2022 Cross Country Ski and Snowshoe Practice

We are happy to offer Cross Country Ski and Snowshoe practice starting Saturday January 8th 2022 from 9:00 AM to 10:30 AM at the Catamount Outdoor Family Center. Please contact Dave Bogdan <dbogdan@ieee.org> or 802-865-3840 to sign up. 

As with many things, there will be some changes this year. The Lodge will not be open due to COVID-19 restrictions so we are shortening the practice by half an hour and will not gather indoors after practice. Snowshoes are not allowed on the groomed cross country ski trails so you will be on a different trail. We will have to check in and register as a group at the shack in the parking lot. The coaches will do the check-in but we need to know who is attending each Saturday. 

Catamount will require all participants to complete a waiver. You may complete it on-line here: https://waiver.smartwaiver.com/w/588f7c34a36c8/web/%20target=

Catamount will not be offering free equipment this year. They will charge $20 for skis and, with advanced notice, can have snowshoes available for $5. You will be responsible for paying for equipment if you need it. 

As always, we need a current medical to participate. I can check your status when you sign up. 

Practice will run from January 8th through March 5th. If the trails are closed, we have the option to walk the Burlington Bike Path. At this point, we are not planning on any indoor alternatives.

2022 Chittenden Alpine Ski and Snowboard practice

Our Chittenden program  is pleased to partner with Vermont Adaptive to provide Alpine Ski and Snowboard practice. Please contact David Bogdan <dbogdan@ieee.org>, phone 802-865-3840 to sign up. This year, those needing equipment will be able to get free rentals at Mt. Ellen through Vermont Adaptive. I will need to know if you need equipment and transportation when you sign up. We will require a current medical on file before you may go to the mountain!  

We will again provide transportation from Special Olympics Vermont to Sugarbush Mt Ellen for those who need it. We will depart at 11:45AM and plan to be back by 4:45PM. 

Please note that the lunch bar at Mt Ellen will only take payment by credit card and will not accept cash. Please plan accordingly and bring snacks and drinks if you do not have a card.  

Here are the details from Felicia at Vermont Adaptive, you will have to complete the athlete profile and the online waivers:

- Sunday Afternoon's 1-3:30 at Mt Ellen

January 9, 23, 30

February 6, 13, 27

March 6, 13

(the first day of practice will likely be very busy, we have another group of around 15 or so in town)

Paperwork- 

1. Athlete Profiles - for all athletes

2. Online Waivers - for all athletes and staff

Covid Guidelines - please read carefully

Updated Nov. 15, 2021 -  VERMONT ADAPTIVE “RESPECT THE PLAY” COVID-19 PLAN

As we prepare for the winter season and the return of close-contact lessons, Vermont Adaptive is asking each and every one of our community members - athletes, companions, volunteers, interns, and staff - to agree to RESPECT THE PLAY. By following these simple  practices, we can make Vermont Adaptive winter programs possible and allow for fair and safe access to outdoor play for EveryBODY.

We believe that everyone has the right and the need to have opportunities to play. When each of us agrees to these simple practices, it allows for everyone to make their own, personal decision about the level of risk they are comfortable with while playing at Vermont Adaptive this winter. When everyone RESPECTS THE PLAY, everyone gets fair access to play.

Thank you for adhering to these Winter 2021-2022 RESPECT THE PLAY practices:

1. ALL Vermont Adaptive Participants (athletes, companions, volunteers, interns, and staff), age 5 and older, will be fully vaccinated.

2. We will ALL wear masks at ALL times indoors.

3. We will ALL wear masks outside anytime we are within 10 Feet of someone from another household.

4. We will ALL complete a daily health check and stay home if we are sick or we can’t pass the health check.

These practices may change and Vermont Adaptive reserves the right to make updates as Federal, local, and industry guidance change. We anticipate some version of this to be in place for the entire winter.

Details of how we will RESPECT THE PLAY will be covered in future training and in reservation confirmation emails. 

If you have questions about these RESPECT THE PLAY practices, or you are concerned that you may not be able to meet them, please speak with the Program Coordinator at your location. We hope you will all choose to follow the RESPECT THE PLAY practices and come play this winter.

Let me know what questions come up!

