WESTLOCK – One of the benefits of living in Canada in the wintertime is the sports — whether you play hockey, snowmobile, or ski and snowboard, there’s always something to do in the outdoors.
Tawatinaw Valley, a ski hill in the northern part of Westlock County, took a big step towards increasing accessibility this year; the hill’s Canadian Adaptive Snowsports (CADS) club took on its first student, 13-year-old Jayda Wang.
“There’s a hardcore group of volunteers that’s been working to get this off the ground,” said instructor Brad Giroux. “Everyone’s been touched by somebody with a disability, either in our extended family or individuals themselves who are volunteering, and we all feel strongly that this is something we need to do. It opens up the sport of skiing to people with disabilities.”
CADS helps individuals with visual, physical and cognitive impairments, as well as autism spectrum disorder (ASD), take part in sports that have traditionally been difficult to access. Instructors must re-learn how to teach their respective sports — Jayda took ski lessons, but CADS covers snowboarding as well — to accommodate the varied individuals they’ll be working with. Some athletes require specialized equipment to accommodate a physical disability, while others may require a different learning style or a more direct touch.
Jayda has non-verbal ASD and doesn’t communicate in more than a couple words at a time. Instead, instructors rely on body language and facial expressions to gauge how things are going.
“She’s doing really well; she likes to ski really fast. She doesn’t like to turn very much,” said Giroux with a laugh. “It’s been a lot of fun and really enriching to work with her, I got to work all three Sundays with her this year. For our program, this is a great way to start … this is going to be a springboard for next season for us.”
Tawatinaw isn’t the only party that benefits — Jayda’s mother Qinghua said the lessons have done wonders for her daughter’s confidence and ambition.
“We feel so happy, in the short term she’s experienced this excitement and it’s calming, but in the long term she’ll feel like she’s able to do things, and she’ll boost her confidence and improve her life quality,” said Qinghua.
Finding recreational opportunities for a child with a disability can be difficult. Jayda has done other sports, including swimming, skating and snowboarding, but she requires fulltime assistance and spots fill up quickly. Neither of her parents can ski, so program’s like Tawatinaw’s are the only way for her to get out onto the slopes.
“She’s definitely improving her ambition, she was just (on the bunny hill) and now she’s pointing (to the T-bar), she’s always looking to do more,” said Qinghua during her daughter’s lesson. “Because we haven’t had any exposure to skiing before, she didn’t know. This way she can broaden her field.”
Tawatinaw will be hosting its annual slide and ride March 3. With the help of volunteers from CADS, the ski hill will be able to offer a scaled down version of Jayda’s experience to participants for the day.
“We’re always looking for volunteers, and we’re always looking for donations,” said Giroux, who said the club was operating on the $293 they had raised earlier this year. “We’re making sure that we’re ready for this, and we’re ready for the commitment, which we are.”
