The experience of having attened the 1999 Winter Sports Clinic, is one that will
stay with me for a lifetime. I arived in Colorado with 6 other Vets, some of their spouses and two great gals from Albany VAMC; Michele and Nell as our coaches. The flight in was mundane until the hop from
Denver to Gunison. That leg of the trip was made by a commuter turboprop, and the Rockies unfolded below us and reached up under us, It was Magnificient!
We arrived in Gunison and proceded by van to the town of Crested Butte. The first sight of the mountain itself was breathtaking, much out of the ordinary
for a fella who was raised with the rolling majesty of the Adirondacks in his back pocket.
We settled into the Mariot at the foot of the mountain. It was
immediately apparent that this was going to be like nothing I had ever experienced before......
There were nearly 500 disabled vets from all over the United States there.
There was also a cadre of some 1200 volunteers that saw to our every need, from meals to ski instruction.
Every Vet there, male or female was handicapped either neurologically,
orthopedically or visually......All with one goal in mind.....To SKI that MOUNTAIN and learn a little bit more about just how far you can really go. As well as opening or extending
a new chapter in their lives.
Although disabled myself, It was inspiring for me to
see some of the more catastrophically disabled Vets accept the challenge of the mountain, and come down the slopes with a sense of
acomplishment that cannot be measured. It only served to encourage me that much more.
All in all, it was a week the likes of I will never see again. It is a gift to the first time participant
in this event.
OH YES.....I'm going BACK this March......
Wouldn't miss it for the world.
But I will always envy those that are there for their first shot at the Mountain.
Dave