Lisa Schestler has been cheering on her son, Nicholei Magee, from the sidelines this week during the iCan Bike program. “He watches kids on the street, regular kids on their bikes – he just sits there on the cement,” she said.

On the first day she said Nicholei had a hard time entering the gymnasium at the YMCA because he was scared of the shiny floors, the music and the amount of people. After some encouragement from the counselors, he made it in to give bicycle riding a try.

Schestler said the next session was a different story – he walked right in with a smile on his face. “They work magic with that child. … He is happy, I think he feels a sense of accomplishment and I told him I’m very proud,” she said.

Krystal Butgereit, executive director of Prairie Grit Adaptive Sports, said the program has an 80% success rate of children being able to ride a two-wheeled bicycle by the end of the program. It is a highly researched program developed by iCan Shine, who send iCan Bike Staff to contracted locations.

Angie Reinoehl/MDN Weston Boehm, right, rides a modified tandem bike with bike tech Kent Husa, left. The captain’s seat of the bicycle is in the rear as opposed to the front so children can feel the wind on their face and prepare for being in control of their own bike.

“It’s important that we bring in the experts in this field to teach our kids. … Day one may be fearful, tentative, doubtful – by Friday, smiles, cheers, high fives, ‘I can do it, watch me.’ A big change in their self esteem, their self confidence as well as their skills to be able to ride a bike,” Butgereit said.

Different strategies are used throughout the program, such as using pictures to motivate riders, offering favorite snacks if they finish a set amount of laps and using a timer or a countdown to keep them on their bike. The more time they spend on the bicycle, the more likely they are to be successful at the end of the program.

“We had tears on day one – tears of joy. Their child is able to do something that they never thought they would be able to do and seeing their kid involved in a summer camp, just like other kids are, is pretty special,” Butgereit said.

“We have a number of Prairie Grit Adaptive Sports and therapy staff out here helping, but a majority of our helpers are volunteers from our community who donated their time. We wouldn’t be able to do it without them, so a big thank you to all of our volunteers,” Butgereit added.