- Felicia

Felicia Fowler, CTRS

(she/her/hers)

Program Coordinator 

(802) 343-1193

Vermont Adaptive Ski and Sports
Sports for Every Body

Calling All Volunteers! We need you this winter! Preparations for winter off- and on-snow training are underway, and we’re looking for new and returning volunteers to join us on the snow this winter. The first step is to sign up and register to volunteer. You’ll then be on our preferred list to receive all the up-to-date information about training (virtual and in-person) that will begin late fall and continue into November and December. Come share your passion for snow sports with others - register today! https://www.vermontadaptive.org/get-involved/

 

2021 Chittenden Dry Land Training

 Now that our fall fitness walks have finished, we are going to start a Dry Land Training program. This will be an outdoor fitness program to get us in shape for winter sports or, for those who don't do winter sports, the sports that come after that. We plan to meet from 11:00 - 12:00 AM Sundays at the Willey Farm starting 11/21/21. The training will be more strenuous than our fitness walks have been and will focus on core strength and flexibility. This will be excellent preparation for alpine skiing, snowboarding, cross country skiing and snowshoeing. We are planning on offering winter sports starting in January so now is the time to get off the couch and get prepared!  People not planning on doing winter sports are encouraged to come too! This will be good for everyone!  

We will run the program Sunday 11/21/21 through Sunday 12/19/21. Watch your email and the blog for weather cancellations. Dress in layers because it will probably be cold but as we exercise, you will get hot and want to take a layer off. Bring a water bottle. Also, if you have an exercise mat, you may want to bring it. 

Please contact David Bogdan <dbogdan@ieee.org> or 802-865-3840 to sign up. We will be checking for current medicals. Special Olympics COVID-19 protocols are still in place, please wear a mask to check-in and we will be taking temperatures and asking the COVID-19 questions. 

Coaches:

Jay Schulz

Karen Bogdan

Dave Bogdan

 

Williston Fitness Walk Canceled - 11/3/21

 We have canceled the Williston Fitness walk today, 11/3/21.

2021 SOVT Monster Mash Virtual Dance Party - Thursday October 28th, 5:00 - 6:00 PM

Chitteden Essex Fitness Walk Canceled 10/21/21

 The Essex Fitness Walk is canceled for today, 10/21/21 due to the poor weather. We hope to see you next week! 

Chittenden Fall Fitness Walks

Now that our Fall Sports have finished, we are going to kick off Fall Fitness Walks again. We will host three locations this time:

• Burlington Fitness Walk, Tuesdays 5:00 - 6:00 PM, 10/12/21 through 11/2/21 starting at Leddy Park
• Williston Fitness Walk, Wednesdays 5:00 - 6:00 PM, 10/13/21 through 11/3/21 starting at the Williston Community Park
  
• Essex Fitness Walk, Thursdays, 4:30 - 5:30 PM, 10/14/21 through 11/4/21 starting at the Willey Family Farm (park at 4 St. James Place, Essex Junction)

We have schedule 4 weeks of walks and then Daylight Savings Time ends. We will decide how to continue after that. 

We will still practice the COVID-19 safe practices of wearing of mask to check-in, temperature check and social distancing. 

Please contact me at dbogdan@ieee.org or 802-865-3840 to sign up for one of the groups. 

2021 Chittenden Bocce Update

We are having our in-person local competition this Saturday, September 18th at the Willey Family Farm, the same place practice has been. Please arrive by 8:45 AM for check in. We will be taking temperatures of everyone; athletes, coaches, family, caregivers and spectators. Masks are required at all times and social distancing is required. I know that is hard at the bocce courts.

Athletes, please wear your Hawaiian bocce shirts! New athletes, we did not have time this season to order new shirts so if you have a Hawaiian shirt or any crazy shirt, please wear it! We will have new shirts for new athletes next bocce season!

We will have pizza, apples and drinks for lunch. If you do not want pizza, please bring lunch. We will attempt to keep social distance while handing out pizza.

We hope to be all done with lunch and awards by 1:00 or 1:30 PM. This is the first time we have actually hosted a competition so please be patient and enjoy the bocce spirit!

See you there!  Dave

 

p.s. There will be one portalet available. 

Chittenden Bocce Practice Canceled 9/15/21

 We do not want to repeat last weeks bocce practice so we are canceling tonight's practice. See everyone on Saturday!

