Don Patterson’s Spirit Runner Ride 2015, in which he planned to cycle 7,000 km from Inuvik, Northwest Territories, to Point Pelee, Ont., came to an abrupt end recently.
“After two years of planning and training, I crashed in the Yukon, only three days into the ride,” says Patterson. “I fractured my right hip and broke my right shoulder but luckily not even a scratch on the bike!”
He was riding to increase awareness of the importance of physical activity for Aboriginal youth, to raise funds to support sports activities and to develop sustainable community bike programs.
Patterson, 61, says he is healing well and although the ride had to be called off, “I’m continuing to build sports programs in Aboriginal communities across the country. As we speak, I’m getting bikes and skis shipped up to Fort McPherson, near Inuvik. It’s based on a collaborative approach (and lots of persistence) that can be widely copied.”
He invites REM readers to take a look at his blog posts for more details on the ride/crash and his latest “Believe in yourself and create opportunities, which summarizes the personal challenges I’ve faced and my philosophy.”
