It was a balmy day to start Kayla out on skis for the for the first time this season. We were a bit delayed due to her ankle injury, but she was just recently cleared by her orthopedic doctor to begin skiing. I got online and booked four lessons through Vermont Adaptive Ski and Sports, requesting her favorite instructor, Shasta!
Vermont Adaptive Ski program has to be the best adaptive program we have come across. They run programs at Bolton, Sugarbush, Killington, and Pico. All the instructors volunteer their time to help individuals with physical, cognitive, or emotional disabilities learn how to ski. The staff is patient, flexible, and extremely creative with adapting skiing so people with special needs can experience the joy of skiing. From the ease of signing up for lessons online, to confirmation of lessons and communication between the parent and the director, Olivia, it all runs so smoothly.
This is Kayla’s second year skiing at Sugarbush Resort. I cannot say enough positive things about Sugarbush. There are hundreds of cars arriving at Sugarbush in the morning. You are in a long line of cars trying to either park or drop kids off. The parking attendants direct traffic with ease and are so friendly. They have always allowed us to park at the children’s drop off center as it is much closer to the lodge than the handicap parking. The warm welcome from the parking attendants and the smiles and “good morning” from the guy directing us to the lodge, always gives us a warm, happy feeling to begin the day. And the gentlemen running the “magic carpet” lift line are always well prepared and patient while working the lift, especially when it comes to helping the adaptive skiers.
When Kayla skis, it is not only exhausting for her, but for me as well. It amazes me when I see parents that have two or three children under the age of 6 with helmets and boots on, carrying their own skis, with the children following behind like little ducks. Meanwhile, Kayla is barely making it up to the lodge with AFO’s on, pants, and a jacket. I am stuck carrying her boots, helmet, snowpants, mittens, neck-warmer, snacks, and of course, her skis. Finally we arrive at the lodge, plop down at the table, and get ready to begin the process of getting her ready to ski.
Twenty minutes later she’s all ready to go and then we wait for Shasta and another Vermont Adaptive Ski volunteer to show up. Kayla loves Shasta. Shasta does an amazing job at re-directing Kayla, coaxing her to try something different, and is able to push Kayla beyond her comfort zone. She is extremely patient, warm-hearted, and flexible. We have tried other instructors, but Kayla connects with Shasta.
Lessons are from 9:30-12:00, and we are lucky to get three runs in during the day. Between Kayla’s muscle fatigue, attention span, and consumption of snacks, there are a lot of breaks! Some weeks are better than others depending on her fatigue level. Today there was a combination of fatigue and anxiety because she was putting on skis for the first time this season. She had new skis, and Shasta tried to tether her skis. Shasta has tried several different strategies to see what is the most effective way to teach Kayla how to ski on her own. The tether was not a success. However, Kayla liked when Shasta skied backwards in front of her with the other instructor beside her.
Two runs later, Kayla was exhausted. As I walked back up the hill, I saw Kayla walking beside Shasta towards the Magic Carpet and all of sudden Kayla turns and heads back down to the lodge. I walked in and tried to coax Kayla out for one more run. But she was pretty resistant and not able to explain why she didn’t want to go out one more time. After a little bribery, I got her to head back out knowing that she only had one run left. She had a little meltdown on the carpet going up, but Shasta patiently calmed her down and got her prepped at the top of the hill to come down. And then she was off with Shasta in front of her, smiling on the way down. Shasta tried to divert her attention to another little course once she reached the bottom, but Kayla was finished. Kayla knew the deal; if she skied down once more, she got to go to the Skinny Pancake! She was inside the lodge, helmet off, mittens off, trying to get her ski boots off by the time Shasta and I walked in the lodge. Kayla’s day was done and she looked exhausted!
Thank you Sugarbush Resort for embracing such an incredible adaptive ski program and welcoming all skiers, especially those with special needs.