PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Richard Holloway, Blind Guy Biking, Cycles Accros Canada for Special Olympics
Brampton/May 11, 2009
Although legally blind with about 6% sight, Richard Holloway of Brampton, Ontario, still has a vision. His is to use his disability to help others less fortunate than himself. He has run and finished seventeen full marathons including Boston, New York, Hawaii and Dublin. While running, he was known as "Blind Guy Running" and raised over $250,000 for charity. Now, as "Blind Guy Biking", he is riding a tandem recumbent bicycle from Victoria, British Columbia, to St. Johns, Newfoundland, collecting pledges for athletes with disabilities.
Richard’s first and main goal is to raise money to help people with disabilities “…reach the podium and earn medals in their sport at regional, provincial and international levels ultimately reaching the Special Olympics.” He will "Pedal for Medals" to help them "go for the gold". His second goal is to support the new Blind Hockey organization during its infancy, “…allowing the blind and visually impaired to play and participate in our national sport”.
The primary sponsor for the ride is the Canadian Progress Club of which Richard is a member and president of his hometown Brampton Chapter. Through their Charitable Foundation they have created the structure for collecting donations, issuing tax receipts and administering the funds. The Canadian Progress Club Cross Canada Ride will raise money from pledges made in support of the Blind Guy Biking. Local Special Olympics groups will benefit directly as the proceeds are intended to help them pay expenses such as swimming pool fees, busses to and from events and equipment purchases.
The ride starts in Victoria on June 7, 2009, and ends in St. John's on September 1, 2009. The route has been organized into six legs of about 1,650 kilometers each including side trips to meet, as Richard says, “as many Special Olympians as I can”. The total distance is 10,000 kilometers. Pledges are being requested in a range from one quarter of a cent to one cent per kilometer or $25 to $100. Tax receipts are available for donations of $25 or more. Pledges may be made online at the blindguybiking.com website and the Canadian Progress website progressclub.ca.
Richard, the Blind Guy Biking, will be riding in the rear of a recumbent tandem bicycle built specially for his needs. His Lead Rider is his nephew Aaron Matthews of Wasaga Beach, Ontario. Anna Holloway, Richard's wife, is Ride Director and will drive the main support vehicle behind the riders for safety on the road. Additional support will be provided by Don Simmons, Documentarian, who will be videotaping the ride, Len Ashby, Equipment Manager and Second Rider, and Judy Bachmann, Web Communications, who will upload video and images to the website during the ride.
This is not Richard's first effort as Blind Guy Biking. Last year he conducted a trial ride of 750 kilometers around Georgian Bay following the Georgian Bay Coastal Route. Together with wife Anna and nephew Aaron, he travelled for eight days from Wasaga Beach through Collingwood, Owen Sound, Tobermory, Manitoulin Island, Sudbury, Parry Sound and Midland back to Wasaga Beach. Special Olympics groups along the way greeted him with handmade signs and heartfelt thanks. The success of the trial ride and the moving response of the Special Olympians inspired Richard to pursue his dream to ride across Canada proving, in his words, "You don't need sight to have a vision".
For more information on the ride, contact Anna Holloway at 905-874-0544 or srp.anna@yahoo.ca
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