The Eyes Free Sports Podcast

The Eyes Free Sports Podcast: Ep. 124 – Meeting Retired U.S. Army Major Ivan Castro, a Longtime Endurance Athlete

In Episode 124 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, our guest is Ivan Castro from Orlando, FL. The Army veteran and highly accomplished endurance athlete discussed:

• His early years and education
• What inspired him to enlist in the U.S. Army and his 28-year military career
• How he went blind while serving and how he was able to continue to serve on active duty in spite of his blindness
• His achievements in marathons, hikes, and other endurance adventures he has tackled around the world
• The U.S. presidents and other celebrities he has met throughout his life
• The book he co-authored about his journey
• His message about living life to the fullest

Check out Castro’s book, Fighting Blind, on Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/Fighting-Blind-Berets-Extraordinary-Courage/dp/1250076544.

The Eyes Free Sports Podcast -Ep. 123: Playing Blind Chess with David Rosenkoetter

In Episode 123 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, our guest is David Rosenkoetter. The longtime adaptive athlete and fitness guru has also competed in blind chess for many years. During the discussion, Rosenkoetter spoke about:

• Where he is from and his childhood
• His visual impairment
• His educational journey and professional career
• How he got into adaptive sports for the blind and the sports he has competed in
• How he got into blind chess and his journey competing in tournaments
• How chess is adapted for the blind and visually impaired community
• An overview of the United States Blind Chess Association (USBCA) and the current state of blind chess in the U.S. and internationally
• Over-the-board blind chess tournaments and those held virtually
• How fitness has helped him when playing the mental game of chess

Learn more about the United States Blind Chess Association at https://usblindchess.org/.

Check out Rosenkoetter’s website at http://boldlyblind.blog.

His soon-to-be-published book is called Jag.

The Eyes Free Sports Podcast: Ep. 122 – Talking Blind Hockey with Drew Garza and Josh Schneider of The Dented Puck Foundation

In Episode 122 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we visit with Drew Garza and Josh Schneider, two of the founders of The Dented Puck Foundation who are both highly active in blind hockey in the U.S. During the conversation, they talked about:

• Their early years
• Their low vision journeys
• How they discovered blind hockey
• Their experiences in blind hockey both on and off the ice
• Why they started The Dented Puck Foundation and its mission
• The current state of blind hockey in the U.S. and looking ahead
• The possibility of getting blind hockey into the Paralympics someday
• How to learn more about blind hockey and their contact info

Learn more about The Dented Puck Foundation and blind hockey at http://thedentedpuck.com/.

The Eyes Free Sports Podcast: Ep. 121 – Stretching with Sonya Chapnick, a Visually Impaired Certified yoga Therapist and Founder/CEO of Yoga Gently

In Episode 121 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, our guest is Sonya Chapnick from the Los Angeles, CA area. The founder and CEO of Yoga Gently spoke about:

• Her early years and education
• Her unique career prior to losing her vision
• How she got into yoga and her professional certifications
• What inspired her to launch Yoga Gently
• The yoga programs she offers and how she adapts them to blind and visually impaired clients
• How she got into tandem cycling, skiing, and other outdoor activities
• Her advice on the benefits of getting involved in sports and recreation

Learn more about Yoga Gently at http://yogagently.com.

The Eyes Free Sports Podcast: Ep. 120 – Meeting David Benney and Recapping the 2024 National Beep Baseball Association World Series and Season

In Episode 120 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we meet David Benney. The longtime beep baseball player and advocate for the sport spoke about:

• His early years growing up in Chicago
• His visual impairment and how it has impacted his life
• His education and career
• How he got into playing beep baseball and his lengthy career with multiple teams
• His role as a color commentator and media team member for the National Beep Baseball Association (NBBA)
• An overview of the 2024 NBBA season
• Recapping the 2024 NBBA World Series held in the St. Louis, MO area
• Players who stood out to him during the World Series
• His overall observations on how the World Series was put on and looking ahead

Learn more about the National Beep Baseball Association (NBBA) and the sport of beep baseball at http://nbba.org.

The Eyes Free Sports Podcast: Ep. 119 – A Visit with Liz Bottner, a Blind Hockey Player, Adaptive Runner, and All-Around Disability Advocate

In Episode 119 of the Eyes Free Sports Podcast, Liz Bottner joins the conversation. A native of Delaware, Bottner has gone on to a successful professional career along with lots of involvement in several adaptive sports. During the podcast, Bottner talked about:

• Being a triplet and her two sisters
• Her eye condition
• Her education and graduate studies
• Her career working for a few major government organizations
• What led her to try adaptive sports for the blind
• Her experience competing in blind hockey with the Hartford Braillers
• Her experience as an adaptive runner and her running guide dog from Guiding Eyes for the Blind
• Her volunteer work
• Her advice for anyone in the blind community who has thought about trying sports and recreational activities
• Some important resources for those interested in adaptive sports programs

Learn more about the U.S. Association of Blind Athletes (USABA) at http://www.usaba.org.

