• Article Photo. Although legally blind, Bobby McMullen is a champion bicycle racer. He shared his story in Vinton.
    Although legally blind, Bobby McMullen is a champion bicycle racer. He shared his story in Vinton.

"There is a lot of life to be lived," legally blind bicyclist Bobby McMullen told the parents of visually impaired students Saturday. "We need to move beyond being seen with a cane and a dog."

McMullen was the main speaker at the Iowa Braille School Spring Conference, where the theme was "Re-create the Future," focusing on ways that those with visual impairments or total blindness can remain physically active.

Although he did not bring his bike, McMullen spent the weekend in Vinton, in sessions with the blind students as well as the Saturday morning session with their parents. 

He told them about his own life, and how he uses a guide rider to help him navigate a variety of bicycle race courses. 

As he lost is vision as a child he said, be began to try to find ways to "continue to live my life as before."

It's a process of trial and error, finding what works and what does not. Also very important, he said, is making sure that families of visually impaired students have the right resources to help their children find the opportunities that are best for them.

Even though he is nearly 50, and living with his fiance, McMullen said his parents are still concerned about him.

"My parents still flinch when I fall," he told the parents gathered in the IBSSS auditorium. 

McMullen urged parents to push their children forward, while still offering open arms for when they fail.

The cyclist also shared some humorous insights into relationships. He said he had given up on love until his fiancee found him through his work with the blind. The couple has been together three years now. He said his sighted fiancee still is surprised when his disability makes her late, and is often shocked at how messy the house is when she returns home. Yet, he said, the couple can laugh about the challenges they face together. 

"You have to laugh at yourself," he said. 

In addition to meeting the cyclist, the participants also watched the documentary about his life, entitled, "The Way Bobby Sees It."