Special Olympics Chittenden Fall Sports Competition - Golf Update

Hi all, the Special Olympics Vermont Fall Games Golf Competition will be this Saturday, 9/18/21 at the Basin Harbor Golf Club. Athlete and coach check-in will be at 10:00 AM.Skills will be done early afternoon. 18 Hole alternate shots will take longer....

Here are the guidelines from Special Olympics Vermont:

All events will be held outdoors and will follow Covid protocols, including Covid check-in, required masks for all participants regardless of vaccination status, social distancing, and hand sanitizing. A note on health and safety recommendations from the Vermont Department of Health: 

• Vaccination is the best method for protecting yourself and preventing transmission of COVID-19 and its variants. SOVT strongly recommends that all participants eligible for the vaccine be vaccinated. 
• Testing is also recommended, but not mandatory. To prevent the spread of Covid, it is safest practice for unvaccinated participants to receive a negative Covid test up to 72 hours in advance of an event. It is also best for people who have attended a large gathering to get a Covid test 3 - 5 days after the event. 

 Fall Games Golf will take place Saturday, Sept. 18th at Basin Harbor as planned, in accordance with State and Special Olympics COVID guidelines. This decision was made with careful consideration of many factors, including attendance numbers. Golf has been an allowed activity even before vaccines were available, and we have excellent guidance from both Special Olympics, Inc. and the Vermont state guidelines. We also have a plan in place to minimize risk when conducting golf skills activities. 

We understand some may see it as unfair that athlete golfers will have a statewide, in-person competition and bocce and track athletes will have a different experience. We feel it is critically important during these unrelenting challenging times that we strive to do all that we safely are able to do. It is also worth noting that the golfers are often the athletes who miss the ceremony of Fall Games because their venue is removed from the primary site.

2021 Special Olympics Chittenden Fall Sports - Track Update

Hi all, you may have heard the disappointing news that the Special Olympics Vermont Fall Games Bocce and Track competition in St. Albans is being changed to a virtual event due the COVID-19 upsurge along with the large number of people who would have attended.

For track, we will be participating in the state-wide virtual competition. Our track coaches will measure your times and distances at this Wednesday's practice and submit them to Special Olympics Vermont. Special Olympics Vermont will then division the state-wide event times and determine everyone's results. We will then have a get together to present medals at a later date.

Below is information from Special Olympics Vermont that we will be following:

All events will be held outdoors and will follow Covid protocols, including Covid check-in, required masks for all participants regardless of vaccination status, social distancing, and hand sanitizing. A note on health and safety recommendations from the Vermont Department of Health: 

• Vaccination is the best method for protecting yourself and preventing transmission of COVID-19 and its variants. SOVT strongly recommends that all participants eligible for the vaccine be vaccinated. 
• Testing is also recommended, but not mandatory. To prevent the spread of Covid, it is safest practice for unvaccinated participants to receive a negative Covid test up to 72 hours in advance of an event. It is also best for people who have attended a large gathering to get a Covid test 3 - 5 days after the event.
  
• Fall Games Track & Field events will take place at the local level, in-person, with a virtual statewide competition. We request that final athlete competition scores be collected at the regularly scheduled practice in the coming week.
  

2021 Chittenden Fall Sports - Bocce Competition Update

Hi all, you may have heard the disappointing news that the Special Olympics Vermont Fall Games Bocce and Track competition in St. Albans is being changed to a virtual event due the COVID-19 upsurge along with the large number of people who would have attended.

Our bocce coaches will run a local Chittenden only competition this Saturday, September 18th at the Willey Family Farm (same place as our practices. Athlete check-in will begin at 8:45 AM, we will have an opening ceremony then start competition at 9:30 AM. We hope to be done by 1:30 PM or 2:00 PM.  Pizza lunch will be provided. Mark your calendar and note the new location! 

Below is information from Special Olympics Vermont that we will be following:

All events will be held outdoors and will follow Covid protocols, including Covid check-in, required masks for all participants regardless of vaccination status, social distancing, and hand sanitizing. A note on health and safety recommendations from the Vermont Department of Health: 

• Vaccination is the best method for protecting yourself and preventing transmission of COVID-19 and its variants. SOVT strongly recommends that all participants eligible for the vaccine be vaccinated. 
• Testing is also recommended, but not mandatory. To prevent the spread of Covid, it is safest practice for unvaccinated participants to receive a negative Covid test up to 72 hours in advance of an event. It is also best for people who have attended a large gathering to get a Covid test 3 - 5 days after the event.

