Many people take to the open road to find adventure and excitement, but Kris Sanford’s reasons are much different. This Davis County resident is in the process of shattering the world record for distance hand-cycling.

Sanford is a paraplegic. He was in a car accident several years ago that left him without the use of his arms and legs. The idea for the ride began while he recuperated from his accident.

Sanford said, “I was in occupational therapy and I saw a little plaque on the wall of one of the previous world-record holders, he went from Salt Lake to Vegas. The idea just kind of stayed in the back of my head. Eventually when I got done with my associate’s degree, I wasn't sure what I wanted to do with my life, so I started putting this together.”

Prior to his attempt, the previous record was 769 miles. When Sanford is finished he will have ridden just under 1,100 miles. Already, he has surpassed the 769-mile mark by several hundred miles.

He began his journey in Idaho Falls, Idaho, and has been on the road for nearly a month. He has traveled through Idaho, Utah and Nevada and is currently riding through California. He spends typically 10 hours a day on the bike. His final destination is Huntington Beach, California.

Sanford has been training and preparing for this ride for nearly two years. He said the training was probably the easiest part of the experience because he could control that. The most difficult part of the planning was trying to find sponsors. As part of the ride, Sanford has pledged to raise money for other people who need therapy but can’t afford it.

Related Link:

Spinal Ride

On April 25th, 2009 Kris Sanford was in a rollover accident while driving down I-15 in the area of Salt Lake City, Utah. He was rushed to a nearby hospital where he was diagnosed with quadriplegia, an impairment that would limit the functionality of all four limbs and core. During recovery he was led to believe that he would no longer be able to do the things he loves and would limit his ability to help his family, friends, and worse, himself. However, with these impairments, came a growing opportunity and with it Kris discovered, through a continual learning process, that he can use his limbs in new ways to be as much or more help than if he was able bodied. Kris now aims to stare adversity in the face as he sets out to break a world record, through much hard work and dedication, he will strive to ride a hand cycle from Idaho Falls, Idaho to Huntington Beach, California.

He started a fundraising effort called Spinal Ride and enlisted the help of other people in creating a website for this effort. He was surprised at the responses he’s received. He said, “I didn't think it would really touch people that much. I got a lot of good responses and a lot of good support from people I didn't expect.”

Since the beginning of the ride, his dad, Dave Sanford; his sister, Shareve Brewer; and two friends, Jordan Cunningham and Trenton Brown, have stayed by his side. They’ve acted as support crew to help him with logistics. They’ve each shared in the responsibilities of driving the support vehicle and providing physical assistance. His friend Brown said, “It's like he's the engine, it’s his power that pumps it, but we're the engineers. We're the crew that keeps it running, that keeps it fluid.”

Day after day, mile after mile, Sanford and his crew have found ways to stay motivated. Brown has been busy documenting the trip on video. He’s hoping to create a movie about their experiences. Sanford uses mind games to keep him occupied. “Sometimes when I’m tired or it's getting real hard, I’ll just try and get out of my head for a minute by listening to music," he said. "I've got a mirror on my bike, and a lot of times I’ll just look myself in the eye and just kind of ask myself what are you made of? Are you ready to do this? Are you capable?”

His sister has been in awe of him throughout the journey. “I‘m inspired and so proud. I mean there was this one hill, it was the longest hill, but he just pushed through it like a champ. He just never gave up, not once — tears streaming down, snot coming out of his nose he just never quit, never gave up.”

His friend Cunningham said, “He doesn’t even need us here to keep him motivated. He's normally the one motivating us.”

The group is just days away from reaching their goal in California, and Dave Sanford said, “There is no doubt in my mind that he can accomplish anything he wants to. God willing, and the creek don't rise, he'll make it all the way to Huntington Beach.”

For more information and to follow his progress, go to www.Spinalride.com.

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