audio, stills, text and or video: Go to zReportage.com to see more - Quadriplegic Josh Basile motivates others with spinal cord injuries using adaptive sports adventures to get out of their wheelchairs and ''live every breath,'' he declares. He organized a sailing trip to Cuba from Key West, on the only wheelchair accessible yacht in the world called 'Impossible Dream', with two elevators and a wraparound ramp designed by a quadriplegic. .'Cuba came about really because I wanted to come up with an innovative way to change the way the world sees paralysis'. While in Cuba they played sling shot golf invented by Basile, stayed in one of the few handicapped accessible hotels owned by a Cuban paraplegic and experienced the culture and issues of navigating the country by wheelchair. 'You know, it's always different doing anything in a chair. It's different. But different is not ruined. Different is fun, different is beautiful. And I'm willing and excited to try the next thing,' says Josh. 'Life can't get any better than this,' he declares. 'My injury has taken a lot but it's given so much more in return.'
© Carol Guzy/zReportage.com/ZUMA Wire
May 21, 2016 - Havana, Cuba - COLIN BUCHANAN (left front) ROBBY BECKMAN (left back) and JOSH BASILE with his girlfriend GABBY AHRENS (right) leave their wheelchairs on deck as they bask in the sun. They sailed to Cuba from Key West, Florida in May 2016 on the yacht Impossible Dream. Josh said, 'There is something special about getting out of your wheelchair and not have that vantage point because every day I'm the same height. I'm moving at the same speed. But when you're out of your chair and all of a sudden the sun is on your face and the wind's blowing through your hair, it takes you to a different place. You end up not thinking about being paralyzed, you just think about how amazing this feels and how lucky you are to be in this one moment.'
© Carol Guzy/zReportage.com/ZUMA Wire
May 27, 2016 - Havana, Cuba - JOSH BASILE gets help from local Cuban residents and his caregiver BABILA KINGSLEY NDASI as he is determined to get his 450 pound wheelchair up a steep flight of stairs at a cigar factory he wanted to visit. Navigating the trip in wheelchairs offered many challenges. 'The cigar factory, we were told it was wheelchair accessible. They had an elevator we had nothing to worry about. We arrive and the next thing you know there's five steps,'' says Josh. 'And about five Cuban men who were all watching immediately ran to the side to help support my wheelchair and to help balance me until we got the ramp reconnected at the top and they pushed me all the way up.
© Carol Guzy/zReportage.com/ZUMA Wire
May 27, 2016 - Havana, Cuba - COLIN BUCHANAN, 27 navigates the wheelchair challenges of Havana. On left is GABBY AHRENS and right is BABILA KINGSLEY NDASI, caregiver for Josh. Quadriplegic Josh Basile formed a non-profit called Determined2Heal and motivates others with spinal cord injuries using adaptive sports adventures to get out of their wheelchairs and ''live every breath,'' he declares. He organized a sail to Cuba from Key West, Florida in May 2016 on the only wheelchair accessible yacht in the world called the Impossible Dream.
© Carol Guzy/zReportage.com/ZUMA Wire
May 23, 2016 - Havana, Cuba - CAMILO MARTINEZ (right), Cuban paraplegic Casa owner welcomes JOSH BASILE (left) and the group who just arrived in Cuba after sailing on the yacht Impossible Dream. Camilo had a spinal cord injury from a car crash in 2000. At his hotel people are welcomed into a home, eat together and have a more personal experience. Camilo's is one of the few wheelchair accessible hotels with a ramp to the entrance, an 'elevator' to a rooftop bar and the only wheelchair accessible bathrooms they found anywhere in Cuba.
© Carol Guzy/zReportage.com/ZUMA Wire
May 23, 2016 - Havana, Cuba - GABBY AHRENS gives her boyfriend JOSH BASILE a kiss as his wheelchair is positioned to relieve pressure points as they visit one of Cuba's large tourist hotels. Quadriplegic Basile formed a non-profit called Determined2Heal and motivates others with spinal cord injuries using adaptive sports adventures to get out of their wheelchairs and ''live every breath,'' he declares. He organized a sail to Cuba from Key West, Florida in May 2016 on the only wheelchair accessible yacht in the world called the Impossible Dream, with two elevators and a wraparound ramp designed by a quadriplegic.
