Team Hagkull

whistler family

2007-03-07T11:39:00.000-08:00

whistler family
Originally uploaded by sfukicker.

the four of us had an incredible day with our cousins the Roelofsens at Whistler Mountain. Caleb's not sure whether skiing is his thing, but he was quite a trooper trying his best.

the sitski experience!

2007-03-07T11:37:00.000-08:00

the sitski experience!
Originally uploaded by sfukicker.

Benjamin had an incredible day with Brian and Cassandra - volunteers with the Whistler Adaptive Ski Program. They spent the morning on the bunny hill and with Ben's great sense of balance, he was actually doing pretty well on his own for a few metres at a time! The big thrill was that the 3 of them went up the Olympic lift for the last 2 runs of the day and they were going as fast as everyone else on the way down. An absolutely amazing experience for Ben!

the Grey Cup!

2007-02-15T09:37:00.000-08:00

HPIM1335
Originally uploaded by sfukicker.

Here's us with the Holy Grail of CFL football! Our family (and our nephew Kai) went to a friend's home for a Grey Cup Party. Little did we know what that meant! Dave Klassen is the chaplain for the BC Lions and had to pull some strings to "borrow" the trophy for an afternoon. What a thrill for us!

CTV

2006-12-08T10:29:00.000-08:00

CTV
Originally uploaded by pastor of diaster.

Another photo from the Vancouver tri. Here reporter Michelle Brunoro from CTV is getting some post-event comments from the youngest athlete there

Van Tri Bike

2006-12-08T10:27:00.000-08:00

Van Tri Bike
Originally uploaded by pastor of diaster.

Here we are flying through Stanley Park at the Vancouver triathlon on Labour Day 2006. Ben was absolutely freezing the whole morning!

meeting Scott - another AWAD competitor!

2006-11-15T14:30:00.000-08:00

Our last event of the '06 season was the Vancouver International Triathlon at Stanley Park on Labour Day. We met up with another "athlete with a disability", Scott who was a true inspiration to us. He too had some specialized equipment to compete with, as you may be able to see from the picture, he doesn't have legs. Way to go Scott - furthering the message that "Finishing is Winning"!

2006-11-14T11:04:00.000-08:00

Benjamin loves the water and has been doing a lot of swimming lately. In the summer, he had swimming lessons at the Rotary Pool in Chilliwack and got to the point where he was swimming a lot of laps! Here he is showing the world his diving form

basketball camp!

2006-09-28T09:04:00.000-07:00

basketball camp!
Originally uploaded by pastor of diaster.

this summer my brother and I went to the Chilliwack Senior Seconday Basketball Camp. Here's me with my coach for the week - Ed Lefurgy, a 4th year player at UCFV. I had a great week and am looking forward to going again next year!

280+ participants!

2006-09-27T15:38:00.000-07:00

280+ participants!
Originally uploaded by pastor of diaster.

the first ever Hope River Classic was a phenomenal success: 280 + participants (more from out of town than from Chilliwack!), 56 volunteers, 0 bandaids, and over $27,000 raised for the BC Spina Bifida & Hydrocephalus Association. What a tremendous family day and the start of a fabulous annual tradition!

and . . they're off!

2006-09-27T15:35:00.000-07:00

and . . they're off!
Originally uploaded by pastor of diaster.

August 19th, 10am sharp the first wave of people took off on the 8k journey in the Hope River Classic. That's Ben & Caleb's Auntie Helen on the left, cousin Jordan and Amanda next to her. Well done guys!

Team Hagkull

2006-07-27T09:06:00.000-07:00

A Very Hot Day

Uncle Dave Soltys stepped up and joined us this past Saturday in the 2nd Annual Aldergrove Triathlon Festival. Ben's Granny & Poppa and our family from Dubai were all sporting Team Hagkull shirts and cheering us on. A few days earlier, the Weather Network predicted a temperature of 42 degrees in our neighboring city of Hope, BC! Thankfully it didn't get that hot, and we did start in the morning just after 9am. A bit of cloud cover prevented the temperature from getting silly, but we did feel it in the final leg - the run around Walmsley Lake. Our official times haven't been posted yet, but I think we shaved about 10 minutes off last year's time. "Finishing is Winning" and so - we won! Thanks Uncle Dave for being our pace car and making our experience just that much more enjoyable!

