From the San Antonio Express-News

Web Posted: 10/01/2006 12:00 PM CDT

Wayne Genzer has participated in the MS 150 six times, but for the life of him he couldn't tell you what he's seen as he's pedaled from San Antonio to Corpus Christi.
That's because Genzer, 59, is legally blind.

Yet Genzer's disability hasn't stopped the former Valero refinery worker from riding with his former company's team. This year, for the third straight time, he'll be a stoker — powering along in the back seat on a tandem bike — with captain Albert Castaneda, 45.
Genzer began losing the sight in his right eye when he was 35, then started having trouble with his left eye in 1992. Several unsuccessful surgeries could not reverse the inevitable.

"After I first went blind, that was the hardest thing in my life," says Genzer, who also gets around with the help of his black Labrador retriever, Heidi. "I was devastated for over a year."

Genzer credits his faith, his family and cycling for pulling him through the low times. Talking to young people about blindness and supporting events like the MS 150 keep him motivated.

"If they find a cure for MS then I know I helped make a difference, even with my disability" he says.

Genzer used to enjoy commuting to work on his bike and organizing cycling outings with co-workers. He assumed that he would never ride again after he lost his eyesight.

So he was bowled over when his former co-workers pitched in and gave him a tandem bike in 1994.

"I broke down," he says. "It really meant a lot to me."

That was about three tandem bikes ago. Today, Genzer hits the road at least three times a week and trains on a stationary bike when he can't find a captain.

"I'm healthy, I just can't see," says Genzer. "I found that I could do whatever I wanted to do once I got the blindness taken care of."