Start a Program

Groups that might be interested in offering a TrailRider program:

Municipalities - Are your city parks truly inclusive?
Organizations/institutions - Want to make your school/university fieldtrips accessible to all members?
Private business - Want to make your tourist location accessible?
Non-profits - Working in the disability field and looking for new programs?

See our Wilderness Access program PDF to find out more about the process of setting up your own program.

Start a Recreational Opportunity

The British Columbia Mobility Opportunities Society is working with individuals, groups and companies to establish Wilderness Access programs outside of Vancouver and the Lower Mainland of B.C. It is a major goal of BCMOS to see hiking programs for people with disabilities established in communities large and small throughout North America and elsewhere in the world.

To this end, BCMOS would like to inspire others to develop their own programs, helping interested parties as a supplier of the necessary equipment, particularly the TrailRider - and information on how to start a program.

BCMOS is offering TrailRiders for sale - both new and used. With this will come a wealth of information - everything that has been learned through operating the Wilderness Access programs. BCMOS has put together a package of information, the Wilderness Access Manual that includes everything people might need to know about instigating wilderness access program, including:

How to find suitable locations for programs
Testing trails
How to work with provincial organizations such as municipal governments and parks boards
Launching a program
Fundraising
Recruiting and screening volunteers

The BCMOS site will include links to the websites of other groups offering similar programs.

This is not limited to non-profits. Individuals, institutions, municipalities and for-profit companies are as likely to be interested as charitable groups currently operating in the disability field.

Wilderness Access programs (featuring the TrailRider) are currently being operated by the following groups wanting to increase accessibility:

Municipal government recreation departments
Parks operators
Children's camps
Schools and universities
Rehab clinics
Wildlife centres
Groups and individuals wanting to run Wilderness Access programs based on the BCMOS model

However, this is a small part of the potential market. There are many groups across North America that could see the benefits of running a Wilderness Access program. Some may be interested in forming a non-profit organization to raise funds; others could be for-profit businesses looking to expand on the services currently offered - tourist attractions, for instance, that would benefit from being able to offer a truly inclusive service.

If you are interested in learning more about purchasing a TrailRider, please contact:

Stephen Hunter
604.688.6464 ext. 132
shunter@disabilityfoundation.org