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Adaptive Adventures

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Adaptive Adventures

Mission:
To provide progressive outdoor sports opportunities to improve quality of life for children, adults and veterans with physical disabilities and their families.

 

History:
Adaptive Adventures was founded in 1999 by two individuals with physical disabilities. They saw a need for adventure and sport opportunities outside of competitive adaptive sports for people with physical disabilities. Adaptive Adventures has served over 100,000 participants and their families from all 50 states.

 

Overview:
Adaptive Adventures main office is located in Westminster, Colorado with a satellite office in Shamburg, Illinois. Adaptive Adventures provides ongoing programs, camps and clinics in cycling, climbing, kayaking, paddleboarding, dragon boat racing, skiing, snowboarding, waterskiing, wakeboarding and rafting.

 

Unlike site based adaptive sports organizations, Adaptive Adventures travels the country to provide direct program services, training and resources to establish sustainable programs in unserved and underserved communities. Adaptive Adventures serves over 30 states, Puerto Rico and Canada each year. Adaptive Adventures partners with over 180 community partners including: rehab hospitals, park districts, VA medical centers, military hospitals, veteran service organizations, outfitters, gyms and other adaptive sport programs. We believe in FREEDOM through Mobility for our participants and in our program structure.

 

Adaptive Adventures programming is offered to participants and their families free of charge or significantly subsidized. Adaptive Adventures believes cost should never be a barrier to someone’s participation in quality outdoor adaptive sport opportunities.

 

Vision:
That all individuals with physical disabilities have access to participation in outdoor sports regardless of their location, equipment needs, or economic status.

 

Goals:
To improve quality of life for children, adults and veterans with physical disabilities through year-round participation in adaptive sports

 

To offer engaging programs that encourage socialization, family participation and inclusive community integration

 

To provide cutting edge adaptive equipment and sport specific skill development to promote independence

 

To engage and train, committed and diverse volunteers, staff and board members to increase the capacity and quality of programs

 

To serve underserved areas through the Adaptive Adventures mobile program throughout the country

Activities

See All

Camping

Running/Wheelchair Racing

Getting Started   Start Slow to Go Fast   Just because you have never run farther than the bus stop, is not a reason to ignore the pleasures of recreational and competitive running. The sport provides many benefits. Besides improving overall health, cholesterol levels, and lung function, running is a confidence booster, a stress reliever,…

Swimming

Since the first Paralympic Games in Rome in 1960, swimming has been one of the Games’ main sports.   The thrill of competition aside, swimming offers many benefits including strengthening the cardiovascular systems and the major muscle groups of both the upper and lower body. It also develops flexibility in the muscles and joints as…

Alpine/Downhill Skiing

Alpine skiing, or downhill skiing, is the pastime of sliding down snow-covered slopes on skis.  There are tons of disabled skiers flying down the slopes across the country. Experienced skiers make it look easy as they swoosh and cut their way through powdery (and sometimes not so powdery) snow. While it takes some practice to refine…

Cycling

Rain, sleet, snow, or hail … it seems that no matter the weather, you can always see a cyclist biking for pleasure, on an errand, or keeping fit. The love of bike riding is rapidly growing across nearly every demographic. Cycling has always been a great way to enjoy the outdoors, socialize with fellow bikers,…

Dragon Boat Racing

Kayaking

When you go skiing, you need to find a mountain and cold weather. You don’t need anything special to start kayaking. Kayaking is just down the road. -Joe Mornini, Executive Director of Team River Runner   Getting Started Looking to spend a quiet afternoon enjoying the outdoors and scenery?  Perhaps you’re more of a thrill…

Paddle Boarding

Rock Climbing

One of the things I like about rock climbing is that it always gives you little triumphs. You can reach new levels, you are never out of challenges, and you can do it pretty much anywhere. – Jarem Frye, Climbing Enthusiast and K12 Prosthetics founder   Becoming Familiar with Adaptive Climbing For a full body…

Scuba

Scuba is an acronym for Self Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus. Although humans have been venturing underwater for more than 2000 years, it wasn’t until 1942 they were able to breathe underwater free from a surface supply of air. It was Jacques Cousteau, collaborating with French engineer Emile Gagnan, who developed the SCUBA. Getting Started To…

Snowboarding

All About Snowboarding History Thank you to Lindsay Schultz for contributing information to this article. Pipelines, shredding, jibbers, and boardercross are all part of the colorful trappings of what’s attracting winter sports lovers to the country’s newest and most popular pursuit of things-that-go-bump-in-the-snow. Otherwise known as snowboarding….. Originally embraced by preteen and adolescent males who…

Water Skiing

Water Skiing 101 Ride the Wake! There is nothing like spending a warm summer day by the water. But water-skiers will tell you that even better is a day spent water skiing along on the surface of the water with the wind in their hair. Don’t think because you have a disability that you can’t…

Fishing

Flyfishing made a real big difference in my recovery and helped flip that switch from thinking about negative things to positive things. There is a lot of peace and a lot of connecting with nature involved with fishing. – David Folkerts, Chief Operations Officer of Project Healing Waters   Fishing 101 Photo Credits: Matt Romero,…

Archery

Archery is a versatile activity. It is something that can be done for fun, for hunting, or for competition. “Target shooting wasn’t a thing for me,” said US Para Archery Head Coach Jonathan Clemins. “But I realized I enjoyed shooting my bow as much as I enjoyed hunting.” In addition, archery can be a year-round…

Basketball

In the beginning you had to have a spinal cord injury in order to play wheelchair basketball. But that, much like the game itself, has come a long way since 1946. Today, in order to be eligible to play wheelchair basketball within the NWBA (National Wheelchair Basketball Association) a person must have a permanent lower…

Yoga

It is difficult to find balance without the ability to look inward, whether it is physical balance or balance in our daily lives. Starting the day healthfully can be as simple as breathing and stretching. An important component of a total fitness program is stretching. Add focused deep breathing to a stretch and you’ve entered…

Tennis/Wheelchair Tennis

The people you meet through tennis are friendly, happy, optimistic and outgoing, They just want to have a good time and want others to have a good time. – Steve Kappes, Director of the San Diego Wounded Warrior Tennis Program and Director of Military Outreach for the San Diego District Tennis Association   All About…

Surfing

Surfing 101 Catch a WaveLooking for a unique way to get in your morning cardio?  Planning a beach vacation and want to learn a new activity?  Consider getting out on a surfboard and catching a wave.  Surfers will tell you there is no better way to get in a core workout or watch a sunrise/set…

Sailing

I have always been a competitive athlete and I enjoy that aspect of sailing. It’s not about who is the strongest, but who can think the best. It’s a three dimensional game of chess that is going on and the chess board is always changing. Water is never the same because of currents and the…

Rafting

About Adaptive Rafting Considered an extreme adventure sport, rafting, or white water rafting, is a popular recreational activity. With the help of a guide, you make your way down the river, maneuvering through rapids, and navigating around rocks. You can choose the experience you want, whether it be a relaxing ride down the river or…

Canoeing

There is a lot to the sport – more than numbers on the scoreboard, the human side to this is a very powerful experience and I think all the para-athletes can appreciate that they are working to help each other. It brings countries and people together in a marvelous way.Jan Whitaker, President of Paralympic Sport…

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CONTACTS

9053 Harlan Street Suite 34 Westminster CO 80031

LOCATION

9053 Harlan Street Suite 34 Westminster CO 80031

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