A Bicycle Built for Two
By Wolgang, Judy; Dialogue: A World of Ideas for Visually Impaired People of All Ages, Vol. 47, No. 5, pp. 56-59Publication Date: September-October 2008
Account by a blind cyclist of tandem bicycling. The author was introduced to this form of recreation in a program coordinated by her local county Parks and Recreation Division’s Special Populations section, which offered a six-week skills-development course that teamed visually impaired and blind adults, the stokers on the rear seat, with sighted volunteers from the community who functioned as captains riding in front. The end of the training course led her to seek out a permanent riding partner through the Special Populations program. The author accounts of their 10-year partnership, riding every Saturday for about 38 miles, with coffee breaks at a local Starbucks that add to the social aspect of the day. Their tandem outings were the subject of a segment taped for the Oprah Winfrey show, and although it never aired, the author still has the video copy sent her as a reminder of what she considers one of the most exciting times of her life. A resource list for blind tandem cyclists is appended.
Published by: Blindskills, Inc. (Website:http://www.blindskills.com)
