History of Wheelchair Softball in Colorado

Wheelchair softball in Colorado began in 1996 when the Wheaton brothers relocated from Minnesota to Denver and brought the exciting adaptive sport with them. With the help of Larry Sidebottom, Director of Recreation for the City of Lakewood and Artie Guerrero, then president of the Mountain States Chapter of the Paralyzed Veterans of America, an initial program was formed comprised of 27 wheelchair athletes. The immediate success and popularity of the program was evident in the enormous amount of media attention the program received it's first year. This momentum helped the organizers of the program network with the Colorado Rockies Baseball Club who ultimately helped fund the team to attend their first National tournament in Minneapolis, Minnesota.  The team shocked the nation finishing in 11th place in the country.

In 1997, the local PVA chapter took over the administration of the program and brought a total of three teams to the National tournament in Houston, Texas.  The Colorado teams finished in 8th, 11th and 12th place in the country. At one point, the program boasted a total of over 80 athletes who played on four separate teams in the state from Colorado Springs to Boulder.

In 1998, Colorado hosted the National Wheelchair Softball Tournament at Coors Field's parking complex featuring 16 teams from across the country. All four Colorado teams participated in this first-class tournament and Denver's own Blake Street Bombers finished an astounding 5th place in the country.

In 2002, the wheelchair softball program began to lose momentum due to scheduling conflicts, funding issues, weather and transportation problems. Consequently, that year Colorado failed to send a team to the National tournament. In 2003 however, the program refocused its attention to re-build a program and helped start to first-ever women's wheelchair softball team -the American Divas. The Divas created history as the first-ever women's team and finished 14th in the country at the 2003 National tournament in St. Paul, Minnesota.

In 2005, the program bounced back with the introduction of bi-weekly pick up games at Coors Field's parking lot which enabled men, women and children with disabilities to once again enjoy the exciting sport of wheelchair softball. Last July, two representatives from the Colorado Rockies wheelchair team participated in the first-ever Major League All-star game during MBL's Fan Fest in Detroit, Michigan. This August, Colorado will be sending two players to the National tournament in Columbus, Ohio and will complete with the Minnesota Twins wheelchair team.

Today, Colorado Wheelchair Softball is organized and partly funded through Colorado Wheelchair Sport Club. 2006 promises to be a productive year for the Colorado Wheelchair Softball program as funding opportunities are becoming more available, a new field is being built and women, children and men with disabilities are coming out of the woodwork to once again play the exciting sport of wheelchair softball.

Team's Histories

Colorado Rockies Wheelchair Softball Teams
American Divas Wheelchair Softball Team
Blake Street Bombers Wheelchair Softball Team
Boulder Brewers Wheelchair Softball Team
Colorado Spring Wildcats Wheelchair Softball Team