'Cycling Without Age' Allows Seniors Worldwide to Experience Timeless Pleasure, Adventure of Bike Riding

The non-profit organization, Cycling Without Age, just celebrated 10 years of giving senior citizens living with limited mobility the enjoyment of riding a bike again.

In 2012, Ole Kassow was riding his bicycle to work in Denmark when he saw an older gentleman sitting on a park bench. The man reminded Kassow of his own father who was wheelchair-bound, according to Bicycling.com.

The next day, he rented a bike and started giving rides to seniors at a retirement home. One elderly woman told him stories about living in Copenhagen and seemed to be full of life again after the outing.

"Because we both enjoyed it so much, one bike ride turned into two, then three, and soon I was offering rides to all my nursing home neighbors and making friends with so many people more than twice my age," Kassow told CBN News. "Ever since I was a kid, I have always enjoyed listening to stories about the power of acts of kindness ... how they inspire and spread."

The experience led Kassow to create Cycling Without Age (CWA) and volunteers or pilots, are now helping others all around the world.

Pilots operate a trishaw, which is a bike with a passenger seat in the front. They partner with nursing homes and senior care facilities and have the flexibility to cycle their clients as often as they want. 

The company's website reveals that the movement is driven by "generosity and kindness." It also focuses on taking the time to talk to one another, sharing stories, and not letting age get in the way of freedom.

And CWA recently shared on its social media pages that its representatives are now cycling in 52 countries.  

Even though one-day outings are the most popular, some volunteers have become more imaginative with their treks.

Bike tours and fishing trips have been arranged, which include family members of the elderly passengers or staff members from their care facility. 

Ultimately, the goal of CWA is to give seniors the freedom and joy of being able to move around outdoors.

"I see CWA as a catalyst for better lives by helping socially isolated elders and people with limited mobility gain access to their local communities," Kassow told CBN News. "We all know that exercise and fresh air is good for us, but not many people know that happiness and longevity are mainly the result of both a few close relationships and access to interact with several people in our daily lives. I see Cycling Without Age play(ing) a key role in making relationships a human right for all elders in all societies."

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