The wheelie boys playing basketball

2006-06-21T09:39:00.000-07:00

The wheelie boys playing basketball
Originally uploaded by pastor of diaster.

After the Wheels In Motion run, Caleb and Benjamin decided to engage in a pick up game of wheelchair basketball. Not sure who won, but they sure enjoyed it!

RHfinish

2006-06-21T09:38:00.000-07:00

RHfinish
Originally uploaded by pastor of diaster.

This is us at the finish line of the Rick Hansen's 2006 Wheels In Motion event at the Plaza of Nations in Vancouver. What a fabulous day for us. We even made the CTV six o'clock news!

THtimesphoto

2006-04-18T13:23:00.000-07:00

THtimesphoto
Originally uploaded by pastor of diaster.

This was part of the "Year In Review" column that the Chilliwack Times did in early January 2006. (please ignore the logo on my arm New Balance!)

a dental departure

2006-02-22T09:52:00.000-08:00

HPIM0334
Originally uploaded by pastor of diaster.

The day after my 7th birthday I lost my first tooth! (if you look closely, you can see the new one coming). I wonder if this will have an effect on the wind resistance and our Team Hagkull event times?

The Terrifying Tubers

2006-02-22T09:47:00.000-08:00

HPIM0419
Originally uploaded by pastor of diaster.

This is me, my big bro' and 3 of my cousins at Manning Park. It was cold, but what a great day!

HRC-logo

2006-01-20T13:00:00.000-08:00

HRC-logo
Originally uploaded by pastor of diaster.

It's happening! Team Hagkull is proud to host the first ever Hope River Classic - a 5/8km fun walk/run/wheel event for Spina Bifida on August 19, 2006 in Chilliwack, B.C.
We're about 3 weeks away from launching the website! (www.hoperiverclassic.com)

Caleb

2006-01-20T12:46:00.000-08:00

HPIM0178
Originally uploaded by pastor of diaster.

This is my brother Caleb (yes, that's me in the background). This photo was taken at our church Christmas party

happy Ben

2006-01-20T12:36:00.000-08:00

HPIM0189
Originally uploaded by pastor of diaster.

So, this is me after wrestling with my auntie Heather at Christmas time. Can you tell we were having fun?

NewMan article

2005-11-30T08:41:00.000-08:00

NewMan
Originally uploaded by pastor of diaster.

So here we are! Sheryl took this picture on our street last spring and this is the one they wanted to use. I spent almost an hour speaking with the writer, Dave Urbanski and he could have gone a whole bunch of directions, but chose to zero in on what we were going through when we found out about Ben during Sheryl's pregnancy. Thanks New Man for using us to inspire others!

Us & Bono

2005-11-30T08:37:00.000-08:00

Bono
Originally uploaded by pastor of diaster.

You probably recognize the people on the cover of this month's NewMan Magazine. Bono (of course) and my buddy Dog the Bounty Hunter. What you may not know is that inside this issue these 2 personalities are joined by Ben and Brad. Now how cool is that? (article in next blog)

Sheryl in San Fransisco!

2005-11-25T11:30:00.000-08:00

2
Originally uploaded by pastor of diaster.

They did it!

2005-11-15T15:01:00.000-08:00

Sheryl and her sister Heather completed the US HalfMarathon course in San Fransisco! It was much hillier than they had anticipated and yet still came in with a phenomenal time - 13.1 miles in 2:13! (Pictures are coming in the next blog)

Sheryl's 1/2 is a week away!

2005-10-30T06:54:00.000-08:00

It is Sunday Morning at 6:50am and exactly a week from now, Sheryl and her sister Heather will be lining up at the start for the US 1/2 Marathon in San Fransisco! The girls are both so excited! The third sister, Christine and their mom will be flying in as well to cheer them on. Here in Canada, a 1/2 Marathon in measured in kilometres - approximately 23 from what I'm told. The run finishes with a crossing of the Golden Gate Bridge! Ben's mom Sheryl is truly the runner in the family - Go Team Hagkull!

newbikes

2005-10-21T19:34:00.000-07:00

newbikes
Originally uploaded by pastor of diaster.

us on the new bikes

2005-09-30T15:22:00.000-07:00

abbytri6
Originally uploaded by pastor of diaster.

this is another shot from our summer season. Thanks New Balance for the matching shirts, shorts and shoes!

the Terry Fox Run

2005-09-13T18:26:00.000-07:00

Our family will be participating in Chilliwack's Terry Fox Run on September 16th. My University - Simon Fraser - honoured this great Canadian hero by retiring his basketball jersey earlier this week. In 1980, I was 12 and our family drove across Canada when Terry was running.

