The 2012 MS150 was scheduled for April 21-22 in Miami, Florida.  I was able to recruit 4 of my able-bodied friends to join the ride.  I trained and conditioned for 2 months leading up to the 150 mile ride.  The ride was supposed to start Saturday morning, promptly at 7:00am.  All my friends and I live in West Palm Beach, which is 1.5 – 2 hours away from the Miami-Homestead Speedway starting point.  So Friday night we decided to stay at a cheap hotel in Miami, right near the Homestead Speedway.   Setting my alarm for 5:45am, I got in bed Friday night around 10:00pm.

Well, I woke up around 4am before the alarm went off, to the extremely loud sound of thunder and lightning.  It was nasty outside pouring down rain.  Lying in a cheap uncomfortable hotel bed that smelled like someone else’s foot, I came to the conclusion that my current situation sucked, to put it lightly. A couple hours later the weather was not letting up, still pouring at biblical proportions. I received an email around 6:30am.. The 2012 MS150 start day had been cancelled. The Go Pro HD was all ready to go. Had my amigos all pumped up ready to rock. Had my sexy new force-r hand-cycle polished and ready to go. Had a camelback filled with water, electrolytes, and too many GU’s…. But no race.. Bummer.. So instead of a Go Pro HD hand-cycle video from the 2012 MS 150 Miami, below is the ipod playlist I was gonna jam to during the ride. Maybe you’ll like, maybe it’ll be noise to your ears.. For better or for worse, figure I’d share. Go easy on me, it’s a weird list grouped together. But it’s in fact what I ride to. All the different genres were introduced to me at distinct times in my life, and each have had a separate influence. So all the songs below come from completely different genres of music, but they’re all the same to me.

Hope you enjoy.

This past week I was approved for a disabled athlete grant from the Challenged Athletes Foundation (“CAF”), which I applied for in September 2011. I was issued a voucher for Top End carbon fiber rims as an upgrade to my Force-R hand-cycle. My experience with CAF was indeed a good one, and I wanted to share the useful information with everyone.

The Challenged Athletes Foundation’s flagship program “Access for Athletes” steps in where health insurance and rehabilitation end by providing funding grants for equipment such as rugby wheelchairs, hand-cycles, mono-skis (aka sit-ski), and sports prosthetics. The most important thing to CAF is that the applicant is actively participating in their disabled sport of choice. The Challenged Athletes Foundation prides themselves on making sure that challenged athletes are not left on the sidelines because they can’t afford expensive equipment or training costs. Grant dollar amounts will depend on individual athletic ability and financial need. Although the average sport equipment grant is around $2,000, I’ve heard stories of people getting $3,000 – $5,000…. Did I mention this is FREE?!?!

To be eligible for a grant through Access for Athletes, an athletes physical disability must be recognized within the International Paralympic Committee (“IPC”) classifications. For more information on this you can visit the IPC website.

The Challenged Athletes Foundation’s Access for Athletes grants are distributed once every year. Anyone can submit an application starting September 1st of each year, and must be postmarked by December 1st. Grants are announced in early April. You can check out the Challenged Athletes Foundation’s application page, or read there FAQ page for further information.

My personal experience with the Challenged Athletes Foundation was absolutely a good one. Being somewhat of a pessimist, I wasn’t holding my breathe waiting for an approval letter in the mail. But this past April, just like the website says, they mailed me a letter. To my amazement, the Challenged Athletes Foundation (“CAF”) had granted me a voucher. The voucher covered the entire cost of brand new Top End carbon fiber rims for my Force-R hand-cycle. These rims retail around $2,300. With that being said, there’s absolutely no way I could have afforded the upgrade. So sweet CAF, so sweet…

Please feel free to contact me at jacob@howiroll.com if you or anyone you know may be interested in the Challenged Athletes Foundation grant process.

I’ve used and abused my current Tilite TR for the past 6 years, and never have I once had to remove the front forks. The Tilite TR has been so good to me, so there was never a reason to mess with the front forks. This past week I began attempting to remove the original factory front forks. I realized it would be extremely difficult. Years of abuse caused the front fork to stick to the stem bolt. After 1.5 hours of beating the original forks with a large hammer and heating with a blow torch, finally, I was ready to install the new Uni-Tine front forks.

