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Intro | In Memory
| Central Bay | Peninsula | North Bay | Eastbay | Rio Vista It Takes Spirit It was late August, a time of unpredictable wind. Call of the Wind nixed Coyote, my usual venue, but Candlestick looked like it had possibilities. if there are just a few people sailing, I find it difficult to judge Candlestick from the Bayshore, so I left the freeway and pulled into the parking lot. Only a few minutes passed before I decided to rig my 5.5 hoping that I could manage the gusts for which Candlestick is famous and simultaneously wondering if the sail was big enough. Not Just Another Day I jockeyed for position at the launch site and took off. Every moment counted because this had been such an unpredictable summer. All I wanted was a few good hours of fun. What I got instead was a serendipitous glimpse into another world and the inspiration for this article. Lurching across the bay, it had become obvious that this was just another day of varied wind. As I returned to the launch site. I could tell that hanging out at the shore might be the best bet. As I stood knee deep in the bay watching everyone else haul their boards onto shore, I couldn't help but notice two guys nearby. With what looked like sign language and a variety of gestures, the instructor was teaching the fine art of beach starting. Intrigued, I pulled my board out, sat on a rock and watched. No one else seemed to pay attention. Each time the "student" made an attempt to beach start and failed, his" instructor" patiently signed and then demonstrated what needed correction. I could not help but think how many times I had to listen and then perform with someone yelling from behind. I thought that was hard! Here was a hearing-impaired kid, learning from someone who knew how to guide him step by step in a language he could understand. Did Anyone Else See That? More corrections and the kid snapped his sail, bounced on one leg, gained his balance and sailed away. I wanted to cheer from the sidelines but was I the only one who had witnessed this performance and heard the joyous "Awlwightl"? Did these guys know they had an audience of one? With a grin on his face, the" instructor" picked up his board and rig and headed out of the water. I caught him just as he stepped onto the rocky beach. I wanted to know more about what I, had just witnessed. I also wanted to tell everyone I've ever met who thinks that windsurfing is just too hard to learn. I introduced myself as someone who had volunteered to write for the SFBA newsletter and asked who he was and how he had come to share this remarkable experience with the kid who was now working his heart out at Candlestick. Tom Bacon Tom Bacon and I have been trading e-mail messages since I got the OK to write this article. My time with him that late August day and our e-mail 'conversations' have decidedly inspired me. Tom was helping a 27 year-old friend who sailed at Tahoe as a small kid. He uses an old O’Brien that, as described, weighs" about a million pounds." As a 19 year old, Tom worked for the Alaska Psychiatric Institute where he met a 17 year old "deaf guy who was totally sane, but a bit frustrated at being surrounded by the crazies." Tom befriended him and they would go hiking during weekend passes. While working at the API, Tom learned the sign alphabet and a few words. In the spring of 1988, Tom got involved in the Special Olympics in Tahoe. When he returned to Alaska. Tom looked up a local group, Challenge Alaska, which was founded by an acquaintance from high school who had lost an arm and a leg in a powerline accident at age 15. Their motto is "Making disability a possibility through outdoor activities, "The group is supported by private and public funds and a large number of "gung-ho" volunteers. Tom is self taught in the American Sign Language and has used his knowledge and love of
skiing to teach disabled skiers through Challenge, an 8 year association that he misses a
lot, in part, because of the mission of the group – teach everyone to ski – not
just the disabled with a good attitude. Other Possibilities We talked about the possibilities of opening the sport of windsurfing to the disabled. (Tom welcomes contact from anyone who is hard-of-hearing.) I told Tom that I had once seen a story on TV about a father who had rigged two huge sailboards so he could take his young daughter windsurfing in her wheelchair on a placid lake, of course. This may seem an unlikely sport for the disabled. Tom suggests that sea kayaking, sailing and rafting may be more suitable, but with designs such as Mistral's new double hulled, two-person board. The windsurfing industry has opened the potential for a wider range of learners to give windsurfing a try. Windsurfing has a special place in my life - while not disabled, I was diagnosed with cancer six years ago. Each day I get hooked in and fly over the chop is a day I am thankful for the opportunity to feel such sheer joy and complete freedom. Perhaps this is why I connected so readily to the experience I observed at Candlestick. Tom believes that "there's absolutely no better feeling" than watching someone struggle and succeed and know you've been a part of the success. He said, "You saw the look on that kid's face when he got up and beach started, this is the sort of feeling that can't be beat." For me, to watch two people communicate without words, to keep at it even when it didn't work, who had just taken the next step toward a freedom that touches the soul- the freedom that windsurfing offers - is something I will not soon forget. While both of us are overwhelmed in our respective careers, Tom and I share an interest in learning more about the kind of support that exists in the Say Area for 'challenging' outdoor activities for the disabled. It Is my belief that if someone who can't walk can conquer El Capitan, there just might be a place for some windsurfing for people with certain disabilities. It's certainly worth a thought….. Dianne Thomas |
