I just attended an adaptive sports expo put on by Loretta Cohen at the YMCA in West Chester, Pennsylvania. I met Loretta while skiing for the second time. She told me that I should attend her expo. I promised I would and I did. I feel very inspired by the whole thing. I prepared a special audio presentation which contains a bunch of the demonstrations and the main presentation. I hope you enjoy.

Adaptive sports refer to sports modified for those with special needs. This includes those blind like me, as well as those in wheelchairs or with artificial limbs, anything special like that. I pretty much specialize in my own disability, so it felt interesting to see others with issues I had never considered. They had wheelchair basketball and hockey, and even ballroom dancing. They had demonstrations of swimming, kayaking, and even scuba. In the room where I spent the most time, they had golf and the thing I came to see, karate.

I went with my Mom, who also has an interest in such things. We met Loretta, who recognized me immediately as her skiing buddy. She signed us in and told us about the different programs. We walked around, and quickly found the golf and karate room.

As soon as I entered, Ken greeted me: “Oh! My favorite disability to work with!” He greeted all of those interested with similar enthusiasm. He got right down to business. I like that.

I took karate as a kid, and some of it sort of came back to me. He jingled some keys to give me an audio cue, and had me block his hand. Next, he showed me how to use my other hand to engage their wrist to enter grappling mode. He then began showing me how to use my cane as a weapon. I have a graphite cane, a very light material, which I prefer. You can use anything as a weapon. This would become an amazing reoccurring theme. The whole time he showed me things, he also demonstrated to his assistant Chris. This guy really took a beating throughout the day.

We explored a few more uses of the cane. First he demonstrated using it to restrain. Then you can do lots of cool things, such as squeezing their throat. Next, he showed how to use it to strike. This does two things. It inflicts damage of course, but it also conveys information. The position of the strike on the cane tells the location of the attacker. Mobility skills transfer perfectly here, using the same skills one would ordinarily use for navigation. Cool class!

He then had to work with an amputee. he would take a different approach for each person, since every disability has unique challenges, and each person has unique needs. For this guy, he said that he would not have a challenge, since he ambulates well, and that they would concentrate on balance. He said to assume that he would end up on the ground, and to use that to his advantage. “Every able-bodied person will have to bend over to beat you up.” Man cannot fight if man cannot stand.

A girl came up to me, who introduced herself as Laura, a volunteer. Ken then came back to me and reinforced using the cane as a weapon. “If someone gets you on the ground, you start poking them with your cane. In their ribs, in their throat, in their head. These things will make people want to run away. Does this make sense?” “Yes.” “I can’t hear you!” “YEAH!” He demonstrated a few things on Chris. This included a clap to the ear, which would make someone deaf.

Next, one of his younger students came in, a girl probably around twelve or so in a wheelchair. “Chris, would you mind attacking her as you see fit?” SHe has a white belt, don’t worry. She successfully defended herself using some chops. “Hit him with the wheelchair.” encouraged Ken. He then showed me a move where you curl your fingers back and strike someone under the nose with the heel of your hand. Badass! “Ooh! Ooh! Ooh! Claw the eyes out! Good girl.” It felt inspiring to see a white belt girl in a wheelchair defending herself, even in a controlled setting. “It’s cool to use whatever accessories you have.” I said. “Exactly. They are part of you.” said Ken.

Laura told me that they also had golfing in this room, so we decided to check it out. I played some golf as a kid as well, but neither of us knew enough to really do anything. Laura plays Rugby. “I could put a golf club in your hand, but I don’t even know how to size it up or anything.” she said. “I don’t even know what that means, so I guess we’re in the same boat. I guess we’ll both learn.” We would have a presentation in five minutes, so the golf instructor didn’t have much time. He referred me to the Middle Atlantic Blind Golf Association. I had heard about them. Maybe this year I’ll check them out. We had to go to go see ballroom dancing in wheelchairs.

