Miller Spotlight: Take Bike The Streets Part 4: Outdoor Adaptive Escapade

The 1st Annual Outdoor Escapade was held on Saturday July 15, 2017 with great success. Roughly 500 people of all ages and abilities came to Gary to enjoy accessible ecotourism activities. The event started at 10:00AM at The Dana Evans Community Corner (6300 Miller Ave Gary, IN 46403). This location was one of four sites set up in Gary’s Miller community for this active tourism festival. The festivities included a ton of free active tourism attractions such as paddling, bicycling and archery.

The Outdoor Adaptive Escapade (OAE) focused on highlighting green & blue trails.It celebrated all abilities and showcased the many hidden recreational gems that the Miller area in Gary, and neighboring, communities have to offer.

OAE featured adaptive vehicles and equipment that enabled individuals with limited mobility to access roads, trails, dunes, and beaches, to participate in activities of all types of terrains and in all kinds of weather. New resources and opportunities typically not seen or not readily available were introduced to community attendees of different abilities that allowed for a fun, creative outdoors experience.

Staging took place primarily at 6300 Miller Ave., the ADA Launch at Calumet Lagoon in Marquette Park, the Douglas Center for Environmental Education and at Lake Street Beach.

Attendees had the opportunity to explore and experience a wide range of adaptive outdoor recreation equipment including: accessible paths, vehicles, hand and tandem cycles, Action Trackchairs, and Freedom Trax, kayaks and paddle boards. Zagster Bikeshare and Miller Spotlight’s Take- Bike- the-Streets Build-a-Bike volunteers were on hand to demonstrate bikes and share information about bike sharing, bike racks, bike repair stations and Build-A-Bike shop initiatives in Gary’s Miller neighborhood.

The Miller Spotlight group showcased the initial phases of two accessible community gardens. Activities were in coordination with Adaptive Adventures, Northwest Paddling Association (NWIPA), Barrier Free Beach 2020, City of Gary Parks & Recreation, Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, National Park Services, Save the Dunes, Causes for Change, and the Legacy Foundation Neighborhood Spotlight Groups.

The purpose of this annual event is to showcase that aging and disability impact everyone. One in three households in the USA is home to a person with a varying ability. Universal design principles should be considered whenever and wherever possible, for the benefit of each and all. Infrastructure, transportation, and the environment should be considered from conception through execution; programs and services developed and implemented with all in mind. Anyone seeking additional information may contact Jessica Renslow, via (818) 294-4240/ millerspotlight@gmail.com, or follow Miller Spotlight on Facebook or check out accessmiller.org