The Revelstoke Adaptive Sports program is set for an official launch, with a day of events scheduled at Revelstoke Mountain Resort on Saturday, January 4.
“Essentially we offer alpine ski and snowboard lessons and Nordic lessons to people with physical and mental disabilities,” said Ron Glave, who is the president of the Revelstoke Adaptive Sports.
The program was started in 2012 through a partnership between the Revelstoke Rotary Club and the Live It! Love It! Foundation and other volunteers. Earlier this year, Glave took the lead in getting things going.
“My motivation is I want to make sure our bounty of adventure sports is available to everyone, regardless of your limitations,” he said.
With that in mind, Revelstoke Adaptive Sports offers a variety of winter sports programs in connection with Revelstoke Mountain Resort and the Revelstoke Nordic Ski Club.
Last winter, several volunteers took a weekend course to become certified adaptive skiing instructors. They are now able to offer lessons to people with developmental and cognitive disabilities like autism, Down syndrome, cerebral palsy, and more; and physically disabled skiers, including paraplegics, people with a missing leg, and the blind.
“We can work with physical disabilities, single track, three track, sit ski,” said Glave.
Revelstoke Adaptive Sports had some equipment donated by other adaptive sports programs and they currently have several sit-skis available and other equipment for people to use.
The aim is to provide lessons to disabled people so they can then progress on their own.
“If we were to run a lesson today, I would meet and greet the guest, assess their needs, what their attentions are,” said Glave. “All our lessons are geared towards skill development. Part one is sharing that outdoor experience but the underlying intent is to share a skill they can develop and go along that line.”
On Saturday, Jan. 4, the volunteers will be at the base of Revelstoke Mountain Resort to provide a demonstration of the program. They will be offering the opportunity for people to try out the equipment at the Turtle Creek beginner area. At lunch time, they will shift the demonstration to the mid-mountain area and there are also events planned for in town.
Right now the focus is on winter sports but the goal is to also provide summer sports opportunities like four-wheel mountain biking, kayaking, or paragliding.
You can learn more at the Revelstoke Adaptive Sports Facebook page or on their website.