[Sportsandrec] Great Story

[Shara Winton]

----- Original Message ----- 
From: <jody at thewhitehats.com>
To: "'Sports and Recreation for the Blind Discussion List'" 
<sportsandrec at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Thursday, July 12, 2012 10:08 AM
Subject: [Sportsandrec] Great Story


> Forwarding:
>
>
> Blind Ambition: One Man's Story of Triumph in the Midst of Tragedy
>
> July 10, 2012
>
> Most of us will never complete a triathlon. Even thinking about it can 
> make
> your muscles hurt. But a Tallahassee man began taking that challenge in
> stride only after losing something most of us can't imagine living 
> without.
>
> "The day after Christmas in the middle of the night while my father and I
> were asleep my step mother shot my father and I with a 38 caliber 
> revolver.
> I was shot in the head," said Bigoney.
>
> Those gunshots took his dad's life, and Dave's sight.
>
> "I'd never done anything without seeing so it was frustrating," said
> Bigoney.
>
> He was 23 at the time.
>
> He'd served four years in the Navy and had always been an athlete.
>
> Gradually he learned how to do the things he loved, without seeing.
>
> Four years after what could've been nothing more than tragedy, he 
> completed
> his first triathlon.
>
> The Tallahassee man trains multiple days a week.
>
thanks for sharing. Great story!> Some days, he's in his home office running 
on a treadmill.
>
> Most other days, he's training outside with his sighted guide, Jamie 
> Hanuka.
>
> Race regulations say Hanuka is a piece of equipment for the blind athlete.
>
> They both say that couldn't be further from the truth.
>
> "If I don't have a guide that can stay with me or has a problem," said
> Bigoney, "I can't get across the finish line. And my guide really isn't
> allowed to cross the finish line without me."
>
> "Triathlon is a sport where even though you're racing around a bunch of
> people, you're still racing by yourself for yourself," said Hanuka. "But
> working with Dave has really done a great job of taking me outside of 
> myself
> and working with someone else."
>
> So how does a blind man run on the street or in groups?
>
> He stay tethered to his guide.
>
> A rope is tied around Dave's waist and Jamie holds the other end in his
> hand.
>
> That way Dave can never stray too far away and he always knows when he's
> getting too close.
>
> The same is true for swimming.
>
> When they cycle, they ride a tandem bike.
>
> "Dave is a consummate jokester," said Hanuka.
>
> We saw plenty of that during our time with him. Dave will sing at a 
> moment's
> notice and hop on his son's small bike.
>
> "But when it comes to the things he's passionate about, he's very serious
> and very focused," continued Hanuka.
>
> One of his passions is Team Vision. It's a seemingly ironic name for the
> foundation Dave started to help the visually impaired stay active.
>
> "No pun intended, but it's really opened my eyes to a whole different
> world," said Bigoney. "It's allowed me the opportunity to change lives."
>
> "Just because someone looks at a person and thinks they aren't whole 
> doesn't
> mean they can't accomplish things," said Hanuka.
>
> That's the message this duo has been peddling, that even without sight, 
> you
> can still have vision.
>
>
>
> http://www.wctv.tv/home/headlines/Blind_Ambition_One_Mans_Story_of_Triumph_i
> n_the_Midst_of_Tragedy_161982385.html
>
>
>
>
>
>
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