Winning wheelchairs

It's a right of passage for so many kids: the end-of-year track meet where schoolmates race against each other.

On Saturday, about 22 kids in wheelchairs got to experience this competition and sportsmanship, racing on the track of Moorhead High School.

This is the third year Hope Inc., which offers recreational opportunities for people with mobility challenges, held a wheelchair track meet.

Kids raced in 25-meter and 50-meter races in divisions based on ability. Some steered power chairs. Kids in manual chairs propelled themselves or got a push.

They weaved around a line of orange cones in the obstacle course. Parents and siblings also hopped in wheelchairs to race, too.

"I think it's a good thing for the kids that have special needs," said 13-year-old Hope Fuglesten of Buxton, N.D. "I think they have a lot of fun."

Hope, who's been in a wheelchair since she was 2, said she was having fun, too.

Her favorite part? "Just participating," she said.

"It's something for her to look forward to," said Hope's mom, Karen Fuglesten. "We adapt to what they do instead of her trying to adapt to what we do."

Rain fell lightly as the first race got under way Saturday morning. Bill Grommesh, recreation director for Hope Inc., laid out the rules.

"We want everybody to play hard," Grommesh said. "If you win, that's super. If you don't win, that's super.

"If you do your best, that's all that matters."

Darlene Pich of Fargo pushed her daughter, Sami, in the assisted heat.

"It's great to see the sportsmanship, their abilities. It's incredible," she said.

Pich said her son is involved in sports, and they're often going to his practices or games. This event gives Sami an event of her own.

"It makes her feel a part of the typical world," Pich said. "It really helps her self-esteem to be involved with other kids."

Hannah Colemer, 14, of Forman, N.D., had never taken part in the wheelchair track meet but had gone downhill skiing with Hope Inc.

She said she liked the track meet. She racked up several first-place medals.

"It's a chance to meet other kids in wheelchairs. You don't realize there's this many till they're all together," said her father, Allen Colemer.

"When Hannah was 5, this wasn't here," he said. "Now that she's (almost) 15, things have changed for the better."

Online

• For more information about Hope Inc., visit http://hopeinconline.org

Readers can reach Forum reporter Sherri Richards at (701) 241-5556