Positive cycle

A dedicated athlete, Ginger Di Lello is both a runner and bicyclist. The Bella Vista resident runs 3 to 10 miles in South Philly almost daily. And on Saturdays, she bikes on the East and West River drives in Fairmount Park.

It’s not the typical bike ride. Di Lello sits in the front seat of a tandem bike (a bicycle built for two). Seated behind her is a disabled rider.

Some of her riding partners are blind. One had a leg amputated. Another suffered a head injury, leaving him with balance problems that prevent him from cycling alone.

They’re all participants in a program sponsored by the Pennsylvania Center for Adapted Sports. This nonprofit program, with headquarters on Boathouse Row, gives people with disabilities the chance to enjoy bicycling, rowing and other activities. They’re assisted by volunteers like Di Lello.

"It’s amazing what these athletes can do," she says. "They want to enjoy the same activities that other people do. They have an extra hurdle, but they never complain. I admire them tremendously."

Di Lello’s participation in the program evolved from her recent work experience. For the past three years, she’s been a graphic artist for the Institute on Disabilities at Temple University, which sponsors a wide variety of programs. Di Lello supplies the designs for the institute’s publications, which include posters, brochures and newsletters.

The work put her directly in touch with people with disabilities. "It really opened my eyes," she says. "I learned that they’re people first, and we shouldn’t see them primarily in terms of their disabilities."

She soon found that was true not only in the workplace but also in athletic endeavors. As an athlete herself, Di Lello, 46, wanted to assist people who pursue physical fitness despite disability. Through an Internet search two years ago, she learned about the biking program at the Center for Adapted Sports.

As an experienced cyclist, Di Lello seemed a natural for the activity. But a tandem bike was an entirely new experience. During her first training session at the center, she sat in the backseat while an experienced volunteer rode in front. Then they switched places.

"It was quite a challenge," Di Lello recalls. "It’s a very big bike and it’s not easy to handle."

After several more practice sessions, she was ready for an even bigger challenge: riding with a disabled person. She recalls being a bit daunted by the responsibility.

"You start to think, ‘There’s somebody in back who is disabled, and I’m responsible for steering this bike,’" says Di Lello.

HER FIRST PARTNER was a woman who was blind. "I was nervous," confesses Di Lello. "But she calmed me down. I’d ask, ‘Am I going too slowly?’ and she said, ‘You’re doing fine.’"

Other disabled riders were just as reassuring. "They were encouraging me, and that’s one reason I fell in love with the program," Di Lello says. "They were so supportive and appreciative."

She takes the riders on a set route, usually an 8-mile loop that covers both the East and West River drives. An alternate route runs along the West River Drive from the Falls Bridge to the Art Museum.

Whatever the route, it presents a number of challenges for the "captain," as the person riding in front is called. The one in back is called the "stoker."

"With someone who’s blind, you have to constantly communicate what’s happening," says Di Lello. "You have to prepare them for bumps in the road, for slowing down, for turns and for anything unexpected."

There are other challenges when she rides with a woman who wears a prosthetic leg below the knee. The rider has to have both feet strapped onto the pedals.

"This means I can’t stop at all because she can’t put her feet on the ground," explains Di Lello. "So if we had to stop, we’d both lose our balance. Whenever we ride, I pray I don’t have to stop until the end."

Some participants are such impressive athletes that they are almost self-sufficient. For instance, one young woman who is blind is a strong athlete who not only cycles but also rows and does rock-climbing.

THE VOLUNTEER BIKE outings add mileage to Di Lello’s already-busy running regimen. Her favorite route – one she calls her South Philly loop – is a 10-mile run that starts near her home at 10th and Catharine. Di Lello has been a runner for 12 years, and has participated in four Philadelphia marathons, most recently in November. This summer, she’ll start training for her fifth.

Although her running route is straightforward, her career path has taken some unlikely turns. Di Lello, a St. Maria Goretti graduate, majored in journalism and advertising at Temple.

"But I was never one to conform and I didn’t want a nine-to-five job," she says.

So she took a job as a bus person at the former 16th Street Bar and Grill and worked her way up to bartender. She ended up spending 20 years in the restaurant business, 14 of them at Philadelphia Fish & Co. at Second and Chestnut, where she was also the resident chalkboard artist.

Her husband, Louis Gribaudo, shares her interests: he’s an artist, musician and bartender whose work currently is on display at Tavern on Green in Fairmount.

Four years ago, Di Lello made a dramatic career change. She quit her job as a bartender to focus on her art. One year later, she was doing freelance work when she learned of the position for a graphic artist at Temple’s Institute on Disabilities.

She knew nothing about the institute, but "studied up on it, and was impressed right from the start."

Di Lello’s work was a learning experience not only in designing publications but also in interacting with people with disabilities. Some, but not all, her coworkers are disabled.

"Right from the start, I wanted to approach things the right way," says Di Lello. For instance, she learned to use "person first" language. This means not defining a person first of all by their disability. That’s why she never says "blind person," but instead "a person who is blind."

She says that the bike riders she’s met have inspired her to be a better athlete.

"Just seeing how hard they work makes me feel that I can challenge myself more," Di Lello says. "You never hear them complain. Instead, they see the positive side. Just seeing what they can do makes me feel I can do more too."

Then, too, there’s the satisfaction of helping them reach their goals.

"It makes me feel good when someone’s waiting for me, and we get on the bike and have a good ride together," she says. "It’s a pleasure knowing that I gave someone else that experience."

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For information about the Pennsylvania Center for Adapted Sports, call 215-765-5118.