Brush '08 bikes nine miles after ski accident

Author: Anna Furney

Following a debilitating accident at the Williams College Carnival in February of 2006, Middlebury student Kelly Brush '08 was left without feeling and control of her body from the waist down. The injury, however, has not prevented her from bike riding.

On Saturday Sept. 16, 2006, along with her exciting return to campus for the start of the 2006-2007 academic year in order to complete her baccalaureate degree in film studies, came the first annual Kelly Brush Century Ride. The ride, which consisted of two fifty-mile loops through Addison County, was started - and most notably finished - by roughly 25 cyclists, a combination of Kelly's close friends and teammates, coaches both current and former, as well as family members.

Many of the group's riders had never finished more than 25 miles in one sitting, let alone 100 miles in one day. It is therefore easy to understand how the 100-mile feat was, in gesture alone, a formidable achievement. While the maxim does state that some journeys are longer than others, those journies can be made all the easier by the company with which you make the trip.

The group began the 100-mile ride at 8:30 am on Saturday and the final riders came into the finish at about 4 p.m. While the group began the ride in a uniform pack, the cyclists were ultimately separated by speed and ability. Impressively, the first group of riders breezed through the first fifty miles in a mere three hours, while the second and third groups of riders were only an hour behind the lead cyclist.

For Middlebury's Alpine ski team, last season was one that challenged all of the members both on and off the hill. On Saturday, the steep hills of Route 125 did not deter Brush from riding alongside her teammates. While the accident limited her physical capacities, it's apparent that her mental acuity and bubbly charisma, were not compromised in any way. Inspired by the event, Brush and her father, Charlie Brush '69 worked through the beginning of the ride's second loop. For Brush, it was her "own part of the 100 miles," the longest distance that she herself had ridden her adaptive bike, stopping just short of nine miles.

Each rider wore the benefit's specially designed bike jerseys by Verge, pumping through each mile in a surf-inspired design that mirrored the college's colors of blue and white. The ride's entire route included two makeshift fuel stops that were stocked to the brim with Gu Energy Gel, Power Bars, bagels, bananas and energy water as well as countless encouraging faces.

Two cars drove with the movements of the cyclists, one Middlebury college van, as well as a van from Earl's Bike shop, which was stocked with all the riders' necessary technical support. This was helpful when Zeke Davisson '08 rear-ended Coach Stever Bartlett, damaging each person's bike.

In preparation for the day, Brush's cousin, Julie Brush, orchestrated a raffle-based fundraiser with the goal of collecting enough funds necessary for putting Brush back on the slopes in an adaptive monoski. While the monoski is something that Brush hopes to use in the upcoming winter season, additional revenues from the race were to be put towards the Kelly Brush Trust, which exists in order to fund Brush's goal of continuing her active lifestyle. Sports such as golf and surfing are in Brush's immediate future and the adaptive sports equipment necessary for these activities was something that was deemed nonnegotiable.

But with each rider came revenues that they had individually gained in donated pledges for the event. With the help and support of her family and friends involved in the Century Ride, Brush was successful in raising $54,804.99 as of Monday September 18; it is a dollar figure that continues to increase as last-minute checks filter into the Brush Trust.

The day came to an end in true ski-team-style, with a barbeque and celebration in the late afternoon. The grilling and conversation was finished with the highly-anticipated raffle, around which the fundraising was made possible. Donated items such as Spyder jackets, ski-passes and Volkl and Rossignol skis were all included in the drawing and came from sponsors within the tightly-knit ski industry in which Brush and so many of her teammates grew up.

The ski team's success with their biking in the Century ride was accelerated by the hope that Kelly will return to the slopes. Following a trip to Colorado during Thanksgiving break, where she will navigate the new monoski that she purchases, Kelly plans on returning to the redesigned trails of the Middlebury College Snow Bowl.