Tyler "TC" Carter

Paralympic Skier, Classroom Champions Mentor, Yogi, Motivational Speaker. Living the dream, one day at a time www.tcskiusa.com

[tcskiusa]

Above the Clouds/Lord of the Rocks

As some of you know by now, last week myself and 4 others embarked on a 4 day journey. Our goal was simple: to backpack across the Presidential Traverse in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. 

It felt like something right out of Lord of the Rings; traveling across the lands, through forests, and over mountains of rock to accomplish the goal set before us. Except our path was to make it to the other side and not destroy a ring. But as it was for the young Hobbits, our journey was not an easy venture. Instead of battling Orcs and Ringwraiths, we had to deal with the weather which proved to be a challenging foe. On the 1st Day we were lucky. Warm weather, sunlight and the cover of trees allowed an uneventful hike straight up Madison Hut. However on Day 2, we encountered rain, fog, and 57mph gusts of wind. This was the most challenging part of our journey. 

Many times during that 8 hour trek through the fog, wind and rain I wondered what I was doing out there. We had to carefully watch every step because the rocks (or boulders) were slick from the rain and gusts of wind were trying to blow us off the mountain. It was an almost 7 mile trek over uneven and unstable terrain. It was without a doubt the most challenging ordeal I have ever been through. And when my body ached and my legs did not want to move anymore, I remembered a line from LOTR, “All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us” - Gandalf.** I could have been at home sitting around or working a 9 to 5 job. But instead I was out in nature, experiencing the world. Pushing myself to the limits. Surrounded by my brothers who were right beside me. So we kept moving and eventually made it to the Lakes of the Clouds Hut. And we savored our rest and time together. Knowing that it was time well spent.

The next and last 2 days were a breeze compared to that ordeal. The weather decided to be kind to us and we had sun most of the way down. Even though there was some challenging terrain and rocks to overcome I enjoyed every minute of it. We took our time and stopped often to appreciate the journey and even practice a little yoga. We had gone through our Mordor and succeeded in our journey. In the end it wasn't necessarily the completion of our journey that mattered, but the fact that we did it together.  

Now I am resting and recovering, getting back into my normal routine. As always looking into new adventures. There are a few really exciting things coming up so stay tuned.

Until next time, TC

*Quote by J. R. R. Tolkien from The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring

[tcskiusa]

Out in Nature

As I sit down to write this at 5:09am in the morning I can't help but feel butterflies in my stomach. Sure it is way too early to be up (in my opinion), but it is necessary . Why might you ask? Well I am about to embark on an exciting 4 day hike through on the Presidential Traverse, through the White Mountains of New Hampshire. I will be helping to co-leading this hike with one of my best and closest friends in the world and we will be taking 3 veterans along with us. It's exciting first to be going on this adventure, out in nature with one of my best friends but also to take some great guys out into nature and give them a new experience.

I'm going to keep this short and I'll update everyone on this weekend when I get back.

Thank you

TC

(I apologize for any spelling or grammar mistakes, I'm still trying to wake up)

[tcskiusa]

A New Journey / In the Hood, Part II

Back to reality after a week up in the clouds. It was an incredible experience skiing in August. It has been great getting an early start to the season. I’ve had a great progression from the beginning of camp to the end. I’m really looking forward to winter now. Mt. Hood has some incredibly challenging terrain and the snow is always unpredictable, which makes it the perfect training venue. Even though I have enjoyed my time there, it will be nice to get back to my pre-season conditioning and training. Before I jump to my newest adventures, I am extremely excited to announce that I have a new sponsor, Xevo Optics. I am so happy to be joining Team Xevo and be able to represent such an incredible brand. Thank you Mike for being an incredible person and a great friend. 

I’m currently in Manchester, Vermont right now embarking on a new journey. I will be spending the next 2 months or so (with some travel in between) studying yoga and training to become a yoga instructor. I will spend my mornings in the gym and the afternoons honing my yoga skills. It is really exciting to be starting this and working with Heart of the Village Yoga. They are such an amazing group of people and I am truly honored and blessed to be working with such talented individuals. I have really found peace, clarity, and strength in yoga over the past month. I will have a long post about my journey with yoga soon but it has benefited me so much just in the last month. I hope to be able to share my message and path with yoga to others in the future.