We headed over to the gym and waited for the event to start. Mom and I talked about the karate demonstration. I asked her what belt I had, and she said she remembers a yellow belt in the wash. She also said the little girl student looked so cute, and about the same height as when I did karate. We discussed the range of disabilities. Mom saw a lot of wheelchairs and amputees. “You know the guy you were talking to about golf? No legs.” I found it interesting that since I can’t see the other people, I don’t know what disability they have. I wouldn’t have known. Mom reminded me of our trip to the Apple store, where I had a salesman with a prosthetic arm. Laura found me and helped me fill out a survey. Interested in golf and karate and skiing (which ironically they didn’t list) in the afternoon or evening.

Loretta came on and gave a speech thanking everyone and introducing the demonstrations to follow. Ken came up with his faithful assistant Chris. “All I have to say is that a lot of people believe or want to believe that people with disabilities are helpless and great targets, I am here to prove to you today that we are not.” He shut off the mic and began some thumping moves. At one point, he threw Chris to the ground with such a strong grip on his pants, that they ripped. The recording even picked it up! Everyone laughed. Poor guy, but you must admit, it would distract an attacker! After Chris got thrown to the hard gymnasium floor a few times, I think Mom started feeling a little freaked out. I assured her that black belts learn how to take falls. Chris progressed to using a stick, a knife, and with a final warning from Ken not to try this at home, a toy gun. Ken disarmed Chris each time. Everyone applauded, and gave another round for Chris.

Next, they brought up American Dance Wheels, who adapt the sport of dancing to those in wheelchairs. “Ken isn’t always a killer, he’s sometimes a lover.” He would later explain to me that a lot of the same moves he uses in martial arts he also uses in dancing – an interesting duality. I know nothing about dancing. I wondered if learning it would make me more of a gentleman or something. After Ken danced to oldies, the cute karate girl from earlier came up and danced to modern pop music. The instructor showed how dance steps map to the wheels on a wheelchair.

After that, Loretta introduced Scott Brown who demonstrated swimming. He works with the Pennsylvania Center for Adaptive Sports, the same group who has the skiing program. He wanted to do SCUBA too. I would have liked to see that, but unfortunately when we found the pool it had a sign warning us NO STREET SHOES. He also does rowing, a five-time world champion who competed in the para-olympics. He gave an inspirational speech. He didn’t do sports until after his accident, where they became a method of recovery. It got him up and doing things again. He calls adaptive sports the rehab after rehab. This makes good sense. They can only go so far in rehab organizations, then you have to go from there.

Loretta closed by thanking her sponsor, and said to get out and try something! That sounded good so we headed back to the karate room for more action. I saw Laura again, and asked her for the contact info for karate. This didn’t seem apparent, but then she spotted some surprisingly high quality promotional key rings with the name and number. Open Hands Karate. Ken and Chris came back in and we talked about his class. They don’t usually train disabled students separately, which I found interesting. I got private lessons when I took karate as a kid. I needed them. Ken asked about my interests. I mentioned this blog and this article and the fact that I want to start a business to help people with special needs use technology. I excitedly brought out my iPhone and showed him my home screen. Ken said this technology makes him feel more inclusive of people. “There’s a place for me now and in the future. I hate to think of it like this, but a hundred years ago I would have been allowed to die.” “And now we can do more.” I completed the thought. He wondered what we missed out on a hundred years ago. “There’s no telling what’s going to happen next. That’s why I am so excited about it.”

A girl came in, and authoritatively said she came here for martial arts. She introduced herself as Erin, and I learned through Ken’s questioning that she uses a wheelchair due to arthritis. Again, I would never have known, since I couldn’t see her. “We’re not going to worry about what you can’t do, we’re just going to find out what you can.” Ken assured her.

Ken included me by showing me moves, then having her follow me. “Power chairs are fun to maneuver.” she said cheerfully. So now we had a karate instructor in a wheelchair demonstrating moves to a blind person to show to another student in a wheelchair as well. This felt great. He also made comments to Chris about adapting karate to someone in a wheelchair. I always felt impressed how he would adapt the art to the person’s unique disability. He showed us upper, middle, and lower blocks. With me, he showed me my cane’s potential, and with Erin he showed her how her wheelchair acts as armor and can inflict damage. He said she should consider these things when getting her next chair. She said she also plays power hockey. He then showed me how to use my cane as an extension of my arm. This turns blocks into ranged strikes!

