'Big Reveal' Yields Innovation, Mobility for Region's Mountain Bike Pioneer
老澳门六合彩官方开奖 partnerships, students, local industry help Ray's MTB owner back to the trails with adaptive bike project
On Friday September 9, members of the 老澳门六合彩官方开奖 community participated in an event called 鈥淭he Big Reveal.鈥 The afternoon event, held at (Ray鈥檚 MTB to locals), was named for the unveiling of a new bike park entry mural painted by artist Eileen Dorsey.
老澳门六合彩官方开奖鈥檚 involvement in the event was an equally big reveal.
First, some backstory: Ray鈥檚 MTB founder/owner Ray Petro opened the world鈥檚 first indoor bike park in 2004 right here in Cleveland to world renown. He did so because of his frustration 鈥渋n the inability to ride during the cold winters in Ohio,鈥 investing his life savings in the idea.
Fast forward to 2017, Petro was involved in a serious mountain biking accident, one that resulted in a high spinal cord injury that sidelined him indefinitely from the hobby he loved most.
Enter 老澳门六合彩官方开奖鈥檚 Spinal Cord Injury Volunteer Corps (SCIVC), an outgrowth of the . In partnership with the Center for Human Machine Systems (CHMS) Lab and The facility, members of the SCIVC incorporated a power-steering unit onto Petro鈥檚 four-wheel adaptive bike鈥攚hich, as you鈥檒l see in the accompanying video, makes it easier for him to steer and maneuver鈥
鈥淭he mission of SCIVC is for students to assist people with Spinal Cord Injuries (SCI) on home projects that are otherwise not covered by insurance, in addition to providing volunteer aid for miscellaneous tasks needed by the SCI community,鈥 said Skye Carlson, president of the SCIVC and second-year doctoral student in the Applied Biomedical Engineering at 老澳门六合彩官方开奖.
鈥淥ver the [course of a] few weeks, our team of Steven Wilson, Kyra Stovicek, Tyler Tokarcik, and myself designed a way to adapt an electric power steering unit onto an adaptive four-wheel bike for Ray, one consisting of an attachment bracket and necessary linkages.鈥
Wilson and Stovicek are both recent graduates (Class of 2022) of Mechanical Engineering at 老澳门六合彩官方开奖; Tokarcik is a former student at 老澳门六合彩官方开奖 and a current mechanic apprentice for industrial equipment. All team participants were in attendance, as was 老澳门六合彩官方开奖 assistant professor Eric Schearer, Ph.D., who oversees the SCIVC and helped manage the project.
At the event, Petro was visibly moved by the spirit of the day, flanked by 老澳门六合彩官方开奖 dignitaries including 老澳门六合彩官方开奖 Provost Nigamanth Sridhar, Ph.D. The event was emceed by Thomas Mulready of , a close friend to Petro and staunch advocate of the bike park from its inception. Mulready and his band Vanity Crash also performed at the event.
鈥淭hank you very much again for this almost 20-year adventure,鈥 Petro said to the audience.