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Just read this on the BBC website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-30295759
Cycling over the Pyrenees with one leg
Christian Haettich has one arm and one leg. Over 22 days this summer he cycled across the Dolomites, the Alps and the Pyrenees to become one of only 10 finishers of a gruelling three-week amateur cycling event.
[...]
Haettich particularly relishes those that involve riding in the mountains. Climbing holds an appeal for many cyclists because of the challenges involved. On a long mountain pass there is no respite. You can't just stop pedalling and coast to relax and get your breath back. If you do, you very quickly lose momentum and it requires an even greater effort to get going again.
For an able-bodied rider the work is shared more or less equally between both legs. For Haettich, his one leg has to do the work of two. It was a technique that took time and determination to master.
"My first mountain was just to the side of my house, it wasn't even a mountain, just 1.8km (1.1 mile) long with an average gradient of 8%," he says.
He remembers how painful it was in the early days. "I was extremely ill, I thought I would die it was so difficult. I did it every day for 15 days. Pedalling uphill with one leg is hard, it's just push and pull, if I forget one, I fall. I can laugh about it now but it was very tough."
Cycling over the Pyrenees with one leg
Christian Haettich has one arm and one leg. Over 22 days this summer he cycled across the Dolomites, the Alps and the Pyrenees to become one of only 10 finishers of a gruelling three-week amateur cycling event.
[...]
Haettich particularly relishes those that involve riding in the mountains. Climbing holds an appeal for many cyclists because of the challenges involved. On a long mountain pass there is no respite. You can't just stop pedalling and coast to relax and get your breath back. If you do, you very quickly lose momentum and it requires an even greater effort to get going again.
For an able-bodied rider the work is shared more or less equally between both legs. For Haettich, his one leg has to do the work of two. It was a technique that took time and determination to master.
"My first mountain was just to the side of my house, it wasn't even a mountain, just 1.8km (1.1 mile) long with an average gradient of 8%," he says.
He remembers how painful it was in the early days. "I was extremely ill, I thought I would die it was so difficult. I did it every day for 15 days. Pedalling uphill with one leg is hard, it's just push and pull, if I forget one, I fall. I can laugh about it now but it was very tough."
