320 km in 12 days by handbike to reach Versailles at Mont Saint-Michel, this is the challenge that Caroline, a paraplegic, has set herself. From July 18 to 31, 2021, it will convey a message of hope and resilience: disability is not an end in itself.
Two sisters are launching an assault on Mont Saint-Michel by bike! Finally, a bike for Guillemette, 31, but a handbike for Caroline Fruchaud, 28. It was in May 2018 that the life of this sports enthusiast was turned upside down following a skiing accident which caused a complete injury to her spinal cord. No leg, no sport? What a preposterous idea. No way her paraplegia would nail her to an armchair, alone at home. Table tennis, rowing, archery, canoeing, parachuting, badminton, wave-skiing … Since her accident, Caroline has tried all kinds of sports, more or less extreme. In a few days, she will travel 320 km, with the only strength of her arms, in twelve days, to fight the received ideas on the handicap and to encourage the people concerned to (re) get in the saddle. Departure from Versailles on July 18 around 12:30 p.m.
A unifying “bike trip”
On their way, Guillemette and Caroline will try to spread their positive vibes in hospitals. If this ambition is hampered by the health restrictions linked to the Covid-19 crisis, as usual, they refuse to give up hope. If they cannot get to the bedside, they will try to get them to come to them. The two sisters invite all interested persons, with disabilities, caregivers or “able-bodied”, to join them throughout their “bike trip”. Second blow? The handbike, which was supposed to be motorized, will ultimately not be because the company that was supposed to take care of it has retracted. “It will be played to the mind”, wrote the duo on their social networks, aware that the challenge will be “Much harder than expected”. “But the victory will be all the more beautiful! “
Gift boxes for hospitalized people
On the logistical side, improvisation is the order of the day. The sisters will sleep with members of their family or under the canvas … your choice! To follow their adventures, go to the “Hostobox” account on social networks. Hostobox is Caroline’s other project. This former pastry chef is currently setting up a business that makes gift boxes « funs et made in France » for hospitalized people. On the menu: gourmet, cocooning, fun products and challenges to escape from everyday hospitality. Waiting, “Let’s gow (girls on wheel or girls on wheels, in French) on the Véloscenie route! “, they grow impatient.
“All reproduction and representation rights reserved. © Handicap.fr. This article was written by Cassandre Rogeret, journalist Handicap.fr”
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