Chittenden Track Practice canceled 9/8/2021

 Track practice is canceled tonight due to the weather. Hope to see everyone next week!

2021 Fall Sports Update

Hi all, recreational soccer, recreational softball, track and golf are all well underway. This Wednesday, we start Bocce! I have updates for Bocce, some limited information on the Fall Competition and a change to the Soccer schedule:

First for Bocce (and all other sports), we have instituted a formal check-in for Covid-19. We require that individuals wear a mask to check-in. We will take temperatures and ask the standard Covid-19 questions at check-in. We will also require athletes and others participating in practice to wear masks during practice since we will be a large group and relatively close to each other on the bocce court. Special Olympics requires everyone, athletes, coaches and support people to sign a Covid-19 waiver form which will be valid for 3 years. It will help with check in if you bring a completed Covid-19 waiver to practice. You may find it here:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1E_xVLilYDRPKm8tyDOY009Q3H2CIoIOT/view?usp=sharing
I will have some blank waiver forms but not enough for everyone!

Fall Games will be on Saturday September 18th. Golf will be at Basin Harbor Golf Club Course. Track and Bocce will be at the Collins Perley Sports & Fitness Center. We do not have a detailed schedule yet but will have to register our delegation by September 6th. Please let me know if you cannot attend your competition. I will be asking this at the first Bocce practice!  Please note that we will not be able to provide transportation to the competition!

We have announced a Soccer schedule change. Starting next week, 9/7/21, we are moving soccer practice to Tuesdays from 5:45 to 7:00.

That's all for now. Thanks, Dave

David C. Bogdan
Chittenden Program Coordinator
Special Olympics Vermont

 

Chittenden Softball cancelled 8/19/21

 We are cancelling softball practice, 8/19/21, due to the rain! Hope to see you next week.

2021 Chittenden Softball Practice

 It is time to sign up for Softball! Please contact Dave Bogdan (dbogdan@ieee.org or 802-865-3840) to pre-register so that we can have your medical at practice.

We are pleased to announce that Softball practice begins Thursday August 12th, 5:30 PM to 7:00 PM at Schifilliti Park, 126 Gosse Ct, Burlington. Practice will be every Thursday and is scheduled through September 30th. Please note that there will not be a softball competition and this will be practice and scrimmages only!

  
Coach: 

Paul Comier

2021 Chittenden Bocce Practice ** New Location **

 It is time to sign up for Bocce!  Please contact Dave Bogdan (dbogdan@ieee.org or 802-865-3840) to preregister so that we can have your medical at practice.

We are pleased to announce that Bocce practice begins Wednesday, September 1st, 5:30 PM to 6:30 PM at the Willey Family Farm in back of the Fairgrounds in Essex Junction. Take the St. James Place entrance to the fairgrounds from route 2A. Practices will be Wednesdays through September 15th. The Fall Sports Competition will be held at the Collins Perley Sports and Fitness Center in St. Albans on September 18th. Please note that it is a one day competition! 

Golf practice canceled, 7/27/21

 Golf practice is cancelled tonight, 7/27/21, due to the rain. We hope to see everyone next Tuesday!

2021 Chittenden Soccer Practice

It is time to sign up for Soccer! Please contact Dave Bogdan (dbogdan@ieee.org or 802-865-3840) to pre-register so that we can have your medical at practice.

We are pleased to announce that Soccer practice begins Monday August 9th, 5:45 PM to 7:00 PM at Willey Family Farm in back of the Fairgrounds in Essex Junction. Take the St. James Place entrance to the fairgrounds from route 2A. Practice will be every Monday and is scheduled through September 27th. Please note that there will not be a soccer competition and this will be practice and scrimmages only!

Coaches: 
Giles Willey - Phone 802-598-3123

 

2021 Chittenden Track Practice * New Location *

It is time to sign up for Track and Field!  Please contact Dave Bogdan (dbogdan@ieee.org or 802-865-3840) to pre-register so that we can have your medical at practice.

We are pleased to announce that Track practice begins Wednesday, August 11th, 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM at the Essex High School track. Practices will be Wednesdays through September 15th. The Fall Sports Competition will be held at the Collins Perley Sports and Fitness Center in St. Albans on September 18th. Please note that it is a one day competition! 

