Paralyzed man designs mountain bike so people with disabilities can hit the trails

Christian Bagg has always been an outdoor enthusiast, and he created a special mountain bike so everyone can have the chance to go on an adventure.

In 1996, Bagg broke his back during a snowboarding crash in Banff National Park, and the accident left him paralyzed from the waist down. He missed being able to hop on his bike and explore the great outdoors, and in 2008, started building a modified bicycle in his basement that he could ride over rugged terrain. Bagg had no intention of turning this into a business, but after he let a teenage girl with cerebral palsy borrow his special bicycle, he knew he had to make more.

The girl spent four hours on the bike, which was pulled by her friends, and when the day was over she told her mom it was "the best day of her life," Bagg told CNN. That's when he realized "this shouldn't be just for me," and in 2018, he launched his company, Bowhead Corp., to make bicycles for people who are physically disabled. They can be customized to fit each person's needs, and Bagg promises that "anyone who wants to ride a bike, we will endeavor to figure out how they can. Whatever we need to do to get people outside." Catherine Garcia

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up