Paralympics......cycling

Lichtblick

Taking a bit of a risk here, might be shot down in flames :?

Olympics over, here come the Paralympics. I've clicked on Cycling, then Road Race.

Here's a photo from a Beijing Paralympics road race. To me - and others I've asked - that is not cycling.



Definition of cycling:
n. The act, sport, or technique of riding or racing on a bicycle, motorcycle, or similar vehicle.

However, and this is where I get uneasy, this "is" cycling:



So, man with one arm "is" cycling, but two women with no legs on trikes, are "not" cycling. :?:

I couldn't do what they do, I have to admire what they do, and I shouldn't ask this kind of question because it's completely not PC.

What, if anything, do you think of Paralympic cycling in particular and Paralympics in general?

<gibber>

BillyMansell

By that definition hand cycling is cycling.

The question is only non-PC if you look at those pictures and question their right to participate because of their disability rather than their ability to participate as an athlete despite the other challenges they face.

Lichtblick

BillyMansell wrote:

By that definition hand cycling is cycling.

The question is only non-PC if you look at those pictures and question their right to participate because of their disability rather than their ability to participate as an athlete despite the other challenges they face.

I wasn't questioning either of those propositions. But I can see that it might have looked as if I was. Sorry for that.

alan_a

What are the advantages / disadvantages of hand cycles over the types of wheelchair Dame Tani raced in for paralympic athletics?

confused@BR

Perhaps you would like to talk to 'our own' World Champion cyclist Pokerface? His blog in particular, may enlighten you

RichN95.

An interesting person to look out for in the hand cycling is Alex Zanardi, an ex-Formula 1 driver who lost his legs in a horrific Indycar crash about a decade ago. He now does hand cycling marathons - he's a contender for the win too. He had previously returned to driving, competing in touring cars.

MrTapir

There is paralympic track cycling - which proudly I can say my girlfriend got us tickets for - I think there was a paralympian trackie on 'The Bike Show' on monday night called Rick... Also the track events include a tandem cycling thing whereby you have a paralympian (i think who is blind) and a pilot.

Hand cycling: Is a recumbent considered 'proper' cycling? Hand cycling is similar to that just you are sat the other way round, therefore I think it counts.

I can imagine the hand cycling is about 50 times harder than normal cycling. I used to see a guy doing it through the village i used to live in and thought it was incredibly impressive.

Paralympics in general is awesome. I feel quite proud of the country actually hearing organisers say that Paralympic tickets are incredibly popular. I think its good and getting to the point where people respect paralympians as elite sportspeople in their own right rather than ' oh didnt he do well, aww thats lovely to see' kind of things which is a bit patronising.

Daz555

Hand cycling is definitely a form of cycling - no different from a 3 wheel recumbant.

As an aside to this. Is hand-cycling a separate event from wheel chairs?

MrTapir

Daz555 wrote:

Hand cycling is definitely a form of cycling - no different from a 3 wheel recumbant.

As an aside to this. Is hand-cycling a separate event from wheel chairs?

Yes I believe the hand cycling is the road race, down at Brands Hatch. The wheelchairs compete on the athletics track and the marathon i think.

thegibdog

Both are pretty clearly cycling. If you don't think hand cycling is, what would you call it??

alan_a

Alan A wrote:

What are the advantages / disadvantages of hand cycles over the types of wheelchair Dame Tani raced in for paralympic athletics?

Does anyone have an answer this?

Is hand cycling faster / harder / easier / more agile compared to simply revolving the wheels manually ?

MrTapir

Alan A wrote:

Alan A wrote:

What are the advantages / disadvantages of hand cycles over the types of wheelchair Dame Tani raced in for paralympic athletics?

Does anyone have an answer this?

Is hand cycling faster / harder / easier / more agile compared to simply revolving the wheels manually ?

Well they are geared for one thing, so hills must be easier, or going faster too, whichever. Also there are brakes in the same way normal bikes have them so I think overall you have a greater nuanced control over the machine.

craprider

Lichtblick wrote:

Taking a bit of a risk here, might be shot down in flames :?
What, if anything, do you think of Paralympic cycling in particular and Paralympics in general?
<gibber>

I honestly prefer the paralympics and get more involved.
Whilst Olympians have undoubtedly worked hard to get where they are, they are also extremely lucky.

Paralympians are people that have overcome huge odds/obstacles in their lives and then strived to be the best they can be.

makes the whole thing much more watchable to me.

Vino'sGhost

But is it sport?

Crankbrother

Vino'sGhost wrote:

But is it sport?

Pro Race?

Is it equal?

Apparently because GB (+NI+IOM+etc) are good at this it's the pinacle of sport ... Amazing effort, inequal effort ...

Gladiator

I see it like this. Theres you and then theres the bike.

You power the bike, and that can be with legs or if you dont have any, then arms, afterall, you still need a strong heart so thats the same.

Then there is the bike. If you have legs you have pedals, if you use arms then you adjust the bike to fit.

Thats it. Its just about stepping back and re-adjusting what you generally see as the norm (legs) but its still man v machine wether its legs or arms.

Try wiping your ars* with your opposite hand, its hard, but you are still wiping your ars*.

L2R

Hand-cycling uses the same types of gears as a regular bike and can be ridden like a normal bike in that you can free wheel, change gears to suit the terrain, steer and brake just like a regular bike. This is completely different from a push chair used in athletics.