© Carol Guzy/zReportage.com/ZUMA Wire
May 23, 2016 - Havana, Cuba - JOSH BASILE, front, with COLIN BUCHANAN, GABBY AHRENS and ROBBY BECKMAN take a tour of Havana in a hot pink 1952 Chevy convertible. Josh said, 'Once again we had the sun on our face, the wind in our hair. This time it was a different vehicle, rather than a sailboat we were in a 1950's convertible. That's another cool way to cruise around town.
© Carol Guzy/zReportage.com/ZUMA Wire
May 24, 2016 - Havana, Cuba - JOSH BASILE, 30 (front L) leads friends COLIN BUCHANAN (right R) and ROBBY BECKMAN (R back) with his power wheelchair on the streets of Cuba. Josh said, 'Cuba came about really because I wanted to come up with an innovative way to change the way the world sees paralysis.' And I don't think there is a bigger stage right now than Cuba. Americans really are interested in hearing about what it's like down there and going down there in a wheelchair,' going down there in three wheelchairs - provides an opportunity to change the way the world sees paralysis. We can show what Cuba is like from a different perspective.'
© Carol Guzy/zReportage.com/ZUMA Wire
May 24, 2016 - Havana, Cuba - JOSH BASILE views a picture of Fidel Castro as the group visits one of Cuba's large tourist hotels. Quadriplegic Basile formed a non-profit called Determined2Heal and motivates others with spinal cord injuries using adaptive sports adventures to get out of their wheelchairs and ''live every breath,'' he declares. He organized a sail to Cuba from Key West, Florida in May 2016 on the only wheelchair accessible yacht in the world called the Impossible Dream.
© Carol Guzy/zReportage.com/ZUMA Wire
'You will never walk again,' says COLIN BUCHANAN, 27. He navigates the logistical challenges of old Havana as local Cuban girls stare at his wheelchair.
© Carol Guzy/zReportage.com/ZUMA Wire
'You will never walk again,' says COLIN BUCHANAN, 27. He navigates the logistical challenges of old Havana as local Cubans stare at his wheelchair. GABBY AHRENS accompanies him.
© Carol Guzy/zReportage.com/ZUMA Wire
May 26, 2016 - Havana, Cuba - ROBBY BECKMAN navigates the cobblestone streets of old Havana. Quadriplegic Josh Basile organized a sail to Cuba from Key West, Florida in May 2016 on the only wheelchair accessible yacht in the world called the Impossible Dream, with two elevators and a wraparound ramp designed by a quadriplegic.
© Carol Guzy/zReportage.com/ZUMA Wire
'You will never walk again. It's ninety percent mental to overcome,' says COLIN BUCHANAN, 27. He navigates the wheelchair challenges of old Havana as he visits a tourist shop to buy a hat.
© Carol Guzy/zReportage.com/ZUMA Wire
May 23, 2016 - Havana, Cuba - COLIN BUCHANAN takes pictures during their visit to the infamous Tropicana nightclub. 'The dancers at the Tropicana were colorful to say the least. They were dressed to impress. My goal was always to turn people's heads when we came down to Cuba, the Tropicana dancers definitely turned people's heads,' said Josh Basile.
© Carol Guzy/zReportage.com/ZUMA Wire
May 23, 2016 - Havana, Cuba - JOSH BASILE (left) has a handshake from a dancer as she stops by their table during a visit to the infamous Tropicana nightclub. 'It was definitely interesting having my girlfriend at the time next to me. I was like trying to look at Gabby and look at the dancer and say 'Am I allowed to be here?' But Gabby is a cool cat,'' says Josh. Quadriplegic Basile formed a non-profit called Determined2Heal and motivates others with spinal cord injuries using adaptive sports adventures to get out of their wheelchairs and ''live every breath,'' he declares. He organized a sail to Cuba from Key West, Florida in May 2016 on the only wheelchair accessible yacht in the world called the Impossible Dream, with two elevators and a wraparound ramp designed by a quadriplegic.
