Up North: Great Lake Mono-Ski Madness and Race Camp returns for 19th year

The 19th annual Great Lake Mono-Ski Madness and Race Camp took place at Spirit Mountain this past week, bringing together people with disabilities to learn or improve on their techniques.

Mono-skiing works in a similar fashion as alpine skiing, using the same boots, bindings and poles. The only difference being that the participant is skiing in a seated position on a single wide ski.

“Mono skiing is really a sport designed for those who wouldn’t stand up and ski. You might have a spinal cord injury or some lower extremity disability, but the sport is very similar to the able bodied sport in the sense that you become independent after learning certain skills and you can ski any terrain,” said Courage Kenny Supervisor of Sports and Recreation Eric Larson.

More than more than 20 participants from over six states joined the camp, which is the largest adapted ski camp in the Midwest.

“Our goal with the camp has always been to elevate people’s skiing skills, but build that community where families get to meet different people. They learn from other folks of different ages and different abilities,” added Larson.

“When they come to this camp, they get really good instruction, they get good equipment assessment and fit up. Their skills after the course of three full days of up and down the hill here, their skills really increase a lot,” Larson continued.

The Miller-Dwan Foundation and Move United partnered with c=Courage Kenny Rehabilitation Institute to put on the camp. Insuring that the sport is highlighted and people know skiing is for everyone.

“I think it’s really, really important for people to understand that this sport is available here in the upper Midwest. Our North adaptive recreation programs have been around since 1979 making this happen and we want to continue,” concluded Larson.