I feel honoured to be a part of organizing the Maple Ridge/Pitt Meadows Games and I feel as if my experience with adaptive sports has come full circle.
It was in 2005 when I was the chair of the Maple Ridge/Pitt Meadows Municipal Advisory Committee on Accessibility Issues that I first heard of the BC. Disability Games and of adaptive sports other than wheelchair track or wheelchair basketball.
I was involved in working on the bid to bring the Disability Games to Maple Ridge and as I read the Games package I learned about the various adaptive sport programs.
While I am in a wheelchair my main disability affects my hands, wrists, and collarbones so I had assumed that any adapted sports were not an option, as track and basketball relies on a person’s ability to wheel their own chair. I had certainly never heard of any sports for people in power wheelchairs. The games package opened up my eyes to other possibilities. The first adaptive sport to catch my eye was power soccer. Power soccer is the only sport specifically for people with power wheelchairs. A bumper is placed on the front of a wheelchair and the players maneuver the ball into the goal.
After reading the information in the Games package about power soccer I followed up with SportAbility, an organization which provides recreation and sport opportunities for athletes with disabilities. A contact from SportAbility gave me the opportunity to take part in my first power soccer game in April of 2005, at a tournament in Penticton.
At the time of the tournament I had only been in a power wheelchair for three months. I had previously been pushed in a manual chair for two years and occasionally I had used a scooter. I was new to the world of power wheelchairs and the tournament was a great experience, an excellent way to meet people and to be welcomed into the adaptive sport community. It was also a great way to gain knowledge about power wheelchairs.
At the tournament a father had put together a power wheelchair, with a bumper, for me to use. There were 21 participants and their age ranged from nine to forty three, with varied skill levels. I was able to play in four games, all of which we won.
My experience inspired me to start up a power soccer team in Maple Ridge. At the Penticton tournament I also learned about adaptive Boccia. While I loved Power Soccer I did realize that it was harder on my body than Boccia would be. Adaptive Boccia is adapted for people with disabilities by playing indoors on the gym floor, and by using lighter balls that have a more rubber like cover which helps with gripping the balls.