This is where I ran into another issue. It turns out the wheelchair’s front fork stem bolt is a bit too long to provide a perfect fit. Meaning, I placed the wheelchair fork stem bolt through the uni-tine fork, then tightened the bolt. There was still about 2-3 millimeters of play even after the nut was tightened to the end of the bolt thread. The result was 2 extremely loose front forks. I took a trip to Lowes and was able to find metric washers which helped remedy the 2-3 millimeters of play. Below you can see 2 washers above the front fork and the metric washer size.

When ordering the uni-tine front forks I also purchased 4″ Softroll front casters (aka wheels). The hub can either be composite or aluminum. I suggest the aluminum option, as it’s built sturdier and weighs less.

The Uni-Tine Frog Legs front fork has been good to me since making the switch over a week ago. Functionally, the front fork gets my vote. It’s sturdy when rolling over rocky uneven pavement, producing no rattle at all. Also, when speeds increase I don’t get “the wobbles”, which is priceless. Cosmetically, Uni-Tine forks are a plus as well. Granted, my opinion is subjective, but I think the look of these wheelchair forks are sweet. The outside of each caster (aka “front wheel”) is completely naked, leaving the entire side exposed, except for a small allen key bolt touching the bearing, holding the soft-roll securely in place. Wheelchair logistical clearance will be increased slightly, due to the outside of each caster being naked. As for cost, you’ll spend under $100 for a pair of Uni-Tine forks, which in my opinion is fair. When ordering, there’ll be an option to “add casters”. I suggest getting the 4″ soft-roll casters. Only downside I’ve seen so far would be the issue I had while installing. I think whoever sells Uni-Tine wheelchair forks should consider shipping the product with washers designed to fit the specific wheelchair model’s stem bolt. That way, if/when there’s an issue it can be remedied easy by the consumer.

All in all, Frog Legs Inc did a great job manufacturing the Uni-Tine wheelchair fork. It’s an inexpensive, sleek upgrade to almost any stock lightweight wheelchair fork/caster combination. Therefore, Frog Legs Uni-Tine wheelchair forks get the HowiRoll stamp of approval!

Please feel free to contact me at jacob@HowiRoll.com if you have any questions about the Uni-Tine fork by Frog Legs.

It took me 7 years to try sit-skiing down a snowy mountain.  My hesitation stemmed from fear. Not the fear of falling down or getting hurt, it was simply fear of the unknown.  Today, I’m so glad I took the first step (or roll).

Don’t be afraid to try a new adaptive wheelchair sport. You just may be surprised at how much you enjoy yourself.

Below is a sit-ski (mono-ski) video from a couple weeks ago in Aspen, Colorado at Snowmass Mountain. It was shot using a GoPro HD camera.  Please contact me if you or someone you know is interested in sit-skiing or any other adaptive wheelchair sports.

Santa brought me a punching bag for Christmas this past December. Throughout the past couple months I’ve realized it’s a great therapeutic exercise tool for anyone confined to a manual wheelchair. There are multiple reasons I’d suggest a punching bag to anyone disabled in a wheelchair.

1) Physical Workout: While punching the bag your arm and shoulder muscles will receive a workout. More importantly, your trunk/core muscles will receive a fantastic workout as well.

2) Cardiovascular Workout: If in a wheelchair, you understand the limited options when it comes to an effective cardiovascular workout. Setup a punching bag stand, and you’ll have a solid cardiovascular workout whenever you choose.

3) Stress/Anger Relief: Sometimes meditation and breathing exercises won’t cut it, and we want to simply punch something. No exercises, no timed rounds… Just 1 round. A beat down session between you and a faceless punching bag. Or, should you choose, give the bag a face and go to town.

Wheelchair Positioning: Stabilizing the wheelchair is key. I suggest backing up against a wall so the rear wheels are touching. The punching bag should be hung directly in front of you, adjusting for arm length. This way, there’s no rolling backward when punches are thrown. My wheelchair doesn’t have brakes, and I’m fine with backing up against a wall. Also, if you have the option, I suggest purchasing a punching bag stand as well, instead of hanging from a rafter. This will allow you to make adjustments and/or move location.