He made fun of able-bodies who say that someone with a disability couldn’t learn martial arts. The discussion doesn’t get very far talking to a black belt in a wheelchair. It reminds me of when sighted people complain that they can’t watch a movie because of how it looks. That excuse won’t go very far with me. Now go watch Pi already! “I an Rabbi Cohen. Cohen, like you.”

Ken then asked Erin where she lives. She said past Medford, which I presumed contained Medford Lake. I fell into Medford Lake when my family lived there for a short time. While in a canoe, my Dad thought his four-year-old blind son should feel a lilly pad. He leaned WAY over to try to retrieve one. You can take it from there. Erin came quite a ways just to find out about any adaptive karate in her area. Chris knew of someone, and I wish her the best.

Next, another girl in a wheelchair came in. She has cerebral palsy. He showed her the same thing he showed Erin: if someone messes with you, run their butt over! After dealing with her, he told us three good rules to keep in mind. Man can’t fight if man can’t stand. “We make a liar out of that.” he said to Erin. Man can’t fight if man can’t see. “You make a liar out of that one, but able-bodies believe it.” he said to me. Then, a universal one: Man can’t fight if man can’t breathe. Hit his throat. Cup his nose and mouth. He’ll want to get away from you real quick. Or run them over with a chair or hit them with a stick. Sounds right for me.

He does not advocate this as a philosophy for life, rather a philosophy for making sure his life extends. “Creating the ability to turn on the attitude of being aggressive, and understanding and saying to yourself: I have the right to be, I have the right to my space, and I have the right to live a nice easy life, and you shouldn’t interfere with that. And I have those beliefs in spades.” I pointed out how a lot of this stuff seemed very simple. I know it takes complexity and training, but he knew what I meant. The body can only move in a certain number of ways.

Erin asked him about his specific disability. He said he had polio in 1958. He remembers the night he got interested in martial arts. It happened on the first Friday in September 1966, the night the Green Hornet first aired, and the night he first saw Bruce Lee. It took him twenty-two years to find the right teacher. It took him seven years for him to get a black belt. Now he teaches others.

Another woman named Chris came in, also an amputee, and she also had a cane. We back into some cane combat. I asked if I should buy a heavier cane, and he said that he liked my cane. I have a folding cane, with four segments held together by an elastic band. He demonstrated how to hit someone, then while they recover, pull the cane apart and use the elastic band to choke them. Yes! Her cane has a hook on it, as walking canes do, and he showed her how to take advantage of that. Canes make good weapons, with metal harder than bone. “You don’t want to go to the door of success, you want to go through the door of success.”

After a few more demonstrations the time came to leave. I felt great about the whole thing. We said our good byes, and I went home. I’ve since learned that Loretta will conduct one of these expos on the second Sunday of each month. I have a feeling we will have more fun articles and presentations like this in the future. If you live in the Philadelphia suburbs, check this out! You won’t regret it, no matter your disability. Now I have to look into technology to help people in wheelchairs. I found these cool wheelchair mounts for the iPad, for example. It always feels illuminating to think about other disabilities. I also can’t escape the irony that I wouldn’t have known which disabilities others had because of my own disability. It really makes you think. Now get out and try something fun!

Last year, my family began doing something called Secret Santa, where everyone has to buy a random person a gift. This year, my brother got me an adaptive skiing lesson. I didn’t know if I would enjoy it, but went with a mixture of thankfulness for the gift, nervousness, and grudging acceptance. I feel glad I did. I loved it! Skiing rules!

My brother doesn’t exactly remember the sequence of events that led to us going, but as near as we can reconstruct things, he first called Jack Frost Big Boulder, and they had an adaptive program. It turned out they couldn’t book us, so he ended up talking ti Isabel, of the Pennsylvania Center for Adaptive Sports.. She told him of the skiing program at Camelback Mountain. It worked out for the best, because they had a great program, and we got in by chance on the last full weekend of the season.

I’ve had a lot going on, and didn’t know if I would enjoy skiing, but I pulled myself together and off we went – me, my brother, one of my sisters, and one of her friends. It took us around three hours to drive. By the time we got there, we felt hungry, so made the questionable decision to eat at Chilis. My brother described it as bad Mexican. I figured I could hopefully find something vegetarian, and ended up with a black bean burger, which I don’t want to speak ill of, but by the end of the meal I sort of felt that way. Still, at least I found something vegetarian. We paid rather more than we wanted, and didn’t really mind, until we stepped outside and saw our hotel right across the street!

