Lake Crabtree County Park in Morrisville, N.C., has made some changes to its trails to be more accessible for cyclists with disabilities. Last weekend, nonprofit North Carolina Adapted Sports and park officials celebrated restoring the trails with a ribbon cutting ceremony. Ten new bridges were also added to Lake Crabtree Park.
Last year, NC Adapted Sports CEO Wes Hall pitched the idea of creating a universal accessible trail design, which received approval from local government and park officials.
“We want to see people in our parks and people that may not look like us, too,” said Sam Trogdon, the assistant director of Wake County Parks, Recreation and Open Space. “And so it becomes this regional attraction that many of our parks are, and you can see people of different levels cycling together."
The trails at Lake Crabtree Park were widened and restored for all bikes including two forms that are specifically for people with disabilities, Hall said.
“The recumbent cycle is typically a three-wheel bike, and they may have complete all user power or may have an assist on them to allow some help with athletes who have impairments and mobility in the legs,” said Hall.
The other type of bike is called a hand cycle, where people pedal with their hands. Meanwhile, Lake Harris County Park, also located in Wake County, will also have some of its trails restored to make it more accessible. Trogdon says the restoration is expected to complete by the end of September.