Merry Christmas

Hi guys,

Saturday I got back from a week’s training with Ben Reid out in Austria, where I got to try out my new sit ski. It was a great camp and it was very productive.  The goal for the camp was to get used to my sit ski, and decide on any adjustments that needed making to my new rig whilst also improving my performance in gates. 

We flew into Ljubljana in Slovenia and then took a coach into Austria. Arriving in resort (turracher höhe), the hotel was half way up the ski slope which led to a very exciting trip up to the hotel via a snow mobile. That kicked ass.

The first day we were out on slalom ski’s, where we ski’d down to the training run, instantly my sit ski was comfier, easier to turn and much more reactive than my old one. Which led to many MANY occasions where I was over turning and going back down the hill backwards as I had to put less into it to make it turn that I was doing previously. It was quite exciting at times. 

We got back to the hotel that night and Ben and I did a dowel test on my rig. Which basically involves sticking a broom handle underneath the centre of the ski whilst I’m sat in the sit ski to check which way I tip (forward or backwards) to check if I am using the full amount of the ski correctly. We found that although it was handling much better than my old rig, my weight was too far back. The scarver allows to very easily solve this by undoing a few bolts and moving the whole seat forward…..much easier than my old one as this one would have involved the welding tackle previously…sorry dad. 

I went out the next day and I’ve never turned a ski like that in my life, it was so aggressive and responsive. It took a lot of getting used too but my god, if that’s what it feels like to turn a ski properly I’m going to be in for some fun. That day spent most of the time, really trying to get used to new setup and not crash. This brought back a lot of bad habits but it was just because I wasn’t used to it and over the week this sorted itself out. 

Getting back to the hotel was quite fun, sit skis are pretty well designed for getting around the mountain, you have a rope with a quick release for going up T-Bars and you have a button that you can press to allow the sit ski to release from it’s suspension and be scooped up by a chair lift. The one thing it can’t do very easily is go along a rope pull. A rope pull is basically a rope that you hold onto and it drags you along the snow. This one in particular was fine for the majority of it but the dismount at the top was done on a bit of a hill, which meant that the minute I let go of the rope I would go backwards down the hill and I needed both hands on the rope to be able to pull myself (being a fat b*stard doesn’t help with this one.)  We solved this by one of the guys on the camp Tim, grabbing hold of my sit ski seat and holding the ski flat whilst I dragged us both up the hill, when we got to the top, he slowly rotated me round and stopped me going backwards whilst I could let go and steady myself again. 

Everyone on the camp was fantastic, they couldn’t do more to help, whether this involved bringing my sit ski in at night so it doesn’t freeze, picking me up when I decide I fancy eating some snow or just carrying my coffee. This made my life so much easier and a special shout out goes to Tim who was just mega. 

My favourite day of the camp was definitely when we trained giant slalom, it was fantastic getting back in the gates and I was beaming from ear to ear after every run, even the ones that didn’t go to plan. 

      

During this camp I suffered with fatigue quite badly for the first few days, I think staying at altitude affected me much more than it normally does and it took a few days to get over that. I had to duck out of the afternoon sessions due to feeling absolutely exhausted but towards the end of the week I was raring to go for both sessions. 

Anyways I’ll leave it here for now, I’m really pleased with the new kit and I can’t wait to get back on snow again. Now for a bit of R&R and enjoy Christmas with family and friends. 

Have a lovely Christmas 

Love 

Alex 

Photo Credits Alice Luetchford

Winter is coming

Hey guys,

It has been a while since my last blog but I thought I would update you on a couple of things. I have just got back from 10 days in Hintertux Austria, It was a great camp, lots of snow and I am definitely the post mountain blues.

I have been struggling with a neck injury the last few camps and thus struggled with training       and generally getting about. Although, inefficient, the way I learnt to walk means I use my neck muscles for pretty much everything I do, which when pulled, makes getting from A to B pretty difficult, but its on the mend now.

I have recently started Ballroom dancing. Absurd ? no, well I did think that a bit to begin with but bear with me. The idea was to improve my balance and my footwork whilst being able to work at a higher intensity and still have precision in my movements. Darren at Footloose dance studio in Barlborough has been great at easing me into it. I keep warning him that I will end up falling over at some point but luckily, this hasn’t happened…yet.  He has been getting me to do Cha cha, Waltz, Fox trot and a bit of rock and roll. I am really enjoying it and it has brought a different focus to my training.

