King City travel agency sees potential in travel for disabled
BY JEROME WATT
Staff Writer When no one would help Vibeke
Holmefjord of Norway to booked a cycling trip in Europe, she turned to King City’s Scholz Adventure
Travel.
Everyone had turned her down because she
was in a wheelchair.
“The travel companies wouldn’t help
the minute they heard the word wheelchair” Joe Scholz, owner of Scholz Adventure Travel,
said. Scholz, whose small business provides
cycling vacations in Europe and offers Canadian wilderness trips, took on the task. It was a challenge for him to make
arrangements for the trip, which followed the Danube River from Passau, Germany, to Vienna
Austria.
“It was a whole different ball game,” he said.
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“Society has so many biases against
people with special needs.”
The level of co-operation varied from
area to area.
Vienna was very
accessible, but many of the hotels where the cyclists stayed, while beautiful examples of
traditional architecture, weren’t equipped for people with disabilities.
“She transcended all the wheelchair
stereotypes. I wasn’t sure she could do it. These people don’t want pity. They want you
to make it possible for them to participate.”
“Some places wouldn’t even have
it,” he said. “All along the way it was variable.” Despite this,
Scholz was able to set up
this trip.
Using a specially designed attachment for the front of her
wheelchair and her aunt helping her along the way,
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Holmefjord rode with the able-bodied
cyclists. Not only did she hold her own, she also outpaced some of the people in the group.
After completing the 350 – kilometer
tour, Holmefjord was given a hero’s welcome in Vienna. She dined with the city’s deputy mayor
and was in all the papers.
“She transcended all the wheelchair
stereotypes,” Scholz said, adding he learned something along the way. I wasn’t sure she could do it. These
people don’t want pity. They want you to make it possible for them to participate.”
In future Scholz hopes to offer more
trips for the disabled. He would like to offer trips to four
disabled people at a time, along with their helpers. “It’s not going to be a huge money
maker,” he said.
“We’re just slowly
coming to look at this sector. This is a niche people would like to engage in.”
Scholz Adventure Travel can be found on
the web at:
www.kanutrip.com
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