Have any of you been watching any TV coverage of the Paralympics games? Like me you surely must be inspired by the athletes’ extraordinary feats. The armless breast stroke swimmers, the runners who are blind or have missing limbs, the cyclists with cerebral palsy, the paraplegic equestrians, and the list goes on. I try to imagine the level of motivation and effort these athletes must have put in to get to a point where they can compete. It just increases my admiration for their achievements.
The other inspiring illustration I get from watching the TV coverage is how wonderfully enthusiastic the athletes seem to be. Whether they are celebrating a personal success or for the success of their fellow competitors thisenthusiasm is infectious. At least in this arena their success is more often than not defined as having a go and not necessarily winning a gold medal. It’s all about inclusion and celebrating the positive.
And in this respect when I compare the Para Olympian reactions and behaviour with that of the recent coverage of Olympian athletes, it puts most of the able bodied athletes to shame.
I am hoping that some of the inspirational Para Olympian examples provided by these extraordinary athletes will flow on to our own club this season. As club members we are in a position to create opportunities for encouraging new members to join us and make sailing an inclusive and inspiring recreational activity.
Which brings me neatly to my next point. I understand that life is busy but we have had all of winter to get our respective acts together and be ready for the start of the season this Saturday. I will be struggling to be ready on time too .But, don’t miss this opportunity get your feet wet, and renew acquaintances at our Port Kembla Sailing Club. I for one am looking forward to finding out how you and your families faired during the winter layoff.
To accommodate a more inclusive program of sailing for our TY division we plan to run a short course option (same TY start) for boats for example with a CBH of 0.600 or under and for boats not flying spinnakers. In this way we are hoping to encourage the return of you TY skippers and crew who would like to sail but think their boats are not as fast as some of the bigger boats. If enough interest is expressed we will.
Sailing is supposed to be fun, so come and join us again for the new season.
The end,
Trevor Dunn
TY Delegate
The other inspiring illustration I get from watching the TV coverage is how wonderfully enthusiastic the athletes seem to be. Whether they are celebrating a personal success or for the success of their fellow competitors thisenthusiasm is infectious. At least in this arena their success is more often than not defined as having a go and not necessarily winning a gold medal. It’s all about inclusion and celebrating the positive.
And in this respect when I compare the Para Olympian reactions and behaviour with that of the recent coverage of Olympian athletes, it puts most of the able bodied athletes to shame.
I am hoping that some of the inspirational Para Olympian examples provided by these extraordinary athletes will flow on to our own club this season. As club members we are in a position to create opportunities for encouraging new members to join us and make sailing an inclusive and inspiring recreational activity.
Which brings me neatly to my next point. I understand that life is busy but we have had all of winter to get our respective acts together and be ready for the start of the season this Saturday. I will be struggling to be ready on time too .But, don’t miss this opportunity get your feet wet, and renew acquaintances at our Port Kembla Sailing Club. I for one am looking forward to finding out how you and your families faired during the winter layoff.
To accommodate a more inclusive program of sailing for our TY division we plan to run a short course option (same TY start) for boats for example with a CBH of 0.600 or under and for boats not flying spinnakers. In this way we are hoping to encourage the return of you TY skippers and crew who would like to sail but think their boats are not as fast as some of the bigger boats. If enough interest is expressed we will.
Sailing is supposed to be fun, so come and join us again for the new season.
The end,
Trevor Dunn
TY Delegate
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