Monday, May 10, 2010

Handicapped persons

This is raising issues with handicapped people, and I'm concerned because I certainly don't want to leave them out. Last year, we had a paraplegic cyclist pedal with his arms. Well, he, of course, couldn't hike the trail, so we registered him, let him do what he could and gave him an award - that's a no-brainer. But then comes the obese people, for example, or people with "hidden" (we call them "invisible illnesses or disabilites") handicaps. Well, I just don't know where to go with that.

We can talk about that later. I saw the "no shuttle bikes" clause and know of a young girl that has a health condition that would make it hard for her to walk/shuttle the bike & they had talked about doing the shuttle thing; it's similar to mine. I have the same concerns. I've been talking about rollerblading the route since last year. (It'd be easier for me to walk my blades.) Lake and Byrne love it. Lake said, "Yeah, Skate the Lake (Love it!).

Wouldn't that be great on Mem Day? The "mini" event could include things like that, and be the solution to this issue. I would like to keep TTL "pure" if you will, and "hold it up" as the BIG goal. It's not for everyone, but for more people than think.

Alright, I'm liking the idea of inaugural Lake Skate Memorial Day 2011. I think I could possibly do it "cold" with not too much off season training....it's the hike I'm worried about....but I'll cross that path when I come to it. By LDW I can actually keep up pretty well with some of the bikers....I actually paced myself last summer with some training bikers. :O) It's so strange, Mark the difference I have when I'm on skates. I've heard Michael J. Fox make a similar comment about when he is ice skating that his Parkinson's doesn't bother him and I've heard other the same for similar neuro dysfunctions in motion. Odd. I feel so normal and free when I'm on my skates. I wish I could skate everywhere......

The brain is our strongest muscle, they say?

I need to remember that-ha! I know it weighs the most of any organ.

Can't tell you how often I underestimate myself - TTL has surprised me with me, or something like that. I did not believe I could swim 4 miles for years, until I just said I could.

I think most people would be surprised by their ability to do the swim, although it really is a physical feat. I'll have to tell you a story about my best friend swimming along side me for most of the way sometime.

Allow me the opp to quote myself : / ). During last year's coverage, I wrote: "But before any one person could take their first step on their Personal Endurance Challenges, they first had to come to believe that their own strengths could deliver them past the limits they had once set. That was the biggest step of all, and then the rest was easy." I don't exude much brilliance often, but that there one was a zinger ... Why did your friend swim?

I would discourage giving awards or anything for these - save that for TTL.

Agree. Agree. Maybe a certificate, at most. Maybe make the registration free, X amount with a Tshirt (i.e. pre-sell the Ts)

That's basically what we do with TTL

Yeah, but it'd be cool for you on the planning and cash flow if you could figure out a way to collect some $$ on the front end. What about a paypal button on the Tshirt sale only. It might take a small amount, but maybe worth it to know how many shirts to order. Might not be worth the hassle. (Same deal, with TTL.) Discussing this with Rachel, as long as it has a name unlike TTL, we would worry less about confusion.

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