Reporters note: It's certainly not unusual to see one or more cyclists this time of year, usually pedaling east, along US Highway 2, in our part of Montana. After all, we are on the northern tier route, a very popular route that takes cyclists from Anacortes, Washington to Bar Harbor, Maine. Griffin Park, by the Chinook Water Plant and City Hall in Harlem are both popular with cross-country cyclists as good spots to camp overnight.

But what I had never seen in my five summers on this part of the Hi-Line were people using handcycles to cross the country. Last Tuesday Chinook Police Chief Elmer Zarn stopped in the newspaper office and announced, "There's some guys in wheelchairs asking if they can camp down on the paved area by the swimming pool. I thought Steve Edwards might want to see what they are up to."

Indeed I did want to see what they were up to. Here's part of what I learned about three paralyzed individuals using 'recumbent handcycles' (tricycles on which the cyclist basically rides on their back and uses their arms rather than legs for power) who are taking the northern route across the U.S. They've already ridden 1000+ miles since leaving Anacortes on June 2. Their goal is to reach Bar Harbor, Maine, the eastern terminus of the northern tier route, sometime around August 20. They still have 3200 miles to ride to make it to their goal.

Paralyzed Veterans Race Team specializes in competitive, adaptive sports

Paralyzed Veterans of America, among other services to seriously injured veterans, has provided access to adaptive sports for many years-like wheelchair basketball, softball and other traditional sports. More recently the group launched a new wellness and fitness program to get paralyzed veterans into high-energy sports such as hand cycling, wheelchair racing and triathlons.

Two of the group that stopped in Chinook are members of the Paralyzed Veterans Race Team. Team members that compete at the highest level receive stipends to help support them while training and attending races on the handcycling circuit each summer. The third member riding on this cross country trip is a native of Mexico who came to Arizona on a cycling scholarship and was befriended by one of the veterans' race team members.

Why a handcycling trip across the U.S.?

Gerard Ah-Fook, who lives in Tucson, Arizona, is a member of the Paralyzed Veterans Racing Team. Asked why this 4000+ mile trip, he said, "Normally this time of year I and Matthew (another member of the racing team who is riding this cross country ride) would be training and racing on the handcycle circuit. Last year I got to participate in a week long ride across Iowa (RAGBRAI) and thought "instead of just riding across Iowa, why not ride across the entire country?""

He mentioned the idea of a cross country trip to his colleagues and the idea developed. Gerard added, "It's still riding and training. Instead of being home each night after training we're crossing the country. We've turned training into an adventure."

Matthew Robinson, from Syracuse, New York, has been a member of the Paralyzed Veterans Race Team for the last few years and has been racing competitively as well. Matthew and Gerard invited their friend, Ricardo Rincon, from Mexico City, Mexico, to join them for the cross country ride. When the trio reaches Bar Harbor in Maine, Rincon will fly back to Mexico to take up his university studies again.

The rest of the group is made up of the support team for the riders. Gerard's wife and three kids are on the trip as well as another woman assistant. The women drive the vans and take care of the logistics of the trip. When I arrived at the campsite by the Chinook pool there were two canopies set up and Gerard and Ricardo were cooking chicken breasts for dinner and frying bacon to make BLT sandwiches for later. Matthew and one of the ladies was getting gear ready for the next day and the kids, well, they were having a great time playing soccer.

Gerard told, "We had to generate our own financial support for the gear and travel expense for this trip. We camp as much as we can and try to keep expenses down by doing our own cooking." The support caravan includes a pickup, SUV and two trailers carrying camping gear, food and equipment. Once the three guys park their cycles for the day they rely on stripped down wheelchairs for moving around their camp site.

The cycles they use are really tricycles. Basically reclining (recumbent) when riding, handcyclists use their arms to 'crank' the cycles. Like a regular bicycle but upside down, the gears and pedals work as would be expected. Braking is done with a caliper, hand brake. Steering is done with the same part same part of the cycle where the hand pedals are attached. When the rider moves the pedals left or right, the front fork steer moves the single front wheel in the desired direction. The pickup they were driving had some sort of a lifting device mounted in the bed and it appeared that was necessary to load the cycles for transporting long distances.

I did ask about the cost and maintenance of the cycles. Gerard told me, "You can pick up a used handcycle for about $1500. There are top of the line machines that sell for $25000." Ricardo shed some light about maintenance noting, "Our cycles require about the same amount of maintenance as a regular road bicycle-replacing some worn parts occasionally, regular preventive maintenance on chains and gears and fixing flat tires from time to time."

Next goal is to ride RAGBRAI, again this year, and then...

Any cyclist who has participated in a distance cycling event has likely heard about RAGBRAI. It's the granddaddy of long distance rides, winding across the state of Iowa every summer since 1973, and often involving several thousand riders (8500 can officially register but there are often two or three times that many riders who jump in to ride for a day or two). It's said that the fame of RAGBAI has spawned nearly 200 similar cycling events across the U.S. and overseas.

Gerard and Matthew are both alumni of RAGBRAI and this year, along with Ricardo, will ride RAGBRAI again. A recent post on the trio's Facebook page was a note from Adaptive Sports of Iowa and read, "We're excited to have ...Gerard, Matthew and Rickie joining us for RAGBRAI this year!" They will handcycle across Iowa, starting at the Missouri River and finishing at the Mississippi River to the east.

I asked Gerard, "What's your next ride?" He said, "We have in mind to go international on our next trip. We're looking at a ride from Alaska to La Paz, Mexico (near the tip of the Baja Peninsula). That could add up to nearly 7000 miles, and not all of it paved.

Wow, that multiple country ride and long mileage is pretty optimistic. But these are riders who've already ridden over two mountain chains just to get to Chinook. They rode the Going-to-the-Sun road in Glacier Park a day after it was opened for the season. I have to say, based on what I've learned about them, they are very likely to complete whatever goal they set.

Ricardo Rincon and Gerard Ah-Fook are shown preparing dinner at their campsite in Chinook. The two cyclists, plus Matthew Robinson not pictured, are hand cycling across the U.S. Handcycling allows paralyzed individuals to use their arms to pedal special, three-wheeled cycles. The trio is accompanied by two women who drive vehicles and help with logistics of the trip.

The "Journal" thanks the group for sharing their story and wishes them they best on the rest of their current trip and future trips. You can follow the handcyclists on Facebook @Handcycle America. Gerard's wife also maintains a blog about the trip (handcycleamericas.wordpress.com).