‘People should feel welcome here’: Adaptive sailing aims to expand access for those with disabilities

About 10 students set sail on Pistakee Bay near Johnsburg last weekend as part of an adaptive sailing program launched by the Community Sailing School, located at the Pistakee Yacht Club.

Some of the participants were people affiliated with and instructors at the sailing school, and officials said they have plans to partner with the Northern Illinois Special Recreation Association, Shriners and the McHenry-based Pioneer Center for Human Services, among others, to encourage people with disabilities to participate in sailing.

Kathleen Winkiel, who serves on the school’s board, said that those in the sailing world have been trying to be more inclusive. Winkiel took an adaptive sailing class with Betsy Alison last year in Massachusetts. Alison taught the course in Johnsburg this weekend.

Alison said adaptive sailing is something she supervises as part of her duties with U.S. Sailing, and that Tom Kartheiser, the sailing school’s board chair, had asked her to teach the program.

“We talked about it for several years,” Winkiel said of the program, adding that it is “one avenue to include more people.”

Sailing school officials weren’t sure the program would attract enough participants. Winkiel said they needed six people to run the course, but 10 signed up so they could learn how to help people with disabilities enjoy the pastime.

Participants took their sailboats to the water Saturday afternoon, but before doing so, had to make adjustments to make them work for people with various disabilities, such as those who are blind or have below-knee below-knee amputations.

The adjustments were personal for Alison. She had cancer a couple years ago, and can’t bear weight on her left leg. In her boat, she and students Mary Ross and Mackenzie Winkiel made accommodations so Alison would be able to move from one side to the other without needing to place weight on her leg. Winkiel participated from the perspective of someone who had a below-knee amputation.

Alison said sailing can be inclusive for all people.

“People should feel welcome here,” Alison said, adding places like Pistakee Yacht Club are the “best kept secret in the Midwest.”

Tom Kartheiser, the sailing school’s board chair, participated in the class and wore a blindfold while he sailed Saturday to simulate the experience of someone with sight loss. Kartheiser said he had a better sense of the wind with the blindfold on. He added one in five Americans have a disability, and the program will benefit a lot of people in the community.

Kartheiser said he and Kathleen Winkiel were founders of the sailing school and “we wanted to have an open and inclusive” program.

The adaptive sailing program is open to all, not just those from the partnering organizations. Those interested can check out the sailing school’s website, commsailpistakee.org/.

The sailing school is a separate organization from the Pistakee Yacht Club, which is currently in a dispute with the village of Johnsburg over boat storage.