For more information on blind hockey, check out https://unitedstatesblindhockeyteam.com/.  

Contact Liz Bottner at pennyforward@pennyforward.com.

The Eyes Free Sports Podcast: Ep. 118 – A Conversation with Alvin Suarez, a Goalball Player and Coach, Beep Baseball Player, and Musician

In Episode 118 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we meet Alvin Suarez from New York City. During the conversation, the longtime adaptive athlete and coach spoke about:

• His early years growing up in New York City
• His visual impairment
• His education attending both mainstream schools and a school for the blind
• His day job and unique side hustle
• His experience playing adaptive sports as a youngster and what drew him back to participating in them well into adulthood
• His journeys in goalball and beep baseball
• His experience as a goalball coach for a women’s team
• His band with other visually impaired musicians and the music they’ve produced

Learn more about beep baseball and the National Beep Baseball Association (NBBA) at http://nbba.org.

Check out his band, Los Ciegos del Barrio, on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/c/losciegosdelbarrio.

Suarez is involved in a fundraiser with the New York Association of Blind Athletes on Wednesday, July 17 at Reif’s Bar at 302 East 92^nd Street, Manhattan, NY. For more info, check out the NYABA Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/p/New-York-Goalball-Sport-for-the-Blind-Visually-Impaired-100063486644438/.

The Eyes Free Sports Podcast: Ep. 117 – A Conversation with Wynter Pingel, a Beep Baseball Player, Runner, and Musician

In Episode 117 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we meet Wynter Pingel from the Boston, MA area. The beep baseball player, runner, and musician talked about:

• Her childhood and attending both mainstream schools and a blind school
• Her education and career, including a job she had with National Braille Press (NBP)
• How she got introduced to adaptive sports for the blind as an adult
• Her experience playing beep baseball and tournaments she has competed in
• Her experience as an adaptive runner and her goals for future races
• Her background in music and her current career as a gigging musician

Learn more about beep baseball at http://nbba.org.

Check out one of the bands Pingel plays in, Connacht, at https://connachtband.com/.

The Eyes Free Sports Podcast: Ep. 116 – Meeting Murray Elbourn, a Longtime Goalball Player, Disability Sports Leader, & CEO of Amerability Services

In Episode 116 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we visit with longtime goalball player and disability sports leader Murray Elbourn. The native of Australia now operates Amerability Services in Washington State. During the interview, Elbourn talked about:

• His early years growing up in Australia
• His vision loss journey and how he had some vision restored as an adult
• How he was introduced to adaptive sports for the blind
• His career and achievements playing goalball
• What led him to move to the United States, back to Australia, and then back to the U.S.
• How he got into blind tennis and his current role with the U.S. Blind Tennis Association (USBTA)
• His coaching experience and why he thinks sports and recreation are essential for members of the blind community, especially children
• Why he started Amerability Services and how this company combines training in independent living skills with blind sports opportunities

Contact Murray Elbourne at amerabilityservices@gmail.com.

Learn more about the U.S. Blind Tennis Association (USBTA) at https://playtennis.usta.com/usbta.

The Eyes Free Sports Podcast – Ep. 115: Meeting Charles Catherine, an Elite Para-triathlete and Co-Captain of the U.S. Men’s Blind Soccer Team

In Episode 115 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we meet Charles Catherine. A native of France, Catherine has become a highly talented para-triathlete who was recently named as one of the captains of the U.S. men’s blind soccer team. During the conversation, Catherine discussed:

• His childhood growing up in France
• His eye condition
• His education and career, including his current role with the National Organization on Disability (NOD)
• His journey to the United States
• How he got into endurance sports, specifically the triathlon
• How he got into blind soccer and his journey moving up the ranks
• How blind soccer works
• What it means to represent the U.S. as a blind soccer player
• Looking ahead to the 2028 Paralympics in Los Angeles
• His musical interests and achievements
• Why he recommends all blind and visually impaired individuals find opportunities to pursue in sports and recreation

Learn more about blind soccer at https://www.usaba.org/clubs-sports/blind-soccer/.

Follow Charles Catherine on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/charles.daddio/.