Paralyzed B.C. man will ride handbike to Baton Rouge | Community Spirit

A Bossier City man paralyzed 13 years ago after a car accident has planned a special trip across Louisiana to raise awareness about brain and spinal cord injuries.

Scott Well will begin his 'Cycling for Independence' journey at 8 a.m. on Saturday, October 6 at Parkway High School. Scott will ride his handcycle 250 miles to Baton Rouge, arriving on Friday, October 12.

“The goal of 'Cycling for Independence' is to ... provide education to prevent these types of injuries and to develop needed resources to help individuals that are affected by brain and spinal cord injuries in the Shreveport-Bossier area and the Ark-La-Tex region,” Wells said. “It is my long-term goal to eventually see a hospital in this area that can handle the acute injury phase, recovery and rehabilitation phases, and continue providing needed resources to see these patients be fully reintegrated to their functional level of independence.”

The 250-mile trip will make stops in Coushatta, Natchitoches, Boyce, Alexandria, Pineville, Marksville and Baton Rouge. The "Cycling for Independence" team is currently scheduling event stops at local hospitals and high schools along the way to provide educational programs for teenagers and adults in order to prevent brain and spinal cord injuries.

The Independence Regained team includes Amanda Mahoney, Physical Therapist from LSU Health Shreveport School of Allied Health, Ken Candler, RN from Cornerstone Hospital, Adrianne Stelzenmuller, Aquatic Therapist and LMT from Brooklyn, NY, as well as Oak House Films, who will be filming the event. Two other paraplegic handcyclists, both Afghanistan veterans, are planning to make the journey with Wells. The public is invited to join Wells along the route and ride along with him for portions of the trek.

Wells, 41, is president and CEO of Independence Regained, a 501(c)(3) organization with a mission "to rehabilitate, educate and integrate people with Spinal Cord Injury (SCI), Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and other eurological disorders back into all aspects of an independent life.”

For more information concerning Independence Regained, or to contact Scott Wells, visit www.independenceregained.org. Plans are currently being made to allow supporters to track Wells' journey via the website and through social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter.