13 Years after a profoundly life altering accident, Aaron Baker lives a life that few medical professionals would ever have believed possible. In 13 years Aaron has progressed – with the help of loving family and his ‘F1 Team’ – beyond normality, to a place where achieving the seemingly impossible is something he does on a fairly regular basis. In a developed world that pulls us every second of the day in a thousand different directions, Aaron’s focus and determination to be all he can serves, perhaps, as a valuable lesson in how not to allow oneself to be boxed in by the world around you.

Encompass also caters for more traditional commercial needs that do not necessarily include outdoor sports or adventure. OnWatch is a phone app. that is designed to help keep young women safe in a campus environment, giving them ‘touch of a button’ access to their friends or the emergency services. With the help of Encompass Films, they launched the app. at the Whitehouse in April 2012.

Still in the midst of a revolution, the people of Egypt have attracted global attention by triggering what has come to be known as the Arab Spring. With all eyes on this ancient and changing country, Dominic Gill take his ‘no doors, no windows’ concept of ‘Take A Seat’ to the heart of the revolution, Tahrir Square. A 4000km journey, temperatures of up to 50 degrees celsius in the desert, and a spare back seat on a tandem bicycle in a country famous for the Pharaohs, the Promised Land and the Nile. But today, what best represents Egypt’s identity? With a small camera crew, Dominic plans to find out with the help of 7 different Egyptian companions leading him through the tourist hotspots, the back of beyond, and everything in-between.

British Adventurer Dominic Gill Embarks On A Unique Cross-Country Cycling Journey

Series will Premiere Back-to-Back Episodes Beginning Monday, April 4, 2011 at 8:00 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. ET/PT

Los Angeles, CA—March 28, 2011 – Universal Sports is excited to announce its groundbreaking new original adventure series, “Take a Seat: Sharing a Ride across America”, premiering with back-to-back episodes on Monday, April 4, at 8:00 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. ET/PT. From the Santa Monica Pier in California through Yellowstone Park in Wyoming, across the Badlands in South Dakota and arriving in Central Park in New York, “Take a Seat” – the network’s first-ever original series – will take viewers on a powerful and inspiring cycling voyage across America.

“Take a Seat” is a 10-episode docu-series featuring British adventurer Dominic Gill’s journey across the United States on a tandem bicycle with the help of 10 companions, all of whom suffer from a different physical disability. In each episode, Gill will bring viewers into the lives of these inspirational riders and their everyday struggles with disabilities that include muscular dystrophy, multiple sclerosis and Parkinson’s disease. Full episodes will be available on Universal Sports’ website as they premiere.

“As Universal Sports looks to add more adventure programming into our lineup, ‘Take a Seat’ is an important first step in this journey,” said David Michaels, Executive Producer of Universal Sports. “It is a powerful series that combines adventure and inspiration. Each of the companions has an incredible story to tell and watching the evolution of each story provides a compelling tale of making the impossible seem possible.”

“Partnering with Universal Sports has given me an amazing opportunity to share this journey and the experiences of those who took a seat on my bicycle,” said Gill. “As an adventurer, I was excited for the challenge of cycling across the United States, but to be able to do it while helping others overcome adversities and break boundaries is an honor. I just provided the seat; Ernie and each of my companions provided the inspiration.”

Gill originally developed the series as a tribute to Ernie Greenwald, a 70-year-old man from Lompoc, California battling chronic lymphocytic leukemia, whose lifelong dream was to cycle across the country.  Gill met Greenwald on a cycling expedition in 2006 and was moved by his passion to live an adventurous life despite his physical condition. Greenwald was supposed to ride in the passenger seat of Gill’s tandem bicycle on the cross-country tour, but had to cancel the trip in early 2010 when he discovered that his cancer had spread.

Determined to keep the trip alive, Gill divided the journey into 10 stages and searched for physically disabled companions who shared Greenwald’s passion for adventure and life. Each companion assumed anywhere from a one- to 25-day segment of the 104-day trek, during which over 4,000 miles were covered. “Huckleberry”, Gill’s unique tandem bicycle named after Greenwald’s dog, was donated by Hase, a German manufacturer, and designed with a recumbent front seat and secondary free-wheel mechanism that allows for weak or disabled individuals to endure long distances.

Full episodes will be available on Universal Sports’ website as they premiere. For bios, photos, complete viewing schedule or to find out more about “Take a Seat: Sharing a Ride Across America”, please check out www.universalsports.com/take-a-seat.

ABOUT UNIVERSAL SPORTS:
Universal Sports, a partnership between NBC Sports and InterMedia Partners, LP, is the premier multi-platform media destination for Olympic-related sports programming in the United States.  Universal Sports is available in 52 markets nationwide, including all of the nation’s top 10 media markets and 20 of the top 25.  Major world championship sports events aired on Universal Sports include track and field, skiing, swimming, gymnastics, marathons, figure skating, cycling and rugby.  The network’s website, UniversalSports.com, delivers an immersive user experience via live and on-demand competition coverage, interaction with top athletes through interviews and blogs and in-depth access to Olympic sports news and information year-round.  For more information, please visit UniversalSports.com.

Media Contacts

Kevin Endsley
818-661-4188
kendsley@universalsports.com

In the first film of its kind Dominic Gill rides a tandem bicycle alone from the top of Alaska to the Bottom of Argentina welcoming random strangers to get on the back and help him pedal south. Filmed over 2 years and 15 countries was a daunting task of filming an Amazing Race like adventure in the style of Survivorman. Manning the camera solely himself, Dominic was able to successfully document his journey. Scottish Television joined Dominic in finishing his feature length documentary which was distributed on ITV in the UK, BBC Asia, and ABC Australia. Take A Seat was awarded Special Jury Prize at the Banff Mountain Film Festival and circulated in over 400 cities world wide.

The second in a series of films by Dominic Gill, Take A Seat Sharing a Ride Across America demonstrates his proven platform of using tandem bicycles as a way to include people who would otherwise be able to in the sort of once-in-a-lifetime adventure rarely undertaken.  In this particular series Dominic takes 10 persons with varying physical disabilities on specially designed recumbent tandem bicycle in a relay across the United States. Gill’s documentary style is shot with two JVCCHM100 HD cameras, one stationed on the bicycle itself.  This program focuses on authenticity not only through the directors commitment to completing the journey as if it was not even being filmed but also through turning the camera on the crew itself to demonstrate the difference between those in the support role and those participating in the adventure itself.

Filmed summer/fall 2010 and airing on Universal Sports April 4th, 2011

Post Apartheid South Africa is not without its problems, one of which is the lack of a black social middle class. The Kay Mason Foundation is remedying this one student at a time, sponsoring exceptional individuals from Cape Town’s townships and allowing them to attend schools that will allow them to excel.