Kevin Mills is preparing for a cross-Canada bike trip like no other.
As a quadriplegic, the Newmarket resident will be completing the ride by handbike in 2023.
Mills had been working as an advanced care paramedic in Toronto, as was his wife, Heather. The couple was in Cuba for Mills's sister's wedding in 2009.
"I was out swimming in the ocean, pretty far off — I was a very active person — and all of a sudden a large wave came and picked me up and dumped me headfirst into the sand, immediately breaking my neck," he said.
Mills said he was face down in the water for a couple of minutes while his new brother-in-law raced to pull him out. He was taken to a clinic on the island. Shortly after, he said, his wife arranged for transport to Havana and then got a U.S. med-evac plane to take them back to Canada.
The then 28-year-old had surgery at Sunnybrook Hospital and was told he was a C6 quadriplegic. Mills said most quadriplegics have a C level spinal injury. This impacts the cervical spine, which is at the top by the neck. He lost use of his lower body from the chest down and a lot of function in his arms.
"They said I'd be lucky to shrug my shoulders," Mills said.
He did six months of rehab at Lyndhurst in Toronto and during that time, he said Heather was busy finding them an accessible house, which they moved into when he was discharged. But they wanted to do more.
The couple went to Florida for a recovery program called activity-based therapy. He did it for a while and said it was successful.
"I had so many gains and Heather (said) 'we have to bring this back to Canada,'" Mills said.
The couple returned to Newmarket and Heather created a not-for-profit called Walk It Off, which has been providing activity-based therapy here for 12 years now.
As for Mills, he has use of his biceps, some of his forearms, his shoulders and his neck, but is paralyzed from the waist down and doesn't have use of his hands or triceps. However, he said most C6 quadriplegics use power wheelchairs, he has a manual chair that he is able to get around in by himself.
He credits the activity-based therapy with helping him get to that point. It also helped his mental health.
"That's a huge thing," Mills said. "It's so important for me to maintain my mental health and just be able to get outside and interact and be social and just see people, as opposed to being just in my house."
Therapy helped him return to an active lifestyle, similar to what he enjoyed before his injury. He decided he wanted to do half marathons in his wheelchair and he would come dead last. Then he got a lay-down handcycle and started doing full marathons. After that he got a Batec bike that attaches directly to his wheelchair.
He began biking with friend Nikki Davenport, who is able-bodied and works as a kinesiologist at Walk It Off. They would bike everyday after work and then one time she asked him if he would bike across the country.
"I'd always wanted to bike across Canada but for me, it didn't seem possible (as) I would need someone with me at all times. It's going to take three to four months, it just wasn't logistically possible," Mills said.
However, with encouragement from Nikki, they created Pedaling Possibilities, a not-for-profit to promote activity-based therapy, as well as accessibility and inclusion for people of all abilities.
The pair are planning a cross-country ride beginning in St. John's, Newfoundland in May 2023 and hitting every province to get to Victoria, British Columbia. The goal is to raise awareness but also find a wheelchair accessible route across Canada and share information about it as they go. This includes which hotels and restaurants are accessible, and explaining how the route could be navigated by people of different levels.
"A paraplegic is a lot more adaptable, they're a lot stronger. They have their entire arm function. They're a lot more independent. And it is difficult for a quadriplegic, and I think it's important to explain how the route would be for each level of injury, because I can kind of extrapolate how a para would be but as a quad I'm gonna pick up stuff that people might not," Mills said.
He said he is inspired by Canadian athlete Rick Hansen, who was paralyzed from the waist down as a young man and went on to do the Man in Motion tour, riding around the world and Canada.
"I think his journey was incredible and a huge feat," Mills said.
However, a trip like this does not come cheap. It will take four months on top of requiring an accessible RV to stay in and having a personal support worker along with them.
To make this trip into a reality, Pedaling Possibilities is seeking donations and holding a fundraiser in Newmarket. On Nov. 4 at 7 p.m., a comedy night is taking place at the Newmarket Legion, featuring Morgan Phillips and his award-winning show, The Emergency Monologues.
Phillips is a good friend of Mills and a fellow paramedic and the show is inspired by his experiences. Mills said he has probably seen it six times already and its different every time.
Tickets are on sale and can be purchased through Eventbrite. They include a free drink for the evening and proceeds go toward Pedaling Possibilities.
