely to be the most paralyzed person there. I was nowhere close to that. Earl suffered a stroke in the brainstem seven years ago which left him with locked in syndrome. He can only blink his eyes and move his eyebrows slightly. This did not stop him from being an amazing advocate and a huge inspiration to many, including me. He was a rocket scientist who worked for NASA before becoming locked in and he is still just as sharp as a tack. He received an award for his exceptional work in advocacy and delivered a prepared speech in a similar way to what Stephen Hawking would use. It was beautifully written and really pulled at my heartstrings. I was so honored to meet him and see how little physical function is needed to still have a huge impact on the world.

Our final day started out with having coffee with Patty Murray. We were there with a bunch of other Washingtonians and she spoke briefly on some of the important issues in the Senate right now. We then went back to the hotel to pack and send our luggage to the airport with Kenny's all-star caregiver Amanda. After being unburdened by the luggage we went out for a few more hours on one final sightseeing trip. One notable experience was crossing the East Coast Greenway Trail. This is a trail that goes from Florida to Maine. It has been on my radar, and I really hope one day to ride a big portion of it. We then went searching for monuments and memorials. Kenny suggested the FDR Memorial, and it turned out to be a true highlight. As we rolled through the Memorial with quotes engraved on the walls around us, I discovered what a great man FDR was. He overcame so many physical challenges and accomplished so much with his life. Kenny and I had to get a picture of us knee to knee with a statue of him in his chair. I'll remember that experience for years to come.

After FDR, we went back to the Metro and made our way to the airport. After a long wait at security we boarded our plane in our straitjacket like slings. The flight went well up until I exited the plane to find my wheelchair had been damaged. The backrest, armrest, and headrest were not as they should have been, and it was clear my chair had been manhandled and put on its side. It was still in good enough shape where I could transfer into it and was able to make it home. Fortunately, this was my backup chair and I had my new one waiting at home. Alaska Airlines was quick to follow-up the with the ball already rolling for the needed repairs. This is crucial, because I will need this backup chair for my big ride in August. Fingers crossed it's back in working order by then.

To wrap this up, it was an amazing trip with a great bunch of people, and I really feel like we made a difference. I was able to travel with two wonderful friends, Kenny and Claire. It's fun to travel with someone with similar mobility challenges. We shared many laughs, and I would love to do it again. The real unsung hero was my mom. We both survived on very little sleep, and she had to put up with me day and night. I couldn't have done this amazing trip without her, and I'm fortunate to have such a strong, enduring mother. We both felt it was an amazing experience and well worth the missed sleep.

Proposed Route

Here is what I have planned. I will head west from Coeur d'Alene to Spokane, then make my way towards the Grand Coulee Dam. I'll then head north through the Colville Reservation to Okanogan where I can meet up with the 20 and began heading West on this highway. I'll follow the 20 until Marblemount where I will begin heading southwest towards Edmonds. Here I will catch a ferry to Kingston and be on the Olympic Peninsula which I'm quite familiar with. The last couple days I will head north towards home in Port Angeles.

Why I chose this route

When first planning this ride  we knew we wanted to go across the state from East to West so that we could finish at home. We knew we had to start somewhere in Idaho and I've heard such good things about Coeur d'Alene that it was the logical starting spot. Also, there are some good breweries there! The next difficult decision was what pass would be the best for crossing the Cascades in a power wheelchair. Snoqualmie Pass is the lowest elevation, however there is a ton of construction there at the moment and I would be forced on to the John Wayne Pioneer Trail. I really considered this for a while, however doing tens of miles on a bumpy, dirt trail sounded miserable. Also, there would've been limited access to me for the support vehicle. So I then started looking at Stevens Pass. This seemed like a great route, the second highest elevation pass of my three options and there were plenty of breweries  along the route. However, as I started to investigate more I found that the section of highway between Everett and Stevens Pass is affectionately known as "Highway of Death". Now I'm not one to be averse to risk, but the ominous name of that section made me start looking for an alternative. I started to really look at SR 20. This was by far the most elevation gain of any route and also probably the most isolated. But it goes through so much beautiful national forest land and is supposed to have spectacular vistas. I'll have to cross Washington Pass which is 5477 feet and do a total of over 25,000 feet of elevation gain throughout the entire ride. Another big perk of taking the 20 is that it is part of US Bike Route 10. This really aligned with my desire for more connected bike routes throughout our nation and Washington state in particular. This seemed like a great adventure for my power wheelchair.

How you can help

I have never been to Eastern Washington or anywhere along SR 20. I threw this route together with some tips from friends and some bike maps I found online. I'm sure there are sections where there are better alternatives. I divided the route up  into 13 segments and I'm hoping to get some feedback from people who have ridden any section that I've listed. I would love suggestions on any portion of the ride, however I would really love input on the best way to get from Getchell to Edmonds. I basically let the map suggest the best way for cyclists to get between those two points. Maybe it's a good route, but I am betting there's a better option.

Without further ado: The Route

Overall Route: Coeur d'Alene to Port Angeles

Note: to see the whole route on one map, click the link above, scroll down on the left side of the screen, and click "show all on map".

Day One, August 12: Coeur d'Alene to Spokane

Day Two, August 13: Spokane to Davenport

Day Three, August 14: Davenport to Hesseltine

Day Four, August 15: Hesseltine to Whitmore Lookout

Day Five, August 16: Whitmore Lookout to Okanogan

Day Six, August 17: Okanogan to Winthrop

Note: day six may be overambitious. 40 miles with a 4000 foot climb is really pushing the limits of my chair.  I may try to extend day five a bit to lighten the load for day six.

