[CT-NFB] Today’s Question

Esther elevegnale at sbcglobal.net
Fri Aug 28 22:26:03 UTC 2020


I also like walking on the beach especially in the warm sand and bare  feet. I also love to hear the waves whether they are rough or quiet. Esther

Sent From Esther's Amazing and Awesome iPhone 7+!

> On Aug 28, 2020, at 4:28 PM, torow <setorow at optonline.net> wrote:
> 
>  Esther, 
> i really enjoyed your account of sking. i am no athletic, but i liked your story. my favorite in the summer is walking, especially near the beach. 
> Eileen Torow 
> 
>>>> On August 28, 2020 at 7:09 AM Esther via CT-NFB <ct-nfb at nfbnet.org> wrote: 
>>>> 
>>>> Hi, folks!
>>>> 
>>>> My favorite sports are snow-shoeing, tandem-biking and hiking.  I belong to an organization called Ski for Light, International, and they have many regional groups throughout the country.  I belong to two of the regionals--the New England Regional Ski for Light, which I joined in 1993,  and the Northeast Pennsylvania Regional Ski for Light which I joined in 1995.
>>>> 
>>>> I first got introduced to cross-country skiing way  back in the late 1980s when my Dad read an article in the newspaper about a particular ski shop that was advertising cross-country ski rentals with lessons.  I told him that I was interested, so we went to the shop and rented a pair of skis along with the ski poles and boots.  These pieces of equipment are measured according to height and weight.  The class consisted of about eight people and, of course, I was the only blind person in the group.  Apparently, the instructor thought that my Dad was going to stay and help me, but when he said "See Ya!  Have a great lesson," I wished I could have seen the expression on the instructor's face!  He was probably wondering, "How the hell am I going to teach HER!"  He first taught the sighted people, then he took me aside and showed me what to do.  He was very surprised to learn how quickly I picked it up and I told him that I was having a lot of fun.
>>>> 
>>>> I continued to take more lessons and at the end of all the sessions, I bought my equipment and thanked him profusely for taking me on.
>>>> 
>>>> My aunt and uncle lived in Bethlehem, CT, which is very countrified.  My parents drove me there, and I had a blast skiing on their property.  I skied quite a bit that winter.
>>>> 
>>>> When I turned in my skies for the season, the proprietor of the store was really happy about my skiing abilities and he told me about International Ski for Light.
>>>> 
>>>> I would like to tell you how Ski for Light originated.  A group of blind and sighted skiers from Norway decided to form an organization for blind and disabled cross country skiers, and in turn, they brought the concept of the organization to the United States.  Ski for Light's headquarters is in Minneapolis, Minnesota.  At the International and the regionals, they pair sighted guides with us and now, many of the regionals allow snow-shoeing as well, which I also learned.  As I mentioned, there were people with other disabilities, with many of them in wheelchairs.  What they did for them was to have them in what was called a sit ski.  The person sat in a chair-like device and they pushed themselves along with very short poles.  I tried it once and it was pretty hard for me because I didn't have the upper body strength that was needed to push the sit ski, but to experience this was quite remarkable.  Both cross country skiing and snow shoeing are very strenuous activities, and they both can be very challenging.  I learned how to snowplow down hills and it takes strong ankles to keep your skies apart.  When one snow-plows, the skis need to be put into a print A-shape, which is skiing down a hill on the sides of the skis, with the tips almost touching, while climbing back up a hill is in a V-shape, which is called a herring-bone position.  The front of the skis are pointing outward while  climbing.  It takes a while to learn both of these techniques, but after a while, both became very easy for me.  It takes a while before the ankles become strong to hold both of these positions.
>>>> 
>>>> I skied at quite a few Internationals, both in  Colorado and once in South Dakota.  When we were in South Dakota, there were days when we couldn't ski because of the temperatures being at  about minus-50 so we did some activities inside until the weather improved.  Toward the end of the week, the temperatures warmed up considerably.
>>>> 
>>>> When we would hike in the summer up in the Green Mountains of New Hampshire, in my younger days of hiking, we climbed small mountains which was a lot of fun.  However, there were many rocks and roots we had to step over and we used walking sticks which were a great help.  Now that I'm 75, I still enjoy hiking immensely but I cover more ground when we walk on the road in New Hampshire.  The road hike is about 8 miles long and I was able to do this at quite a clip, except when the rocks and roots loomed before us!    I do enjoy just listening to the quiet as well.  We would stop and listen to birds and the rustling of tree leaves.  
>>>> 
>>>> I sincerely enjoyed telling all of you about my outdoor activities and sincerely hope that you can also experience the peace, the noise, the crunching of the snow, etc.  I would be willing to give any of you contact information should you desire this.
>>>> 
>>>> The NFB has done wonders for me throughout the years and I enjoy being a part of the Waterbury Chapter, and enjoy attending board meetings and state conventions.  It will be interesting to see how the virtual one will be handled.  If we are home, perhaps my cockatiel, Tippy, could also become a member!  Chirp, chirp!  He is 15 years old and really cute and adorable.
>>>> 
>>>> Anyway, everyone, thanks for reading my tirade and I really enjoyed imparting my story to you!  After all, aren't all of us changing what it means to be blind?  You bet we are!!  Take care and enjoy the rest of your summer!
>>>> 
>>>> Esther Levegnale,
>>>> Vice-President,
>>>> Waterbury Chapter NFB
>>>> 
>>>> Sent From Esther's Amazing and Awesome iPhone 7+!
>>>> 
>>>> On Aug 27, 2020, at 10:52 AM, Brianna Rigsbee via CT-NFB <ct-nfb at nfbnet.org> wrote: 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> Hi everyone!
>>>> Happy Thursday. For today’s thought provoking  question... Have you ever played any adaptive sports? And if so, which is your favorite? If you haven’t, what would you want to try first?
>>>> Best,
>>>> Bri
>>>> 
>>>> Brianna Rigsbee
>>>> First Vice President | Connecticut Association of Blind Students, A proud division of the National Federation of the Blind of Connecticut
>>>> http://www.nfbct.org/ct-chapters/connecticut-association-of-blind-students
>>>> bri.rigsbee96 at gmail.com
>>>> (203) 751-0199
>>>> "You can't fly unless you let yourself fall."
>>>> "You can live the life you want; blindness is not what holds you back."
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>>  
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> 
>  
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