Limitless — Wheelchair Skating is Incredible
60-year-old Tracie Garacochea’s skateboard comes with a built-in seat — and it’s awesome.
Tracie has multiple sclerosis, a disease that affects the brain and nerves. For her, it makes walking painful, so she uses a wheelchair to get around day-to-day.
But she also uses it to hit skateparks, skate bowls and pull off tricks.
She was introduced to wheelchair skating while volunteering at a university. “I tried it for the first time, I went down a snake run,” she said. “Hooked.”
As with anything, there’s a learning curve and getting comfortable takes a lot of practice, but Tracie sees it as just a question of persistence.
“It’s about overcoming your fears. We all have them,” she says. “Once you do it, you look back and say ‘Hey, I remember when I was afraid to do that, but wow, this so much fun to fly around the park.’
In all her time at parks, Tracie says other skaters have welcomed her with open arms and genuine curiosity about adaptive skateboarding. Sometimes, she even lets them try the chair out (but stops short of letting them drop in!)
“There’s so much joy, there’s so much community — and everyone is very accepting. It’s amazing.”
This year, Tracie was invited to the Dew Tour, a series of skate and snowsport contests. It’s the first time the tour has featured an adaptive skateboarding competition. “Just being invited… I’ve already won,” she says.
It’s remarkable how many stunts can be done with a wheelchair, which many people underestimate. But it takes the right chair — and Tracie knows that all too well.
“My goal is to actually get better wheelchairs for kids, so that they grow up being able to play just the way I can play in my chair,” she says. “That just means it’s a more solid chair.
“A disabled kid can do anything they want — just don’t stop them.”
“I know kids that are playing soccer with able-bodied kids. They’re out there playing baseball and basketball and they’re skating like I am — but you can’t do that in what insurance provides.”
Even in the U.K., where healthcare is largely free, sports chairs and equipment cost money. It’s a fact that disappoints Tracie — she thinks they should be a human right.
“Being disabled gets very expensive,” she says. “[Wheelchairs] are an extension of your body. These are your legs — you need these. This is quality of life.”
But despite the difficulties, she’s quick to emphasise that wheelchairs don’t represent limitations — quite the opposite. Tracie tells kids that their chair is a superpower, since it lets them ride their bike or push their skateboard in school, and do wheelies in the hallway.
“These are something to be proud of. They’re awesome,” she says. “You know, we can do anything. The only barrier we have is our mind. There are some things in our body that will stop us but we find ways to work around that,” she says.
“A disabled kid can do anything they want — just don’t stop them. Enable them — they need the equipment.”
Life is full of challenges, but the goal is to have fun and find what makes you happy. For Tracie, that’s skating — and she wants every disabled person to have the same chances to enjoy life.
“Skating is joyful! Who doesn’t want joy and laughter?” she asks.
