Challenging (dis)ability through Adventure

Saturday, September 2, 2017

Challenging (dis)ability through Adventure

An expedition comprising of 5 people with significant disabilities riding human powered tricycles from Australia’s geographical lowest point, Kati Thanda (Lake Eyre) at -15.2 metres, to the summit of Mount Kosciuszko (2228 metres), the highest point. And why? To dispell the myth that people with disabilities are incapable :)

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World Expeditions Lowest to Highest – Australia

An expedition comprising of 5 people with significant disabilities riding human powered tricycles from Australia’s geographical lowest point, Kati Thanda (Lake Eyre) at -15.2 metres, to the summit of Mount Kosciuszko (2228 metres), the highest point. This will be the first time this 2100 kilometre journey has ever been attempted and we estimate will be a 6 week journey.

What is a standard cycle for an able bodied cyclist might be the ultimate challenge for Walter Van Praag with 38% lung function (due to Cystic Fibrosis) or Daniel Kojta who is paraplegic and uses a hand-cycle. What is an easy hill climb for another is sure to be testing for Paul Pritchard with half a working body (Hemiplegia). Paul will ride a tandem recumbent trike with Duncan Meerding, who is legally blind, thereby being his eyes. Conrad will be battling nerve pain from his damaged spine which limits his mobility. This journey is made all the more challenging because of the physical limitations the team face. However, it will be the first time anyone has attempted such a journey, disabled or able-bodied, and by working together we will form a strong team, cooperating so each individual is able to go beyond his usual boundaries.

We aim to begin at Kati Thanda on 5th September 2017 with an aim to arrive on the summit of Kosciuszko in mid-October. The Expedition will be filmed by award winning film makers Rummin Productions and photographer Matthew Newton. Through the film we will demonstrate how our disability does not define who we are and how co-operation makes us (everyone) whole.

The public will be able to follow us by an interactive ‘Spot Tracker’ on our blog daily. We will also visit remote communities and conduct lectures to students and community about disability and adventure. Disabled people tend to be portrayed in just two lights: super-humans achieving against all odds or victims in need of paternalism. There often is no middle ground.

We also aim to have school students ride a few kilometres with us. In this way we will interact with local and isolated communities through education, participation and inspiration.

School and Community Visits

We intend to visit schools and community halls along the way and show our previous films and talk to the students and the broader community about the truth of disability. There's an awful lot of nonsense in the media about disabled people who seem to be portrayed in just two lights: Super-humans achieving against all odds or victims in need of paternalism. Some students will already be disabled and some will be disabled in the future by what life throws at them: when it happens we aim to provide the tools to help make sense of it. Also we aim to have students ride a few kilometers with us.

We will interact with local and isolated communities through education, participation and inspiration.

Documentary!

The Expedition will be filmed from start to finish with the aim of compiling a quality documentary/film product that appeals and inspires a broad audience. It will not be a film about achieving 'against all odds' and it will not stoop into sentimentalism. It will be a film about cooperation: for example, with only one usable leg Paul depends on Duncan to get him through and Duncan depends on Paul’s eyes. It will be a film about working together to overcome challenges and obstacles. It will be a film that reveals the humour of the situations we sometimes find ourselves in. It will be an inspirational film about the protagonists' personal journeys from hardship to contentment.

This Documentary will be filmed by award winning film maker and photographer Matthew Newtonhttp://matthewnewton.com.au.

Here is a link to a previous Award Winning film, The Journey; with Paul's epic cycling adventure in Nepal; https://www.youtube.com/watch? v=MbzXjtMDf-0