Hi.

I'm Eric Ford for made here in the film Not Afraid to fall director to Haney.

Jardine profiles New Hampshire's Brian Hall, who's been struggling with Parkinson's disease since 1976.

Brian keeps a positive outlook through mountain biking, and he keeps his spirit alive by pushing himself beyond the limits.

With the sport, including racing up mount Washington, you can watch Not Afraid to Fall and other great made here films streaming on our website and through the PBS app.

Enjoy the film and thanks for watching.

Yeah, that's.

You don't want to be viewed as different.

Well, it's not the disease that cripples is, but it's the perception of who you are and what the disease is doing to you.

They can be further than the disease ever could.

I'm flogged in a store like a flounder.

And he goes, girl, I love you.

So yeah, well.

Bye bye.

Who's who's why.

I can see in the eyes , dude you cant even walk.

Oh, what's the heck are you doing?

You're looking for a boy for you pulled me out a bike, mum.

and ride around the store, it was just as amazing.

He was.

You know what it seemed like to me, right?

It seemed like that day opened the door.

No, not meaning the door in the store, but a door in life.

I think you.

The sense of freedom immediately came over me.

It was amazing.

The sense of being physically free in a way.

I can't be on anything else in this world right now, the way I am physically today.

the body is a miracle, I have more in my life.

So I bought the bike.

Is there is there any scientific explanation or a connection to the fact that he can cycle?

Well, if you see a patient with Parkinson's, they sit there rigidly and don't move, but you toss a ball, boom.

Spatial catch it.

But if you say well im going to toss you a ball and catch it doesn't happen.

It's a reflex movement.

I don't know why it happens.

I do not know.

And I want to be here in front of the camera telling you I don't know.

So in the absence of knowledge, I can throw thoughts around patients with advanced Parkinson's disease once they are into a rhythm that is so characteristic of biking and they are locked not into the power that they are getting out of the bike, but the rhythm that they are getting with the bike that the symptoms actually alleviate.

You get someone with Parkinson's disease, they look almost paralyzed, and yet once they get moving, they don't stop.

We're doing a study right now.

A clinical trial right now with cycling, where we're putting a bike in a patient's home for a year, and we're looking at their exercise behavior, try to do high intensity exercise.

And we're looking at how does that slow the progression.

You're right.

This is a progressive neurologic disease.

So generally people are going to decline in function.

And what we found was the pattern of activation between after they did exercise and when they were on medication was almost identical.

So it's very clear that exercise is certainly medicine for Parkinson's.

And based on changes in the brain, it looks like it will change progression or could potentially slow progression.

Good morning.

It is October.

At the meeting.

Friday, 2007.

This is Brian Hall and I'm on my way to the Holy Family Hospital.

I have a deep brain stimulation operation.

Doctor Chris Cook is to say how long the surgery will last.

I can find out for you.

Thank you.

Hey.

Surgical daycare.

Pre-op?

Yes.

So, when you're ready, getting ready for surgery and these details, you know that we're going to do the procedure is done in different stages.

Yeah.

Sex change operation.

This is the man.

This is Doctor Cook.

It's the salmon here for brain surgery.

I think we're coming.

It was a ten hour surgery.

Whose?

Pretty big ordeal.

We are trying to adjust or modulate the activity of a tiny little spot, in one of the parts of the brain that is involved in the control of movement.

You can think of it like a pacemaker that goes into the la la la la la la I it does hurt, but.

I've done for so much, so long.

My knees are calloused.

It's almost like elephant knees from kneeling.

At its.

You know, he was struggling with Parkinson's, but he still.

He came out just about every day.

And it was sort of.

His thing is kind of escape is his way to keep going in spite of all the challenges of Parkinson's.

And as we always do, we always tend to hire our best customers.

We hired him as a Ranger or the course ambassador.

He goes around and make sure the pace of play is good.

He helps customers, you know, find their way or, you know, he hands out apples in the fall to everybody.

He hands out Starburst to the kids.

He'll take pictures at family reunions, you know, out on the golf course.

And he makes the connection with the customers like nobody else ever has.

Every little interaction is meaningful.

And he cares.

And he, you know.

So I guess that's, something I find extra special.

You know that, Brian is a serious musician, too.

I just always blown away by that, too.

And he's got a great voice.

You.

I give my heart to you.

I couldn't have my love for me.

Opened my world just for you.

The minute you asked me to.

Have had everything.

Everything you said you'd want.

And now my heart is breaking.

You left me in the dark.

You feel you have confusion in your mind.

It's clear to me I need to step aside.

Come time.

Time will tell me it's meant to be.

Only time will tell.

But, rhymes.

It's okay.

I don't, I just don't want to lose the last thing I, Love my last name.

I give up tennis.

Sports.

I just can't lose music.

It was weird.

I think this might be a strange analogy.

I use music as a Band-Aid for a long time to heal my broken soul.

Mountain Biking?

Is that mountain biking is.

A bug that keeps my soul.

Healthy.

Brian.

Maybe 12.

13 years ago.

He came on.

My boat is crew sailing.

And first I thought I was helping this guy out, but as it's turned out, in life, he's helped me so much.

And, yeah, you've helped me so much in terms of perspective.

And also, you said once that I don't look at things the way they appear to be.

I look at things the way they are, meaning that this guy's dealt with some of the ego things, and he deals in Peter Griffin, my friend, sail with and ride with me when I got the okay to do the race.

Peter very close.

I said peter call him up on the phone.

Guess what?

They just approved to do the race.

He got so quiet.

He's like.

I said, peter, you all right?

He goes, I'm concerned.

I wouldn't do it if I were you, Brian.

So.

Why do you say that?

War.

Why do you feel that way?

Because you're never going to make it.

And, you know, I, I took what he said is love and support and concern for me, so.

But I made me laugh I peter that's not my goal to make it.

My goal is to participate.

My name is Joe Thumb Oliver.

I'm the event's coordinator for Tin Mountain Conservation Center.

Can you explain to me when Brian went up, like in 2018, what what challenge was he facing?

I'll try to do my best.

I mean, the race is 7.6 miles up.

It is, by many measures, the steepest hill climb, if not North America of the world.

Overall, we're looking at an average grade of 12%.

After you've done like 7.5 miles, you end at 22%.

Oh, the wall.

The first third of the race is the steepest third a lot of people will, like, completely burn out, and then they're running off of complete fumes.

This is the human crucible of all events.

You're exposed to wind.

The average wind speed of top is 35 miles an hour.

That means average.

Not too rare to get blown off a bike.

Goodbye.

So visibility is a possibility.

Drizzle.

Rain.

Wind.

We only have so many matches to burn mentally, you're going to start to hallucinate if your blood sugar isn't right.

If your hydration isn't right, you're screwed.

You can go to Europe if you want.

You're not going to get the weather.

You're going to get here.

I'll put it up against anything.

Yeah.

This mountain, our mountain is the true testament of the cycling.

Well, got this.

You got, you got, you got a brother.

You got the right.

Come on, Brian.

I.

Is determination to live with this disease and to have a life long, afterwards, I think was very amazing.

And he really missed what he did.

And the way he did.

It may not apply to anybody else.

It's the fact that he did it that's important.

There's one thing I could share with people about my story is never give up, never quit.

And there are things we can all do to empower ourselves to change, empower our lives to be better and more productive and happier.

That's everything.

Hopefully.

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