Carl “Kiwi” Whitcomb
In 2011 Kiwi suffered an incomplete spinal cord injury at his C3-C4 region as a result of a dirt bike accident in Texas which initially left him paralyzed from the chin down and a less than positive prognosis. After spinal surgery, a long stint at Baylor Institute of Rehab, and what he describes as “a bit dumb luck” he was lucky enough to regain some control over his body, and the ability to walk. But through trial and error, first with things like securing his feet to the pedals, but also not falling over every time he came to a stop. Then, with the challenges that came with the exertion it took to be able to ride for longer and longer distances. It was with the support of his wife and friends, that he was able to get to those challenges and to the point where he started participating in local enduro races.
Maggie Frederick
Maggie was born with spina bifida. She grew up in Kennesaw, GA, playing wheelchair basketball, track, and swimming. After she graduated from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and moved back to Georgia, she struggled to find sports for adults with disabilities in her area. In 2018, she found Catalyst Sports and began rock climbing. From there, she discovered her love for adaptive mountain biking. In October 2020, she tried mountain biking for the first time, and in 2023 she got her own bike. Since getting her bike, she has already ridden in 5 states. Maggie looks forward to seeing the sport grow and improving her skills.
Brian Carlson
The thrill of bicycle road racing captured Brian Carlson in college as a member of the Purdue University Cycling team. During that time Brian also rode from San Francisco to Washington DC to advocate and raise money for individuals with disability. What he could not anticipate is a cycling accident with a drunk driver several years later that would leave him as a left leg amputee. Maintaining his love for riding, Brian shifted his focus to adaptive cycling. He has been collaborating with We.Are.Trailblazers since 2018 on the development of universal trails in Bentonville and working with Ozark Adaptive Sports Association (OZASA) hosting events that gets individuals with physical challenges onto adaptive cycles and back to the outdoors.
Cole Bernier
Born in a small town in Northern British Columbia, Canada, was in a construction accident at the age of 23 years, restricting him to a wheelchair as a paraplegic. After Cole’s accident, he really struggled to find his identity and expression being a high-level athlete before his accident. 3 years post-injury, Cole came across Bowhead Corp., a company that makes offroad adaptive equipment, and found out very quickly that this would be the turning point in his new life with his new limitations. Once Cole was able to get his own Bowhead Reach in 2018, he never looked back.