The Kelly Brush Foundation will screen its film “Best Day Ever” Saturday July 25 at the Park City Library.
The Vermont nonprofit aims to make adaptive sports accessible to those with spinal cord injuries. The group provides grants for specialized equipment including adaptive mountain bikes.
“These bikes are anywhere from $15,000 to $20,000, and that’s obviously incredibly prohibitive for people who have disabilities and already have a higher cost of living,” co-founder and namesake Kelly Brush said on KPCW’s “Local News Hour” July 21.
Since its inception in 2006, her nonprofit has offset one of the biggest barriers to adaptive sports, helping 2,000 people purchase equipment.
Brush founded the organization 19 after she broke her neck in an NCAA alpine ski racing accident.
“I was paralyzed from the chest down and used a wheelchair full time,” she said. “I wanted to make something good come out of my accident, so I started the Kelly Brush Foundation to help people with spinal cord injuries get out and be active.”
Twenty years later, the foundation’s latest project uses storytelling to expand access in a different way.
The documentary follows adaptive mountain bikers Greg Durso and Allie Bianchi as they navigate perceptions of disability and find community.
The film sheds light on what building adaptable trails means.
“One of the biggest misconceptions that people have about trails that are adaptive-friendly is that they’re easier,” Brush said. “And really, the point we make in ‘Best Day Ever’ is that they’re not really easier trails. They’re just trails that work well for all bikes.”
Accessibility is about creating opportunities for everyone to enjoy the outdoors together, she said.
“It’s not meant for these trails are made for adaptive bikes, and these trails are made for two-wheeled able-bodied bikes,” she said. “It's really that recreation is inclusive; that everybody is riding together. When I go ride my bike, I want to ride with my kids and my family and my friends. I don't want to have to go somewhere different than where they're going.”
The “Best Day Ever” screens Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Park City Library. A reception and Q&A will follow in the community room.
Tickets are $25, available here. All proceeds benefit the Kelly Brush Foundation.