We were to meet up with him in Marathon, Ontario, but he ended his trek one day before we got there. We missed him, but are proud to carry on his legacy in supporting his runs for cancer research. Sheryl and Ben will be doing the Jr. route at Cheam school and Caleb and I will join the rest of Chilliwack at Heritage Park.

View the photo under our "family" section where you can see us doing the Dubai Terry Fox run last January with my brother and his family!

abbytri4

2005-09-07T15:36:00.000-07:00

abbytri4
Originally uploaded by pastor of diaster.

the start of our Abby Tri on July 23rd. We ended up having to start "last" for liability reasons, but that's ok - it was a lot safer anyway

A week and a half away!

2005-08-02T08:15:00.000-07:00

Team Hagkull
Our next and final event of the summer season is the "My Next Triathlon" in Harrison Mills. This was our first real tri last year and it was such a positive experience for the both of us. The bike from the lake to Sandpiper Golf Course was a little steeper than we trained for, but hopefully we will both be better prepared this year. A cool thing has developed since our last event: Uncle Dave Soltys has taken up the challenge to join us! He's training pretty hard these days and will participate with us Harrison Mills! Awesome stuff Uncle Dave!

Chilliwack Times story

2005-07-29T13:19:00.000-07:00

05timesstory
Originally uploaded by pastor of diaster.

Aldergrove Finish

2005-07-25T06:39:00.000-07:00

F1000018
Originally uploaded by pastor of diaster.

We did it! The Aldergrove Triathlon was a great event! The Walkers from Greendale, the Soltys family from Chilliwack and the Hagkulls from Dubai all came out to cheer Benjamin on. Thanks Uncle Dave for taking this great shot of us across the finish line!

a week away!

2005-07-14T13:04:00.000-07:00

Team Hagkull
It's been an eventful week.

Stella, our partner from Ryders eyewear has sent us some immense decals to plaster on the raft and some patches for our clothing. Paula, our friend from Wenting Cycle phoned to tell us that our New Balance Shoes and apparel arrived from Ottawa (we've been waiting weeks for these as there is a trucker/container/labour dispute going on). And this morning, Benjamin and I sat with Robyn Chambers - a reporter from the Chilliwack Times. Robyn is registered for the Aldergrove Triathlon as well and so she's writing a piece on us as well. Benjamin told her that while we pedal together, that he likes to sing country music - not sure if that will show up in the story, but we'll have to see.

not long now!

2005-07-07T08:25:00.000-07:00

Team Hagkull
17 days to go before the first ever Aldergrove Triathlon. Ben and I are training hard now and looking forward to a strong finish!

BCWS athlete of the month!

2005-07-05T11:01:00.000-07:00

Team Hagkull
Benjamin is the BC Wheelchair Sports "athlete of the month" for July 0f 2005! To view his picture and to read the complete story, drop by their website at www.bcwheelchairsports.com. We are grateful to Richard Peter, Olympic Gold Medallist, for his work in securing the equipment we needed to make this story possible. Read his story and about his time in Athens on their website as well!

Abby Tri Preparations Are Underway!

2005-06-29T16:17:00.000-07:00

Team Hagkull
So we're less than a month away from our next major event: The 1st Annual Abbotsford Triathlon Festival on July 23rd. After clearing some liability hurdles, we are signed up and registered for the event held near the airport at Albert Dyck Park. The BCTri Association was concerned about our start at the lake. With a flurry of activity including elbows, knees and limbs a flyin' as participants enter the water, Ben's safety was a huge issue (What if the boat capsized? etc.) So as it stands, we will be starting after everyone else, but looking forward to seeing how many we can pass!

ITEM OF INTEREST - Last week while cycling down Camp River Road, I came around a corner and encountered a cougar at the road's edge! Chh-yeah! The Game officer said cougars can travel as much as 30km per day. Although they generally stick to mountain areas, this is not the first sighting of one of these big cats in our area.