At the beginning of September we spent a week in Hintertux, it was a hard camp for myself, there was very little snow(pictured right) and we spent most of the time skiing on glacier ice.  I struggled with the snow, it was like skiing on marbles, which wasn’t very fun. The skis vibrated under foot and I found it hard to relax. As the week went on I felt as I was beginning to relax to it but still struggled to keep an edge. 

I arrived back in the UK on the Sunday to stop off in Luton to commute straight into London for work on the Monday morning.  It was a strange feeling being back at sea level, Hintertux is a glacier that sits at 3250 m, and the hotel we stay at is around 1000m above sea level.  The next four days brought on the feeling that can only be described as being drunk on oxygen. I felt energised and felt like I had drank 100 espressos. I don’t think my colleagues knew what hit them when I walked in haha.

This week I started my next rotation at work for my graduate programme. I have moved into the Network function and I am working on a project to streamline the business. The first week has been a steep learning curve but I am starting to get my head round the challenge. This job is based in Chesterfield and I will only be in London 1 -2 times a fortnight. This is going to cut my costs down dramatically and help me manage my energy levels more efficiently. If I am having a ‘tired’ day I could restrict my walking to a minimum of 5 minutes a day. Which will be great for my general well being. Although, I am sad to leave London, I will miss the people and the fun I do have down there. I am excited to start this next challenge.

As I said earlier I have just got back Hintertux from another training camp. There had been a dumping of snow since the last camp in September and the glacier looked much more inviting. It is getting colder and it feels like ‘winter it coming’ (check out the below picture, even my hair froze.) I have been trying to work on rolling my skis more and pressing through the shins to get more drive. 

This is the first time I have ever enjoyed powder skiing. Having outriggers and generally limited control over my feet, powder and I have never really got on. There are too many things to get caught and I just normally end up face first in big mounds of snow (look over previous blogs for evidence.) But on this camp, I have started to see the fruits of my labour. We got on the hill early, and there was miles of untouched snow waiting for us. Feeling a little apprehensive I made my way to the meeting point, a short ski down the mountain. I made two turns and suddenly realised what all the fuss was about. I forgot everything my coach had told me to focus on and just ripped some massive turns, spraying powder everywhere. I felt like I was floating, it was a true feeling of freedom.....AWESOME !!! ....Even If I did get a little told after for not focussing on the drills....it was worth it (don't tell Dougie that.)

We have even been doing off snow drills but on skis to try and perfect the movement. This involves me stood on skis but on a mat, trying to replicate the movements I would do to ski but on dry land. This helps greatly, as we can control a lot of the conditions and get my body understanding what it needs to do much more easily.

On camp we have 3 rules to ensure to define our culture, to provide a bit of order and to show that we are respectable to each other and the other teams. 

These are:

• be punctual,
• no swearing
• carry your water bottle wherever you go (hydration is a hot topic at the moment) 

To add a bit of fun into the mix we have forfeits to do if we break one of these rules.  These can consist of 10 press ups to hill sprints to dancing in a random place for 60 seconds to singing a rendition of Singing in the rain outside (in the the rain).  These have brought a lighter side to training and help define our values and the performance side of our training.

Well, I will leave it there for now, it is 4 weeks till my next race, I am training hard :) and making the most of my new working location. I will update you when I am settled into my new job.

Much Love

Alex

x

If anyone would like to sponsor my cause please click here Or email me on alexclarke1992@outlook.com

Norway and the tale of the broken tethers

It has been a while since my last blog so I thought I would update you on my escapades and my time in Norway.

Norway is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been. To even get to the hotel we had to cross Fjords, mountains and even mile long tunnels.

My first impressions of Norway was….WET. For the first week we had pretty much non stop rain on the hill but glorious sunshine at the hotel.  Which made for great recovery post training. We could ski in the mornings, come back soaked and then go and swim in the sea to relax….

