Chris Caporale sports@wolfrivermedia.com
Leader photo by Chris Caporale Jenny Onesti, center, waves to the boat as skiers Danny Kowalski, left, and Mike Wallace, right, hold her steady during the Shawano Ski Sharks’ Learn to Ski event for adaptive water skiers Friday afternoon at Smalley Park.
With 20 adaptive skiers showing up Friday afternoon at Smalley Park, the Shawano Ski Sharks thought about running two boats simultaneously to help get as much time on the water.
The Learn to Ski program, which included a morning session for kids and adults looking to pick up the sport and an afternoon session for interested skiers with disabilities, is getting to the point where Ski Sharks President Dave Passehl is looking into raising money for a second adaptive ski and a quadreplegic chair for the wheelchair-bound participants.
“I think they keep coming back because it’s an exciting option for them to fill their day,” Passehl said.
Many of the participants in the afternoon session have participated in at least one of the previous three years the Ski Sharks have held the event.
The participants sit in a chair mounted on a water ski that holds the rope attached to the boat, and then two separate adult skiers ride on each side, using one hand each to stabilize the chair and the other to pull themselves.
The adaptive skiers can grab the handle on the rope and pull themselves behind the boat, still being stabilized by the skiers on either side, if they choose.
“It’s just a pleasure to hear them laugh or watch their smiles, look at their caretakers (who) just can’t believe that they’re even doing it,” Passehl said. “It’s a unique alternative for them to do that’s out of their normal routine.”
Even with the 20 participants from Community Alternatives, there were another 10 or so that were unable to take part in the activities, either because of their disabilities or other factors.
“We’ve had a few guys today here in wheelchairs that do not have the core strength to offer what we have now,” Passehl said. “We need to raise some money, I think, to get a quad chair, and get the proper training for that.”
Passehl and the Ski Sharks, who perform shows weekly at the newly renovated Smalley Park on Wednesdays at 6 p.m., started the day at 7:30 a.m. with their morning session, which brought in 26 kids and two adults looking to pick up the sport. It was the exact same number that participated in the event two weeks ago at the Wolf River Beach as well.
The club hopes to always continue growing, but Passehl believes the events continue to be popular because of the monetary restrictions around water sports.
“Not everybody has access to the water every day like we do, and so giving them an opportunity to try an alternative sport is, I think, a great idea,” Passehl said.