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(Posted
8:30 a.m., Feb. 16)
Blind, deaf speedskater strikes gold at Lake Placid competition
By Mike Beasley
Orléans Online
When
Kevin Frost crossed the Canadian border into the United
States in mid-January, he probably told the border agents
that he was going to America for pleasure.
The
truth of the matter was that the blind deaf athlete was
all business as he spent the Jan. 19-20 weekend in Lake
Placid winning a pair of gold medals in speed skating.
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Kevin
Frost, second from the left, with some of
fellow competitors at the Jack Shea Relays
in Lake Placid. PHOTO PROVIDED
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Frost
was participating at the 2018 Jack Shea Sprint Championships
at the Sheffield speed skating oval in the picturesque
Adirondack town which was the site of the 1980 Winter
Olympics.
"It
was a great event, well organized and it's always nice
to win when you enter something,� Frost admitted. "All
the athletes were pretty lucky with ideal conditions during
the outdoor event. They were definitely in our favour
as we were able to register some pretty good times with
warm temperatures and light winds.�
Frost
competed against close to 60 able-bodied skaters from
both sides of the border, but managed to come out on top
in his category with some pretty impressive results.
He
finished the two-day event with a combined time of 3:21.43
seconds in the 500- and 1000-metre sprints (four races
in all), just two one-hundredths of a second ahead of
his closest rival who finished the competition with a
combined time of 3:21.45 seconds.
This
time of year, Frost is usually busy training for his tandem
bicycle road races which come along in the spring. Golf
has also become one of his passions and he spends a lot
of time on the links when the weather warms up.
During
the winter months, Frost has logged close to 20 years
of speed skating and was happy that he still had something
in the tank when it came to one of his preferred sports.
"It's
very reassuring to see that my overall training is still
paying off when it comes to speed skating. I don't put
as much pressure on myself with skating as I do with my
other sports.�
In
addition, the speed skating event gave Frost the chance
to visit one of his favourite venues.
"Lake
Placid is just under three hours from Ottawa so the drive
was easy,� Frost explained. "We (Frost is always accompanied
by his service dog Louis) had a nice, relaxing stay. We
had the opportunity to walk around the village and check
out the sights. Lake Placid is very beautiful in the winter.
It's really a winter wonderland.�
After
returning from Lake Placid, Frost immediately focused
on the upcoming tandem bike racing season. He's in the
market for a new lead on his bike to help him navigate
the twists turns of the ovals, or the flat track, that
he races on.
"As
a visually impaired racer I need someone who has to be
the eyes of our ---team along with the endurance of being
a good biker. I'll keep searching until I find the right
person,� says Frost.
(This
story was made possible thanks to the generous support of
our local business partners.)
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