Posted: 14 March, 2023
We’d like to say a huge thank you to everyone who donates anything to Wheels for All, including cycles, tools and useful equipment. You are supporting communities across the UK to have access to valuable inclusive cycling opportunities, making a positive impact to the lives of many people.
We would like to shine a spotlight on these important donations and share what they mean to the charity. Here we are remembering disability rights activist, Richard Bennett, whose partner kindly donated his recumbent handcycle to us, following his death last year.
We were shocked and saddened to hear of Richard’s passing, aged just 32. Aka ‘Heavy Metal Handcyclist’, Richard campaigned tirelessly for disabled people to access cycle routes. It was a pleasure to have him as a volunteer at Wheels for All sessions held in our previous Woking centre several years ago.
A heavy-metal-loving IT professional, he lived with Ehlers Danlos Syndrome (EDS), a rare genetic condition causing unstable and painful joints and high levels of fatigue and pain, and Attention Deficit & Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).
After (initially reluctantly) using a wheelchair to access the heavy metal festival Hellfest in 2014, Richard acquired his first clip-on handcycle via the Access to Work scheme and used it to cycle to work in Euston.
Richard became passionate about challenging barriers that can make cycle routes impassable, creating the #BashTheBarriers campaign on Twitter. Barriers or bollards are frequently installed on traffic-free walking/wheeling and cycling paths, aimed at keeping out moped or dirt-bike riders. After successfully campaigning for several barriers to be removed, he joined Wheels for Wellbeing on the Beyond the Bicycle Coalition and helped many disabled cyclists to challenge their local authority on issues of access.
Richard’s campaigning went much wider than just cycling and included sharing clear and practical tips about how to obtain the right mobility aid or receive the correct medical diagnosis, or how to stop a train from leaving the platform when Passenger
Assistance doesn’t arrive with a ramp! He also raised awareness of the need for improved accessibility for disabled cyclists and guided engineers to become more inclusive designers.
We’d like to say a huge thank you to Richard’s family for donating his beloved handcycle to Wheels for All – it will certainly be put to good use!
