A simple morning ride on October 5, 2008 would change Rob’s life forever. An over the bars incident that shouldn’t have been anything more than a laugh - broke his spine at vertebrae T11, leaving him without feeling from the top of his abdominals down.  It's amazing how quickly a spinal cord injury can happen to anyone.

One positive outcome has been the rallying of family and friends. A few things quickly  became apparent as the weeks passed. First, that Rob would be facing an expensive challenge: financially, emotionally and physically. Second, that however horrible it may be, he was actually one of the lucky ones. He still has the use of his upper body and he doesn’t have to retrain for a new job.

The “Ride for Rob” intends to do two things this year.

1. Raise money for the Canadian Paraplegic Association
2. Provide a facility for those close to Rob to help him financially.

The Ride for Rob is an event within an event as the ride will take place during a race.  I will race on a team at the Chico Racing 24 Hour Summer Solstice on June 20th, 2009 and am looking for your support!  I have committed to complete a grueling mountain bike endurance race that will certainly test each and every rider. The riders are making a big commitment and we hope you will too. Please donate generously.

You might think that a spinal cord injury is a rare event.  But someone in Ontario has one each and every day.  It can happen to any person, and suddenly life changes forever.  Living with a spinal cord injury (SCI) can be very challenging.  Luckily there are some great folks over at the Canadian Paraplegic Association (CPA) who provide advocacy for those who are disabled and provide fantastic peer support programs to help those who are newly injured.

A few spinal cord injury facts:

• Traffic Accidents are the number one cause at 45%
• Sports Related SCI breaks down to: Diving 66.0% - Rugby & American Football 6.1% - Winter Sports 6.1% - Surfing 3.1% - Trampoline 2.6% - Wrestling 2.3% - Gymnastics 2.2% - Horseback Riding 2.0% - Other 9.6%
• Resultant Disability from SCI: Quadriplegia, incomplete 31.2% - Paraplegia, complete 28.2% - Paraplegia, incomplete 23.1% - Quadriplegia, complete 17.5%
• 92% of all sports injuries result in quadriplegia
• The unemployment rate for people with SCI is 62%. 

The Ride for Rob is in its first year and we hope to both support the CPA and also help Rob.  When you donate - you will be given the option to specify if you want all of your money to go to CPA, or if you want to split it with Rob.  This second option is for those who wish their donation to be used equally to Rob directly and to help others in his situation.   Please remember, you will only receive a donation tax receipt for the portion going to CPA.

If you would like to donate you can do so at http://www.rideforrob.ca/rbuike and donations of any size are both welcome and appreciated!

Thank you in advance for your support!