there are a few places in the world that rival the beauty of Lake Tahoe on a sunny winter day
with its snow-capped mountains towering Peaks and endless miles of trails
fully appreciate the beauty of this place all you have to do is take
one of the gondolas all the way to the top and take in the breathtaking views
for decades it's been attracting Adrenaline Junkies from all over
the world looking for that magic run closest thing to Flying Without Wings
it's the kind of feeling that awaits 24 year old Connor Ford he comes here as often as he can but
he's not your typical visitor diagnosed with severe autism Connor has a limited vocabulary
good there you go turn those feet put him on a pair of skis and is no need for words
he will exhaust his instructors where they're like Connor can we take a break and he's like
just charging he just wants to keep going his mother Ladonna says the moment Connor
even sees snow something inside him just clicks you can tell he feels it he feels so confident
he's on the skis he's got he looks typical because he's skiing with his buddy is a dream come true
it's all the more remarkable considering where he started when he was just three
years old Ladonna had a sinking feeling that something wasn't right doctors told her Connor
was on the autism spectrum and would likely need round-the-clock assistance I can't even tell you
how devastating a diagnosis like that is I've got this smart computer loving sweet kid and they're
telling me he's just basically going to sit around and do nothing all day for the rest of his life
then she heard about adaptive skiing and decided to give it a try I was terrified he'd have a
tantrum at the top of the slope and I'd have to go get him and they wouldn't let us come back
but instead something else happened Conor turned out to be a natural 15 minutes
later he's skiing down the mountain with his instructor and he's smiling it was amazing so
you're watching this and what's going through your mind I'm so happy I could burst
instructor Michael Hunter says the change in Connor was immediate he definitely has
a different energy when he gets on skis he's in his own world he's kind of looking around he's
taking in everything but he he continues when I bring his attention back here he's focused on
me he's grinning Connor is one of 500 students at achieve Tahoe a ski school specifically dedicated
to people with cognitive and physical challenges simply being in nature being on the mountain
enjoying the snow and the Beautiful Skies around us and the happiness that it brings out in people
adaptive skiing is just like regular skiing except it uses specialized equipment and training to
allow people with disabilities to experience the sport it started out mostly for the physically
challenged recent years it's expanded to include a broader spectrum of disabilities in our adaptive
school we see what people can do and we believe that everybody coming through the door as long
as they have a desire to do it they can get it done Connor is one of the school's biggest
success stories as he effortlessly Glides down the slopes can't tell him apart from other skiers and
that's exactly the point has it changed him it has it really has he's more confident now he's
he can do things other people can't do I take videos and I show it to his teachers
and they're amazed that the kid that they see in the classroom is doing such a difficult sport they
look at them in a different light it's not just his teachers Ladonna says it's changed how she
looks at him too I've always been told that Conor can't do things he can't write his name he can't
brush his teeth he can't he can't can't he can't and then I I watch him ski down these mountains
independently and he has a grin on his face and he's having such fun and for
Ladonna and Connor for whom life is an uphill battle that's just the lift they need
foreign
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