Adaptive Snow Skiing

Hello Everyone,

On January 18th, 2011 three members of the Northwest Indiana Spinal Cord Injury Group participated in the Adaptive Ski and Ride Program at Wilmot Mountain. The pictures can be found here.

Anyone interested in participating in future skiing outings please read the email below and contact Diana Helt (dhelt@ric.org) and Angela Allen (angela@adaptiveadventures.org ). Let me know if you get scheduled, because the NWI SCI Group would like to pay for your lift ticket to help facilitate your adaptive skiing experience.



My Skiing Experience...

I had never been skiing before this trip, and I was definitely nervous going into it. The organizers and the volunteers really instill confidence though and make you feel as comfortable as possible. We started out getting basic instruction on the equipment and getting fitted into our skis in the warmth of the lodge. Once secure, we headed just outside the door to get back into the skis on the snow. That's where you get more instruction on turning, stopping, and getting on the lift. Turning the mono-ski was surprisingly easy. After getting acquainted with the skis, Joel said our group looked balanced, stable, comfortable, and confident... and if we felt that way we should start skiing. We skipped the "bunny hill" and went straight to the ski lift to hit the slopes. They stop the lift to help you get on the lift chair with your instructor/volunteer and may or may not stop at the top to let you off. You are on the seat, in your ski, and clipped to the lift the whole way up. Once you're on top, it's time to go down the hill. It was an amazing experience! I couldn't even tell that my instructor was right behind me holding on to the straps the whole way down the first couple of times.We probably got to take 4 or 5 runs before it was time to go. I have to say that it was one of the more exciting, exhilarating, and awesomely terrifying experiences I've had in a long time. I will go again!

If anyone else cares to write about their skiing or any other experience I would love to post it on this blogsite.

Joe White

Goodbye 2010, Hello 2011!

Hello Everyone,

2010 seemed like a busy year for some, if not most of us. We have a couple of new college graduates, some of us took adaptive sailing lessons, some of us have a new pool, and still others have started playing sled hockey. If you have learned something new or picked up a new hobby or sport that you'd like to share with everyone, let me know. I'd love to send an email out and post about it on nwiscig.blogspot.com. We had a great turnout for the Spinal Cord Injury Walk this year as well. Just over 120 people were in attendance raising over $6000. We donated $2000 of it to Unite 2 Fight Paralysis, and $2000 to research facility committed to curing paralysis

It seems that we've lost a couple of group members and their families to the beautiful Denver Colorado area. I can't wait to go visit. The up side to wheelchair friends moving across the country is that you know you have a wheelchair accessible place to visit when you get a chance. Or at least one can hold out hope for that being the case.

For those of you who are sticking it out in Northwest Indiana, we are planning to stay just as busy in the upcoming year. We should be able to look forward to local kayak/canoe outings along with the possibility of more adaptive sailing, adaptive scuba diving, adaptive water skiing, and handcycle rides. If you have any other ideas, let me know. We are open to suggestions.

These are the tentative dates for the NWI SCI Group meeting for the rest of the year. We will try to send out a reminder email every couple of weeks. If anyone wishes to receive any other form of reminder let us know how we can accommodate you.

Sunday, February 6,2011

Sunday, March 6, 2011
Sunday, April 3, 2011

Sunday, May 1, 2011
Sunday, June 5, 2011

Sunday, July 10, 2011*
Sunday, August 7, 2011

Sunday, September 11, 2011*
Sunday, October 2, 2011

Sunday, November 6, 2011
Sunday, December 4, 2011

*Denotes 2nd Sunday of the month due to holiday weekend.

Check back to see what's going on and what's gone on...

Joe White