Day Seven, August 18: Winthrop to Bridge Creek

Day Eight, August 19: Bridge Creek to Newhalem

Day Nine, August 20: Newhalem to Darrington

Day Ten, August 21: Darrington to Getchell

Day Eleven, August 22: Getchell to Edmonds

Day Twelve, August 23: Edmonds to Discovery Bay

Day Thirteen, August 24: Discovery Bay to Home

Coeur d’Alene to Port Angeles

Hey there, Ian's Ride followers! It's time for another big adventure. I'm ready to do it again! Click here for 2016' s ride in review. The beauty of our state was so enjoyable in 2016 that I'm going to try and ride from East to West. This August, we are going to start in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho and finish in Port Angeles, Washington. That's just two short months away! The exact dates and route will be coming soon. The route in particular is still up in the air. I'll be reaching out for as much help as I can get in this department. Crossing the Cascades in a safe and realistic way will be tricky. It was brought to my attention that my platform for the 2016 ride was really important, and that I should try to carry my message forward. Ian's Ride the nonprofit was formed and I'm officially an executive director and even have a board! With all of my mileage and elevation testing in 2017, I think I'm ready to brave crossing the desert of Eastern Washington and doing the long climb over the Cascades. Here is a link to my 2017 adventures.

Here's the plan so far. I have three bike riders joining me for the entirety of the trip. All three of them were also part of the 2016 ride: the two Josh's and tall Jimmy. They will do all they can to keep me alive. They have agreed to this knowing it will be a 450+ mile ride with over 25,000 feet of elevation gain at the slow pace of 7 mi./h. This means they will have to do long hours of climbing without the reward of coasting freely down the other side. They are pretty special, and I'm lucky to have them.

Heat and elevation gain will be my biggest obstacles. Going through Eastern Washington in the middle of August will certainly be a challenge for me. If you recall, I cannot regulate my temperature. I can't sweat in response to heat or shiver in response to cold. This creates some difficulty if you're doing a wheelchair/bike tour for long hours each day in direct sunlight. So I have four main strategies to help keep my temperature controlled. First, try to start out each day with my body temperature as low as I can get it overnight in an air-conditioned room. Second, I'll use a canopy over my wheelchair to shade me from the intense sun. Although the umbrellas were entertaining during the last ride, we want something a little sturdier this year. The product I have in mind is rated for up to 50 mi./h winds. Third, I will be using an ice vest to hopefully keep my core temperature down. Finally, I'm working on an easy to use mister that can be mounted right to the chair. This should offer some evaporative cooling and be a nice form of artificial sweat.

As for the elevation, it's going to be a little trickier. There will be some days that require big climbs and nothing saps a wheelchair's battery like going uphill. I will definitely be bringing a second wheelchair that I'll keep fully charged and could swap into once my first chair is out of juice. In addition, I'm hoping to have a second bank of batteries on my primary chair. Our plan is to use lithium batteries to keep the weight down and have them lightly secured to the back of my chair. Fire hazard is the biggest worry here, so we're working on something easily detachable if disaster should strike. I wouldn't want to use these batteries if I were riding alone, but I feel confident enough in my team to use them for the big elevation gain we will be facing.

I guess I better also refresh your memory on why the heck I do these daunting rides. Before I was injured, I had a great fondness for bike touring. This joy was lost, or so I thought, once I was confined to a wheelchair. A few years after my injury I finally started getting back out onto the trails, this is where I found my solace and was able to reestablish my identity. I eventually traveled all of the trails in my area and wanted to expand out. Ian's Ride 2016 was born. It soon became much more than this. I have met so many great people with spinal cord injuries that also love being outside, they often lack safe access to the outdoors. Being outside has given me a feeling of independence, joy, adventure, and a return to who I was before my injury. Because of this, I am happy to advocate for others to get outside and enjoy the healing qualities of the experience. If you want to read more about my story, click here.

Now you may be asking, what can I do to help? I need route suggestions (my next blog post will detail what I've got so far). I certainly welcome any financial help. I'll need to fund this journey with the majority of cost going to hotel stays and food. I will be seeking corporate sponsors to cover the majority of the cost. I am happy to share my story, so I could use some media involvement, any connections with TV, newspaper, radio, etc would be welcome. I always welcome ride-alongs. If you're in the area I am riding through (see the coming route blog post for maps) I would love to have some local expertise or just a friendly chat while slowly charging across state. I'm just a normal guy wanting to go on summer ride. This wheelchair is my bike. I am of the firm belief that more people, not just the mobility challenged, should get outside and pursue a passion.

A Quick Review of 2017

My goal for 2017 was to put at least 3000 miles on my chair and not miss a day out on the trail. It was a success! My total mileage for the year was 4700, and I'm proud to say I got out there 365 days in 2017. I spent 745 hours riding this year which comes out to an average of just over two hours a day. I climbed about 130,000 feet and rode in four different states (including Hawaii!). (You can view all of my rides on my Strava profile: https://www.strava.com/athletes/4075444) I did seven marathon distances in seven days in early October (over 190 miles that week). I did some sketchy climbing of Mount Rainier in late July, and Josh and I attempted to summit Hurricane Ridge, unsuccessfully, twice in the late summer (I'll get to the top in 2018). I was a keynote speaker at the Washington State Bike Summit where they honored me with the title of Washington Bikes person of the year. I was featured in an Apple commercial which demonstrated outside access for all (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PWNKM8V98cg). I met lots of great new friends on the trail, saw loads of birds, was snowed on, rained on, and sunburnt. There was one out-of-control crash (only one this year!). Went through three sets of tires, 12 sets of caster bearings, hours of tightening bolts and maintenance to keep my chair on the road, and then more hours cleaning the trail grime off the chair (I have awesome employees!). Overall it was a heck of a year, and I surpassed my own expectations. Here's to living your dream and not letting physical limitations hold you back. #thisismybike#getoutside