Apologies for this shameful plug for the British Disabled Ski Team, but some exciting stuff is happening for us this year that I want to share with you and I want to also do a little tin rattling for the guys putting down the tracks on the snow.
I am the Team Manager for the British Disabled Ski Team and we are now very busy making our final preparations for our departure to take part in the Vancouver 2010 Paralympic Winter Games.
I know that many of you will know all about us and hopefully have heard some of the buzz that our skiers are generating in the regular and the ski press.
What you may also have heard is that we are wanting to pour 100% effort this year into getting the very best of support for our skiers on the slope and that we are stretching every penny to do that.
It is now critical that we find from individuals, companies and general good eggs all the backing we can get to not just make this season more than our best ever (it is already that with Sean Rose having got world cup Gold in the Sestriere Downhill two weeks ago) and the springboard for Medals in Vancouver but to be a launch pad for the champions of the future in the season beyond.
Basically, we could do with finding £50k quickly to ensure that after a no holds barred paralympics we can build a sustainable structure afterwards that will consolidate on our success. If we don't get that, we will survive and the guys will still perform to their absolute best, but it will be with the skiers going back to a less certain future after the games.
If you own a company or can influence the company you are employed by and would like to become a major sponsor of a successful team, then don't hesitate - email me on administration@britishdisabledskiteam.co.uk
If you'd simply like to support us then we have a Justgiving site that sadly has not had any contributions in the last couple of months. Please visit it via the front page of our team website on www.britishdisabledskiteam.co.uk or by clicking here: http://www.justgiving.com/britishdisabledskiteam. If we could get that up to 10k, then that would be a fantastic boost.
I have outlined our sport below and provided a few links to online footage so you can see our skiers in action. If partially or fully sponsoring the team interests you I would be very pleased to discuss it with you and send you an appropriate sponsorship proposal.
Our skiers are an amazing bunch. You know what ski racing is like - then simply introduce the added ingredient that the participants hurling themselves downhill might be blind, missing one or more limbs or paraplegic. The linked to film here: http://youtube.com/v/K3-UD0V4f78&feature=player_embedded gives some idea of the type of things our skiers are capable of on the slopes and in the terrain park.
This year our squad (just confirmed) includes 6 paraplegic skiers - who race downhill on high tech. mono skis using motorbike type suspension - and one visually impaired skier [ who races behind a sighted guide]. All of our skiers race at speeds approaching those of the able bodied racers but instead do it sitting down, on one leg, or skiing as if they are in permanent dense fog.
Our squad is the largest and most competitive squad of skiers Britain has ever sent to the Paralympics. Sean Rose has just won Britain's first ever World Cup Downhill gold medal beating all the top skiers from the highest ranked nations. To get an idea of the sport and the quality of the competition, take a look at his gold medal run here: http://youtube.com/v/HDRagT962HY&feature=player_embedded. The day after that run, Sean didn't quite land the final jump [if he had we would have 2 Gold World Cup medals now] but instead flipped his rig at nearly 80mph and ended in the netting. He is still smiling through the pain, but will be there at World Cup finals and in Whistler challenging for gold again.
All of our squad have amazing personal tales to tell and are there to compete and represent their country with pride.
So this open letter to all of you dedicated Snowheads out there is a personal plea from me to you - let's get behind our paralympians and make this the most successful and best ever yet. Visit our justgiving site and let's see the total rise from the £1,395 there right now up to a good strong figure. We can beat the rest of the world. We can get medals, let's make it happen.
THANK YOU SNOWHEADS, CAN YOU HELP?
Dave Chugg,
Manager, British Disabled Ski Team.
PS Feel free to make this campaign your own, pass the news on!!!!
Last edited by Poster: A snowHead on Fri 5-02-10 11:35; edited 3 times in total
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Inspiring video and best of luck
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
So pleased to report that we have had the promise of a wonderful donation of £10,000 by the Charity GetKidsGoing.com - this will be used to help meet athlete expenses at holding camp, to provide a vehicle during camp and to help pay for our expensive (but great) ski technician.
Thank you so much Jane.
Good news, I really hope you get to your target as I see some of your athletes training at Chillfactore every now and then. As a Kidney Transplant recipient I can kind of relate to what some of your athletes have to go through to get to the level they are at. Good luck in Vancouver all!
It looks like snowheads is having a pretty important birthday today - what better way to celebrate than to drop a few quid your way via justgiving. But - sorry - I couldn't quite run to the same number of zeros as getkidsgoing.com!!
Good luck for a fantastic Olympics - I hope all your hard work and prep pays off and you all have a fabulous time.
CP
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Thank you for all the good wishes and donations.
It is really appreciated and the team are all looking forward to a great "Team Celebration" being held for us this weekend by ParalympicsGB up in Edinburgh where ourselves and the wheelchair curling team get our official paralympic launch.
The fantastic donation made by GetKidsGoing and great support from BPA, our parent charity DSUK, UK Sport, TASS and SportsAid all mean that these paralympics really should be cause for national celebration.
FAQ
Poster: A snowHead