The CBS Walk-A-Thon

2005-06-14T15:49:00.000-07:00

Team Hagkull
So, we did it! Our family arrived at Sardis Secondary on Saturday ready to tackle many a lap in our effort to support the work of the Canadian Bible Society. What we were not told was that it was a "Run-A-Thon". Not a big deal though. Caleb ended up doing 23 laps (almost 6 miles!) and the rest of us went almost as far. It was great to see Ben tackle many of these laps by himself in his regular chair. A bunch of money was raised for African Audio Bibles as well!

Team Hagkull

2005-06-09T12:57:00.000-07:00

Team Hagkull
We're gearing up for a charity walk this weekend out in Sardis. An older gentleman in our church had asked us if he can take Ben around the track to raise funds for the Canadian Bible Society's Annual Walk-a-thon. This year they are raising funds for solar powered audio Bibles (yes, you read it right) in a tribal language where there is not a written Bible yet. It's a marvellous thing that costs $5 each and so we're helping with that effort. Who knows how far we'll walk, but we'll see what Ben is up for.

progress2

2005-06-03T14:02:00.000-07:00

progress2
Originally uploaded by pastor of diaster.

written by Penny Lett, photo by Jenna Hauck, both of the Chilliwack Progress Newspaper. This story was in the May 15, 2005 edition.

rcside

2005-06-03T13:23:00.000-07:00

rcside
Originally uploaded by pastor of diaster.

Here is the finished product!

Team Hagkull

2005-06-03T13:09:00.000-07:00

Team Hagkull
Can things get any better? Team Hagkull has added another major sponsor - New Balance! Dave Wilkins, the NB rep contacted us and has offered Benjamin and I a credit with their company to outfit us for the upcoming season. We travelled to Wenting Cycle in Mission this week to flip through catalogs and have matching shoes on order! I didn't realize that I was a size 13EE, but stable, comfortable shoes will certainly add to our performance.
Not only does New Balance have quality product, their philosophy totally fits with the message we are trying to send. They don't spend a zillion dollars on celebrity endorsements - they put that into research and developments for the everyday athletes. We are psyched to be wearing their shoes and apparel. Welcome to the team New Balance!

Team Hagkull

2005-06-02T14:33:00.000-07:00

Team Hagkull
Another sponsor has come on board! Ryders Eyewear has joined the Team Hagkull group by providing our family with sunglasses. They are "uber-cool". Mine have interchangeable lenses (dark, amber and clear) and they are certainly designed with the bike "ryder" (sorry) in mind. Have you ever pedalled hard only to have your eyes tear up because the wind gets at them? Ryders glasses have this extra wing to prevent that from happening. In addition, they have vents in the top to prevent fogging up. Impressive! Welcome Aboard Ryders!

Team Hagkull

2005-05-31T12:46:00.000-07:00

Team Hagkull

Well, it's amazing what can happen in a few short weeks! Another news article was written about Team Hagkull. Our Jogging Wheelchair has received a lot of attention and rightly so - it was the effort of many people to put it together. Special thanks go out to Steve Atkinson from M&H Machinery for designing the sleeve and welding it up, and to Henry Bos of Henry's mowing for recommending the 1979 Black and Decker Electric Handle that we used. Well done fellas!
I'll blog the complete article in the next few days so that it can be read by all.

04augstory

2005-04-10T08:29:00.000-07:00

04augstory
Originally uploaded by pastor of diaster.

Team Hagkull

2005-04-07T11:22:00.000-07:00

Brad Hagkull and his son Benjamin live in Chilliwack, British Columbia, Canada and have recently discovered the joys of triathlons. Their situation is unique in that they do them together as "team Hagkull". Benjamin was born with Spina Bifida and gets around school in a wheelchair. They both believe in the "where finishing is winning" attitude and have 1 year's worth of competitive events behind them. See both of our lifestories and photos at www.teamhagkull.com.

We want to promote awareness of Spina Bifida and feel that the competitive realm of athletics is one way of doing that. Furthermore we believe that "disability" is only a word and that great things can be accomplished by all people regardless of their situation. Check out our website for more info on us, our family and the events we're planning on participating in.