Documentary about Canmore adaptive athlete Matt Hadley to premiere in Alberta

A mountain biker and trail builder in Canmore is featured in a new documentary that follows his journey of recovery and resilience.

The inspiring story about a well-known and respected member of Canmore’s mountain biking and trail building communities is coming to the big screen, with its Alberta premiere set for the Edmonton International Film Festival (EIFF) this weekend.

Trailblazing: The Matt Hadley Story tells a tale from tragedy to triumph as it follows Hadley, a former nationally ranked mountain biker, whose life was changed forever after a devastating accident left him an amputee in 2019.

“It had been a story I had wanted to tell for a while. When I had been in the hospital bed recovering from my accident I had been inspired by videos of athletes getting out there with amputations and it was something I wanted to share with others how I’d managed to overcome the disability and live life even with it,” he tells CTV News.

Hadley and his wife Catherine were hiking in the Moab region of Utah when he was struck by a basketball-size rock that dislodged off a 200-metre-high cliff above.

“My wife basically saved my life, rescued me, and called for help. From that I ended up losing my limb and had quite a long recovery process down in the states and in Alberta,” he said.

The film shares Hadley’s story of survival and recovery but also how he continues to push boundaries and redefine perceptions of adaptive athletes since returning to the trail after his accident.

“There were dark challenging moments there, just figuring out what I was capable of and how to do it and move past those challenges and figure out ways to get back to sport and just regular life,” he said. “People can overcome most anything in their life and persevere and there’s usually a way through friends, family, or community, or even technology now to get back out there and enjoy life and enjoy the outdoors.”

As a trail designer in Alberta, he has a hand in that.

Since his accident, his perspective has evolved to think of the needs of adaptive athletes, as well as the need to reduce risk on trails, including the recent redesigns of the Ha Ling Trail and Yamnuska in Canmore.

“There has been a number of projects where I’ve been able to bring that accessibility lens to it or even safety around rock fall when redesigning hiking trails,” he said. “I definitely consider a broader user group more and better understand them better and safety of what could go wrong.”

He said reliving his journey through the film was challenging but hopes it will help encourage others who may be facing adversity in their life.

“In its own way it also helped with the healing just to see it through and get it out in a different medium then just my head.”

The documentary was made by emerging Canmore filmmaker, Kim Logan who felt compelled to share Hadley’s story and legacy in the mountain community.

“I believe Trailblazing will not only resonate with the outdoor community and the accessibility focused community I believe it’s themes of overcoming adversity will appeal to anyone who has faced hardships in their life. I hope it will encourage audiences to rethink their limits and reimagine what’s possible.”

The film was chosen from more than 2,300 submissions to the EIFF and since its world premiere in May won a Golden Sheaf Award at the Yorkton Film Festival and was nominated for an Alberta Media Production Industries Association Rosie Award.

“It was an important story to tell because representation in the outdoors really matter and films like Trailblazing help change the narrative from pity and amazement to respect and representation.”

Trailblazing: The Matt Hadley Story screens on September 28 at the Edmonton International Film Festival.