Faith's Adaptive Skiing Adventure

I am usually all for Faith trying something new. Years ago, though, I drew the line at adaptive skiing. I knew that Dreams in Motion does an annual event at Huff Hills (North Dakota's largest ski area), but I was too afraid to let Faith try it. I just didn't know how she would do being strapped down so tightly, especially with her high tone and issues with her left hip. 

At her day program, some of her friends had been going for years and Faith thought it sounded like so much fun. So, this year, I decided we should give it a try. Since there are only 20 spots available for this event, I got her registered the morning it opened up. 

Lots of fresh powder at Huff Hills 

As the event drew near, I knew I needed to get snow pants for her (since she had none) and make sure I had all the right winter apparel to keep her warm. That was also one of my biggest concerns is her getting too cold, which can cause her tone to increase even more. 

As the day approached, she was getting more excited and I was getting more anxious. Especially after finding out that she was actually going to be on the ski lift! But the weather concerned me as well, as the high temperature for the day was only 18 degrees. 

Another reason for my anxiety was that this was something totally new for me and for Faith. Neither of us had ever been to Huff Hills and neither of us had ever gone skiing. I just had no idea what to expect. And that's one reason I asked my sister to come along to help. And I'm so glad she did! 

The night before the event, we got about 5 inches of snow and there was a winter weather advisory in effect. I figured we would still be okay to go. Faith and I picked up Dawn and drove 27 miles south of Mandan to the ski area. I turned off the main road and then took a much smaller, narrower road leading to the lodge area. 

We eventually made it to the lodge, but it was a little precarious!

The road was icy, but we were doing just fine until I had to stop and let a car park. When I tried to go again, my tires could not get any traction. Besides not being able to go, I really had no idea where I was even going to park so that we could unload Faith. I didn't think I would be able to make it down to the base lodge, and if I did, I probably wouldn't make it back out. 

Dawn was patiently trying to talk me through getting up the hill. I tried to back up a bit and then go forward again, but instead of taking it slow and easy, I was trying to go too fast. I just couldn't get any traction. Thankfully, a couple behind me who had their daughter with them for the adaptive skiing event, offered to help me out. (This is why I often pray that God sends help if I ever find myself in a tough situation!) This couple truly was an answer to prayer. 

The dad (Jamie) was giving me tips on how to make it up the hill, but I asked if he just wanted to drive. He got into the driver's seat, and I when I got out, I discovered there were a couple more guys behind me on standby to help as well. He slowly made it up the hill and parked the van as best he could, although it wasn't really an optimum spot. It was the only place though that would allow us to unload Faith. 

He helped my sister and I get Faith down to the base lodge. Once we got down there, the first order of business was to find a helmet and goggles for Faith to wear. She normally doesn't like things on her head or face, but she also knew she had to wear them if she wanted to ski. She didn't protest at all! Nor did she protest when 2 strong guys lifted her out of her chair and put her into a sled and strapped her down the best they could. It took a little while to get everything situated, but she was so patient! 

Faith getting strapped into her sled 

Finally, she was ready to go, and Matt (her pusher and new best friend) took her over to the ski lift. They hooked the sled onto the lift and there she went, up, up and away! My heart was racing as I realized I could no longer see her and all I could do was wait for her to come skiing back down the hill. It was a long wait! 

Getting in line at the ski lift 

Then, all of the sudden, I saw a green sled coming down the hill. I knew it was her because of the white helmet she was wearing, and the brightly colored quilt on her lap. She came zooming down to the bottom and when she stopped, I asked how she liked it. She had a big smile on her face. I could tell she wanted to go again! And again! And again! 

After the fourth time, I knew she was getting cold and had to be getting hungry, so I told her that was probably the last time. Besides, there was another person who needed to use the sled she had been using. She reluctantly agreed to get back into her chair. We went inside the lodge to warm up, and I grabbed some food for us. 

Faith with one of the skiers 

As we were eating, I heard someone ask, "who drives the red van?" I braced myself for the news that someone might have hit my van. Instead, though, someone had tried to get around the van and ended up going down the embankment on the other side of the road. I found Jamie and explained what happened, so we went to assess the situation. 

The driver with the stuck vehicle told me I needed to move my van right away. He said to just drive it down to the lodge. Jamie stepped in and explained that it's an accessible van with front wheel drive only and it probably wouldn't make it back up. I said, "let's just load Faith up right now and we'll get out of the way." So, we went down to get Faith, loaded her up, and let them deal with the stuck vehicle. I felt terrible, but I knew it wasn't really my fault. 

Faith racing through the snow (someone captured this photo and video for me!)

Despite the crazy ending to our day, we really did have a lot of fun. The fresh white snow was so pretty but it was cold! At one point, I looked at the weather app, and it showed 16 degrees with a wind chill of 5 degrees. There was also snow still coming down. We haven't had a lot of snow this winter, so the 6 new inches of snow caused the ski area to be very busy.

Unfortunately, some of Faith's friends had canceled due to the weather so she was disappointed not to see them. She did make some new friends, though! And I am so thankful there were people there to help us in our time of need, and also that my sister could come along for added support. As a single mom, it's just hard sometimes to do these kinds of things by myself. (I jokingly called her my emotional support Dawn!)

Smiling but getting cold! 

Faith says skiing is her new favorite thing and she had a lot of fun in church yesterday telling people she went skiing and showing them a video of her going down the hill. They were all very impressed by her courage! She is already counting the days until she can go skiing again! 

I am so grateful for all the volunteers, not only from Dreams in Motion for organizing such a huge event but to all the skiers who readily lent a helping hand. It's a lot of work getting the participants in and out of their chairs, buckled into their sleds, taking them up the hill and getting them back safely down. All while trying to keep warm! It truly is a team effort, and such a wonderful one! 

On our way back home after our skiing adventure!