MANKATO, Minn. (AP) - When Ben Bode - a recent St. Peter High School graduate - came to Mount Kato eight years ago to learn adaptive skiing, it was somewhat intimidating.
Now as a college student at Southwest State University, he’s conquered the black diamond and can do tight maneuvers on a slalom course, reserved for only the most technical skiers.
Bode, who makes the trip to Mankato from Marshall every other week to develop his skills, was born with spina bifida, a disability affecting the spinal cord that limits the use of his legs. On a recent Sunday, he sat on top of a mono ski, using special poles to turn, speed up and slow down.
“They are like crutches but then they have a ski tight bottom on it,” Bode told the Mankato Free Press. “I use them to guide myself and then with my weight, that’s how I turn.”
Mount Kato’s adaptive skiing program pairs instructors with students of all ages with a range of disabilities, from skiers with autism and cerebral palsy to developmental disabilities and people who have limited or minimal use of their legs or arms. They meet every Sunday for a couple hours to learn, practice and have fun.
It’s a 20-year partnership between Mount Kato and Mankato Area Public Schools’ community education program, and John Marston has been an adaptive ski instructor since the very first year. Since then, he and other volunteers have acquired a growing supply of adaptive skis, poles and seats for skiers to use.
“We started out small and did our own fundraising, writing grants and having spaghetti dinners,” Marston said. “One of those bi-skis is very expensive, about $5,000. That’s a seated piece of equipment. They can use fixed outriggers that are attached to it, so if they have challenges with their upper body, they don’t have to do anything but look in the direction they want to go.”
Bode started out on the easier to balance bi-skis, guided by two other people skiing on either side of him. Impressed with his determination, an instructor accurately predicted he would graduate to the mono ski by the time he finished high school.
Now he skis independently and is working with instructors to lift himself up onto the ski lift without assistance. On that Sunday, an instructor set up a course to help him refine his sharp turns.
“They know me pretty well to where they push me, and I’m always up to the challenge,” Bode said.
Marston is one of a half-dozen core ski instructors with the adaptive program who work to give adaptive skiers confidence and independence. Every piece of equipment is tailor made and adjusted to meet the needs of the skiers.
“We adapt their needs to the right equipment or the right equipment to what they need,” he said.
Instructor Jason Hiniker, of Mankato, joined Mount Kato’s ski patrol when he was in high school and has been volunteering with the adaptive ski program for over 10 years. When a new skier signs up, he and the other instructors figure out that person’s abilities to start with and work from there.
“For each person, we’re basically adapting everything they need,” Hiniker said. “We play around with things. Safety is first so everything we do is to keep them safe.”
Grace Cain, a 17-year-old Mankato West High School student, began learning to ski when she was five. Like Bode, she was also born with spina bifida. While she can walk, she doesn’t have sensation from the knees down.
She uses a tether with her bi-skis, which is a big belt attached to cords that instructors on each side hold to guide her. She said the program is a fun way to be active and social with friends.
“I’ve definitely learned some independence and I’ve learned that I can come out here and do something that a lot of people can’t do,” Cain said.
Volunteer Todd Dorn also first heard about the adaptive ski program while on ski patrol at Mount Kato and became a volunteer for the group a year after it started. He said the program is as much social as it is about learning to ski.
“I have a blast out here,” Dorn said. “In general, people want to have fun, participate and be involved. For me, the biggest thing is you get to learn more about other people.”
Marston said skiing - whether adaptive or not - is all about balance. Whether someone is standing up or sitting down, or on one ski or two, the same skill set is required to maneuver. His favorite part of instructing is the smiles he sees when new skiers discover their own abilities.
“It provides a great sense of freedom and control,” Marston said. “Our goal is to get them addicted.”
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