A Safari-themed Howard Johnson’s in the Pocono’s seemed rather odd and out of place. It had a Safari-themed pool. Everyone else went in for a few minutes, but my stomach felt like a cement mixer and I wanted to get online. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get their network to work with my Linux setup, the DHCP IP Lease Attempt failed, and they only provided generic Windows instructions. They also used some sort of proxy, as the instructions said something about having to accept terms of service when you start browsing, which made me nervous, as it sounded a bit too much like Red China for my tastes. I took the time to relax and let my food digest. Later, we all hung out in the Serengeti themed bar, a fake canopy of leaves uneasily dipping under its own weight over our heads. We got to bed and the next day had breakfast in the restaurant, and didn’t feel as bad about eating at Chilis, as the quality seemed similar. We left for the mountain with weighted stomachs and no time to spare.

Before I continue, let me say for sighted readers that a blind person, if they have dealt with blind institutions and if they have developed discernment, do not necessarily equate volunteer instructors with altruism or infallibility. I could tell you some horrible stories I have heard or experienced, but I will save that for another day and purpose. I only wish to point out that when I dispense the compliments to follow, that I do it honestly and from the heart, having seen both sides of the coin.

We arrived at Camelback Resort, and made our way up a brutal hill. We went into the building to get our passes and rental tickets. We all preregistered, a good idea since it saves you time and gets you out skiing more quickly. I told the friendly assistant named Jason that the web site has an invalid SSL certificate which makes Firefox pop up a scary warning complete with a button which reads “Get Me Out of Here!” This could definitely cost them registrations. It freaked me out. To my pleasant surprise, he knew what I meant, and said he’d pass the word on to I.T.

After getting our tickets, we went over to the adaptive sports building. Everyone there acted very courteously, and I would consider them a joy to deal with. They promised that they would start with the basics, and only do what I felt comfortable doing, and they kept to that promise. At no time did I feel obligated or pushed, as I did when I had to go to a sports camp with Lyme disease and almost drowned in a pool. The fact that they work as volunteers, and that one only has to pay $42 for a lift ticket and lesson makes this an amazing opportunity to anyone with a disability. They help the blind, and people with restricted movement. I even saw a girl named Austin in a wheel chair going out for a nice skiing ride. You just can’t lose with these people!

As luck would have it, we picked a wonderful day with temperatures in the low 50s. They call it spring skiing for a reason. I brought a lot of warm clothes to prepare for feeling too cold. I didn’t realize I would have to prepare for feeling too warm,, but I did. I switched my down jacket with a lighter jacket which my brother let to me, and I Even removed my flannel shirt. I felt glad I did, but felt even more glad that I slipped my packet of Taza Chocolate into my pocket. I must have eaten a disc and a half during the whole trip. “Is that medication?” “No, it’s raw chocolate.” You had it right the first time!

I met my instructors, named Peter and Pat. Peter showed me my ski shoes, and how they work. I found it interesting how the boots have custom springs and fittings based on ones height, weight, and ability. They have an inner and an outer part, the inner part goes over your foot, and the outer part has clamps which function like shoelaces, and the outer part also connects onto the ski with a forceful click. The boots also have a safety lever so if the ski comes off, the lever digs into the snow. After I got on my boots, we headed outside, and my brother even got to come along, something he had wanted to do.

While talking about skiing, Peter said something noteworthy to the blind. He compared the feeling of skiing for the first time to the feeling a guide dog user has when using a dog for the first time. I’ve never had a guide dog and wouldn’t want one, but I’ve tried using them and know what he means. It feels like a sort of out of control running. You know the movement has a purpose, but can’t do much to control it. I’ve gone sighted guide with dog users, and they certainly clip along at a good pace, since they have oriented themselves, similarly to how a skier learns to regain their balance and orientation.

