Non-profit brings bicycling to the visually impaired

What was once an impossible feat, is now becoming a reality for many visually impaired individuals. CU student, Jake Ainciart has started Bike Insight— an organization that will give blind individuals the opportunity to ride bicycles.

"Biking was a huge part of my life," said Ainciart, founder of Bike Insight. "And you know you learn a lot about the empowerment that comes from pushing yourself along the way so I kind of want to bring that to the blind community."

Bike Insight will pair the visually impaired with a sighted leader on a tandem bike ride through Boulder's beautiful landscape. The volunteer leader, or 'captain,' will be trained in safety protocols and voice commands.

CU junior, Nijat Worley, a blind student, heard about the organization and wanted to be a part of it. Now a member on the board of directors, Worley is excited about the future.

"I think Bike Insight could be an opportunity for sighted people to learn from blind people and hopefully eliminate some of the misconceptions about blindness that [are] out there," said Worley. "It could be an opportunity for blind people to interact with sighted people so they can learn very important social skills from their sighted counterparts."

The non-profit organization is still working to try to get donations and tandem bikes, but they hope to be up and running by the middle of May.

If you would like to donate or volunteer for Bike Insight, you can reach them by email at BikeInsight@gmail.com or on their website: BikeInsight.org.