It’s been almost a year since our last newsletter and not surprisingly, a lot has happened in AdvenChair’s world. Here is a brief rundown to get you up to date.
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In its relatively brief period of existence, AdvenChair has made some seemingly impossible physical endeavors quite doable for people with disabilities – reaching Machu Picchu and venturing to the bottom of the Grand Canyon to name a couple. But now, thanks to an intrepid youth group from St. Stephens Catholic Church in Renton, Washington, it can add a life-changing spiritual sojourn to its list of accomplishments as well.
They say no person is an island. That’s especially true when that person needs something that doesn’t exist yet to make his or her life better, and then invents something that not only fulfills the need, but benefits those immediately around him, and countless other people in similar circumstances in different parts of the planet. Clearly that’s the case with Geoff Babb and his AdvenChair invention that had a ripple effect on dozens of people who journeyed with him to the bottom of the Grand Canyon and back two years ago. And recently, the story of that journey inspired another couple so much, it moved them to create a 48-minute documentary film called DREAM BOLDLY.
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What do you get when you combine AdvenChair, the leader in all-terrain wheelchairs, with Wanderlust Tours, Central Oregon’s leader in guided all-terrain adventures? You get AdvenTours, outings that allow people with disabilities to explore Central Oregon’s most iconic places with expert guidance.
We are still glowing a year after the epic Grand AdvenChair 2 on the Bright Angel Trail in Grand Canyon National Park (20 miles down and up). And our roll on Cannon Beach on a bluebird day in February (above) during a break in Snowmagedon '23 was nothing short of phenomenal. But what’s driving us the most since our last newsletter is the many other lives that AdvenChair has touched in various parts of the world.
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As we close out 2022, we have so much gratitude for all the support and encouragement we have received from our team, sponsors, donors, volunteers, and people that we have met along the way. Every year of our journey has been significant. This year in particular has been influenced by COVID-19 (again), wildfire smoke, heat domes, and the economy. Nevertheless, it has still been a very successful one for us.
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It's been almost four months and I'm still basking in the glow of the Grand Advenchair 2 – our incredibly challenging, yet transformative and magical journey with an AdvenChair on the Bright Angel Trail to the bottom of the Grand Canyon and back. And then we received two pieces of great news.
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There may be no way to truly replicate the arduous 4,000-foot elevation change in tackling the Grand Canyon’s Bright Angel Trail to the Colorado River and back. But some of the training missions the AdvenChair team has taken on over the past few weeks come pretty close.
People are disabled in countless different ways, so there are a few practical tips that will apply to everyone. Yet a few key things can improve your experience. Here are a few featured in this great article from Outside Online.
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I know that Fall Roll Boldly newsletter was just two short holiday months ago but I wanted to share a few things that have happened since then.
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So much for starting slowly and gradually picking up speed. Less than three months off the assembly line, one of the first ten AdvenChairs ever made has already explored one of the eight wonders of the world.
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Just when we all thought it was safe to take our masks off and venture outside again...Along came the second half of 2021, which was especially challenging for the AdvenChair team and me personally.
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As I watched the assembly of the first production run of AdvenChairs – about 12 months and a brutal pandemic later than initially anticipated – I am so thankful for all the incredible help and support that we have received so far to bring the project to this point. When I started this letter, we had sold five chairs, but just today a check came in for chair number six and the first installment for number seven is in the mail. Yet, for all of our accomplishments over the past tumultuous year, I think that Scarlett’s smile in the photo above shows why we’ve worked so hard to get where we are today.
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The scouting report called for plowed, packed snow on the service road that serves as the Canal Trail along the Deschutes River. The fresh snow from the night before should give good traction, a good “joggable” surface, similar conditions to a trip a few years ago.
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My wife, Yvonne often refers to the AdvenChair as the “community chair” because so many people are involved with it, whether designing it, telling the story, or on the trail, where it takes a team to push, pull, and/or maneuver the chair. This was the case last week on a hike at Smith Rock State Park.
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As we drove home from the Grand Canyon, through the Great Basin desert, I had plenty of time to reflect on the past year, particularly the last four months, and how my crazy idea of the Grand Advenchair had affected not only me and my family, but a much greater circle of people as well.
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Amy, Yvonne, and I arrived back in Bend tonight after 3 days of driving from the Grand Canyon, exhausted but excited (most everyone else flew home Friday). I wanted to write a quick update, and then it’s off to a shower and bed.
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One of my earliest and profound memories from the hospital following my stroke was when I was still in the ICU, dealing with a lot of pain, and not fully aware of what had happened to me and what was next. The nurse came in, tuned my bed toward the window, opened the curtains, and said “you have a lot of friends.”
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When I survived a brain-stem stroke in 2005, I had to completely change how I looked at the world, approached adventures, and accessed wild places. While this has probably been the hardest challenge I have dealt with in my life, it has also been one of the most rewarding because my family and friends have made the outdoors possible for me.
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The weather for the 2016 Pole Pedal Paddle relay in Bend, Ore. ranked in “the top 5 worst days” in the 40-year-history of the event and still attracted nearly 3,000 racers. Oregon Adaptive Sports (OAS) fielded 4 teams of racers in the Adaptive division for the 6th straight year. The Can Do Crew, No Boundaries, True Grit, and Onward! all showed up ready to race, rain or shine.
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