Hand cyclist Esterberg wins wheelchair division at Eugene Marathon

By Ariel Sax

Sunday marked a special day for 26-year-old Alex Esterberg in the Eugene Marathon – it was his very first competition.

Esterberg, one of Eugene’s locals, was the marathon’s only hand cyclist this year.

Going into his freshman year of high school at he age of 15, Esterberg had a motorcycle accident that left him paralyzed from about the belly button down. Before the accident, he participated in as many sports as he possibly could, including wakeboarding, snow skiing, snowboarding and motorcycling.

Now his main focus is hand cycling. Esterberg received his first hand-cycle from an organization based in San Diego called “Athletes in Action.” Over the years, they have continued to supply him with hand-cycles whenever one gets too worn out.

“He rides about 15 miles every day,” said his father, Mark Esterberg. “He knows every bike trail in Eugene.”

He easily can do 26 miles. Alex mentioned he even reached 38 miles one time this past year. His time of 2 hours, 3 minutes, 30 seconds in this full marathon was by far the fastest he has been yet compared to his usual training time. However, according to Alex, he could have had an even better time. He believes the half marathoners alongside in the race were both slowing him down and in his way.

“The half marathoners slowed him down – he didn’t want to run into somebody,” said Mark Esterberg. “You know, they’re getting tired and he comes up behind them rolling and they don’t hear him – he didn’t want to hit somebody.”

His motivation comes from himself – it’s the reason why he dedicates so many long hours of training every day. He now desires to rise to the challenge of having another hand-cyclist to test his limits and strength in future marathons.

“I wish there were more people and that I wasn’t the only one,” said Alex Esterberg.

According to his father, his drive and determination to continue this sport will never stop. This sport is what fuels and drives his passion. Mark said that he has been supporting Alex for a very long time and will continue to. Alex plans on entering in many more marathons in the future and will continue to train hard every day.

“Because I got paralyzed, this is my – this is the only thing I live for now,” said Alex Esterberg. “I’ll go as hard as I can.”

Ariel Sax

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