Kelsey, an Aspen Times journalist, went skiing blindfolded with a blind skiing instructor guiding her down the slope to better understand the sensations experienced by blind skiers.
It’s evident that Kelsey was immediately disoriented in all aspect of her skiing abilities with a blindfold on. She notes that she struggled to gauge her speed, and her balance was greatly impacted.
I’ve seen plenty of blind skiing videos, but it was interesting to see the experience from this perspective.
Kudos to all of the blind skiers and their instructors. They’re remarkably inspirational, and we could all learn something from them.
Aspen Times: “On this special episode of The Drop-In, Kelsey was invited to ski blindfolded and be guided down runs on Snowmass. From Kelsey- Earlier this week, I photographed Chad Foster, a blind skier, and his longtime friend and ski guide Paul Hibben. When they made the offer for me to ski blindfolded, it was an opportunity I couldn’t turn down.
This is by far one of the most intense experiences I’ve had and one of the scariest things I have done. However, it was also one of the most rewarding and I couldn’t be more grateful for the patience and willingness to teach me from Rob, Paul and Chad.”