Redefining Disability

In 2003, and at 8 years old, Ohio native Derick Byrd was treated for osteosarcoma, a type of bone cancer in his left tibia that required a knee replacement with 8 inches of titanium implanted into his femur. The implant replaced his shin bone, until 2008 when he had his left leg amputated above the knee. A year later, Derick attended the program at Breckenridge Outdoors Education Center (BOEC), a Move United Member in Colorado. He has been able to return an intern and snowboard instructor.

Kimber Cross was born with one hand—she has adapted and modified to excel in sports as a kid and now climbing as an adult. She is an adaptive climber who uses a custom prosthetic ice tool to climb waterfall ice around the country as well as alpine ice routes in her home state of Washington. Kimber serves as a climb leader for The Mountaineers, a volunteer-based organization in Washington state that offers climbing courses and trips. When she isn’t in the backcountry climbing or skiing, she is a National Board-Certified educator, teaching Kindergarten.

Allie Johnson was born with a limb deficiency, and began therapeutic horseback riding at age five. That eventually led to her becoming a part of the equestrian staff at NSCD, a Move United member organization based in Colorado. It was there, she also started to take up ski racing and attended Ski Spectacular in 2018. Just last year, she had the opportunity to represent the US at the Winter Paralympics.

After moving to Colorado in 2006, Sam Sala began hiking and climbing CO’s 14ers. He began volunteering with Paradox Sports in 2015 and now serves as the organization’s program manager. Sam has received training and certifications as an AMGA Single Pitch Instructor, as well as NOLS Wilderness First Aid. In his role, he works as an Adaptive Climbing Initiative Lead Instructor and is the Team Manager for the Paradox Sports Competitive Adaptive Climbing Team

Nico Calabria started playing amputee soccer when he was 16 years old. He has served as the team captain for the U.S. National Amputee Soccer Team and is a board member of the American Amputee Soccer Association. He talks about the growth of the sport nationally, including the first national amputee soccer championships that just took place in Columbus.

Marci Krown attended Kent State University, where she received her Bachelor of Science in Recreation Management. She then moved to Atlanta, where she got involved in the 1996 Paralympic Games. Now based in southern California, Krown is a filmmaker who is currently working on a documentary entitled “The Power of Sports for Amputees”

Adam Bleakney has served as the Head Coach of the University of Illinois Wheelchair Track and Road Racing team since 2005. In that time his athletes have won 55 medals across four Paralympic Games while setting 14 world records on the track and winning a number of major marathons. In 2017, he also established the Human Performance and Mobility Maker Lab, a lab where students with and without disabilities collaborate to design and develop assistive technology. Just last week, he was recognized by Dare2Tri for his contributions to adaptive sports and the Paralympic movement.

After earning a master’s degree in international affairs, Laura Root was commissioned as an officer in the U.S. Navy. In 2011, during her first tour, she was diagnosed with muscular dystrophy. A few years later, Laura competed at the Invictus Games and then became a National Air Rifle shooting champion in 2015. But also, she is an avid Nordic skier and gets on the snow as much as possible to prevent a more severe onset.

Brian Von Herbulis spent nearly 17 years leading special operations units with the US Marine Corps, including a number of combat deployments. So nature, and being outdoors, has always been therapeutic for him. As the Director of Operations for Higher Ground, a Move United member organization based in Idaho, Brian, or Von as he is known as, helps provide outdoor recreation and adventures for other veterans. So we discuss this, and particularly the sport of ice climbing, with him.

Sports have always played a role in Cristian Martinez’s life. He served in the Marine Corps, including two combat tours but had his leg amputated below the knee as the result of a motorcycle accident. After rehabilitation, he discovered para snowboarding and has been active in that sport and others. Cristian is finishing up his degree in recreational therapy and hopes to also make a difference in the lives of other individuals with disabilities.