Oh yeah the Hotel was a 5 – 10 minute walk from the nearest Fjord, which was tidal and had a very low salt content. Which meant it was really nice to swim in.  There was even a diving board, which I HAD to jump off, at least once.  It wasn’t in the easiest of locations to get to. We had to walk over rocks, slippy cambered surfaces and even climb a few steps with no hand rail and then when we got to the board there was no rail or anything to hold onto whilst you were on it. I set off on the trek, picking my line through rocks and climbing onto the slippery camber, making sure to avoid the rock pool, Catherine the physio caught up with me and asked me the question “are you sure this is a good idea?” My reply “Yep it will be fine”. I was determined to have a go and needless to say when my mind is made up, there is no going back.  Catherine just sighed and and helped me climb the steps by guiding my foot, making sure I don’t drag my toes up the rocky steps and cut them (isn’t she a good un?.)  I get to the top and stand on the board, I then decide to let the rest of the group know, I don’t like heights…  The board had two metal bars going across the bit you walk on at different points, which meant I would have to really pick my legs up if I wanted to walk.  As the water was so deep it meant that If I jumped in with my crutches I wasn’t sure if I would ever get them back and that wasn’t a situation I wanted to be in.  I suggested dropping the crutches and just running for it….needless to say that went down like a ton of bricks. I decided (with some slight persuasion techniques from the rest of the guys) the best option was to crawl to the end.  I crawled to the end, posed for the obvious photo opportunity and flopped in. It wasn’t the most graceful of things I have done, but it was fun to say the least.  I swam to small ladder, climbed out and decided that was enough for me, so I spent the rest of our time there relaxing in the sun.  

This was the first camp we have worked with Dougie Mill as a coach. He was a lot of fun and has a strict but fun work ethic. He really cares about your development and definitely thinks outside the box.  As mentioned in my previous blogs I have moved to a rope holding my skis together rather than a steel bar.  Dougie was a key part of trying different types of ropes and straps to see which worked best. I must have broken at least one a day…some days two, if I was on form. These ranged from belt, to a bit of paracord, we tried everything. Towards the end of the fortnight, I think we found the method that worked the best with a bit of input from John Clark.  Whenever I broke one, Dougie would disappear and come back 5 minutes later and it was fixed…mega.

A bit on the technical stuff . At the moment I am working on a couple of aspects. One is to flex the front of the boot to be much more progressive in the turns. This will allow me to control my speed and really regulate the amount of pressure I can put through the ski.  The second is to turn my feet together on the steeper terrain to give myself more direction and control as I head down the hill. I felt a lot of positives from this camp, I am starting to feel more and I think my new boots are working perfectly.

As I mentioned in my last blog, I was looking to secure funding for a orthotic lycra suit that would help pull my body into the position it is meant to be in.  I have been lucky enough to secure this and I have just started training with it.  It is a bit of a devil to get on without a hand. I definitely feel this is an invaluable investment into my development.

So what's next?

Currently I am in Wittenburg Germany for a week training in their indoor ski slope. This is a great training place as the snow is very consistent and is basically bullet proof, which is a great challenge and means if you are not on your edges you are on your backside. I will update you all when I am back.

Much Love

Alex  

If anyone would like to sponsor my cause please click hereOr email me on alexclarke1992@outlook.com

ParaSnowBall and Hintertux

It has been a while since my last blog, so I thought I would update you on my recent escapades and my plans for the summer.  A lot has happened since my last blog but skiing is still on the agenda ☺

First of all we had the ParaSnowBall, this was an evening of fine dining with the purpose of raising money for Disability SnowSport UK (DSUK). DSUK is a charity that provides lessons for people with disabilities, enabling them to get into snowsports. They also support the team when they can and are one of the mains reasons the team exists. They are also the reason I am skiing and have provided support for a few years now.

The evening was hosted by John Inverdale, and was a roaring success. I was lucky enough to be sat on the Knights (Suzanne and Millie) table with a great view of the stage.

There was a host of guest speakers from Pippa Middleton, to team members, to members of DSUK.  The most iconic for me was a charming guy called Brendan. Brendan has cerebral Palsy, which affects all of his body quite significantly, including his speech. He was asked the question, what has DSUK done for you. His answer “When I am walking everyone is waiting for me but when I am on skis, no one can catch me” This guy for me is the sole reason DSUK and the team exists, to inspire and to enable people like Brendan to ski.

Some of you may have seen through my Facebook page that I have been lucky enough to maintain my sponsorship with ChillfactorE for another year. They are a great supporter and are a huge aid to my development. I can't thank them enough.

My current diary is packed and I am dashing here there and everywhere trying to fit in everything. I am currently looking get a more stable situation with the days I work from home to allow me to train more and to a better standard and of course to improve my sleep pattern.

So what’s happening on the skiing front? We recently came back from a training camp in Hintertux Austria, this was the first camp of the summer and I was eager to get on the boards.

We stayed in the usual Hotel Koesller with the lovely Mader family. Karina and her family go out of their way to provide us with everything we need and they make us feel at home. We were the only ones staying in the hotel, we made sure to make the most of this…

After careful deliberation, I have scrapped the spreader bar that I use to keep the tips of my skis separate and have now moved onto a cord. This is to allow my skis to move more freely and individually but still help coordination. This takes advantage of all the extra movement I am getting from the chiropractor and physio.  Unfortunately for the short term, this means I took a bit of a step back, whilst I got used to keeping my legs apart and the coordination with my feet….not so easy when you add altitude to the mix.

                                                                                                                 

This camp was the first time I have undergone hydration testing. This was done daily for the purpose of managing our hydration levels more effectively. You basically pee’d in a pot which was then tested and If you scored under a certain score (being too dehydrated) you were given a dioralyte to rehydrate you, or a sachet of shame as we call them…. I had many a sachet that fortnight, I can still taste them now….not good. This was really helpful and goes to show that I probably don’t drink enough water when I am at home never mind when I am training on a glacier.

The snow for June was amazing, we had a couple of powder days with poor visibility but other than that, the weather was perfect.  I even enjoyed the powder… which is a first, being a four tracker I have a lot of edges to think about in powder but I actually loved it, it was great to make fresh tracks !!! But on the odd occasion I still do end up getting a bit stuck….

We skied in just base layers most days as it was too hot to have anything else on. The coaches and physio’s took advantage of the glacier river near the hotel for recovery, which as you can see from the pictures was FREEZING.

The team morale has been at an all-time high recently and we have been getting on very well. We are constantly playing pranks on each other and winding each other up (in a friendly way )…this makes down time far more fun and relaxing.

So what have I been doing since I got back ?

I have been looking into new equipment, I went to see an Orthotist in Reading called Nick Gallogly, he has a great understanding of the human body and was recommended to be by a friend. He recommended two things, new innersoles for my shoes/ski boots and a special type of body suit. Currently I free style it in my shoes with no support…needless to say I got told off for being daft and being stubborn (as usual). He made some interesting observations about my walk and some ways we could improve it by innersoles.  His second recommendation was a body suit by a company called DM Orthotic. This is a skintight suit made to fit which pulls my body into a correct position using different panels and weave.

I have invested in the innersoles which I have already put into practice, they seemed to have made a difference already. I am currently looking at which organs I can sell to fund the body suit as I feel this is an invaluable bit of kit, I am hoping to get this later this year :) Stay tuned for that one!!

So whats next ?

On Monday 11^th July I am off to Norway for two weeks training in the resort of Fonna. I am very excited for this, I have never been to Norway and I have heard it is an amazing and beautiful country.   I will be sure to take lots of photos.  I will update you guys when I get back.

Love

Alex

x

If anyone would like to sponsor my cause please click here
Or email me on alexclarke1992@outlook.com

Happy New Year

Hi everyone,

 

First of all, Happy new year :)

I hope everyone had a good Christmas and New year, and is finally settled back into the normal routine. I had a great Christmas and New Year, I don’t feel like I have rested but I wouldn’t change it.  You know when you are officially a ‘grown up’ when you receive new ties and work shirts for Christmas :)

On Boxing day my parents and I flew out to Austria for 8 days in Zell am See. We then moved onto Rinn (near Innsbruck) for 2 days racing.  Zell am See is a very picturesque resort, with a huge Lake in the middle surrounded by mountains. When we got there it came apparent very quickly there was a severe lack of snow, but the resort had done very well to keep many of the runs open.

We stayed in Haus Ashling, which is owned by an Irish couple Eugene and Margaret, they brought a family feel to the hotel, which made a very relaxed atmosphere. They also had a hot tub that overlooked the mountains, which was AMAZING!!! 

The first few days of a new resort I always struggle with, I don’t know if it’s my confidence or trying to get my ski legs back, but I am always a bit tentative. My goal for the trip was to get a higher hip position and increase my endurance, allowing me to ski on more terrain, for longer. 

The third day was awesome. We ventured all over the mountain, skiing roughly 20km in a couple of hours, I even skied my first black run :) I had a lot of fun and this was probably the furthest I have ever skied in such a short amount of time. Unfortunately this ruined my back for the next few days and I struggled with pain due to tightness in the lower muscles and vertebrae’s….the hot tub came in very handy.

