Redefining Ability (CAF Weekend Part 1)

My apologies for lack of posting the past few days - I was drowning in modifications and then I went to San Diego for the 19th Annual Challenged Athletes Foundation Triathlon.  This is the the first event since camp this summer that I have had a chance to do some volunteer work and get involved in the amputee community...I had been really looking forward to it!  This blog will be a two-parter because there were so many amazing things happening that each day (Saturday and Sunday) deserve their own post.

Friday night we had a meet and greet dinner - a kick off to the CAF weekend activities.  There were tons of people and it was fun to meet all of these names in the industry that I have been hearing about for so long.  There was also an awards presentation with inspiring and heartwarming videos and speeches.  Just another one of those times I get to sit back and be thankful I have found a career that really touches peoples lives.

Saturday morning I was up bright and early for the CAF/Ossur Mobility Running Clinic.  This clinic is put on for people with amputations, of all ages, who are interested in learning to run for the first time or improve their running technique.  Bob Gailey, the master of all things gait related to amputees, runs the clinic and he is just fun to watch.  He has the energy, the knowledge and the passion to inspire these people to get out and run and give them the confidence to know that they can.  There were about 100 participants - from age 2 to 70.  It is hard to even describe what it is like to watch a field full of running legs doing marching drills and running back and forth.

I, of course, chose to work with the children who attended the clinic.  The difference between adults learning to run and children learning to run is that children already instinctively know how to run.  And that have a very, very hard time being told to not do so.  The goal was to teach correct running gait and this means doing it in various steps, working up to running, but many of the kids just kept wanting to take off down the field.

Case in point :)  The little guy in red was all over the place all day...the most energy and just loving getting to run around with no abandon.  

This was my kiddo and partner for the clinic...is she not adorable??  I got to spend 3 hours holding her hands and helping her march down the field and take long strides and shuffle sideways and kick a soccer ball.  This was her 4th year attending the clinic so she knew way more than me!  

One of the drills was to have the kids march like soldiers down the field, saluting with the opposite hand per the leg that was taking the marching step.  (This is much tougher than it sounds, regardless of how many legs you have!!)  They were all very good listeners and I am always amazed when you can get a group of children to do anything all at the same time, so I had to capture it on film!

Let me introduce you to Cody.  He is one of the CAF sponsor children (on all of their posters) and is faster than you can possibly imagine.  He is not even 4 years old yet and he was zooming down the field faster than most adults at the clinic.  They might have to invent a faster running leg just to keep up with this guy!!

At the end of the clinic, there was an obstacle course and a giant relay race for all of the participants.  Everyone was divided into two teams and it was all split up evenly with both children and adults on each team.  Then two giant teams, about 50 people each, went through the obstacle course, tagging each other back and forth for the next relay person.  Cody was our lead guy on our team and Blake Leeper (Paralympic medalist from this year) was our anchor man.  It was a little tough to say who won (I think they kept it a politically correct tie), but it was definitely a lot of fun.

Another girl that I got close to at the clinic is an amazing young lady, Haven.  She was awarded the most inspiring/promising child of the year (something along those lines) at the CAF awards dinner on Friday night...and when I saw her in her tutu and sequined Converse sneakers, I knew we had to meet at some point this weekend.  Her background - that she was born in Vietnam, got caught in a bomb explosion where she lost both of her legs, and was adopted by a family in America.  She is tenacious and a crowd pleaser, she is smart and funny and has a very infectious smile.  It is impossible to not hear her story, see her run and be inspired.  And to also be thankful.  This clinic was about redefining abilities for these athletes...for me, it also helped continue to shape my perspective and reenergize me.  I have 9 more weeks of school and weekends like this make sitting through all those lectures and coming home covered in plaster totally worth it.  It was cold, it was rainy, but it was life changing and I am already looking forward to going back next year and continuing to watch the abilities of these athletes grow.