Episode Details

Rob Balucas is an ‘every-man joe’ who was thrust into extraordinary circumstances in 2015 when a cycling accident rendered him paraplegic. At the time he was training for his first half IRONMAN triathlon the very next weekend. He vowed to return and raced in 3 sprint-distance triathlons as a paratriathlete that following year.

Since then he’s competed in 6 half IRONMANs, including the 2019 half IRONMAN World Championships in France. After qualifying, but delayed by 2 years of COVID, his next goal is to cross the finish line at triathlon’s biggest stage – the Kona (full) IRONMAN World Championship – this coming October 2022. Outside of paratriathlon, Rob resides in Southern California with his partner, Erika, and their dog Chloe. He is founder and Chief Creative Catalyst at babaLucas Creative, serving the branding and online marketing needs of small businesses and nonprofits.

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Those who face the greatest adversity tell the most enlightening stories. Hall of Fame Paralympic athlete, the first “nearly unassisted” paraplegic to summit Mt Kilimanjaro and the founder of One Revolution Foundation Chris Waddell chats with members of the adaptive community regarding some of life’s most enduring questions: am I a victim or a survivor, is the situation overwhelming or a challenge, am I alone or part of a team and do I have one strategy or many? One Revolution’s Nametags Educational Program provides a jumping off point for people who live a life of courage, fulfillment and purpose that defies many.

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Rob was born in Fresno, California, but raised in Seattle, Washington. He earned his black belt in karate at the age of 14 and came through a challenging childhood. He attended Pepperdine University and currently owns a creative boutique agency. In his early 30’s he began training for triathlons in the bay area. One afternoon while training, he crashed cycling on a notorious curve and broke his spinal cord. He quickly figured out how to continue his love for triathlons as a paraplegic.

Listen to his amazing story in the latest Sports Saved My Life episode.

Professional Paraplegic athlete Rob Balucas talks about his accident and the extraordinary experience he endured after that. Rob shares tips and tricks for others who endure life struggles. He speaks about the power of not only working out our muscles, but working out our minds, tips for motivation, how to conquer self-doubt, the importance of movement, overcoming injuries, THE BEST mental health tips, and tells us how interesting his workouts are now. Rob has many exciting stories for us within this video!

More at Mind’s n’ Motion YouTube channel!

Sometimes a person’s biggest trauma is not the obvious one. Through his personal story, average triathlete turned paratriathlete Rob Balucas shows us how we can learn from our existential crises and take those life skills with us into the inevitable next round of challenge and adversity. Paralyzed in a 2015 bike accident while training for a Half IRONMAN triathlon, Rob has come back to compete in five Half IRONMANs to date, including the 2019 half IRONMAN World Championships in Nice, France. Rob Balucas is an ‘every-man joe’ who was thrust into extraordinary circumstances in 2015 when a cycling accident rendered him paraplegic. At the time he was training for his first half IRONMAN triathlon, which was supposed to take place the very next weekend. He vowed to return to triathlon within a year and raced in 3 sprint-distance triathlons the next year after his injury.

Since then he’s competed in 5 half IRONMANs, including the 2019 half IRONMAN World Championships in Nice, France. His next goal is to qualify again for the Kona (full) IRONMAN World Championship and race in triathlon’s biggest stage as a paratriathlete.
Outside of paratriathlon, Rob resides in Southern California with his partner, Erika, and their dog Chloe. He is a small business owner at babaLucas Creative, serving the branding, marketing, and website needs of small businesses and non-profits. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx