Five years ago, no one believed that Roundy would ever have that moment. She had gone up to Snowbird to try skiing, but felt uncomfortable with the outrigger that was supposed to replace her prosthesis for the second ski.
"I liked the snow, speed and adrenaline, but it felt like there was something missing. Then I saw the people snowboarding and wanted to try it," said Roundy.
"I told the staff, and they looked at me like I was crazy. 'An amputee on a snowboard? It'll never happen.'"
Snowboarding, however, still called to Roundy, and she began practicing anyway despite the lack of shock absorbers in her prosthesis and the fact that it was locked at the knee. The next year, however, a prosthetic knee designed for extreme sports was invented, and two weeks after getting it Roundy was out on the slopes learning jumps.
"It's still amazing to me that I can get up there at all," she said. "It's been a fight for it."
Attendance at the USASA Nationals is by invitation only, issued only to boarders who prove themselves in regional competition. Next year, the association will begin adaptive regional competitions as one of the required events for nationals. Roundy is thrilled and looks forward to the challenge.
"It's kind of hard when you don't have the opportunity to compete in very many events and suddenly you're in nationals," said Roundy, who also won a silver in adaptive slopestyle in 2006. "It's like you're learning to compete at the same time you're competing."
This year's adaptive competition included representatives from the U.S., Australia, Holland, New Zealand and Italy. The requirements for adaptive and traditional snowboarding are the same, except that the competitors deal with challenges like leg braces and prosthetics.
"We have to find an alternate way to do the same tricks everyone else is doing," said Roundy.
Roundy's goal is for adaptive snowboarding to get into the Paralympics, though she's aware that "less fun" events like the slalom would probably be the first to be included. Still, it's the recognition that she sees as the most important.
"Even out at nationals I'm sure some of the judges thought we adaptive boarders were crazy," said Roundy. "We're missing limbs, we're missing functionality, we're falling down, but we're still getting up and throwing ourselves down the hill.
"We know pain and how much we can lose, but we get back up on our feet no matter how hard we fall."
Roundy hopes that she can be a motivation, not only to other amputees but to anyone facing what they believe is insurmountable odds.
"Whatever your challenge is -- physical, emotional, financial -- you can find a way to live your dream despite what anyone else says," said Roundy. "They looked at me and said 'You're not going to be on a snowboard,' and I just got back from competition."
jwardell@davisclipper.com
Post a Comment
