April Events for Access Anything

Access Anything participated in two great events in April; the 20th anniversary open house for the Northeast Rehabilitation Health Network in Salem, NH and the annual Scott Remington Fundraiser for spinal cord research donations to the Christopher Reeve Foundation in Brant Lake, NY. Both events were great networking events for Access Anything and were amazing and inspiring for both of us.

The open house on April 1st was a bi-centennial celebration as well as a showing for iBot. The Northeast Rehabilitation Health Network is the only iBot evaulation and instruction center in the New England area.

If you haven't seen the iBot live or on TV yet, you're in for a dose of modern technology's current advancements. This 21st century machine can climb stairs, roll through mud, stand its rider upright, and balance on two of its six wheels using gyroscopes and computers.

We also made some great connections at this open house with some of our peers in the disability-travel community. Wheelchair Escapes, travel agent and wheelchair-user husband Kristy and Jerry Lacroiz, specialize in wheelchair travel and are members of the SATH organization. Northeast Passage, one of the area's largest adaptive sports and recreation programs was also at the open house. Well known for their unique feature of individual equipment rental, Northeast Passage is one of the largest adaptive programs in the New England area and is a DSUSA affiliate.

In New York the following weekend the Scott Remington Fundraiser topped all previous years with over 300 attendees and over $40,000 in donations for the Christopher Reeve Foundation and spinal cord research. This event truly touches our hearts, as Scott is a distant cousin of Craig's, and has done this wonderful event since his recovery from a severe logging accident in 1998. This year we were lucky enough to present Scott with a special donation from one of our sponsors, the Freedom Tent, a fully independent tent for people in wheelchairs or with mobility disabilities made by Eureka! and Blue Sky Designs. Scott has always been an avid outdoorsman, and has not done much camping since his accident. He has kept up many of his outdoor activities such as snowmobiling and hunting, but plans to start camping again this summer!

Adaptive Ski Week a Success!

With over 30 participants and over 35" of snow in 3 days, Steamboat's first Adaptive Ski Week was a screaming success! The participants got their skis warmed up on Saturday, March 11, and then were dowsed with 12" new powder on Sunday, and another 22" on Monday. Tuesday the group went up for a sunshine-filled backcountry cat-skiing day with Steamboat Powder Cats. This day was an amazingly inspiring day for every adaptive skier to learn the deep powder and for the volunteer to be witness to their smiles, appreciation, and new found skills!

Thanks to Adaptive Adventures, Steamboat Ski Area, and Steamboat Powder Cats, this week was an eye-opening event for not only the camp's participants, but the Steamboat community as well. Our local volunteers were excited to be a part of this new event, and plans for the second annual ski week in 2007 are already being determined.

Read Steamboat Today's article on our heros!

Adaptive Ski Week

Access Anything is proud to be co-organizing the first advanced monoskier clinic in Steamboat Springs, March 10-14, in conjuction with Adaptive Adventures and Steamboat Ski Area.

The All Mountain Camp event will include top level adaptive coaches, plenty of sherpa's, video, NASTAR fun, a variety of terrain and snow conditions, a social group setting and one of the best mountains anywhere. A great opportunity to improve your skills and/or just have a great time at the Boat!An added bonus to the camp will be the opportunity to venture into the Steamboat backcountry with Steamboat Powdercats. This one day excursion will be on the last day of the camp, March 14. For those not comfortable on the snowcat trip, a day of group free-skiing will be available on Steamboat Mountain.

The camp will cost $100 per day. The daily fee includes lodging, video, group pizza party, group dinner, and loads of fun! SIGN UP NOW! Space is limited!

We're proud to host members from the Wounded Warrior Project and also proud to have double amputee and motivational speaker, Bill Demby, will be our guest speaker for the event! "Life is a game, the only way to win is to play."

Off to the SATH World Congress

Today we head down to Miami to be a part of a twenty-year legacy, the Society for Accessible Travel and Hospitality's World Congress. A meeting of the minds for adaptive travel and expanding the market and its awareness, this exposition and congressional-type gathering is known for bringing the future to the present.

Access Anything will be representing Colorado as an adventure tourism option for people with disabilities, supported by the Colorado Tourism Office and Steamboat Ski Area while displaying our first guidebook in the Access Anything series, AA:Colorado.

This year we’ll be getting our feet wet networking with some of the industry’s leaders and innovators. We hope to make this Congress an annual event for Access Anything, including speaking opportunities on adventure travel and expanding this market in years to come.

We’ll have some photos and our update on this event in our next entry!

WELCOME

Welcome to the first edition of the Access Anything Blog!

We specialize in adaptive travel for people of all abilities. The first guidebook in our series, Access Anything: Colorado is available for purchse on our website.

For monthly updates of adaptive travel tips, stories, and calendars, sign up for our newsletter at www.accessanything.net.

Stay tuned for a regular update of adventure travel highlights here at our blog.