Paralympian push

You may have observed Ryan Chalmers and Travis Dodson training on Longboat Key recently. The past month, they’ve been training twice a day along Gulf of Mexico Drive, traversing 90 to 120 miles each week based on the goal their coach gives them.

But here’s what you probably didn’t know: Chalmers and Dodson are training in hopes of competing in the track portion of future Paralympics competitions.

The pair, who “push” on specially designed three-wheeled hand cycles, decided to spend a month on Longboat Key training in the warm weather and sunshine. They train six days a week, both on Longboat Key and on the track at Brookside Middle School.

The athletes were wheelchair racers at the University of Illinois.

“They have the best wheelchair track program in the country, and there are only a few colleges in the U.S. that have wheelchair track as an option,” Chalmers said.

Dodson, 29, from Deming, N.M., is training for his current goal of competing in the track portion of the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro.

The former U.S. Marine was serving in Iraq in 2007 when a pipe bomb exploded, causing him to lose both legs. He previously competed in sitting cross-country skiing and the biathlon during the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.

“I don’t feel that I’ve even really accomplished anything at this point,” Dodson said. “It’s always been working up to something. I still have a long way to go. My ultimate goal is to make the team for Rio for wheelchair track.”

Chalmers, 25, from Rochester, N.Y., competed in the 2012 London Paralympics and hopes to represent the U.S. again in the 2016 or 2020 Paralympics. He was born with spina bifida, a disorder in which the spinal cord does not fully form or close all the way.

Chalmers took time off from track in 2013 for his Push Across America challenge, in which he pushed his way across the U.S. from Los Angeles to New York City in 71 days. It was a campaign for Stay-Focused, a nonprofit organization in the Cayman Islands that helps teens with disabilities become certified in scuba diving. He rode the equivalent of two to three marathons daily.

“It was for a good cause, and I really got to meet some great people along the way,” Chalmers said.

“That’s what the campaign was all about, and it was nice for me to actually be able to achieve it. We accomplished a lot throughout the entire time, and that’s what I’m most proud of.”

Although Chalmers and Dodson spend the majority of their waking hours training or thinking about training, they both said they enjoy it.

“If you set a big goal for yourself, it’s a challenge, but as long as you’re focused, you just know that’s what you need to get done,” Chalmers said. “So I’ve never looked at my disability as a challenge, and I would never call it a challenge. It’s just something you adapt to just like somebody adapts to anything.”

Dodson said he feels lucky to be doing what he enjoys.

“I don’t have any real challenges,” he said. “I’ve lived such a cush and soft life. I think other people have such bigger challenges than me. I get to do what I want, which is train, and I get to travel doing this. It’s easy to keep moving forward when you’re relatively enjoying it. Sometimes I just feel super spoiled.”

The Paralympic Games take place every two years, alternating between summer and winter games.

Push path
Chalmers rode across the U.S. in 71 days in 2013 for his Push Across America Challenge.