[Home-on-the-range] Fwd: Checking In

[Cindy Ray]

I don't think my message ever got to hyou all. Sorry.

CL
Begin forwarded message:

> From: Cindy Ray <cindyray at gmail.com>
> Subject: Fwd: Checking In
> Date: March 4, 2014 9:27:41 AM CST
> To: MO Stanzel Susan - FSA Kansas City <susan.stanzel at kcc.usda.gov>
> 
> 
> 
> Begin forwarded message:
> 
>> From: Cindy Ray <cindyray at gmail.com>
>> Subject: Re: Checking In
>> Date: March 4, 2014 8:24:58 AM CST
>> Anchorage was truly interesting. First of all, I had flights both going there and returning that were pretty much on time and relatively painless. The trips from Minneapolis to Anchorage and back to Minneapolis from Anchorage were on really large planes. The one going there had two seats on either side and three down the middle. This was similar to my plane that took me to Guatemala. There were at least 44 rows. They sold food on there for exorbitant amounts of money; on the way back I would have bought some because of the time, but by the time they got to Row 43 they were out of food. REALLY?
>> 
>> I arrived in Anchorage on Sunday night. There were several others on that big plane who were also going to the hotel for Ski for Light. A Ski for Light volunteer met us and helped us all get the luggage. Then we went to our awaiting coach and headed for the hotel.
>> 
>> I had a roommate from Chicago. I liked her a lot, but she was a very quiet person. Hope I did not drive her crazy.
>> 
>> On Monday morning I went to Yoga and to stretch class. I have to say I have never been able to understand the positions in Yoga, and this was no exception. The stretch class was good though.
>> 
>> I felt overwhelmed by the noise and the crowd. I am not subjected much to noise now as I am mostly at home. I think I miss it, but when I get there, I kind of wonder. Those of us who arrived on Sunday night were asked to admit who we were on the microphone.
>> 
>> Each blind person there has a guide assigned; mine was a Seeing Eye instructor named Rivi Israel. Chris Matoon, son of the late Gary Matoon, was also present. We got the skis, poles, and boots, and prepared for the trip out to the ski area. When we got there, we dawned our skis and practiced gliding and a few other little things on the carpet in the lodge. After lunch it was out to the snow. I couldn't imagine the point of those tall poles and they seemed in the way, and the skis were so long I felt a little like a truck. They tried to teach us a thing called the half snow plow. This is a technique to help you stop if you are careening down a slope and need to do that. You take your heel out of the track and turn your foot onto the inside edge. I never got proficient at doing it this year.
>> 
>> They have tracks that the snow has been groomed to create. Each ski fits into one of those. Then you ski along, learning to do turns and the like. The guide goes behind or along side and lets you know if there are any obstacles coming up, but the obstacles are at a minimum. 
>> 
>> Ski for Light is a program based on a similar program in Norway, and a number of Norwegians attend and help with it. The program has been in existence here since 1975. There were people from France, England, Scotland, I think maybe New Zealand, and others. Actually, I need to look at the list again so that I can tell you accurately.
>> 
>> Monday night at the dinner all of the guides and the "worker bees" were introduced. Besides the guides, there are people who are there who help with set up of things, who walk dogs if you bring your dog, and a myriad of other things. There were 25 people with dogs there. I did not take Fisher because I felt that if he was going to be missing me all day long, he might as well be among friends. I told this to Chris Matoon, and he said he liked how I think. <Grin>
>> 
>> Tuesday in the morning we worked on that snow plow thing again. NOPE! Not working, but I did get pretty good at the herring bone. You have your ski tails together and your toes out like a V, which helps you to climb the hills. The poles were still an issue.
>> 
>> In the afternoon I was working on just gliding and swinging the right hand with the left foot and visa versa. Who does that often with either a dog or a cane in hand? It reminded me of patting your head and rubbing your tummy. Then this man from Norway suggested that I work on the diagonal stride, which is to push with the right pole and glide with the left foot, and then repeat the performance on the other side. I began doing this and was able finally to achieve that rhythm. The guy said, "Oh my god, that's beautiful!" I kept working to perfect that and did a lot of skiing, trying to get comfortable.
>> 
>> There were two fundraisers there. The first was a raffle to get a place as an iditerider with a musher whom SFL was supporting, the second was money to support some guys running for the reindeer during the ceremonial start of Iditerod 42 on Saturday. They were running in speedos. Whatever. Anyway, I bought two of those tickets. There was also a silent auction with some really nice stuff, but I didn't bid on any. If I got it, I wasn't sure exactly where to expect to pack it. 
