Blog: "In yachting I’m equal to anybody else on the water"
The English Federation of Disability Sport (EFDS) website features a blog post every Friday through the year. In 2016 we’re taking a look at an A-Z of accessible sporting and fitness opportunities available to disabled people. This week it’s Y for yachting, and Steph Read from Devon discusses feeling free on the water.
Steph’s blog:
I got into yachting at school. It was a special needs school and sailing was part of the curriculum, but when I then went to university I fell out of the habit.
But then after a period of looking around and struggling to find a sailing club that had all the right equipment for me, I discovered Dart Sailability.
These days Kelly, my carer, takes me to Sailability most Saturdays during the summer months, from May to September. It takes about 45 minutes to get there but I don’t mind the journey – it’s worth it.
To get onto the water I first put on my life jacket and then use a hoist sling to lift me into an access dinghy. There’s just enough room for two in the dinghy, so I’m joined by an instructor.
When we sail together the instructor is my eyes because I can’t see any obstacles in the water. I control the boat with a joystick to turn left or right and a mainsheet, which controls the big sail. The instructor works the two jib sheets to control the little sails because, frankly, I’ve got enough going on!
I did feel a little anxious the first time I got back into a boat because when I took part at school I was more mobile. I was worried that the increased severity of my impairment could cause problems on the water. Luckily it didn’t seem to, and I now just love it.
I have Ehlers Danlos Syndrome, which is a connective tissue disorder. By the age of 19 I started to use a wheelchair full-time. It’s unconnected to my visual impairment, but is does mean that the support of Kelly and the Sailability group at Noss Marina is doubly important to me.
Kelly is excellent, even changing the times she supports me so that I can get to the sailing club early enough.
Being active has helped me to become friends with new people and feel a part of a community. I used to feel like a very isolated individual but now I’m part of a network of people I can phone up for a chat or go out with for meals or a quiz night.
It also helps me physically – physiotherapy can be quite boring whereas sport helps exercise your joints and muscles without even thinking about it.
I sail with a lovely group of people, but the biggest thing for me about being out on the water and is the sensation of freedom. You feel you’re not strapped into your wheelchair or having to use crutches. You’re just totally free, equal to anybody else on the water.
Read more in the A-Z blogs series.