While I may be in Vermont right now I have a lot of things coming around the corner. I will be co-leading a hike with a small group of veterans coming up in a few weeks. We will be hiking for 4 days around the Presidential Traverse, which will be a great opportunity for everyone involved. And right before that I will be headed out to Oklahoma for a sitting volleyball development camp to hopefully be considered for the National Team in the near future. Along with that I have a few speeches coming up with a few different organizations. Lots of cool things happening. Stay tuned!

Thank you all for your continued support,

[tcskiusa]

In the Hood, Part I

Currently sitting at a golf resort, spending my afternoons soaking up the sun, enjoying nature and relaxing with some amazing teammates. And while the afternoons are more like a relaxing vacation, my mornings are a completely different story.

Just finished Day #3 of a ski camp at Mt. Hood in Oregon. Pretty crazy to be skiing in the beginning of August in the USA. But it’s happening. And it is pretty freaking* cool.  The morning starts off at 5:30am where you have a quick breakfast, grab what you need and head off to the mountain. Loading the lift by 7:30, you have to upload one lift, put on your ski gear and hike up to another lift before you can even hop into your skis. But it doesn’t take too long till you are flying down a slope (that is also a volcano) that’s over 8,000 ft. Sure there’s not a lot of snow around, and it turns into mashed potatoes** by 11am. That doesn’t matter. Everyone out there lives to ski and will go through dirt, rocks, and countless other obstacles just to make a few turns. Just living the dream. 5 more days here at Hood. Looking forward to continuing to progress my skiing. This is the perfect time to go back to basics and really focus on form. It’s not fun working on drills all morning, but it will pay off in the long run. The first 3 days have been amazing. And I am thrilled with how things are coming together. And there are still 5 days left.

Until next time.

TC

*This is my personal opinion. If you are not a fan of skiing in the summer you may have a differing opinion. ** A term used by skiers for when snow becomes very soft and mushy

[tcskiusa]

What CAMP really means

365

That is the number of days I wait each year for camp. I spend a year waiting for one week to roll around. It might sound a little crazy  waiting all year for one week, but this is always one the best weeks of the year. The week where all you hear is silly camp songs being sung. The sound of golf carts zipping thru the paths. Campers running and yelling, as happy as can be. Zip-line, rope course, swimming, basketball, sitting volleyball, fishing, canoeing, archery and so much more. This is what camp appears to be on the outside. But it really is so much more.

I started attending the Amputee Coalition’s Paddy Rossbach Summer Youth Camp over 12 years ago. While it feels like a lifetime ago, this experience has played an integral part in changing my life. I first came to the camp like many others, as a camper. At the time I did not want to go. I begged my parents not to leave me alone for 3 days with people I had never met before. However, shortly after arriving I realized there was more to this camp. First off almost every single person was an amputee. Being that young it was such a cool experience seeing so many people just like me. It allowed me to be myself. Truly myself, with no fear of judgement from anyone. As the camp progressed and it became time to leave, I realized something else. That we were a family. Not by blood, but something almost as strong (and in some cases even stronger). We are amputees and people with limb-loss. Often we are singled out for being different. But at camp if you have all of your limbs you are different. It is one of the few places that allows us to be exactly who we are. No one will think twice seeing a line of various prosthetic arms and legs by the pool. Or a few guys tearing apart a wheelchair to realign it. It is all just another typical day at camp.

I have continued to return to camp except for 1-2 years where I was off pursuing other things. I honestly had such an incredible time being a camper and meeting so many outstanding people. Making new friends and catching up with old ones. Eventually though, everyone grows up. Maybe not your soul, but in age at least. After I became to old for camp, I realized that I couldn’t just stop going. I wasn’t about to forgot about camp after spending half of my life attending. So I took the next step, and became a counselor. And being a counselor for the last five years. I have gained a whole new perspective. First off I would like to apologize to my past counselors, especially the ones when I was 10-13. Being in charge of young campers is incredibly tiring. They not only wear you out, but try to go off on their own at every opportunity. However, seeing how each individual camper grows and changes throughout the camp is worth every minute. Saying goodbye on the last day and having them tell you it was the best week ever or that they aren’t afraid to show off their “leg” is the most rewarding part of this. I believe it is important to remember where you came from, and give back to the people/ groups that have helped you along the way. True being in a different role is still incredibly fun. I do get to drive a golf cart around after all 😉 but I also have the chance to make a difference with the campers just like my counselors did for me. I can show them that there are so many opportunities in life and they can accomplish just about anything if they try.

And that’s what camp really is about. Allowing the campers to be themselves and hopefully make a difference along the way.

Well until my next adventure,

TC