For our recovery programme we were lucky enough to find a spot next to Lake Zell.  We spent time with the agility cones, trying to get quicker movement through the feet and keep driving forward. We also spent quite some time jumping and hopping, I am not sure what the locals thought to a guy on crutches trying to hop, but it certainly got some interesting looks.

We had the benefit of spending New Year in this amazing place. My parents and I had a relaxed evening going out for a meal and then headed back up to Haus Ashling to watch the fireworks from the hotel with the rest of the guests. The fireworks were incredible and lasted for over an hour, it was a great start to the New Year and will be something I never forget.

My skis have taken a bit of a battering of the last year, those of you that have seen my skis will say that is a bit of an understatement. The poor snow conditions dealt the final blow, snapping off part of the edge and leaving me with very little/no grip.  I had ordered some new ones at the beginning of December but due to a number of reasons they hadn’t arrived yet.  This posed a problem for the upcoming race. I have a special attachment to keep my skis apart (a solid tether), which is actually drilled through the top of each ski, which makes borrowing skis a problem.  Justin (coach) kindly said he would let me borrow his skis. This meant I would have to use a clip on tether to keep my skis apart that was made of rope, rather than a solid fixed tether. This is something I have not skied with for quite a while. 

On the 3^rd of January we travelled to Rinn near Innsbruck to compete in two slalom races. A Day & a night slalom.  The events are put on as part of the Roll Rinn festival, which is a charity festival that raises money for children with disabilities in Austria.   The first event was the night slalom; this is the first time I have skied in night slalom. The resort is so small there was only time to practice before the course was set. I tried Justin’s skis using a tether but I did not feel comfortable on these and quickly resorted back to my old knackered skis. Although they had fewer grips, I was more confident on these. I was looking forward to the race but at the same time I had very little confidence in my equipment, which brought on some doubt in my mind. 

As the light faded, the course was illuminated by huge floodlights, signalling the start of inspection. We inspected the course, it looked good, there were 3 rollers and the snow was a bit soft, which was perfect for the equipment I was on. Feeling less doubtful, I queued up in the start gate. This is the first time I have actually un-clipped from skis in the start area and found this made me relax much easier and I was able to activate the right muscles. Shortly after the first racer dropped in, it started to snow. My number neared, so I stripped down to my cat suit and lined up in the gate, the start referee nicknamed me superman because of my second name, which made me laugh, easing the tension. I dropped in and started my run. The snow was soft and was starting to rut, turning the course into a mogul field. My run was rather sketchy to say the least but I made it down, increasing my confidence dramatically. The second run came round; the snow had hardened slightly due to the decreasing temperature but it was still snowing. I dropped in aiming to get my body position higher and really drive the ski forward, I made it down and finished in 15^th Place. I was happy :) As the last skier crossed the finish line this did not see the end of the evening The organisers had put on live bands, fashions parades and great food all in the aid of charity….it was quite a spectacle and was a great event to attend.

The second day came round, I was exhausted from getting back late the night before, but I was keen to get going. I got down the first run 15 seconds faster than my first run on the first day, I was happy. The second run I took a few pointers from our guys and let my skis run on the flatter section. I was travelling with much more speed but a quick lapse in concentration due to fatigue, meant I was extremely late coming out of a turn and I missed one of the last gates.  A bit frustrated with myself but I was happy with what I had done.

John Dickinson Lilley and his guide Jack Davey finished in 2^nd place for the Visually Impaired category and Michael Kear and Rufus Alcott finished in third place on both days. Well done to everyone and great few days.

Following on from my last post I thought I would give a bit of an update on Jeffrey Stuut. Jeff (pictured right) is now out of hospital and is on the mend, he spent some time with family over Christmas but is currently in the Papendal  National Training Centre in Veluwe.  He has been on the anti gravity running machine and is making good progress. Currently running at 60% his body weight. He is very keen to come back stronger than ever. Best wishes for him for the New Year.

So what’s next for me? I am now back at work and right in the thick of it. I am chasing down my new skis, eager to get back on the boards. My next races are in March but before then I am trying to ski as many weekends as I can. I am also seeing a Chiropractor 3 times a week to sort out my body position & posture. I had my first adjustment last Friday and feel this will make a big difference. Speak soon

Love

Alex

x

If anyone would like to sponsor my cause please click here

Or email me on alexclarke1992@outlook.com