© Carol Guzy/zReportage.com/ZUMA Wire
May 26, 2016 - Havana, Cuba - On Calle Obispo in old Havana, ROBBY BECKMAN, left met an elderly man, MAXIMO ROGOBERTO ACOSTA OLIVERA in a battered wheelchair with a hat filled with a few coins but didn't appear to be begging. He was injured in a work accident. He admired their fancy wheelchairs and grasped the hands and legs of Robby, which were paralyzed for both of them. Robby said, It's all how you treat people also man. If you treat people with respect and a lot of people have good hearts, they want to help you. Somehow it's like karma, it's going to come back to you.''
© Carol Guzy/zReportage.com/ZUMA Wire
May 26, 2016 - Havana, Cuba - On Calle Obispo in old Havana, ROBBY BECKMAN, left met an elderly man, MAXIMO ROGOBERTO ACOSTA OLIVERA in a battered wheelchair with a hat filled with a few coins but didn't appear to be begging. He was injured in a work accident. He admired their fancy wheelchairs and grasped the hands and legs of Robby, which were paralyzed for both of them. Robby said, It's all how you treat people also man. If you treat people with respect and a lot of people have good hearts, they want to help you. Somehow it's like karma, it's going to come back to you.''
© Carol Guzy/zReportage.com/ZUMA Wire
May 23, 2016 - Havana, Cuba - ROBBY BECKMAN gets help with his transfer back to a wheelchair from BRUCE VARNES (left) and BABILA KINGSLEY NDASI (Josh's caregiver) as they arrive back at their Casa after a tour of Havana in a hot pink 1952 Chevy convertible. 'Robby was the first person with a spinal cord injury I saw smile. It was humbling. It gave me hope,' said Josh.
© Carol Guzy/zReportage.com/ZUMA Wire
May 24, 2016 - Havana, Cuba - ROBBY BECKMAN (front) 32, watches his shot during a game of adaptive slingshot golf with a pendulum-powered putter.
© Carol Guzy/zReportage.com/ZUMA Wire
May 25, 2016 - Havana, Cuba - ROBBY BECKMAN, 32, cools off with bag of ice after game of adaptive slingshot golf with a pendulum-powered putter (designed by Josh Basile). Robby broke his neck diving into water and now sailed to Cuba with friends he met initially in rehabilitation for their spinal cord injuries. The thermoregulation function is diminished at the point of a spinal cord injury. A body can't feel heat or cold beneath the injury. Robby bought spray bottles at Home Depot which relieved them from the intense heat in Cuba.
© Carol Guzy/zReportage.com/ZUMA Wire
May 24, 2016 - Havana, Cuba - JOSH BASILE, ROBBY BECKMAN, COLIN BUCHANAN and GABBY AHRENS tour Havana in an old convertible. Quadriplegic Basile organized a sail to Cuba from Key West, Florida in May 2016 on the only wheelchair accessible yacht in the world called the Impossible Dream, with two elevators and a wraparound ramp designed by a quadriplegic.
© Carol Guzy/zReportage.com/ZUMA Wire
May 26, 2016 - Havana, Cuba - A Cuban man struggles with the challenges of navigating sidewalks in Havana with potholes and cracks in a battered old wheelchair. He goes down a path next to the Casa of Camilo Martinez, a Cuban paraplegic hotel owner who hosted the group of Americans with spinal cord injuries that sailed to Cuba on the yacht Impossible Dream. Quadriplegic Josh Basile organized a sail to Cuba from Key West, Florida in May 2016 on the only wheelchair accessible yacht in the world called the Impossible Dream.
© Carol Guzy/zReportage.com/ZUMA Wire