Example Exercise: Try a 6 round/set workout. 3 minutes each round/set. Resting 1 minute between each round. 1st round throw a variety of punches at 50% strength. For rounds 2-6 throw at 100% strength, adding a punch (jab, cross, hook, uppercut, body shot) each round. This exercise should absolutely empty your gas tank, while strengthening your arms and core, providing a great physical therapy session.

The 2012 “MS 150″ is scheduled for April 21-22. This year, I plan to learn from my 2011 mistakes, and complete the entire 150 mile 2-day ride.  Last year I attempted the voyage alone, as a team of 1.. This year, team “HowiRoll” will have muliple riders.   Just like last year, I’m required to raise at least $400 for the Non-Profit MS Society. So, this is my shameless request for donations towards the 2012 “MS 150″ ride. If interested, you can make a tax deductible donation securely through the National MS Society website HERE.   Furthermore, if you or anyone you know is NOT scared, please feel free to join our “HowiRoll” team and join us for the ride.

Also, I’m actively seeking sponsorship for HowiRoll from any foundation or corporation who may be interested in becoming involved with a good cause.  My current hand-cycle is over 13 years old and on the verge of falling apart.  Therefore, in exchange for a new FORCE-R Handcycle, a potential sponsor will recieve company exposure through 1) all hand-cycle races and marathons  2) blog posts at HowiRoll.com thanking it’s sole sponsor  3) video blogs   4) exclusive banner advertisement at HowiRoll.com.  Please email me at jacob@howiroll.com if interested.

I live in West Palm Beach, which is 1-2 hours away from Miami depending on traffic. For this reason, my wife and I stayed at a hotel down in Miami the night before the race.  The marathon started promptly at 6:00am the next morning, and I needed to be there at 5:00am to get ready.   Just the thought of waking up at 4:15am in the morning made me want to vomit.  Sure, I had trained for the 26 mile marathon, but my training sessions were usually in the afternoon…

Prior to start there was a designated section for all hand-cycles to get prepared.  As Ana and I arrived at 5:00am most of the other handcyclists were already getting ready to race.  I was so tired when we rushed out of the hotel that I forgot to eat anything.  All I could find before the race at 5:00am was 2 bananas.. Beggars can’t be choosers, so I quickly inhaled 2 bananas  I’d say we had about 30-40 riders in total (hand-cycles and racing wheelchairs), as opposed to the thousands of runners who started just minutes after us.

As we approached the starting line the runners gave us an amazingly warm welcome. Thank you very much. It was appreciated more than you know..

The race was 26.2 looooong miles.  I wasn’t racing to win, I simply wanted to beat my fastest time of 1:52 (1 hour 52 minutes).. In the end, after weaving through the dark morning streets of downtown Miami Beach, I was able to do just that. I finished the race at a new personal best of 1:48 (1 hour 48 minutes).  And if you read my last post about the Palm beach Marathon, yes, the little girl who weighs 100 lbs beat me, again…

Although, this 26.2 mile race is small potatoes compared to the MS 150 in April…. The MS 150 is a non-profit ride for MS April 21-22.  The ride consists of 75 miles from Miami to Key Largo, and wake up the next day and ride 75 miles back to Miami.  This year I WILL FINISH!!! Anyone in South Florida up for the challenge??

Anyone in a wheelchair who has never used a handcycle, I strongly suggest giving it a try.  The cardio benefits are great, along with the priceless freedom of being able to cruise without your wheelchair. Let me know if you have ANY questions.

About 3-4 weeks ago I attempted to play sled (“sledge”) hockey for the first time since being paralyzed 13 years earlier in 1999. You might be wondering why it took  13 years to try disabled sled hockey. Well, the truth is, I stayed away for the same reason I disregard my old hockey sticks in the shed.  So, with hesitation, after 13 years, I attempted ice sled (“sledge”) hockey for the very first time at a rink in Coral Springs, FL.  A local team had put on an open clinic and a friend convinced me to attend.

The rules to sled hockey are basically the same as the rules to regular hockey.  Except in disabled hockey the player sits in a sled, called a “sledge”.  Another big difference is that the player uses 2 short hockey sticks instead of just 1.  The curved blade of each hockey stick is similar to the blade of a normal hockey stick.  The opposite end of each sledge hockey stick has 6-8 metal teeth for maneuvering and propulsion.  The player moves by gripping the ice with the metal teeth.

