A professor who uses a wheelchair has created the first adaptive mountain bike in the UAE to help physically challenged people enjoy the outdoors.
Noel Joyce, a design and innovation professor at New York University in Shanghai, successfully designed and self-tested the bike at Abu Dhabi's Al Hudayriat trial last week.
“I rode along the 15km trail and it was amazing,” Mr Joyce, who lives in Ireland, told The National.
After a mountain bike accident 17 years ago left him having to use a wheelchair, Mr Joyce said he wants people with disabilities to enjoy the thrills of nature and mountain biking outdoors.
He came up with the idea after he found that most of the adaptive bikes available on the market were not suitable for rugged terrain and would often break. Some would take weeks to repair, he said.
My goal is to get one on every trail in the world so that someone with a disability can turn up with a friend and go mountain biking
Noel Joyce,
design and innovation professor at New York University, Shanghai
“A lot of the parts are expensive too,” he said. “A lot of disabled people get penalised for using these kinds of technology.”
To get around this, he decided to find a solution by designing a suitable bike himself.
“I went back to the drawing board and redesigned the entire bike that we can get ready within two weeks,” he said.
Adaptive bikes typically cost about $15,000 to $20,000. However, Mr Joyce was able to bring the cost of his bike down to $4,000.
“That means accessibility for more people,” he said.
The bike can also be custom made to suit specific challenges people have.
Mr Joyce and his team will be releasing the design files so that anyone can access it and build a bike.
“For example, I can't walk but I have good upper body strength so I can pedal well. Some people might not have good upper body strength, so they might need a different type of motor or pedal,” he said.
The design has all the components of a motorbike but comes with an electric motor for assistance in driving, 12-speed gear system, wide tyres for grip and weight, and hydraulic disc brakes.
Mr Joyce said he had already launched the bike in New York City in April, before he tested one in the UAE as part of his design project for New York University.
The next launches will take place in Ireland and Shanghai.
“My goal is to get one on every trail in the world so that someone with a disability can turn up with a friend and go mountain biking and get out into nature and go to places where they wouldn't have gone before,” he said.
Mr Joyce said he is passionate about the project because it will help people with challenges to overcome them.
“When I am on the bike, it is like I am not disabled any more. I can go places where I've never been able to go before.
“It's good exercise and also good for your mental well-being. When they do some more of the daring stuff on the bike, they even forget about their disability.
“The point of this project is to try to get people to have that same set of feelings, even if it's a fraction of it. If they can go into the forest and taste a blueberry, that is a powerful thing.”
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SPECS
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
If you go
- The nearest international airport to the start of the Chuysky Trakt is in Novosibirsk. Emirates (www.emirates.com) offer codeshare flights with S7 Airlines (www.s7.ru) via Moscow for US$5,300 (Dh19,467) return including taxes. Cheaper flights are available on Flydubai and Air Astana or Aeroflot combination, flying via Astana in Kazakhstan or Moscow. Economy class tickets are available for US$650 (Dh2,400).
- The Double Tree by Hilton in Novosibirsk ( 7 383 2230100,) has double rooms from US$60 (Dh220). You can rent cabins at camp grounds or rooms in guesthouses in the towns for around US$25 (Dh90).
- The transport Minibuses run along the Chuysky Trakt but if you want to stop for sightseeing, hire a taxi from Gorno-Altaisk for about US$100 (Dh360) a day. Take a Russian phrasebook or download a translation app. Tour companies such as Altair-Tour ( 7 383 2125115 ) offer hiking and adventure packages.
Racecard
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Racecard
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Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The specs
Engine: 8.0-litre, quad-turbo 16-cylinder
Transmission: 7-speed auto
0-100kmh 2.3 seconds
0-200kmh 5.5 seconds
0-300kmh 11.6 seconds
Power: 1500hp
Torque: 1600Nm
Price: Dh13,400,000
On sale: now
Results
5pm: Warsan Lake – Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (Turf) 2,200m; Winner: Dhaw Al Reef, Sam Hitchcott (jockey), Abdallah Al Hammadi (trainer)
5.30pm: Al Quadra Lake – Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Mrouwah Al Gharbia, Sando Paiva, Abubakar Daud
6pm: Hatta Lake – Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: AF Yatroq, George Buckell, Ernst Oertel
6.30pm: Wathba Stallions Cup – Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Ashton Tourettes, Adries de Vries, Ibrahim Aseel
7pm: Abu Dhabi Championship – Listed (PA) Dh180,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Bahar Muscat, Antonio Fresu, Ibrahim Al Hadhrami
7.30pm: Zakher Lake – Rated Conditions (TB) Dh80,000 (T) 1,400m; Winner: Alfareeq, Dane O’Neill, Musabah Al Muhairi.
Getting there
The flights
Emirates and Etihad fly to Johannesburg or Cape Town daily. Flights cost from about Dh3,325, with a flying time of 8hours and 15 minutes. From there, fly South African Airlines or Air Namibia to Namibia’s Windhoek Hosea Kutako International Airport, for about Dh850. Flying time is 2 hours.
The stay
Wilderness Little Kulala offers stays from £460 (Dh2,135) per person, per night. It is one of seven Wilderness Safari lodges in Namibia; www.wilderness-safaris.com.
Skeleton Coast Safaris’ four-day adventure involves joining a very small group in a private plane, flying to some of the remotest areas in the world, with each night spent at a different camp. It costs from US$8,335.30 (Dh30,611); www.skeletoncoastsafaris.com
The specs
Price: From Dh529,000
Engine: 5-litre V8
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Power: 520hp
Torque: 625Nm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.8L/100km
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KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