I first had to learn to walk in the boots. This requires shuffling toe-first somewhat roboticly. We walked to the top of the bunny hill, a small (in comparison to a mountain) hill for learning. We began by just putting on one ski, and having me move it back and forth to get its feel. I learned to feel my point of balance between heel and toe. After I became acclimated, we put on the other ski. Now I could learn to begin to move.

Peter and Pat showed me the basic skiing position – back straight, butt in, head slightly down, and knees flexed. At first, I did feel rather scared, as my skis slipped around. After coasting a little, they showed me how to stop, by pointing the skis inward in a wedge shape. Once we had the basics, Peter hooked a tether to my skis so he could help maneuver from behind, and Pat skied backwards in front of us, giving me audio queues. This system worked very well to get me started. I only fell once, and took it well. By the way, when you fall, you will not just get buried in snow, at least I didn’t. Getting up can seem a little awkward, but I did it.

After a few tries, I made it to the bottom of the hill without stopping. To get back up, you use a chair lift. A friend warned me to take care around them, and I saw why. A chair hangs by a cable, and a wheel turns the cable. The chair goes up and down the hill sans interruption, so you have to get on and get off very quickly. If you try too early, you fall and it can hit you. If you try too late, you can fall off and get hurt. Peter gave me a three count, and I sat on the chair as it rose up. I thought I would feel scared of the chair lift, but I came to love it and to consider it half the fun, almost like an amusement park ride outdoors. It has a bar which comes down to rest your skis and give your ankles some rest. At the top of the hill, the bar goes up and you unload and begin immediately moving, so the wedge comes in handy to slow down and stop. I fell the first time I tried it, but after a few times I did some good unloads.

At this point our lesson had ended, and as it had gotten to around noon, we all wanted lunch. Also, my brother received a text message from our sister which simply said “Done skiing” so we figured that we should check on her. My sister and her friend had gone off to do their own thing. Her friend took her to a black diamond trail, a very hard trail not for beginners. Her friend said “See you at the bottom” and left her to take off her skis and sadly walk down. We felt bad, and said she should join us. We made fun of her friend for the rest of the day, and things worked out.

We decided to go to one of the places they had for lunch. I enjoyed the eighties pop music playing throughout the resort. I considered it classic ski resort music. At one point, I even heard the song Once in a Lifetime, by the Talking Heads, while standing at the top of the hill waiting to go down. I’ve heard that song so many times in so many different circumstances, and it always seems just as fresh and relevant. Perfect! I also heard a bunch of old Genesis, and the Alan Parsons Project. I ended up with some cheese pizza, of which I could only eat half because any more would exceed my grease quota. We got fries, but all felt similarly apparently. I drank root beer the whole time. My instructors told me that they had a light afternoon, and to check back to see if we could get a second lesson. To our delight, we could, and did. It only cost another $20! Like I said, you just can’t lose with these people.

When we went back to the building, we found another delightful surprise in store for us. I heard people talking, and it turned out a reporter from The Pocono Record had come with a photographer. Of course I wanted to talk, I love telling reporters cool stories. We talked a little about my thoughts and feelings about the skiing program, and I enthusiastically told her how much I love skiing after trying it for the first time. The photographer took some pictures, and I hope they turned out well. They wrote an article about it. I love getting published!

The time had come for my second lesson. After skiing with a tether, I felt more confidant, and my instructors decided to try the next step. Instead of a rope tether, we would all hold onto a bamboo pole. Peter skied to my left, Pat to my right. We noticed that I would often move to the right, towards Pat, and that I didn’t have an awareness of the correct place to put my hands on the pole. Peter had some wire ties, and I had my Swiss Army knife, and soon we had a prototype. “I like a guy who carries a Swiss Army knife.” They also put a bungee cord on my skis, to give me a little more control, but to still help guide me. I needed to focus on keeping my right knee in especially when turning. Using the pole and bungee gave a new experience, as I had more freedom. I had to do more, but I also enjoyed it more, as my skis didn’t feel as restricted.

After making it down the hill a number of more times with increasing confidence and ability, the time had come for a real test. At the end of the hill, it would slope less, becoming almost flat. They had me ski unassisted. At first, I felt a loss of control and cursed, so they gave me back the pole, but a few seconds later I went for it and let go! I skied freely! Both instructors remained at my side in case of emergencies, but I made it down. I felt great!