The hardest part for me was the transition from pushing to puck handling.  While pushing, the player grips the hockey blade while pushing down through the metal teeth on the opposite side.  Then, the player must quickly slide the hockey stick to a normal grip when the puck is passed to him/her.  Throughout the entire day, I received about 50 passes. Of those passes I probably received 5 of them successfully.  To put it lightly, sledge hockey was extremely difficult for me.  The feeling wasn’t remotely close to the way I felt so many years ago.  I have mixed emotions about playing.  It was absolutely sweet to put on a pair of hockey gloves and grip a hockey stick.  So although I’m glad I experienced sledge ice hockey, I’ll most likely never play again. Ultimately, the experience was bittersweet, more bitter than sweet…  I’d rather lament the memories of what once was, than convince myself that I could ever love the only available hockey replacement.

With that being said, I’m still a strong supporter of anyone and everyone trying new sports. If you’re interested in possibly playing sledge hockey, I suggest you get out there any play.  Chances are good you’ll enjoy it.

My game plan going into the race was to draft behind 1 or 2 of the quickest riders. If done correctly, drafting allows a person to exert less energy than the rider in front of them, while still maintaining the same speed as them. Two packs of riders pulled away from the mass quickly as the race started at 6:15am. The first pack consisted of the top 3 riders, all males. These guys were beyond fast. These guys were sonic the hedgehog fast. They were gone from the start and never seen again. The second pack consisted of 3 riders, 2 males and 1 female. As I tucked in behind this pack of 3, I thought to myself, “surely I can keep up with this girl, she must weigh 105 lbs max!”… Well, as we rounded the 3rd mile I was feeling good, still high on all the energy supplements I’d ingested 15 minutes earlier. But as we rounded the 5th mile I began to feel tired and winded. As my 3 draftees began to slowly pull away it became more and more apparent that 1) the remainder of this race would be a solo mission, and 2) I seriously underestimated the badass 105 lb young lady in front of me…

The next 20+ miles, or 1.5 hours, would be spent riding alone. In the end, my final time was 1 hour 51 minutes, and I placed 8th. My goal was to finish in less than 2 hours, so I was happy about that. I was also extremely excited about the fact that my 12 year old hand-cycle didn’t fall apart!

The next hand-cycle marathon is at the end of January in Miami, Florida. There’ll be many more riders, but I plan on racing myself this time. Hopefully I can beat my recent time of 1:51.

Almost forgot.. This coming April is the 2012 “MS 150″ in Miami, FL. It’s a 2 day 150 mile bike ride (not a race!) from Miami Homestead Speedway to Key Largo and back. First day is 75 miles to Key Largo, and the 2nd day is 75 miles back to Miami. Last year I attempted the 150 mile ride and came up short, only able to complete the 75 miles of day one. At the end of day I was too exhausted to wake up the next morning and ride 75 miles back to Miami. Although 75 miles on a handcycle is decent, the drive home to West Palm Beach felt like a defeat. Therefore, this coming April I plan on completing the entire 150 mile ride. The team, “HowiRoll” has already been formed. I have multiple people who’ve given a verbal commitment for the ride in April. I encourage anyone and everyone to join the “HowiRoll” team if your located in South Florida. To join the team and/or make a donation to MS in the name of the “HowiRoll” team CLICK HERE. I encourage everyone to challenge themselves and join the ride!

Given the fact that I’m a paraplegic, I could never officially compete with the team.  But when my buddy told me they were short a few guys, I jumped, yes jumped, at the chance to practice with them.

By the end of the first day I had a half-dollar blister on my left palm.  I’d been slammed so hard my wheelchair flipped… Twice..  Both times I was lying on my back, wheelchair wheels up in the air, thinking about how oddly refreshing it was to be slammed so hard it flipped me out of the wheelchair… At that moment I realized how much I missed contact sports.  And by the next day, I was so sore I could hardly get out of bed.  Oh, did I mention I’m a paraplegic playing rugby with quadriplegics??!! This was supposed to be a walk in the park, right?!… wrong…   I have a new respect and admiration for these quad-rugby players for sure.

I encourage anyone in a wheelchair to find a sport they enjoy. It’s great for your cardio, and even better for your state of mind.

Below is a short clip from the practice.  Lucky for me the slams and flips weren’t caught on video:)  If you know any quads in the South Florida area who are interested in playing quad-rugby drop me a line.