I have now attended three Outdoor Retailer shows, two in summer and one in winter. This year’s summer show went a bit more smoothly for me because I was able to stay at the Hyatt Regency that is connected to the Salt Palace Convention Center where Outdoor Retailer took place. Here is my experience with the accessibility of both OR and the Hyattt. Hyatt Regency Salt Lake City hosted me as a content creator through my business, National Park Capable. I wanted to be able to share my experience as an advocate for travel for those with disabilities, a content creator with a disability, and as the founder of a new nonprofit called EveryBODY on Trails.
Outdoor Retailer is North America’s largest trade show bringing brands together to share their products and network together. Being a lover of the outdoors, an avid hiker, an adaptive mountain biker, camper, and parent of a little adventurer (with another on the way!) I enjoy getting to see what resources and products are out there for my little one while advocating for the often underrepresented, or even unrepresented, disabled community. I’ve been able to attend the last two OR conventions as a content creator and gear reviewer. This year my badge was a little different: I was able to represent my new nonprofit called EveryBODY on Trails. Our mission at EveryBODY on trails is to provide equitable access to gear, opportunities, and a supportive community through fundraising for equipment and to empower individuals with and without disabilities of all ages to experience the joy of outdoor trails. This means that we put ourselves out there at trade shows and other events to share why our mission is so important.
The average annual cost of adaptive outdoor gear for a person with a disability is $13,492 which is significantly higher than the cost of non-adaptive gear for a person without a disability: $2,836. Outdoor gear is less accessible for people with disabilities due to the financial burden caused by the higher cost of adaptive equipment, access to additional finances for adaptive equipment for reasons such as having to rely on disability income, the high cost of medical care, and more. We believe that adaptive gear should be accessible to people with disabilities just as outdoor gear is accessible to people without disabilities and that people with disabilities have the right to choose when and where they recreate. Equitable access to outdoor gear including adaptive bikes, off-road wheelchairs, quality shoes, trekking poles, etc. will help more people with disabilities safely access trails. And last but not least, we believe in the importance of building a community of people with and without disabilities to make the outdoors more accessible and to nurture a community of equity and inclusion of people with disabilities.
We respect brands who find ways to not just talk the talk of sharing that the outdoors is for everyBODY but also walk the walk. Hyatt Regency Salt Lake City definitely did this in partnering with me to make the OR show a little more accessible for me. I hope to find more brands that represent the disabled community and bring awareness to them. Did you know that 1 in 3 Americans live with a disability? Just about every consumer out there either knows someone with a disability or has one themselves. Let’s make the outdoor industry a little more inclusive to get more BODIES in the outdoors!
When we travel, we don’t often consider the distance or time it takes to get somewhere for those with disabilities. For most people, they can all walk at the same pace and keep up with each other. Sidewalks or stairs aren’t a problem for them. For people with disabilities, we have to take all of these things into consideration. I have cerebral palsy and while I don’t use a wheelchair full time, I do often use other mobility devices such as a walker or hiking poles. I am fortunate that I can walk and be fairly mobile, but I tire easily so I normally use a wheelchair when I’m walking long distances. That means that sometimes I have to rely on others to push me around. I say all these things to share my perspective. When attending big events such as Outdoor Retailer I am usually so exhausted even after the first day that I struggle more than normal just to get around. Sometimes I’m not even able to walk much at all the next day.
When the Hyatt Regency reached out to me about a collaboration I was so excited! I knew that it was connected to the Salt Palace and it would cut down my walking time by at least a third, and give me a convenient place close by to rest when I get tired. I also wouldn’t have to find a parking space blocks or even a mile away.
I was able to stay with a friend who uses a wheelchair in an ADA compliant room and it exceeded my expectations. We noticed that all of the hallways, doorways, and ramps throughout the hotel were wide enough for my friend to go through and sometimes they were wide enough for us to go through side by side.
In the room itself was an accessible shower that included lots of handrails to help get in and out of and a seat to sit on. There were faucets that were easily reachable and the shower head could move up and down as needed, as well as be removed for ease of access. The room was also very spacious and had plenty of room between the beds for my friend to maneuver her wheelchair as well as my walker. The window looked west over the valley and even had pull rods for the curtains that were low enough to be reached by just about anyone, even in a wheelchair. Even the small details did not go unnoticed: there were two peepholes, one at standing height and one at wheelchair height; the light switches were low enough to be accessible to anyone; and the closet had a rack that was low enough to be reached from a wheelchair.
Overall I was incredibly impressed with the Hyatt Regency Salt Lake City and I can’t thank them enough for the opportunity to stay there while I attended OR. I would definitely recommend them to anyone, but especially people with disabilities or people who might need accommodations not available in a regular room.