FREEDOM ON THE SLOPES95-96 Season Log

I love the feeling of freedom I get on the slopes!

Here are a few places that I have been to that offer adaptive skiing lessons.

Disabled Ski Program
c/o Eastern Prof. Ski Instructors Assn.
Educational Foundation
1-A Lincoln Ave.
Albany, NY 12205-4907

1-26-95 My 1st. trip.
SKI WINDHAM, NY
(518)734-4300
You will find a very good program at Windham. They have an exceptional staff of volunteer, adaptive certified, instructors and they have a nice assortment of adaptive equipment. I had three personal instructors with me the whole day and rental and lift was $45.00, It's now $50.00 Can't beat it. Lots of fun. I used a Mogul Master monoski and found it comfortable. This was my first time on a monoski and I would say Windham is the place to be for your first time out. Call early in the season to book dates!!

2-10-95 2nd trip.
JACK FROST, PA.
(717)-443-8425
The program at Jack Frost is new and small, however the quality is excellent. I had the most fun here. You have one instructor so you are more on your own, not to imply that he lets you go down the mountain by yourself. We did self loading on the lift and worked on side sliding. That was my 2nd time on the monoski. I used a Shadow monoski and I liked it better then the Mogul Master.

2-16-95 3rd trip.
Hunter Mountain, NY.
(518)-263-4223
This program needs a lot of help. I thought I was going to die. The instructor has no clue about what it takes to be an adaptive certified instructor. He never even sat in a monoski. Oh but he can tell you how to ski the FALL LINE... Hello!! What a GEEK! I used a Shadow this time also. It's a good thing I watched how the Shadow was setup the last time I used one. This Clueless Bone Head didn't know the first thing about monoski setup. I did most of the work my self. This was my last trip for the season.

O.K. folks, its the '95-'96 season and I just got back from my 1st ski trip. 12-15-95 I went to Ski Windham and it was a blast! George and Millie were my instructors for the day. I requested George because I worked with him last year and he is very good. The two instructors work well together and I was very comfortable learning from them. This time I used the Grove Innovations Monoski it was very cool. I like it a lot. It is very responsive, comfortable and easy to jack into chair lift position. This ski is a superior machine, obviously a lot of thought and engineering went into this design. The ski conditions where good. Windham has a good amount of snow and all ski levels will have a blast. If you are thinking of trying monoskiing or any other adaptive skiing, go the SkiWindham.

1-4-96 2nd trip. Back to SkiWindham. This time I used the YETTY Monoski. This monoski is nice and comfortable, it also handles well. I personally did not like the lift position at all. It was very awkward, kind of like going down an escalator in your chair facing forward. I had fun skiing but I hated loading on the chair lift. I made a lot of progress this time out. I really got the feeling of turning on a FLAT ski. This is important...DUH! It was so exciting to feel the ski respond to my movements and do what I wanted it to do. I made a few unassisted turns and stops by the end of the day. I really feel like a skier again!

1-18-96 3rd trip. Jack Frost... I started the day on a Shadow Monoski. It did not work for me this time. The ski requires a lot of setup and it was not right for me. After two totally assisted runs, I switched in to a Grove Monoski. I really love this ski. My first run in the Grove was unassisted, my instructor was so impressed that he changed his skis because he didn't need to be behind me any more. I tried different ways to load and the best for me was two riggers down and lift...Swoosh! I was able to get right in the seat...piece of cake! Buddy, I just self-loaded. The Grove makes it very easy to learn how to ski. It is designed to transfer your body movement to the ski and it does this very well. The bucket (seat) is nice and snug and the ski is very light. I can't say anything bad about the Grove. My search for a monoski is over, I want a Grove!

2-1-96 4th trip. Back to SkiWindham...YES! This was great...again I used the Grove! I really don't want to use any other ski. I contacted Grove about getting my own and they are very helpful and accommodating. The instructors are very good and knowledgeable in all areas of adaptive skiing. They understand the equipment and they truly have a desire to see you improve and become as independent as you want to be. I was unassisted most of the day and I dumped (fell, wiped out) a lot. It was frustrating but I was learning more about the way the whole thing works. A disabled instructor with the program skied with me. She was using a monoski and teaching me by example. This was helpful to actually see it being done up close and personal. After a little while it all came together. I did two or three runs with only two assists in some steep areas. It was the best feeling in the world to be skiing again and feeling free. My buddy was with me so he got a chance to assist me and learn how to help. I will be going again soon and will keep you posted.

2-29-96 5th trip. SkiWindham again. I used the Grove monski again only this time It was the titanium model. This model is a lot lighter Monoski. It felt to me like it handled the same as the cro-moly model but for loading on the chair lift you can really feel the weight difference. I did very well in the morning skiing with very little assistance but by mid day a bladder infection had kicked in so I got off the slopes in the early afternoon. I counted the day as a success despite all the pain I was in, I Can really feel the ski under me and where my body is in relation to it. I skied with George again and we work well together. He has helped me a great deal to get as far as I have.

Update! YAAAHOO! 3-1-96 UPS delivers my Grove. Yes, I did it. I got my own monoski. I pulled it out of the box some assembly required not bad. Anyone with an allen wrench set can do it. I mounted my own binding, but I have done it before. So if you are not confident in your ability to do it have a pro do it for you. Any ski shop can help you. Grove provides very good mounting instructions.

3-8-96 6th trip. I went to Jack Frost.

We drove up in a snow storm to find a foot of powder when we got there. What a blast I never skied powder in a mono before. It was tough but lots of fun. I self loaded the whole day with no problems. I skied green and blue trails, that's beginner and intermediate slopes. I skied some moguls on the blue trails and dumped a bunch of times. I feel I am learning fast and should be totally independent very soon. I skied with Scott, Jeff, Stan and my buddy Gus. Scott is an instructor that is a para, he also has a Grove and he is a very good skier. I learned some good thing from him. The day was a total success.

3-12-96 7th trip. SkiWindham. My buddy Pete and I head up to NY. A beautiful day, spring skiing at its best. I self loaded all day with no problem. However I am still getting it together on the ski and I am pushing my self very hard. I WANT BLACK DIMONDS AGAIN! Anyway I dumped on every run but they where all good runs. I skied with Kathleen and Wendy and they where very good to work with. By the end of the day I was a hurting puppy, but it was great.

3-21-96 8th trip. Ski Windham again. Phil and I go up to meet George for a day of skiing. Conditions where good it was overcast and snowing, but warm. The place was empty, no crowd at all. I self loaded and unloaded all day. I really put it all together on this day. I felt total control of the Monoski. We stayed on the small lifts in the morning and in the afternoon we went to the summit. It felt so good to get to the top of a mountain again after sixteen years. I skied some steep blue box trails and it felt great. We had a perfect day, what a way to end the season. But wait! It's not over yet I might sneak one more day in.

3-30-96 9th trip. Hunter Mountain, NY This was the test. Tim and I hit the slopes on a Saturday. Excellent spring conditions and no instructor. Major confidence builder for me. Self load and unload all day I needed some help from Tim when I dumped but other then that this man is a MONO-SKIER.

This was the end of season for me. See you soon.

Well It's time again to hit the slopes. This page will grow through out the season as I tell you my adventures. So come back and send me some e-mail lets hook up and ski together.

Keep The Waxed Side Down!

Update:
The 96-97 season starts here!

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