>> 
>> One night we had a singer song writer and story teller. His name was Hobo Jim, and I think his real name might be Jim Linear. He was really very good. I didn't think I would like his music; I did. 
>> 
>> The weather was warm, really warm. All from Iowa and Minnesota said we had come up there to warm up, and it was true. Thursday it became clear that we were in trouble where snow was concerned. On Friday there was a five K rally, as well as a ten K race planned, but they were both cancelled because of not enough snow and unsafe conditions. So we heard all of the national anthems and had lunch; then we went back to the hotel where several things had been planned as a Plan B event. I went on a walking tour. I had not planned to be in the race, but after I fell on my back on Thursday, I figured that was the end of my skiing for this year.
>> 
>> Friday night was Norway Night, and they had some music and talks from folk from Norway. It was pretty nice, but the sound system was such that they were hard to understand.
>> 
>> Thursday night I elected to go on the sleigh ride. It was horse drawn and seemed like a plan, and there was a bonfire at the site. Well, I don't think it was as good as advertised. It took half an hour to get there, you were on the sleigh 15 minutes tops, and then you hung out around the fire until all had had their ride; then we piled back on the bus for 30 minutes of returning to the hotel. There should have been a plan for around the fire. I couldn't feel that fire because it was down an ice hill from me, and my back and hip were not of a mind to fall again.
>> 
>> Saturday was the ceremonial start of Iditarod 42, The Last Great Race On Earth. We went out to see it, and there was quite a crowd there. Rivi and a guy named Dan took us under the ropes into the street. They had to bring in snow for the event. We wanted to pet a sled dog. The guards weren't pleased, but Rivi explained to them how it was that we wanted to pet a dog. We did and looked at the sled. The sled  seemed pretty light weight. The dogs we petted were thin but plenty muscular, and they were smaller than expected. The musher explained that they were Alaskan Huskies, which is a smaller breed than Siberian Huskies. We went back onto the walk then. The lady guard was not as gentle as the man guard, and it was silly because we were already on our way out of the street. It was exciting hearing all of those dogs barking and yelping; they were jumping in the air, too, just dying to get out on the road. It kind of reminded me of the first few days at The Seeing Eye when we are going out with those new and eager dogs. We went closer to the starting line and heard the mushers introduced with their team and their background. Our musher was 47, and a woman from New Jersey had earned the ride with him. 
>> 
>> Saturday night was the banquet. We all got a bronze medal for having come and worked together at the SFL Event.
>> 
>> There are a few people who come who are mobility impaired for other reasons than blindness, though I do think they have to be visually impaired, too. They have a sit ski for them that is like a lawn chair close to the ground and on skis. I think it takes a lot of upper body power to use the poles to move those. It seems there was another ski for this purpose, too, but I don't remember what it was like. I didn't get to see the sit ski and really wanted to.
>> 
>> This organization is really and truly amazing. They have a large number of volunteers; each person has his or her own guide for the period. If you start to withdraw, hey check up on you. They can be a little patronizing, but as is true in so many instances, it is a curious mix of that and can-do. I was disappointed with my failure to get further than I did, but maybe that's foolishness. I had never even seen skis before I went. Rivi kept saying I had made awesome progress; I, of course, did not feel that I had, but it was fun. I'd love to have more experience with skiing before I determine if I am just a work in progress or if I, in fact, will never be a skier. LOL.
>> 
>> Cindy
>> 
>> On Mar 4, 2014, at 7:45 AM, Chuck Hallenbeck <chuckh at ftml.net> wrote:
>> 
>>> Hi Cindy,
>>> 
>>> I've been thinking about you, I forgot how long your trip would be. Welcome
>>> back.
>>> 
>>> I'm sorry to say I have abandoned my iPhone in favor of a simple
>>> old-fashioned landline, at half the price. My sister Kathy was in the
>>> market to upgrade her iPhone 4 tol a 5, and bought it from me. She paid the
>>> premature termination fee from Verizon Wireless for me, which was $310, so
>>> it worked out well for everyone.
>>> 
>>> Tell me about Anchorage. I can live it up vicariously.
>>> 
>>> Chuck
>>> 
>>> 
>>> -- 
>>> 
>>> Chuck in Ghent, northeast of Hudson on the Hudson.
>>> 
>> 
> 

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