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Helen Hayes Hospital, upstate resort put wheelchair users on skis
By JANE LERNER
THE JOURNAL NEWS
More information
For more information about adaptive skiing at Belleayre, go to www.belleayre.com/ winter/adaptive.htm or call 845-254-5600.

(Original publication: January 6, 2007)



WEST HAVERSTRAW - John Turney used to wait at the bottom of a hill and watch as his three children skied down.

"I felt kind of left out," he said.

But today Turney, a paraplegic, will join a group of skiers from Helen Hayes Hospital who are taking part in an adaptive skiing program at an upstate ski resort.

Belleayre Mountain in Highmount, N.Y., will hold an adaptive awareness day to let people with disabilities and those without learn about skiing.

"It's a tremendous thing to be able to do it," said Turney, 46, of Warwick, whose spine was crushed in a construction accident more than 20 years ago.

Helen Hayes, a state-run rehabilitation hospital in West Haverstraw, has for the past three years worked with Belleayre Mountain to develop a program to enable people with disabilities to ski.

"People used to call and ask if we had facilities for adaptive skiing, and we had to tell them that we didn't," said Heather Van Benschoten, a spokeswoman for Belleayre, which is run by the state. "It made us realize that there was a demand for it."

The resort began working with Helen Hayes Hospital and other groups three years ago to develop a program to enable people with disabilities to ski.

Since then, Helen Hayes and its foundation have contributed funds to help Belleayre purchase adaptive skiing equipment.

"It's very expensive equipment," said Elaine DeFrancesco, a physical therapist at Helen Hayes who has volunteered with the adaptive skiing program.

People like Turney who do not have use of their legs can ski by using such equipment as a mono-ski, a chair with one ski underneath, or a bi-ski, a chair with two skiis underneath. The rider controls the direction of travel with his arms and body weight. One mono-ski can cost up to $4,500.

Belleayre has also received donations from other groups, including the Members Handicapped Children's Fund, a group affiliated with the New York Stock Exchange, Van Benschoten said.

The donations have enabled the resort to make other accommodations for the disabled, including the installation of a ski lift. It also offers lessons for the disabled.

The resort's lodge is undergoing renovations to make it accessible to the disabled, Van Benschoten said.

Several patients from Helen Hayes have worked with hospital volunteers at the ski resort to learn how to ski using the special equipment.

That equipment has made it possible for people like Turney to enjoy the sport.

He plans to take his wife and two of his three children with him to Belleayre today to ski.

"I don't feel left out anymore," he said. "I can ski with them."

Reach Jane Lerner at jlerner@lohud.com or 845-578-2458.
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