After that we decided to take a little break at the lodge, since I still had time. My knees had started to hurt, and Peter said that I should have fun on my first day, and to only do what felt comfortable. We all met up at the lodge for $3 water and more root beer for me. We all talked, and I felt glad to take the break, so I could do the final runs feeling better.

For my final runs, we went back to using the bamboo pole. The second to last one went well. We skied down, and Pat and I took the lift up. For our final run, both instructors kept their mouths shut, letting me call the turns. I began to really enjoy it, sort of “seeing” or sensing the mountain’s contours through the skis. This went pretty well until something insane happened. A snowboarder for some reason could not figure out that he had to get out of the way of three people skiing in parallel all wearing bright orange vests saying “Blind Skier” and “Instructor”. We swerved. Pat whipped the pole out of Peter’s hands and I went with it, staying on my feet. We went around a half circle and came to a stop. We collected ourselves and finished my last run. I continued without queues, but they took over as we got to the bottom. What a way to finish.

I felt sad to have taken my last run, but exhilarated from the day as we went back to the adaptive sports building. We all talked and said our thanks and good byes. They said they love turning new people on to skiing, so I made their day, and that brings me joy. It will also bring me joy if this article turns some others onto skiing, especially the disabled. I will definitely go back next year. I felt sad that I discovered skiing on the last weekend of the season, but very glad that I discovered it at all. . Today completely changed my view of skiing and my life. The fact that it costs forty-two dollars should mean something to any Douglas Adams fan. You should really give skiing a try. I just hope I feel that way tomorrow. When I let my mind wander, I can still feel a sense of motion. If I get into the skiing stance, I can almost feel the long skis protruding.

My instructors both said that I did very well to ski for four hours on my first day, and said that I have high endurance. I credit that to meditating regularly. Pat mentioned a book called Inner Skiing. While reflecting (or perhaps self-reflecting), I began thinking about skiing metaphorically. It makes a good mirror for life. You stand before a big hill. You suddenly find yourself sliding down. You have to react, and go with the terrain, but ultimately remain passive, and do whatever you can to prevent yourself from falling. You finally reach the bottom, and collect yourself. You go over to the chair lift, go on a somewhat giddy and wild free-falling ride upward to start the whole cycle again. After it all, you end up with only your joy and your pain and a tattered lift ticket. This applies to the stock market as well. Skiing rules.

If anyone involved has any corrections or additions, please submit them in the comments below, or mail me privately. Thanks everyone for participating. Thanks Ari for the awesome Christmas gift. I had no idea how much I would love it. They have lots of fun programs, so it will give us an excuse to do cool stuff together and to get out of working. At the end, Pat said: “You’re a good brother.”

     51.  Chen / The Arousing (Shock, Thunder)

          -- --
          -- --     above     Chen   The Arousing, Thunder
          -----
          -- --
          -- --     below     Chen   The Arousing, Thunder
          -----

     The Judgement

          Shock brings success.
          Shock comes-oh, oh!
          Laughing words-ha, ha!
          The shock terrifies for a hundred miles,
          And he does not let fall the sacrificial spoon and chalice.

     The Image

          Thunder repeated: the image of Shock.
          Thus in fear and trembling
          The superior man sets his life in order
          And examines himself.

     The Lines

     ()   Nine at the beginning means:
          Shock comes-oh, oh!
          Then follow laughing words-ha, ha!
          Good fortune.

          Nine in the fourth place means:
          Shock is mired.

     2.   K'un / The Receptive

          -- --
          -- --     above     K'un   The Receptive, Earth
          -- --
          -- --
          -- --     below     K'un   The Receptive, Earth
          -- --

     The Judgement

          The Receptive brings about sublime success,
          Furthering through the perseverance of a mare.
          If the superior man undertakes something and tries to lead,
          He goes astray;
          But if he follows, he finds guidance.
          It is favorable to find friends in the west and south,
          To forego friends in the east and north.
          Quiet perseverance brings good fortune.

     The Image

          The earth's condition is receptive devotion.
          Thus the superior man who has breadth of character
          Carries the outer world.