Coaches: 
Joe McNamara - Phone 802-310-4263
Mary Turnbaugh

2021 Chittenden Golf Practice

We are pleased to announce that Golf practice begins Tuesday August 27th, 5:30 PM to 7:00 PM at The Kwini Club, 5531 Spear St., Shelburne. We will hold the following practices, weather permitting:

07/27/21

08/03/21

08/10/21

08/24/21

08/31/21

09/07/21

09/14/21

Note that there will be no practice the on Tuesday 8/17/21. 

Coaches: 
Greg Clairmont - Phone 802-343-8446 , email: listandsellvt@gmail.com

Essex Fitness Walk canceled 7/14/21, resheduled for 7/21/21

 We are canceling this afternoon's Essex Fitness Walk and rescheduling to next week! Hope you can make it then.

Williston Fitness Walk/Run canceled 7/13/21

All, we have canceled the last Williston Fitness Walk/Run. Thanks all for participating, it's been a great season! 

Essex Fitness Walk canceled 6/30/21

This afternoon's Essex Fitness Walk is canceled due to the thunder, lightning and rain. We will resume next week, weather permitting! 

 

Burlington Fitness Walk canceled 6/21/21

 We are in the middle of thunder and lightning here in Burlington so we are canceling our fitness walk again! Cross your fingers for next week. 

No Burlington Fitness Walk on Memorial Day, 5/31/21

 We will not have the Burlington Fitness Walk on Memorial Day, 5/31/21. I hope to see everyone the following week.

Essex Fitness Walk Canceled 5/26/21

 We are canceling today's practice due to the very bad weather forecast. Hope to see everyone next week!

2021 Spring Fitness Walks and Run

Hi all, happy spring! We are going to start up our fitness walks and runs again. At this point we will be still following the exact same safety guidelines as last fall. That means we WILL be requiring masks, social distancing, and the formal check-in and attendance log for contact tracing.

We will be offering 8 weeks of walks and runs at the same four locations as last year. We are limiting each location to 20 athletes so please contact me to sign up. The locations, times and start dates are:

Burlington, Leddy Park - Mondays, starting 5/24/21 from 6:00 - 7:30 led by Dave/Karen

Williston, Williston Community Park - Tuesdays, starting 5/25/21 from  5:30 - 7:00 led by Joe

Essex, Willey Family Farm - Wednesdays, starting 5/26/21 from 4:00 - 5:30 led by Giles

Shelburne, Shelburne Farms - Thursdays, starting 5/27/21 from 5:00 - 6:30 led by Ellen

We are asking sign-in volunteers to arrive a half hour early to prepare for sign-in. I am still looking for volunteers, contact me!

Please sign up for only one location. We will require a signed COVID-19 Code of Conduct and a new Special Olympics Communicable Disease Waiver form for each participant. If you filled out a COVID-19 Code of Conduct last year, you do not need to do it again.

The COVID-19 Code of Conduct may be found here:

https://media.specialolympics.org/resources/covid-19/COVID-19-Participant-Code-of-Conduct-and-Risk-Form-REVISED-7-2-20-FILLABLE.pdf?_ga=2.13952695.1826391318.1594338322-636302037.1544720320

The Special Olympics Communicable Disease Waiver may be found here:

https://media.specialolympics.org/resources/covid-19/COVID-19-Waiver.docx?_ga=2.52554016.948612830.1619025768-1467322663.1546968110

The Green Mountain Self-Advocates Club Guide to COVID-19 may be found here:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/12cSmXUblBQQQpXmK8RJYpNf6-BlR32ns/view

I hope you will sign up. Looking forward to getting out and seeing everyone, Dave

American Flatbread Benefit Bake to support Chittenden - 2/23/2021

American Flatbread - Burlington Hearth will hold a Benefit Bake to support Special Olympics Vermont Chittenden on Tuesday, February 23rd from 4:00 PM to 8:00 PM. American Flatbread will donate $3.00 for every large flatbread purchased and $1.50 for every small flatbread purchased. Take out only. If you’d like to brave the winter weather, American Flatbread has limited outdoor dining with patio heaters and fire pits to keep you warm.

Please support both our community partner, American Flatbread, and our Chittenden team, you may find the menu and on-line ordering here: https://www.toasttab.com/american-flatbread-burlington-hearth/v3#!/order