Team Access: Full of inspiring stories of strength and persistence in El Tour & beyond

El Tour de Tucson is all about charity, cycling and fun. And, oh yes, inspiring stories you come across throughout the ride as they cross the finish line.

Few inspire better than Team Access, a nonprofit that connects adaptive athletes and individuals with disabilities to sports, mobility technology, events, and community support.

El Tour is a prime event for the athletes. And they’ve been doing it for years, enjoying their time on the road while with teammates and others. More than 150 Team Access cyclists will be participating in the ride Nov. 21.

According to Team Access, it was created around a simple idea: everyone should have the opportunity to participate. Whether it’s competing in adaptive sporting events, exploring new mobility technologies, or simply being part of the community, we believe access matters. We work alongside athletes, families, caregivers, and partner organizations to help remove barriers and create more opportunities for people of all abilities.

“We’re very excited about what’s taking place,” said Paul Davis, Team Access president. “We’re excited about the partnership that we have with El Tour de Tucson and with Southern Arizona Adaptive Sports, where we’re making it possible for folks with disabilities to come out and ride and have just the same experience as everybody else, and to challenge themselves on their goals for their athletic goals as well as just how they’re living their lives.”

And we love to see it. It’s a biggish group who ride any one of the rides in El Tour, so you’ll see them all over the course(s). You’ll see them at the start and finish lines, no doubt. Team Access supports its riders to the fullest.

“We do a lot of things for them,” Davis said “We have a dedicated start staging area for them. We have a dedicated bike lane for the trikes as well as the hand cycles because they take up more space in the starting area. We have dedicated bathrooms and parking. We have volunteers that are helping people load and unload their bikes. We also have special award categories for the hand cycles and other adaptive sports areas so that those people are getting the benefit of being able to have their accomplishments recognized right along with everyone else.”

Davis was recently at an accessibility conference where he spoke about the importance of being inclusive.

“Team Access is excited to share the accessibility model we’ve developed in partnership with El Tour de Tucson and SAAS with other community event planners and ride directors,” he said. “Our recent presentation at the National ADA Symposium and our upcoming presentation  at the annual Bicycle Industry Summit present opportunities to demonstrate what we’ve learned and encourage others to make their events more accessible.

“One of our key messages is that accessibility should be a fundamental part of event planning, just like security, registration, or any other essential consideration. We believe event organizers would be surprised by how much they can accomplish, often at relatively little additional cost, simply by incorporating accessibility into their planning from the beginning.”

At the end of day, Davis said the hope “is that by sharing what we’ve learned, we can help other events create the same opportunities for adaptive athletes and people with disabilities. Ultimately, we’d love to see accessibility become a “built-in” standard part of planning community and athletic events everywhere.”