By EMS1 Staff
DENVER — A group of paramedics are learning how to ride a bike again — but at much slower speeds.
9News.com reported that the Denver Health Paramedic Division’s bike team is the first unit in the country recognized by The International Police Mountain Bike Association.
“We respond to large venues where there can be anywhere from 50 to 75,000 people,” Lt. Jesse Trudel, with Denver Health Paramedic Division, said. “We teach our people to ride at slow speeds in a controlled environment so they can maneuver through people to get to a patient in any kind of circumstance.”
The eight newest trainees, all current paramedics at the hospital, learned how to fall off the bike in order to absorb the impact with the bike instead of an arm. They spend eight-hour days learning how to turn in tight circles and navigate through people.
About 50 paramedics are part of the bike division; three members take care of the bikes and equipment.
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